Updated, Oct. 10
The principal of the Martha’s Vineyard’s Regional High School says the school is classified as being in need of state intervention due to a small number of students not participating on MCAS tests.
High school Principal Sara Dingledy identified these subgroups as students from low-income backgrounds, students who are learning English as a second language, students with Hispanic and/or Latino backgrounds, and students with high educational needs.
In Massachusetts, if a school doesn’t meet 95 percent attendance in any one category or subcategory, the state flags the school as being a school in need of intervention.
New statistics reported recently by the state department of education showed the high school is in need of intervention.
“It’s obviously an alarming designation,” Dingledy said. “I think it’s important to understand where it comes from.
“Where we are struggling, and what we have been working really hard to address, is our participation rate specifically in four categories: low-income, Hispanic/Latino, English learners and former English learners, and high needs,” Dingledy said. “In these four categories, the school did not meet the 95 percent participation rate in terms of MCAS testing.”
“Just to be clear, these are eight students who didn’t come to test in 10th grade, and that’s why they have labeled us with that specific designation,” said Dingledy, out of the 198 students enrolled in 10th grade.
Per the state accountability report, the Vineyard has an overall accountability score in the 44th percentile, which means the MVRHS is performing better than 44 percent of schools in the state. This composite score, calculated from MCAS data, graduation rates, student absences, chronic absenteeism, and the school’s progress toward its goals, classifies the school as “requiring assistance or intervention,” and as having made “limited or no progress toward target.”
In 2023, 29 percent of MVHRS students, out of 757 enrolled, spoke a language other than English at home, compared with 9.9 percent of students, out of 766, in neighboring Falmouth High School. Of the 29 percent, 15 percent were learning English. Of Falmouth’s 9.9 percent, 4.6 percent were learning English.
On Nantucket, nearly 40 percent of 586 enrolled high school students spoke a language other than English at home, with 12 percent being enrolled in English language classes. Nantucket High did not require assistance or intervention, scored in the 60th percentile, and was designated as having made “substantial progress toward target.”
Dingledy said that the Island’s overall MCAS scores, relative to the state and neighboring schools like Nantucket and Falmouth high schools, actually met or were higher than pre-pandemic scores.
The high school’s composite 2023 10th grade MCAS score in English language arts came in at 507, matching the 2021 score, but down from 2022’s score of 511.
Per MCAS scores over recent years, more students are scoring higher, but fewer students are passing the exam, and the data indicate those who are not passing are in subgroups.
In 2023, 69 percent of students met or exceeded the achievement goal on the English Language Arts MCAS, compared with 60 percent in 2019. In 2023, 90 percent of 10th grade students passed the ELA MCAS, compared with 93 percent passing in 2019.
Of the 10th grade students who took the test at MVRHS, only 90 percent of English learning students met the participation requirement, 94 percent of low-income students met the participation requirement, and 91 percent of Hispanic/Latino students met the requirement. That means 10 percent of ELL students, 6 percent of low-income students, and 9 percent of Hispanic/Latino students enrolled at the high school did not participate in testing.
Of 198 students enrolled to take the ELA exam, there was a 97 percent overall participation rate, but subgroup participation from former and current English learners (EL), low-income students, and Hispanic/Latino students came in at 90, 94, and 91 percent respectively, falling below the 95 percent minimum.
Of 199 students enrolled to take the math exam, there was an overall 96 percent participation rate. Students with disabilities, former and current EL students, low-income students, high needs students, and Hispanic/Latino students all fell short of the 95 percent subgroup participation minimum.
“We know we need to improve our participation rate,” said Dingledy. “We have some students who we struggle with getting into the building throughout the year. We do need to work in collaboration with the school committee to make some determinations about what we do with students who are chronically absent, because they will hit our participation rate in the end.”
Dingledy said that teachers and staff, particularly the guidance department and the English language learning director for Martha’s Vineyard Public Schools, Leah Palmer, have been working to “keep students who are absent frequently engaged, until we have an alternate option for students to attend.” She openly acknowledged the challenges with the school’s participation rate.
“We just have a dilemma of what to do with students who enroll, who then after a year or two may be moving to work or other circumstances, and how we want that to hit our data,” said Dingledy.
According to data shared by the high school, the dropout rate has remained the same as last year, 1.6 percent.
More information on students, teachers, assessment, accountability, and trends are available at bit.ly/MA_SchoolReports via the department of elementary and secondary education.
I wonder WHY, they do not want to be in school? It is very impressive the way the principal can minimize any negative to divert attention away from what is really happening. I remember reading in the paper, and it was suggested at one time, not sure by whom, that the principal had fewer students tardy but failed to mention the extremely high drop out rates. When do we begin to hold administration accountable. I find it extremely boring that there is always an excuse for failure. On another note, how many kids does 1.6% equate to 11. I went and looked up DESE. Since 2019….. 48 students have dropped out of our high school. Does this not raise red flags to anyone or are “we” just glad it is not our students. The dysfunction does not begin with the students, it begins with administration at the top and their unwillingness to address the Why?
“When do we begin to hold administration accountable”?
When we elect accountable School Board members.
The dysfunction more likely begins at home.
Is there any in your home?
Hi Tina,
Unless there is specific evidence that correlates to a cause, I think we need to give the benefit of the doubt here. If students don’t come to school, short of sending a truant officer to knock on the door, there is going to be absenteeism. Some populations are going to look to enter the workforce early, especially when there is a surplus of high-paying labor jobs available on the island. Until we have specific evidence and testimony supporting the “bad administration” argument, we need to consider every possible explanation equally valid. If I was 16 and expected to enter the labor market directly after graduation at 18, I’d do the math and say “Do I want to spend 2 years in a classroom to get an education I don’t expect to use at the opportunity cost of $76,800?” (based on a 40-hour workweek at $20 an hour for 2 years). Based on that calculus, it’s a miracle the rates aren’t higher.