Trending
ALPENA -- Northeast Michigan school districts followed a statewide trend in extreme dips in proficiency on state standardized tests during the coronavirus pandemic, with state education officials noting lower-than-usual participation rates as the virus repeatedly interrupted classroom learning.
Across all Northeast Michigan schools, about 36% of third- through eighth-graders tested proficient or advanced in reading, according to 2020-21 results of the Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress released Tuesday by the state.
That's down from about 41% in the 2018-19 school year, the last time students took the M-STEP. Michigan schools administered the M-STEP test in-person this spring after the U.S. Department of Education declined to waive testing requirements for the 2020-21 school year, as it did for the 2019-20 school year.
Northeast Michigan students scored even worse in math, dropping to 25.5% proficient or advanced last school year, compared to about 32% in 2018-19.
Third- through eighth-graders statewide fared similarly, dropping from 47% to 46% proficient or advanced in reading and from 39% to 34% in math.
The state Department of Education noted that participation in different subjects ranged from 64% to 72%, making comparisons to previous years tricky.
Check out the interactive graphic below. Story continues below the graphic.
Northeast Michigan schools tested 527 fewer students in reading last school year compared to the 2018-19, and 690 fewer students in math.
In Northeast Michigan's small, rural districts, a few students' performance can swing the district's overall performance by many percentage points. The state does not report proficiency if fewer than 10 students in a grade take the test, as was the case in some area schools.
Despite those challenges, some schools posted gains. Hillman Community Schools saw more of its students test proficient or advanced in both reading and math, and Alcona Community Schools saw a higher proficiency rate in math.
Statewide, schools in wealthier districts with the resources to offer more in-person instruction and accommodate a safer in-person test-taking experience were more likely to have higher testing participation. The Michigan Department of Education asserts that groups of students who are historically lower achieving did not have the opportunity to participate at the same rates as some groups of historically higher achieving students.
"The 2020-21 school year was such an uneven year with high health risks for students and staff, inconsistent technology, and variations in teaching and learning across the state," State Superintendent Michael Rice said in a news release. "Any analysis of M-STEP results must factor in low participation rates in state testing."
Michigan took steps to reduce inequalities between school districts by creating a 2022 state budget allocation of $17.1 billion that aims to create more equality in per-student funding between school districts.
Check out the interactive graphic below. Story continues below the graphic.
Also Tuesday, Michigan State University's Education Policy Innovation Collaborative released a report on benchmark data, but also provided insight on the M-STEP test. According to the report, third graders -- who are subject to a state law that requires schools to identify those within that grade with reading and writing struggles -- saw a significant decline in participation.
The report says 96.5% of third graders took the M-STEP English language arts portion for the 2018-19 school year, while only 71.2% took it for the 2020-2021 academic year. Black students were the least likely demographic to take that portion of the M-STEP, the report said.
Also, economically disadvantaged students were less likely to participate than their non-economically challenged peers, the report said.