Maryland releases assessment overview; ELA rebounds while math lags and MSDE proposes temporary accountability tweaks

Maryland education officials told the State Board on Jan. 24 that statewide English‑language arts scores have largely rebounded to pre‑pandemic levels while mathematics shows persistent declines, prompting MSDE to propose one‑year technical adjustments to the accountability calculations used in school report cards.

State assessment staff summarized results: combined ELA (grades 3–8) returned to roughly pre‑pandemic proficiency levels (about 44 percent) and grade 10 ELA was reported at about 53 percent. In contrast, grade‑level and Algebra I math proficiencies were lower than in the 2018–19 baseline, with larger relative declines for some student groups.

MSDE said that missing assessments in 2020 and 2021 complicate growth and accountability calculations. The U.S. Department of Education granted the state an addendum allowing one‑year, non‑binding adjustments. For chronic absenteeism (an accountability component worth up to 15 points), MSDE proposed temporarily rescaling point bands so the 2022 distribution better matches the 2019 baseline (for example lowering the threshold to qualify for full points for this year only). For growth, MSDE proposed a value‑table approach that awards points based on movement between performance levels (e.g., moving up one or more performance levels earns additional points), a method MSDE said is clearer and better suited to the available cohort data.

MSDE previewed new public reporting tools to help educators and families drill into student‑level and item‑level results, including an individual student report, school evidence statements, and item analysis rosters. The department highlighted a use case: by identifying students just below proficiency, schools can target instruction on particular standards or items that would likely raise many students to proficiency with targeted remediation.

Board members and presenters discussed chronic absenteeism increases tied to pandemic quarantining and noted some changes to home/school behaviors that may persist. MSDE said it will publish the 2022 Maryland school report cards in February and provide guidance on the one‑time accountability adjustments.