Middleton e-View 236

October 25, 2022

At its October 24 meeting, the Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District Board of Education appointed Catherine Kells (pictured) as its new member for Area II. She was the only candidate to replace Brian Bonti who resigned last month. Area II is the western-most part of the school district and includes Cross Plains and Berry. She will formally join the board after being sworn in at the November 7 meeting and hold the seat until the spring 2023 election.

Academic achievement: The consolation of comparison

School board members were briefed yesterday, October 24, about the results of the Wisconsin Student Assessment System Board Report, a statewide series of tests in English ('English Language Arts' - ELA) and mathematics taken by students in grades 3, 4, 8 and 10. While the statewide results are dispiriting and can be interpreted as a searing indictment of a failing education system, MCPASD officials took some consolation in, and indeed patted themselves on the back for Middleton's results being less miserable than those in most other school districts. There is some comfort in comparing oneself.

The test results are shown in averages across all pupils in their specific grades, and are then broken down by race (Asian, Black, Hispanic/Latino, White and 'two or more races'), 'disability' and 'economic disadvantage'. Overall it seems that the disruption due the pandemic-related school closures is still showing some effects, although it can't hide the fact that our school system has much more significant underlying problems.