Derby High School and Middle School students improve ELA, Math scores according to state

DERBY — The city’s school district can count itself as one of the few districts in the state where SAT and other test scores actually rose during 2021-2022, according to the state Department of Education.

Superintendent Matthew Conway stated in a press release the score increase was due to teamwork.

“This accomplishment is a tribute to the resilience, perseverance and grit of the staff and students, who despite the pandemic, returned to full in-person at the beginning of the 20202021 school year as well as staff simultaneously supporting students remotely who were otherwise quarantined, isolated or exposed to COVID,” Conway said.

The department released the scores in late August as part of its 2021-2022 assessment results for the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium. According to Conway, both Derby Middle School and Derby High School saw higher test scores. The district is one of only 15 districts in the entire state that saw improvements in English and math scores, despite the ongoing pandemic. However, overall, both schools continue to fall short of their target performance goals according to the state DOE.

Yet the increased SAT scores were cause for celebration at Derby High School which saw both ELA and math scores improve for the 2021-2022 year. Principal Jen Olson credited the students for the score improvements.

“These results were possible because of the hard work of our students and the many people who support them, especially our teachers, paraeducators and counselors at Derby High School. We are really proud of our students and happy that we are moving in the right direction,” Olson said.

Olson said the school was able to meet the challenges of the pandemic which disrupted in-person learning and only began to return to in-person instruction by 2021. Derby High School had 62 students who took the exams for the 2021-2022 school year. While the percentage of students who met or exceeded the requirements was not publicized due to confidentiality reasons, the average score for the ELA portion of the SAT was 467. The average score for the math section was 432.

Derby High School in contrast, had lower scores for the 2018-2019 academic year. The average ELA score was 463 while the math score was at 423. The overall state average in 2021-2022 for the ELA component was 501. The state average for the math section was 486. The state numbers indeed show average statewide scores dropped compared to the 2018-2019 year, when the average score for the ELA section was 514 and the math section was at 500.

But the district continues to lag behind statewide SAT exam averages. The average statewide ELA score for 2021-2022 was 38 points higher than Derby High School. For math, the state average was even higher in comparison at 63 points.

According to Jim Gildea, chairman of the Derby Board of Education, the district saw room for improvement but was heartened by the higher averages.

“The Derby school system was happy to see the recent increases and success in the area of our SAT scores. While we are never satisfied, it is rewarding to see that the investment we have made in curriculum, instructional support and staff development is paying dividends,” Gildea said.

Derby High School wasn’t the only district school that made improvements. Derby Middle School students made significant strides in English and math. The Commissioner’s Network, which oversees 16 low-performing schools statewide and began to oversee Derby’s school district in 2020, stated the middle school students increased their average scores by 5.5 points. Students also improved their math scores. As a result, Derby led the 16 schools which saw improvements, according to the release.

While the high school and middle school have improved their testing scores, Derby continues to struggle with lower average testing scores compared to state averages. The percentage of students overall in the district for the 2021-2022 school year which met or exceeded the requirements for ELA exams was at 35.5 percent. For math it was 23.5 percent. The state average was at 49.1 percent for the ELA portion and 40 percent for the math section.

Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media Braving the rain, cover band The C-Sides perform from the front porch at 30 Oakland Ave. during the annual Porchfest in Milford on Saturday.

Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media Bridget Magyar, left, and Jill McElligott, both of Milford, watch A Pallet for the Shoal, one of several local bands to perform on Magyar’s East Broadway porch.

Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media DizzyFish, which recently opened for rock legend Steve Miller at the Hartford Healthcare Amphitheater in Bridgeport, performs in the open garage at 32 Milesfield Ave. in Milford.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media file photo An electronic message board at the entrance to Derby High School/Derby Middle School displays the message, ‘Stay safe and keep learning!’ on April 3, 2020.