Once again I am proud to report that the students here at Green Forest had some of the top scores in the entire state of Missouri on the 2021/2022 MAP Tests. The Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) is designed to measure how well students acquire the skills and knowledge described in Missouri's Learning Standards. The assessments are given in the areas of Math and English Language Arts (ELA) for all students in grades 3-8. Students in 5th and 8th grades also take a science exam. According to the State Department of Education, the assessments yield information on academic achievement, is used to diagnose individual student strengths, weaknesses in relation to instruction, and to gauge the overall quality of education throughout Missouri. Green Forest has a long history of excellence on these exams. Last year (21/22) was no different. While overall state scores decreased, our Mustangs saw a significant increase in Math and ELA. 78.6% of all students grades 3-8 scored proficient or advanced on the Math MAP test. That was the 2nd highest proficient and advanced percentage in the entire state and well above the state percentage of 39.2% in math. This is the second straight year that we have had the 2nd highest proficient and advanced rate of all reported data amongst the 555 districts. This was also a 4% increase overall from 20/21. Our 6th grade math scored 95.3% and 7th grade math scored 93.8% which were both #1 in the state for those ages among reported data. 4th grade math scored 85.7% which was #2. We also once again had a 100% proficient and advanced rate among our 8th grade Algebra 1 students.
ELA scores saw an even larger increase from 20/21 as scores rose here at the Forest by 8%. 65.4% of 3rd-8th graders scored proficient or advanced on the ELA MAP test in 21/22. Of reported data among the 555 districts, this ranked 7th in the entire state and was well above the state percentage of 43.3%. 7th graders had a proficient and advanced rate of 75% which was the 2nd highest among all 7th grade classes in the state that had data reported. The 6th grade class scored 76.2% which put them at #4.
5th and 8th grade classes also take a Science MAP test each spring. 61.5% of our students scored proficient or advanced last spring. This was the 10th highest in the state among all districts with reported data.
I cannot express how much hard work our faculty and staff put into this school each day to provide the best education we can for every student in our care. I am beyond proud of our students and teachers for their success on these achievement tests. However, our success is also due to so many other factors. We are fortunate to have an incredible Board of Education that prioritizes student well-being and academics above anything else. They show great support for teachers and help make the Forest a great place to work and learn. Our support staff works hard every single day to keep our school clean, students fed, and provide instructional supports to our teachers and students that I believe are above and beyond any other district in the state.
Finally, our success truly starts at home and in our community. Students achieve at school when their families at home make school a priority and hold their students to high expectations. Schools can only have the most positive impact on students with support from families in the home. The Green Forest community and families support the school like no other district I have been a part of. Parents and guardians work with school personnel to make education a top priority for every student. These scores reflect just that.
It is a great day to be a Mustang.