District Expects Curriculum Revamp to Improve Student Performance in Burlington

The results of the state's standardized assessment for public school students (the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System, or MCAS) are in, and at last night's School Committee Meeting, Assistant Superintendent, Dr. Lisa Chen, summarized student performance in Burlington and the plan for the future.

Overall, the trend for students was slightly down over all subject areas, a trend which aligned with the overall state performance. Burlington's average performance, however, was slightly above the state's in nearly every category, which is consistent with previous years, but fell short in writing at several grade levels. Student growth remained in the average range, which means the average student is progressing at an average pace. However, "A lot of our students have to make more than a year's worth of growth in a year's worth of time" over multiple years, says Superintendent, Dr. Eric Conti, before the district will see a rise in achievement numbers.

Chen, along with School Committee Chair, Christine Monaco, reinforced that the curriculum review that has been ongoing since Chen joined the district in mid-2023 is a years-long process aimed at enhancing the quality of instruction, which is expected to translate to student performance. The district plans to adopt new K-8 core curricula for both math and English-language arts, increase opportunities for growing in math skills with the addition of algebra at the 8th grade level, and overhaul the writing curriculum. Teachers will also be trained in administration and analysis of benchmarking assessments so they can keep better track of where kids are, and the math department has identified Power Standards from grades K-12 that carry through the years and form the foundation of deep math knowledge; interventions will be focused around these standards, in an attempt to ensure students are mastering those in order to be prepared for future years.

Science performance took a dip this year, and might be attributed to a decrease in instructional time after the addition of a social-emotional curriculum. "We must have a social-emotional curriculum," said Chen, as "it's important for any achievement," and she applauded the efforts of Science Specialist and K-5 Social Studies chair, Sean Musselman, to introduce cross-curricular literature so kids can learn the science in the context of their other subjects.

The performance of students with disabilities, students with low-income backgrounds, and English learners was substantially below the average performance in nearly every category, and Dr. Chen emphasized the need to ensure all students are getting their needs met. She reinforced her feeling that strong and aligned Tier 1 (general) instruction will better achieve this aim, improving student achievement across the board but especially with these subgroups whose performance has lagged their peers.

Board member, Katherine Bond, brought up the fact that many of Burlington's English learners come with little educational experience. While Dr. Conti says these newcomer students have experienced significant growth thanks to the work of the Multi-Lingual Learner Department, he acknowledges that this, coupled with student mobility (some students arrive in high school and are evaluated on their performance after being in Burlington for as little as a year or two) is one more factor that complicates analysis of MCAS results. About 7% of the 1,834 students who took MCAS are classified as English Learners.

Also at School Committee:

• Homecoming will be on November 22, and high school students are planning holiday-themed babysitting nights.
• Repairs have been made at Fox Hill following public participation at Recreation Department meetings.
• The scope for the new sports fields at Marshall Simonds will include an accessible ramp, the fields themselves, landscaping, netting, lights, and seating; the project is on track to open for the 2025-26 school year.
• Pigs from the Pigs on Parade installation from the Sculpture Park will be allowed to be placed at each elementary school and at the high school; the vote was 3-1 and after an amendment not to allow a QR code leading people to the Sculpture Park.
• A middle school musical will be established beginning this school year; this year's show will be paid for by re-allocating stipends that are currently allocated but not being used.
• Several options for a new or renovated high school building were presented to the High School Building Committee, and some were struck out. More about this later.
• One bus will be added to the high school to support morning drop-off; this configuration will be re-evaluated to ensure it is meeting the goal of getting kids to school with enough time to have breakfast and get to homeroom.
• A facilities master plan is underway, though exactly how costs are assigned and how detailed it's going to be is still being worked out. This will be filled out more fully through the FY26 budgeting process, which will begin in the coming months.