The results of the PARCC exam are in and Old Regional Junior High School students showed growth in many areas, Principal Kevin Brogioli said at Wednesday night's School Committee meeting.

Last year was the first time students took the PARCC assessment, which stands for Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers. The timed test has individual exams for English language arts and math, and was piloted last year as a potential replacement to the long-standing MCAS. The exam was taken online.

“This is an on demand assessment so this is a big shift,” Assistant Superintendent Dr. Elise Frangos said.

Although the state education department recently ruled that students will take a new test called MCAS 2.0, combing elements of MCAS and PARCC, the recently released scores show that the seventh and eighth grade classes are moving in the right direction.

“I like the trend that we’re on,” Principal Kevin Brogioli said.

For the seventh grade English language arts scores, 74 percent of students scored in the highest two levels, levels 4 and 5, compared to 61 percent at the state level.

The student growth percentage, which calculates improvements over time, was only 39 percent compared to 50 percent at the state level. Brogioli said growth in the 40 to 60 percentage range is the goal.

The reading and writing sections, however, are all well above the state levels.

The eighth grade ELA scores showed high growth percentages at 48 percent, 2 percent lower than the state average.

Additionally, 73 percent of students scored in levels 4 and 5 versus 64 percent in the state.

Brogioli listed the high writing scores in the ELA portion of the tests as a point of pride. He also said high need students scoring in advanced rose 10 percent, compared to similar MCAS scores.

For the seventh grade math scores, Brogioli said, the growth percentages were healthy overall.

“I think that was fairly strong across the board,” he said.

Brogioli said improving math scores was a big focus last year.

“I think we did a lot of work and it paid off,” he said.

Sixty-eight percent of students scored in level 4 and 5, compared to 45 percent at the state level. The scores put the junior high in second place in its cohort of 11 similar schools in the state.

The eighth grade also showed “strong growth” on the math exam. Eighty-nine percent of the students who took the algebra I exam scored in levels 4 and 5. (Those students were enrolled in algebra I at school.)

Of those who took the general math exam, 67 percent scored in levels 4 and 5 versus 53 percent in the state.

Brogioli said the scores “hit it out of the park.”

In math as well, high need students saw a 10 percent increase in scoring advanced.

Although MCAS 2.0 is on the horizon, it will not be administered until 2017. This school year, junior high students will again take PARCC, and it should be easier this year, at least logistically.

Brogioli said the addition of more computers at the school means each grade can take a test at one time.

The faculty will also work to improve gaps and meet standards to continue improving scores.

Said Superintendent Doug White, "We are getting better. We are moving in a good direction and that work will continue."