Old Rochester Regional Junior High School is taking measures to improve its ranking in light of a new accountability system called Progress and Performance Index.

Until recently, Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System, or MCAS testing, was evaluated based on a school’s yearly performance. In February, the state received a waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind policy that changed the former requirements statewide.

“We were required to make a deadline by 2014 that all children would receive proficiency in math and English Language Assessment,” said Elise Frangos, Director of Curriculum and Instruction.

With the federal waiver, the strict requirements have been loosened with the understanding that schools progress towards goals such as ensuring that all students are college and career ready at graduation.

The new evaluation system also calculates how well each school moves towards closing the proficiency gap in English Language Arts, mathematics and now science.

Schools are classified based on their average progress and performance index score for the three areas.

Commendation schools are those with the highest scores followed by levels one to five, five being chronically underperforming schools.

Currently, the school district is at a level two overall with the Junior High, the High School and Marion’s Sippican School at level two. Rochester Memorial School and Mattapoisett’s two elementary schools have level one ratings.

At the ORR School Committee meeting on Wednesday, October 10, Frangos and Junior High Principal Kevin Brogioli reviewed the school’s plans to raise the current score of 68 to a 75 or higher, which shows progress toward narrowing proficiency gaps. The goal is also to raise the high needs students score from 63 to 75.

Brogioli said some changes have already been put into effect this school year and more are planned for the future.

To improve math scores, classes have been changed from 45 minutes to 53 minutes with an added skill remediation period.

The school’s science program will have more hands-on experiments and there are plans to add a science summer reading component.

Regarding English, teachers will use a new writing program as well as new textbooks with more complexity and multi-cultural selections.

The district will continue to monitor the progress of the Junior High and the other district schools throughout the year.