MCAS results released last week show that, compared to other Massachusetts schools, Old Rochester students are above average.

And for local bragging rights, if you stack elementary school scores against each other the numbers show Old Hammondtown School and Center School in Mattapoisett have the best scores in science and English. Marion’s Sippican School earned the highest score in mathematics.

In Marion, 87 percent of students scored a “proficient or higher” in mathematics. In Mattapoisett, 79 percent of students scored “proficient or higher” in science, and 85 percent of students scored proficient in English.

At Rochester Memorial School, the percentage of students that scored proficient or higher in English, mathematics, and science was 72 percent, 68 percent, and 62 percent, respectively.

State averages for all students tested in grades three, four, five, and six were 58 percent for English, 60 percent for mathematics, and 51 percent for science.

At the high school and junior high school the story is the same. Students there beat state averages across the board.

However, a new assessment developed last year shows the junior high school lagging when it comes to meeting state-mandated goals to improve student skills.

This year, MCAS scores were released with a new measurement of a districts’ and schools’ progress, called the “Progress and Performance Index.”

It takes into consideration the rate of student improvement, graduation and drop-out rates, among other factors when determining whether a district or school is improving to meet the ultimate goal: reducing the “proficiency gap” of a school district’s scores as compared to state averages by half by 2017.

The junior high school rated a 65 on the progress and performance index, falling 10 points shy of the state’s 75 point benchmark.

The index measures the improvement that certain student groups make toward its academic goals. Those numbers are figured using seven different indicators over a two-year period. All other district schools met the progress and performance index goal.

“We will push more to raise the number of students who score in the advanced categories when it comes to MCAS testing,” Junior High School Principal Kevin Brogioli said.

Brogioli met with faculty on Monday to discuss improving student test scores. Specifically, addressing “student growth percentile” figures are a priority.

The tool marks a student’s academic progress by comparing changes in a student’s MCAS scores to changes in MCAS scores of other students with similar scores.

“It’s meant to compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges,” Brogioli said.

For junior high school students, the student growth percentile fell short of the state’s goal of 40 percent by a point or two in mathematics and English.

Assistant Superintendent of Instruction and Curriculum Elise Frangos chalked the discrepancy up to “implementation lag.”

The school has implemented a new core curriculum. Frangos said there is increased emphasis on developing student skills in writing, presentation, and mathematics. As those changes are being made, students are adjusting, she said. When those students enter the high school their skills have been honed.

“A student’s education is like tuning an instrument,” she said. “We are always in the process of refining their skills.” Administrators will assess those students that under-performed, she said.

Superintendent Doug White said improving district MCAS scores takes time.

“This is an ongoing work in progress,” he said. “We will continue to align our curriculum with the common core standards and provide assistance to all students as we close the gap.”

At the high school, administrators are seeing progress in many areas.

The number of students in 10th grade who scored well in science increased. From 2010 to 2013 students who scored in the “advanced” category jumped from 16 to 27 percent.

Students who scored proficient stayed almost the same. In 2010, 63 percent of students scored proficient. This year, 62 percent scored proficient.

The increase is similar for 10th grade English students. The number of students earning an advanced score rose from 32 percent to 49 percent from 2010 to 2013.

And though the number of students who scored proficient dropped from 58 percent to 44 percent over the same period, the percentage of students who scored “needs improvement” fell from 10 percent to 6 percent over the three years.

ORR High School students bested state averages in all areas.  A total of 94 percent of students scored proficient or higher on the English exam, compared to 91 percent of students statewide. In mathematics, 91 percent of students scored proficient or higher, compared to 80 percent of the state. In science, 90 percent of students scored proficient or higher, compared to 71 percent statewide.