Results Sgp Student Growth Percentiles (SGPs) measure how much students have improved on this year’s MCAS exam relative to academic peers in a particular subject area. Calculated using the same statistical method used for MCAS scale scores, SGPs provide us with insight into whether any two students achieved equivalent scale scores for one subject but differing SGPs due to differences between academic peer groups. For instance, A and B might both score 100 on that subject’s scale score but have different SGPs due to being part of different academic peer groups.

SGPs can also be aggregated to assess growth at both school and district levels. However, averaged figures can fluctuate more due to their smaller sample of available data.

Parents and educators need to understand how to interpret Student Growth Profiles (SGPs). Unfortunately, learning this new information takes time and effort – which is why OSPI has developed three guides with guidance for administrators, educators, and students on this process.

Each guide offers an introduction to the SGP model, samples of three growth reports and questions for examining students’ progress in specific subject areas. Furthermore, Administrators, Educators and Students Guides each provide prompts on how to incorporate this tool into classroom routines; all three can be downloaded as PDF documents from MCAS Growth’s website.

As well as SGP Guides, many technical resources are also available to schools and districts for understanding new student growth measures. These resources include videos, webinars, presentations and online materials presented by teachers from across the state who possess extensive expertise in understanding SGPs. The MCAS Advisory Panel often hosts such videos or webinars.

By using SGP measures, we are now able to compare our performance against that of other states and districts, which allows us to identify best practices while learning from others what’s working as we strive to improve efforts. This powerful aspect of the new system will act as a catalyst for change: as more students leverage SGP data we will be better equipped to help all reach their maximum potential and achieve their academic dreams. Thank you for being part of this important journey together as we ensure each child reaches his or her fullest potential; we look forward to continuing collaborations so SGPs become part of education here in Washington state!