|
|
The number of students meeting state standards at school districts in Pipestone County is lower than state averages in most cases, according to the recently released results of the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs) that were taken in the spring. The lone exception was that a greater percentage of students at Russell Tyler Ruthton (RTR) met the state standards in math.
Assessment data also showed that a greater percentage of students at the Edgerton Public School District met state standards in math and reading in 2025 than in 2024. Meanwhile, the percentage of students meeting standards in math and reading declined at Pipestone Area Schools (PAS) and RTR. However, RTR still had the greatest share of students meeting standards in both subjects among the three school districts in Pipestone County.
At RTR, 47.2 percent of students met standards in math and 45 percent met standards in reading. At Edgerton, 39.9 percent met standards in math and 38.5 met standards in reading. At PAS, 28.1 percent met standards in math and 39.2 percent met standards in reading. Statewide, 45.2 percent of students met standards in math and 49.6 percent met standards in reading.
Edgerton Superintendent and Elementary Principal Keith Buckridge said the improvements there might have been the result of elementary teachers looking at math data from last year to identify areas where scores were low and focusing on those areas. Regarding reading, he said the school district is in its third year of using the current curriculum and has been focusing on phonics in the younger grades.
At PAS and RTR, the superintendents and other staff cited a variety of factors that could have contributed to fewer students meeting the state standards this year, such as students not taking the assessments seriously, changing demographics and lingering effects from the disruptions during the pandemic. They said the school districts use MCA data and other measures such as attendance, graduation rates, other assessments and academic progress in the classroom to look for areas where changes are needed and help students succeed.
Science data is typically released along with math and reading data, but the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) indicated that science assessment results will be released later this fall due to the implementation of revised standards.
According to MDE, the MCA data provides a snapshot of student learning and is one of several tools used to understand how students are doing as part of the North Star Accountability Report, which is part of the state’s federal Every Student Succeeds Act plan. The North Star Accountability Report, which was released with the MCA results, evaluates schools and school districts every three years on five key indicators including academic achievement, student growth over time, progress toward English language proficiency, consistent attendance and graduation rates. Below is a summary of how local schools measured based on those indicators.
Student growth
Edgerton students showed the most growth in 2025, according to the data, with 16.4 percent of students improving their achievement levels, 38.8 maintaining their achievement levels and 44.8 percent having decreased achievement levels or remaining in the “does not meet standards” category in math. In reading, 22.4 percent of Edgerton students improved their achievement levels, 32.8 percent maintained their achievement levels and 44.8 percent had decreased achievement levels or remained in the “does not meet” category.
At RTR, 11.1 percent of students improved their achievement levels, 52.1 percent maintained their achievement levels and 36.8 percent had decreased achievement levels or continued to not meet standards in math. In reading, 14.2 percent improved their achievement levels, 42.1 percent maintained their achievement levels and 43.8 percent had decreased achievement levels or continued to not meet standards.
At PAS, 9.3 percent of students had improved achievement levels, 28.8 percent maintained their achievement levels and 62 percent had decreased achievement levels or continued to not meet standards in math. In reading, 12.8 percent improved their achievement levels, 37.9 percent maintained their achievement levels and 49.4 percent had decreased achievement levels or continued to not meet standards.
Statewide, 13.7 percent of students improved their achievement levels, 42.2 percent maintained their achievement levels and 44.1 percent had decreased achievement levels or continued to not meet standards in math. In reading, 18.7 percent improved their achievement level, 41.9 percent maintained their achievement level and 39.4 percent had decreased achievement levels or continued to not meet standards.
English language proficiency
At PAS, the average progress toward target for English language learners was 45.9 percent and 25 percent met their target. At Edgerton, the average progress toward target was 39.5 percent and 21.6 percent met their target. Comparable data were not available at RTR. Statewide, the average progress toward target was 46.2 percent and 27.9 percent met their target.
Graduation rates
The four-year graduation rates for 2025 have not yet been released, but in 2024, 96.5 percent of RTR seniors graduated, 85.2 percent of Edgerton seniors graduated and 84.6 percent of PAS seniors graduated. Statewide, 84.2 percent of seniors graduated in 2024.
Consistent attendance
The most recent data from 2024 shows that 90.6 percent of Edgerton students attended school regularly, 90.4 percent of RTR students attended school regularly and 77.3 percent of PAS students attended school regularly. Statewide, 75.5 percent of students attended school regularly.
The North Star system identifies schools that will receive targeted support over the next three years based on those indicators. This year, 310 schools were identified and none of them were in Pipestone County.