by Steffani Carerra ‘14

Based on criteria including standardized test scores, MCPS is regarded as an exceptional school system compared to the national average; it sets a high standard for student achievement by expecting higher scores. Yet, there is a startling disparity when it comes to student performance among MCPS schools, revealed through the 2013 test scores of SAT/ACT standardized tests.

Superintendent Joshua Starr, like his predecessor Jerry Weast, has increasingly responded to the fact that MCPS has an educational gap. While most MCPS schools located in the southern and western portions of Montgomery County produce average SAT scores much higher than 1650, easily surpassing the college readiness mark, a number of schools in the northern and eastern portions come up short of that benchmark.

On the same spectrum as these two extremes are various schools which lie in the middle year after year, such as Sherwood. Sherwood ranked 15 out of 25 among MCPS high schools based on mean SAT scores for the second year in a row, with an average score of 1611 for the Class of 2013 as well as an average ACT score of 23. The average SAT score for MCPS as a whole was 1648, and the average ACT score was 24 for 2013.

Principal Bill Gregory aims to raise scores by shifting attention from SAT/ACT participation, as has been the focus in past years, to students’ performance on standardized tests. “Based on PSAT data, we know which areas need improvement,” Gregory said. “We aim to continue our focus on quality teaching to increase scores.”