RICAS scores were released last week, and the results were not great.

Statewide, marks from the 2021 Rhode Island Comprehensive Assessment System tests were down from the 2019 scores, which was the last time students sat for the standardized assessments. 

In Barrington, most schools saw a decrease in scores. For example, Barrington Middle School’s ELA (English language arts) scores fell from 80.5 percent proficient in 2019, to 70.1 percent proficient in 2021. Statewide, RICAS results showed a significant drop, “regardless of grade level, socio-economic status, race, ethnicity or multilingualism,” according to a report from the Rhode Island Department of Education. 

But two schools in Barrington bucked that trend and showed improvement from 2019 to 2021.

At Sowams School, students scored better in math and ELA — 62.7 percent of Sowams students scored at the proficient level in ELA in 2019, but that figure jumped to 66.2 percent in 2021; 45.8 percent of Sowams School students tested at the proficient level in math in 2019, but 71 percent tested proficient in 2021.

That 71 percent proficient mark was the highest for any Barrington elementary school in math, and was, in fact, the highest for any elementary school in the state. 

Sowams School Principal Jim Callahan said the improving scores were a team effort.

“The teachers, the staff, the students — everybody worked very hard,” said Mr. Callahan, who has served as Sowams School principal since 2002. 

Mr. Callahan said scores at Sowams were not so strong a few years back, and the staff built a plan to address the issue.

“We made a concerted effort to bring up the scores,” he said. 

Mr. Callahan said part of the plan had Sowams School students getting better acclimated to computers; the RICAS assessments are administered on computers. Mr. Callahan said the students still worked through problems with paper and pencils, but growing more comfortable with computers made a difference.

“We also spent time on explaining math. We spent time on letting kids learn how to struggle with their work… it was productive struggle… it allows them to work through the hard problems,” Mr. Callahan said. 

Mr. Callahan said he was very pleased to see that all the hard work had yielded such positive results. 

“When I saw the scores, I was really happy,” he said. “I was happy for the staff, for the faculty, for the students. I was even happy for the families (of Sowams School)… It’s a source of pride.”

Barrington Superintendent of Schools Michael Messore said he too was proud to see the Sowams scores. He also said that while some scores dipped a bit in Barrington, the district remains tops in Rhode Island. 

“We still lead the state,” Mr. Messore said during an interview on Monday. “Our teachers have never stopped working hard.”

At Hampden Meadows School, students’ proficiency scores in ELA increased from 61.6 percent in 2019 to 65.7 percent in 2021.