Lexington and Concord students scored well above the state average on 2026 MCAS exams, but neither district has returned to pre-pandemic levels.
The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System results, released Tuesday, Sept. 22, showed Lexington Public Schools students in grades 3 through 8 at 73% meeting or exceeding expectations in English language arts, according to state data. The statewide rate was 40%. In math, 79% of Lexington students in those grades reached proficiency, nearly double the 41% state average.
Lexington High School 10th graders posted even stronger numbers: 83% proficient in ELA and 89% in math, compared with 45% and 44% statewide.
Concord Public Schools, which serves students in grades K through 8, reported 68% meeting or exceeding expectations in ELA and 70% in math. At Concord-Carlisle High School, 73% of 10th graders met expectations in ELA and 81% in math.
Both districts outpaced the state by wide margins.
Neither appeared on the list of 14 districts that have returned to or exceeded pre-pandemic performance in both ELA and math for grades 3 through 8, according to the Boston Herald. That list included nearby Arlington.
Statewide slide continues
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) released the results at the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education meeting. Statewide, ELA proficiency in grades 3 through 8 fell 2 percentage points from 2025 to 40%, now 12 points below the 2019 pre-pandemic level, according to the state's announcement. Grade 10 ELA dropped 6 points to 45%, landing 16 points behind 2019.
Math held roughly steady. Grades 3 through 8 stayed at 41%, still 8 points below 2019. Grade 8 math was a bright spot, climbing 4 points to 42%.
DESE has not restored pre-pandemic performance in any major subject or student demographic group, the State House News Service reported.
Board of Elementary and Secondary Education member Ericka Fisher called the results a "gut punch." "We are failing 60% of our students and 20% of our schools," Fisher said, according to the Boston Herald.
DESE Commissioner Pedro Martinez pointed to student motivation and weaker academic preparation among incoming high schoolers as factors behind the 10th-grade ELA decline.
Local context
Lexington Superintendent Julie Hackett told the Lexington Observer in November 2025, when the district's prior-year results showed a similar pattern, that the district's results "support continued focus on improving outcomes for certain student subgroups." The district announced a strategy at that time to raise scores and adjust teaching, with a two-year implementation timeline.
Lexington Public Schools cut about 65 full-time positions for the 2026-27 fiscal year to close a budget gap driven by rising healthcare costs and declining enrollment, according to the Lexington Observer.
Statewide, Gov. Maura Healey signed legislation in June 2026 requiring districts to adopt research-backed reading curricula for grades K through 3. The state awarded nearly $24.7 million in August to 71 districts for evidence-based literacy instruction.
The fiscal year 2026-27 state budget includes a record $7.66 billion in Chapter 70 education funding, a $300 million increase.
Chronic absenteeism statewide fell to 17.1% in 2025-26, down from 22.2% in 2022-23, according to Education Secretary Steven Zrike. DESE data showed chronically absent students scored roughly half an achievement level below peers who attended regularly.
Martinez said the state will set new proficiency benchmarks for grades 3 through 8, with a target date of 2031.
