Best Public Schools in Cliffwood, NJ

The city of Cliffwood, New Jersey is home to two schools - Matawan-Aberdeen Middle School and Cliffwood Elementary School, both part of the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District. While Matawan-Aberdeen Middle School has demonstrated strong academic performance, ranking in the top third of New Jersey middle schools, Cliffwood Elementary School faces some challenges in meeting state proficiency standards.

Matawan-Aberdeen Middle School stands out for its academic achievements, outperforming the state average in English Language Arts and Algebra I. The school's 100% proficiency rate in Algebra I for grades 7 and 8 is particularly impressive. In contrast, Cliffwood Elementary School's English Language Arts and Mathematics proficiency rates for grade 3 fall below the district and state averages, suggesting a need for targeted interventions to improve student outcomes at the elementary level.

Socioeconomic factors may play a role in the performance gap, as Cliffwood Elementary School has a higher percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch (38.33%) compared to Matawan-Aberdeen Middle School (22.67%). Additionally, Cliffwood Elementary School's higher per-student spending ($17,457) and lower student-teacher ratio (11.1) indicate a focus on resource allocation and class size, which could be contributing factors to the school's academic performance. Both schools, however, face challenges with chronic absenteeism rates above the state average, highlighting the need for strategies to improve student attendance and engagement.