Middle Schools in Pawtucket

The three middle schools located in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Lyman B. Goff Middle School, Samuel Slater Middle School, and Joseph Jenks Middle School, all exhibit consistently low academic performance compared to the state averages.

The data shows that all three Pawtucket middle schools have significantly lower proficiency rates in English Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science compared to the Rhode Island state averages. For example, in 2023-2024, the state average proficiency rate in 8th grade ELA was 31.9%, while the rates for the Pawtucket schools ranged from only 9.5% to 15.2%. Similarly, the proficiency rates in Mathematics are also very low, with the schools ranging from 6.3% to 8% proficient in 8th grade, compared to the state average of 24.9%.

Furthermore, the Pawtucket middle schools are all ranked in the bottom half of Rhode Island middle schools, with rankings ranging from 48th to 62nd out of 64 schools. They are also all rated 1 or 0 stars out of 5 by SchoolDigger, indicating very low performance compared to other schools in the state. The high free/reduced lunch rates, ranging from 55.78% to 61.9%, suggest these schools serve a significant population of economically disadvantaged students, which may contribute to the low academic achievement. Despite the relatively high spending per student, ranging from $11,352 to $12,407 per year, the schools are still underperforming, raising questions about how the funding is being utilized.