Montgomery County students posted their final MCAP scores on Tuesday, and the numbers tell a split story: overall gains in reading, math, and especially fifth-grade science, but persistent gaps for Black, Latino and special-education students that no amount of incremental progress has closed.

The results, released Tuesday during the State Board of Education meeting, also mark the end of an era. Maryland is retiring the MCAP for grades 3 through 8 and replacing it with a new test called MSTAR starting in spring 2027.

For families at Churchill, Wootton and Hoover, these are the last scores under a system they've tracked since 2022.

The numbers

MCPS students hit 58.5% proficiency in English language arts, up from 57% a year earlier, and 36.9% in math, up from 35.7%, according to Bethesda Magazine. The standout: fifth-grade science jumped 8.5 percentage points in a single year, reaching 40.1% proficiency. Eighth-grade science dipped slightly, from 40.5% to 40%.

"We are far from finished, but this is really encouraging progress," Superintendent Thomas Taylor said Tuesday. "These results demonstrate clear momentum in areas like science and literacy."

The district outperformed statewide averages in every tested subject. Maryland's overall ELA proficiency was 51.7%; math was 27.1%.

The gaps that haven't closed

District-wide, 50.1% of Black students and 36.2% of Latino students met ELA proficiency standards, compared to 81.9% of white students and 79.2% of Asian students. That's a 31-point gap between Black and white students and a 43-point gap between Latino and Asian students.

Students with disabilities fared worse. Statewide, just 14.6% hit ELA proficiency and 7.7% reached math proficiency, according to Maryland State Department of Education data.

County Councilmember Will Jawando, chair of the Education and Culture Committee, addressed the broader pattern on Friday, July 24, in response to a separate budget-equity report. "No one's denying that our students with disabilities or students of color are not achieving and not having the access to resources that they need," Jawando told Bethesda Magazine. "Unfortunately, it's kind of like talking past each other."

What MSTAR means for Potomac families

The Maryland System of Testing Academic Readiness will replace MCAP for third through eighth graders beginning with the spring 2027 testing window, which runs March 29 through May 28, 2027. High school assessments stay on MCAP through the 2026-27 school year; the high school transition begins in 2027-28.

MSTAR will be roughly 25% shorter than MCAP. Students will sit for three sessions per subject instead of four, according to WBAL-TV. State education leaders told WBAL-TV the new test is not easier; it reflects updated curriculum standards, including a phonics-based approach to reading.

What's next

Families can look up school-level MCAP results on the Maryland Report Card at reportcard.msde.maryland.gov. The MCPS school year begins in late August, and the Education and Culture Committee is expected to discuss the district's achievement gaps in fall 2026.