Results from MCA II tests given during the 2008-09 school year indicate that most Staples Motley students are performing better than last year.

The tests, known as the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments, Series II, or MCA II's, are given to determine if schools are making progress toward No Child Left Behind guidelines, which require all students to be proficient in reading and math by 2014.

Students in grades four, five, six and eight increased reading scores from last year's results and in grades three, five, eight and 11 saw improvements from last year's math scores. The biggest increase was the eighth grade, with a 24 percent increase in reading scores and 20 percent increase in math scores, over the 2008 results.

"We are very proud that our students continue to improve and achieve higher test scores," Staples Motley Superintendent Mark Schmitz said.

According to figures released by the Minnesota Department of Education, Staples Motley students exceeded the statewide proficiency averages at three of the seven grade levels in reading and in two of the seven grade levels in math - an improvement from just one grade level in each reading and math last year.

"We still have a lot of work to do to reach 100 percent," Schmitz said, "but this shows how our staff has been working towards improving student achievement. The tests are important because they identify areas that need additional attention."

Students in grades three through eight were required to take both the reading and math tests. Ninth-graders were required to take the writing Graduation-Required Assessments for Diploma (GRAD) test. Tenth-graders were required to take the reading test and 11th graders were required to take the math test (which included the math GRAD test).