Wilton tops Connecticut’s state education charts

The Connecticut State Department of Education recently published the results of the 2021-2022 Next Generation Accountability System and Wilton’s school system received top marks, exceeding state averages in all measured categories but one.

Wilton’s school system also scored better than others within its District Reference Group (DRG) of similar school systems and improved over its previous score in the Accountability System. Wilton scored 89.9% out of the total possible points for a school being measured with the system, while the state average on the index was only 69.7%.

Wilton scored an 85% on the 2018-2019 version of the accountability system, showing modest improvement while already being among the top performing districts in the state. The DRG it belongs to is Group A, which includes towns like Darien, New Canaan, Ridgefield and Westport among the school districts of other small but wealthy towns that also scored highly. Darien came in at second with 85.7% and New Canaan at third with 84.9%.

The sole category where Wilton fell behind the state average rating was Arts Access by a narrow margin, earning only 86.9% compared to the state average of 87.4%

Other categories include English Language Arts, Math, Science, Attendance Rates, Physical Fitness, and if students are on track for graduation. The categories are additionally broken down into measures for students across the entire school system and for high-needs students. Wilton schools earned top marks in each category.

Kevin Smith, the superintendent of the Wilton School District, praised the Next Generation Accountability System for emphasizing the performance of the students who need the most help.

“There are factors on that scorecard that really speak to the growth and achievement of kids who the state would classify as high needs,” Smith said. “For us here in Wilton we pay close attention to all of our kids but in the past year in particular I know that we were really able to successfully focus on ensuring that to every extent possible our kids are getting the support they need to meet and exceed grade level standards.”

Smith noted that achieving the high ratings was the result of the efforts of teachers, administrators and support staff working with ingenuity and dedication throughout the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. He also praised them for continuing to work hard despite the continued challenges posed by Covid in combination with a difficult flu season and the rapid spread of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV).

“The most important message I have is how proud I am of our instructional staff and how hard our teachers work,” he said. “I don’t think that’s unique to Wilton, but the more we can take the opportunity to celebrate the amazing work of teachers anywhere the better off we all are.”

Smith emphasized that what set Wilton apart was not a specific style of teaching or a unique set of circumstances, but rather it was a combination of having dedicated staff and sufficient materials. He hoped to continue working with other superintendents across the state to ensure that they all have sufficient resources.

“From a systems perspective that’s probably the main lesson,” Smith added. “You need to provide enough time for teachers to be able to really look at all the information and make good decisions on behalf of kids.”

Smith also wanted to remind the broader community that they are also involved in the performance of students.

“I think in most communities the public school system is the largest consumer of local tax dollars,” Smith said. “So, the idea of the return on investment is one that’s important to me. I’ll speak specifically for Wilton, but I would argue that this measure the Next Generation Accountability System, is a good indicator of a good return on investment for the taxes that people in this community are investing in their public schools.”