The data sgp project seeks to assemble and generate multi-proxy sedimentary geochemical data (iron, carbon, sulfur, major and trace metal isotopes) for each Paleozoic Epoch. The data sgp project will generate geochemical models and perform synthesis of this data for use in research, education, and sustainable supply chain applications. The geochemical models are constructed using a diverse range of techniques, including inverse modeling and Bayesian inference.

The project is in the process of obtaining funding to expand its scope to include data collection and analysis for all of the geological time intervals within the 25 Ma Neoproterozoic epoch. The goal of data sgp is to produce a high quality geochemical database of global importance.

A student growth percentile, or SGP, is a statistic that describes how much a student’s academic skills improved from one year to the next as compared to their “academic peers.” Academic peers are students in the same grade and subject who have similar MCAS score histories; they do not have to be members of the same subgroup, such as demographics or program participation. The SGP model uses a statistical procedure called quantile regression to place each student’s scores on a normative scale so that it is possible to identify a percentile rank, which tells us whether the student scored more than, less than, or the same as their academic peers.

Student SGPs are calculated by comparing a student’s assessment scores to those of their academic peers. The model uses a statistical technique called quantile regression to place each student’s assessment scores on a normative scale so that we can determine how much the student’s performance improved from one year to the next as a percentage of their academic peers. The SGP is reported as a number between 1 and 99, so we know that the student either grew more than or the same as 85 percent of their academic peers. For more information about how the SGP is calculated, please see the technical resources on the Student Growth District and School Resources webpage.

For more information on how to interpret a student’s growth report, we recommend that you review one of the stakeholder-specific guides, which contain sample growth reports for administrators, educators, and families. The guide for teachers outlines how to use the growth report as part of a continuous improvement cycle and provides sample questions to help educators analyze their students’ progress toward proficiency.

In fall 2024, teachers with at least two years of mSGP data will earn a score based on either their most recent year’s results or the median of their previous two years’ results, whichever is higher. We will use the most recent year’s results for all future calculations, so this is the best indicator of a teacher’s growth in their classroom.

Students who are in the same grade and test subject for all three years will receive a growth score in each of those years. This is a new measurement of student achievement, distinct from the Star assessment, which measures only student achievement in one year.