The top reported proficiency rate is 11% in English language arts. The lowest is 6% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Oscar F Raymond
Oscar F Raymond is a kindergarten-through-fifth-grade public school in Brockton, Massachusetts, a mid-sized urban city with a dense mix of residential, commercial, and industrial areas. The school sits in a residential neighborhood within a district that has drawn state scrutiny for academic performance and has faced high-profile safety and staffing challenges at its high school. For families considering this elementary school, the core takeaway is that state test scores are extremely low and have been declining over time, a pattern that continues despite the school’s sizable enrollment and diverse student body.
The student body is one of the school’s defining characteristics. The enrollment is large for an elementary school, and the racial and ethnic composition is predominantly Black, with a smaller Hispanic population and a very small share of white students and students of other races. The proportion of students who qualify for free or reduced-price meals was not reported, and neither were rates of students with disabilities or English learners, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those populations and the supports available. What is clear is that the school serves a student community that is overwhelmingly Black and that the surrounding city has a large Cape Verdean American presence and a history as a center for immigrant families.
On state assessments, the picture is plain. The share of students scoring proficient or above in math, English language arts, and science is in the single digits on the most recent testing cycle. This means that the vast majority of tested students are not meeting Massachusetts’ learning standards. The school’s overall proficiency across all tested subjects and grades places it in the bottom tier among districts in Plymouth County. A look at multi-year trends shows that academic attainment has fallen over time. In English, the proficiency rate was around a fifth of students before the pandemic; it has since settled at about a tenth. In math, the decline is steeper, from roughly a fifth pre-pandemic to under a tenth in recent years. The trend line is downward, and the most recent results do not show signs of a rebound. Because the school serves only grades K through five, there is no graduation rate to consider, and the data provided did not include information on chronic absenteeism, discipline, or staffing, all of which a family might want to investigate further with the district.
The district itself, Brockton Public Schools, is under state intervention. In 2025, it was classified as “requiring assistance or intervention,” with the state citing low graduation rates and moderate progress toward improvement targets. Separately, Brockton High School made national news in 2024 after school committee members requested National Guard assistance to address violence and security staffing shortages, a request the mayor opposed. These are district-wide conditions that affect the context surrounding Raymond Elementary, even if they do not directly describe this specific school’s daily environment. A parent considering Raymond may want to ask how these district-level challenges translate into resources, staffing stability, and support at the elementary level.
Brockton itself is a city with a working industrial history, now diversified into healthcare, education, and retail. The housing market in the area is moderately priced relative to Greater Boston, and home values have seen modest annual increases. Plymouth County shows a tight housing market with limited inventory and strong demand, and the typical rent consumes a significant share of household income. The city has commuter rail connections to Boston, local bus service, and a downtown that has been the focus of revitalization efforts. For a family weighing this school, the broader community context offers a dense, diverse urban setting with transportation links, but the local public school system is under significant stress as reflected in the district accountability designation and the test results at this elementary school. A parent will want to visit, ask about academic intervention programs, and understand what is being done to reverse the trend in performance.
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