The top reported proficiency rate is 42% in Math. The lowest is 34% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Mary K. Goode Elementary School
Mary K. Goode Elementary School serves first through fifth grade in Middleborough, a sprawling town of cranberry bogs, residential subdivisions, and light industry southeast of Boston. It is one of two elementary schools in the district at this grade band, alongside Henry B. Burkland Elementary. Kindergarten is housed separately at the Memorial Early Childhood Center. The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet.
State testing results from the most recent year show that in math, a modest share of students met the proficiency standard, while in English language arts the share was smaller. Science results, which are reported only for one tested grade, fell between those two. Compared with other elementary schools across Plymouth County districts, the school’s combined proficiency across all tested subjects sits below the midpoint. Multi-year data for the school’s own trajectory shows some variation: math proficiency fluctuated in a range over the past several years, with recent results close to the middle of that range. English language arts results also moved within a band, settling near the lower end in the most recent years. Parents looking for a single trend line may want to ask the school about how the district’s recent shift to a science-of-reading literacy curriculum, which began in the 2023-2024 school year across all elementary grades, might affect future outcomes.
Enrollment is moderately sized for a grades 1-5 building, and the student body is predominantly white, with smaller shares of students who are Hispanic, Black, Asian, American Indian, or multiracial. Data on the share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals, on students with disabilities, and on English learners were not available. A parent considering this school may wish to ask the school’s principal directly about the level of economic diversity and the availability of special education and English language support, since those factors shape the peer environment and the kinds of resources a child can access.
The school sits in Middleborough, a town that is the second-largest in Massachusetts by land area. Much of it is rural and car-dependent, with the main commercial village around the town hall and library. Housing values in the area are elevated relative to national benchmarks, and the local market has been active. The town’s economy is anchored by health care, food service, and manufacturing, with cranberry agriculture and the Alden Shoe Company as historic touchpoints. Growth has been incremental rather than rapid.
At the district level, two changes are directly relevant to families at Mary K. Goode. First, voters approved a borrowing measure in 2025 to build a combined middle-high school, expected to open in 2029, which will replace the current separate middle and high schools. That project will carry a property tax increase for homeowners over a number of years. Second, the district adopted a five-year strategic plan beginning in 2022, with pillars that include academic excellence, social-emotional learning, and expanded STEM offerings. The elementary literacy curriculum overhaul is part of that plan. For a family enrolling now, the elementary years will be taught under the new literacy approach, and the later years will see a new secondary facility.
What is absent from the available data may be as informative as what is present. Because this school covers only grades 1 through 5, there is no graduation rate, no chronic absenteeism data, and no high school course access to report. There are also no discipline records or staffing ratios in the data profile. A parent who wants a fuller picture of school climate, class sizes, or how the school supports students who are struggling academically should expect to gather that information directly from the school or district.
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