Summary:
ZIP code 01562 contains one middle school: Knox Trail Middle School in Spencer, Massachusetts, serving grades 5–8 with 415 students as part of the Spencer-E Brookfield district. Because it is the only middle school in the area, there is no local school-to-school comparison to make — the most useful context is how the school performs against its own district and the state.
Knox Trail ranks 374 of 478 schools statewide (22nd percentile, 1 star), while the district ranks 279 of 351 (21st percentile, 1 star); the school's rank history shows 1 star in 2023–2024, 2024–2025, and 2025–2026. In 2025–2026 MCAS results, all-grade proficiency was 21.45% in ELA, 18.60% in math, 20.11% in science, and 21.50% in 8th grade civics, against state averages of roughly 40–41% in each subject. Math shows the largest gap, at 22.51 percentage points below the state.
The clearest pressure point is 5th grade, which trails the district in ELA (10.96 vs 14.61), math (8.22 vs 10.00), and science (21.92 vs 25.56); 5th grade math at 8.22% proficient is the lowest single score. The relative bright spots are 7th grade ELA at 30.11%, essentially even with the district, and 8th grade, which beats the district in ELA, math, science, and civics — though still below state averages. Year over year, ELA (+1.30 points), math (+0.86), and 8th grade civics (+2.06) improved, while science fell 4.40 points. The student-teacher ratio is 13.6, per-student spending is $15,556 (2020–2021), and free/reduced lunch data is blank, so economic context is unknown.
Thank you for your feedback!