Summary:
Zip code 21047 in Fallston, Maryland, is home to a single middle school, Fallston Middle School, which serves grades 6 through 8 and is part of the Harford County Public Schools district. This school stands out as an academic powerhouse, consistently ranking in the top 10% of all Maryland middle schools and earning a 5-star rating from SchoolDigger for two consecutive years. With an enrollment of 1,068 students, it dramatically outperforms its district in nearly every academic metric, making it a flagship school within the area.
Key metrics reveal a school with strong resources and high performance. The student-teacher ratio is a favorable 15.5:1, and spending per student is $14,427. The free/reduced lunch rate is very low at 12.08%, and chronic absenteeism is just 12.0%, significantly lower than the district average of 18.5%. Academically, the school excels in English Language Arts with an 81.9% proficiency rate, which is 30 percentage points above the state average. In mathematics, overall proficiency is 41.8%, and 8th-grade science proficiency is an impressive 56.9%, far exceeding state and district averages. The school's state ranking has also improved each year, moving from 37th to 26th over the past three years.
One of the most interesting findings is the "math cliff" in 8th grade, where standard math proficiency drops to just 9%. This is because the most advanced students take Algebra I and Geometry for high school credit, achieving exceptional proficiency rates of 53.2% and 65.7%, respectively. This indicates a strong advanced coursework program that prepares students well for high school. The school's consistent upward trend in rankings and test scores, combined with its low poverty indicators and high academic performance, points to a culture of continuous improvement and a highly effective educational environment for middle school students in this zip code.
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