Summary:
In zip code 21133, Randallstown, Maryland, there is one middle school, Deer Park Middle Magnet School, serving grades 6 through 8 with a total enrollment of 1,127 students as part of the Baltimore County Public Schools district.
Deer Park Middle Magnet School is a magnet school with a 2-star rating, ranking in the 30th-40th percentile of Maryland middle schools. Its state ranking has fluctuated slightly over the past three years, from 230th to 201st and then to 215th. The school has a student-teacher ratio of 16:1 and spends $16,402 per student. A notable strength is its chronic absenteeism rate of 18.4%, which is significantly better than the district average of 25.6%. However, academic performance shows a stark contrast between subjects: while 42.2% of students are proficient in English Language Arts, only 6.7% are proficient in mathematics, with 7th and 8th grade math proficiency rates dropping to 2.5% and 3.4% respectively. Science proficiency for 8th graders is 22.1%. Over half of the students (55.72%) are eligible for free or reduced lunch.
The most striking finding is the enormous gap between math and English Language Arts proficiency, suggesting a systemic issue with math instruction rather than overall student engagement, especially given the relatively low chronic absenteeism. Interestingly, the small group of students in advanced math courses performs better than the district average in Algebra I (17.5% vs. 13%), highlighting a paradox where accelerated students succeed while the majority struggle with grade-level math. The high per-student spending of $16,402 does not appear to be translating into strong academic outcomes in math and science, raising questions about resource allocation and instructional effectiveness. The school's magnet designation and slight ranking volatility may indicate it is in a period of transition or experimentation with new programs.
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