Best Middle Schools in Zip Code 37072

There is just one middle school in zip code 37072 (Goodlettsville, TN) – Goodlettsville Middle School – which serves grades 6 through 8 with 447 students as part of Metro Nashville Public Schools. Since this is the only middle school option in the area, its performance defines the quality of middle school education available to local families. The school ranks in the 11th percentile of Tennessee middle schools for both 2024–2025 and 2025–2026, placing it in the bottom 11% statewide. While that is an improvement from the 6th percentile in 2023–2024, the school still faces significant academic challenges across every subject and grade level.

Academically, proficiency rates lag far behind both the district and state averages. In 2025–2026, just 16.5% of students were proficient in math, 15.5% in English Language Arts, 21.1% in science, and 20.2% in social studies. By comparison, the district posted rates of 32.4%, 31.8%, 35.4%, and 42.1% respectively, while Tennessee statewide averages were even higher. The school's strongest subject is science, especially in 6th grade (29.1% proficient), while its weakest areas are 8th grade science (13.2%) and 8th grade ELA (13.6%). On a positive note, 8th grade math (21.4% proficient) comes closest to the district average, just 4.7 points behind. Year-over-year, ELA, science, and social studies have shown improvement, though math declined by 2.1 points.

Two notable bright spots stand out. First, chronic absenteeism at Goodlettsville Middle School is 17.8%, which is better than the district's 23.3% and slightly better than the state's 18.3% – meaning attendance is not the main driver of low scores. Second, the school spends $17,514 per student, which is substantial funding. The combination of high spending, decent attendance, and persistently low test scores suggests the school faces challenges beyond simple funding or attendance issues. For parents, the key takeaway is that Goodlettsville Middle School is a school with real struggles but some signs of progress, including relative strength in 8th grade math and 6th grade science, and recent improvement in three of four core subjects.