Summary:
In Laredo, Texas, zip code 78040, there are two middle schools—Christen Middle and Memorial Middle—serving grades 6-8 within the Laredo Independent School District (Isd), an area where over 97% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.
Memorial Middle stands out as the higher-performing school overall, ranking in the 41st percentile statewide compared to Christen Middle's 26th percentile. Memorial outperforms Christen in most core subjects, including 8th-grade math (53.26% proficient vs. 40.63%) and 6th-grade reading (43.81% vs. 39.23%). However, both schools share an extraordinary strength in Algebra I, with Christen achieving a perfect 100% proficiency rate and Memorial at 94.74%—far exceeding the state average of 54.03%. This suggests a highly effective accelerated math program for select 8th graders at both schools. Memorial also spends slightly more per student ($11,354 vs. $10,684) and has a marginally higher student-teacher ratio (14.5 vs. 14.1).
Despite these bright spots, reading remains a consistent challenge, as neither school reaches the state average in any grade level for reading proficiency. Social studies is the weakest subject for both, with scores around 18% compared to the state average of 31.69%. Encouragingly, both schools maintain a very low dropout rate of just 0.2%, well below the district average of 0.6%, indicating strong student retention. For parents, Memorial Middle offers stronger overall academics, while Christen Middle provides a larger student body and a perfect Algebra I track, but both schools face significant work in reading and social studies instruction.
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