Mpls. students head back to school, assessment scores flat

Interim Minneapolis Superintendent Michael Goar is confident his district is on the right track as it begins the first year of a five-year plan to increase student achievement.

Monday was the first day back at school for students in the district.

Goar hopes an effort to boost reading proficiency among younger students, and to give some schools more control over curriculum, schedules, and hiring helps increase test scores in coming years.

"We are very excited to have our kids back and teachers back and we think we have a clear and coherent pathway that exists in Minneapolis Public Schools," Goar told MPR News host Tom Weber.

Consistent with statewide trends, assessment test scores among Minneapolis students were flat last year.

Minneapolis is among a handful of districts in the state that start classes in late August. Most Minnesota schools open after Labor Day.