ROYAL CITY - Principal Richard Gregoire reports that students were on hand the first day for 1,089 of the 1,098 Measurement of Student Progress tests this year.

"Said another way, for the MSP, testing students attended at a 99.2 percent rate," Gregoire said.

The results of the state testing won't be known for some time, but Gregoire is excited about the chances for improvement over previous  testing.

"Data shows that kids score better when they attend and take assessments with their peers," he said.

This encouraging attendance figure did not occur on its own. Gregoire said Red Rock emphasized attendance and effort in the months leading up to the testing.

"The teachers and support staff provided students with incentives, and the results of those two emphasized issues were amazing," he said.

Students completed the state testing in late May. Third-graders were assessed in reading and mathematics. Writing was added for fourth-graders. Fifth-graders were tested in reading, science and mathematics. The 1,098 tests were taken in a two-week period.

"That's a lot of tests," Gregoire said. "All but 120 of them were taken with students using paper and pencil."

The fifth-graders took their science tests on the computer, a trend to which the state is moving all testing.

MSP is the testing the state uses to determine if schools or districts are making adequate yearly progress.