For Cambridge's more than 7,800 elementary and secondary school students, test results haven't been so good lately.

Scores for standardized examinations are mediocre, leading some parents and administrators to question whether Cambridge's School Committee is adequately performing its job.

Since Massachusetts school committees have the power of the purse, many educational observers believe the School Committee should be tailoring a solution to Cambridge's problems--including low test scores.

Indeed, Massachusetts's educational reform bill (signed into law in 1993) holds the committees accountable for their district's performances on standardized tests.

However, current School Committee members say they have more pressing problems to focus on, and that they are limited in what they can do to improve test scores.

With elections for the six seats of the School Committee less than a year away, other issues are coming to the fore, including declining enrollment, diversity and parental influence.

Report Card

Although by no means the worst in the state, scaled scores for the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) test administered in 1997 put Cambridge at just below the 50th percentile.

Since 1995, average SAT scores have declined for Cambridge Rindge and Latin School juniors. Mean SAT math scores are a full 35 points below the state average.

And the performance of third graders on the Iowa Grade 3 Reading test shows that while 47 percent of third graders statewide were deemed "proficient" readers, only 38 percent of Cambridge's third graders made that mark.