NASHUA — High school NECAP science scores fell short of statewide results.

“While we yielded some positive results, we have some other results that we know need some further work on ...,” Assistant Superintendent Jennifer Seusing told the Nashua School Board Monday night.

Nashua High North 11th-graders have held steady at 20 percent proficiency in science scores over the last three years; Nashua South climbed from 16 percent in 2008 to 29 percent this year.

At the state level, 11th-graders have gone from 22 percent proficiency in 2008 to 33 percent this year.

At the eighth-grade level, 21 percent of the city’s students were proficient in science, a four percent increase from last year, but a three percent decrease from 2008.

“To the credit of all three middle schools, they all showed an increase this year, which was significant,” Seusing said. “We were very pleased with the middle schools. We know that they have put a lot of effort into” preparing for the test.”

Across the state, eighth-graders rose from 28 perfect proficiency last year to 32 percent this year.

At the state level, 53 percent of fourth-graders scored proficient on the test, down from 55 percent last year.

In Nashua, 47 percent achieved proficiency, a decline from 51 percent the year before.

New Searles Elementary, which scored 80 percent proficiency last year, dropped 30 points in 2012.

Superintendent Mark Conrad said some of the fluctuations could be attributed to the “seesaw effect.”

When schools identify a challenge in one area, he said, they dedicate more resources to improving it and neglect other areas.

Seusing highlighted Bicentennial, Ledge Street and Mt. Pleasant Schools for having significant increases, and Main Dunstable, which broke a three-year, 61 percent score by reaching 62 percent.

“When you look at the state results ... they also had taken a dip this year, so that’s worth investigating, and what we will be doing is spending more time with each building administrator of the 12 elementary schools, as well as teacher-leader teams, to investigate where the increases did not occur, and spend more time going deeper into the results,” Seusing said.

A district-level data team will be convening today for its inaugural meeting. The group will work with principals on making use of test findings and boosting scores across the district.

srios@newstote.com