Spotlight on Success Strong leadership helps schools succeed
“Early in my administrative career, I observed a phenomenal occurrence among students that was directly related to their performance in key areas. The concept I learned is called ‘winning.’ The Reading First grant has made superstars out of students and teachers. The grant has been the catalyst that has changed our campus.”
—Don Ballard, superintendent, Paint Creek ISD
“The combination of proven, research-based reading curriculum and instruction, quality professional development, instructional support, and increased funding has produced improvements in reading ability and TAKS scores for our students. All school districts could benefit from the Reading First model.”
—Guy Nelson, superintendent, Highland ISD
Reading First has created a sense of accomplishment in students and teachers across the state. “Winning” in academics is evident as student performance increases in the area of reading. This success has spread and made an enormous difference in all content areas, with Cisco, Highland, Olney, Paint Creek, and Sonora elementary schools receiving the Texas Education Agency’s (TEA) Recognized or Exemplary rating in 2008. Here are a few examples of the direct impact Reading First has had in these schools.
“All the pieces have come together,” said Donna Stewart, principal at Highland Elementary in Highland ISD. In 2008, Highland Elementary received the TEA’s Exemplary rating, with 56% of the third-graders being “commended” on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) and 100% passage in grades 3-5 in all content areas. In the first administration of the TAKS in 2009, Highland Elementary had 100% passage in grades 3, 5, and 8, with 55% of third-graders being “commended.” Reading First has provided teachers with tools to be highly trained specialists in the areas of reading, intervention, and assessment. “It is a win-win situation for both teachers and students,” Stewart said.
Photo Courtesy of Karen Youngblood, LCC, Olney Elementary School
To improve graphophonemic knowledge (GK) scores, Olney Elementary has developed posters featuring spelling patterns. Second-grade teachers began using the posters shown above 3 years ago and have seen a huge increase in the number of students scoring “developed” in GK on the TPRI. These posters are now used daily in all classrooms from grades 1 to 3.
Louise Dermody, principal, and Jami Chavarria, local campus coach (LCC) at Sonora Elementary in Sonora ISD, attribute solid data collection and analysis as the success catalyst for teachers and students. “The implementation of benchmark testing and progress monitoring, combined with the use of grouping mats and data grids, has assisted our staff in analyzing data,” Dermody said. “The data attest to the fact that we are producing readers who are more capable, confident, and successful than the years prior to Reading First.”
Troy Batts, principal at Olney Elementary in Olney ISD, credits Reading First with Olney Elementary receiving TEA’s Gold Performance Acknowledgement and Recognized rating the past 3 years, the reduction in special education population from 19.9% in 2004-2005 to 9.1% in 2007-2008, 44% of third-graders being “commended” on the TAKS in 2008, and 46% being “commended” on the first administration in 2009.
Beverly Harrell, LCC at Cisco Elementary in Cisco ISD, takes professional development presented by Kathy Balch, reading technical assistance specialist (RTA), to a higher level by creating grade-level meeting agendas featured in the Elements of Understanding modules and the Graphophonemic Knowledge Word Analysis charts. Cisco Elementary has enjoyed rates of 45% of its students being “commended” last spring on the TAKS, 94% passing the first administration in 2009, and 52% being “commended” in 2009. Cisco Elementary continues to be visited by Reading First and non-Reading First districts to observe classroom instruction.
Nan Sublett, LCC at Paint Creek Elementary in Paint Creek ISD, sees a real difference in the students. About 40% of Paint Creek Elementary’s students were “commended” on the 2008 TAKS, 100% of its third- and fifth-graders passed the first administration in 2009, and 73% of its third-graders were “commended” in 2009. By using the data to plan instruction, teachers have been able to provide appropriate instruction to improve students’ reading skills. One student, who emigrated from Russia at age 5, transferred to Paint Creek in third grade and was reading on first-grade level. This student passed the TAKS on the first administration, in the spring of 2008.
As the data show, improving academic performance starts with strong leadership from the superintendents, principals, LCCs, and quality teachers. When students are given the right tools, they can compete with the best.