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Elementary
Success Stories
Taylor Ray Elementary Beats the Odds, Achieving Near-Perfect Proficiency
Story posted February 26, 2009. Results updated August 31, 2010.
Results:
• In 2010, more than 99% of 3rd, 4th and 5th graders met state proficiency standards in math, and more than 94% of 3rd, 4th and 5th graders did so in reading
• In 2010, 100% of 5th graders met state proficiency standards in science
• For the past four years, student proficiency rates have been at or above 88% in all subjects tested (reading, writing, math, and science)--and with one exception, at or above 93%
The numbers tell the odds facing Taylor Ray, a largely Hispanic elementary school in Rosenberg, Texas, 25 miles southwest of Houston: Three-fourths of its 701 students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch; more than one-quarter are English language learners; 13 percent have special needs; and nearly one in five transfer each year.
But the numbers also confirm that the school is thriving: According to preliminary 2008 adequate yearly progress (AYP) data, a remarkable 98 percent of ...
Story posted February 5, 2009
Results:
• School-wide increases in reading and math test scores for the past three years
• In mathematics, the school has outperformed the district for the past two years, even though it serves a significantly higher portion of free and reduced-price lunch students
For decades, the Payne Phalen neighborhood in St. Paul, Minnesota, housed generations of immigrants and provided solid factory jobs. However, between the mid-1980s and the mid-1990s, the neighborhood lost more than 2,500 industrial jobs, and between 1980 and 1990, child poverty increased by 800 percent, according to the U.S. Census.
In the late 1990s, the city of St. Paul began efforts to revitalize the neighborhood through housing and business investment initiatives. As a part of this revitalization, St. Paul Public Schools decided to build a new elementary school where a high school had long stood empty. In partnership with ...
From Fire Trucks to the Federal Court: An Academic Edge for Low-Income Students
Story posted October 30, 2008. Results updated October 25, 2011.
Results:
• In 2011, over 95% of 3rd, 4th and 5th graders met state standards in reading
• In 2011, over 95% of 3rd, 4th and 5th graders met state standards in math
• Named a 2008 Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education
"There's not a minute to be lost." That's the mantra in many high-needs schools today, where the pressures of high-stakes accountability have reduced the time spent on "untested" subjects and activities like art, music, drama and physical education. And perhaps no brand of school fun has taken the drubbing given to the venerable Field Trip in recent years. Trips away from school often take most or all of the day, and a day lost from intensive instruction (and test preparation) is no small matter to the principals of high-needs schools, where children often have a lot of catching up to do. ...
Story posted July, 2008
Results:
• In 2005, 89% of students passed the Massachusetts math exam, up from less than 50% in 1999
• Now ranked in top 5% of Boston public schools on reading and math scores
In 1999, shortly before principal Mary Russo arrived at the Richard J. Murphy K-8 School in Dorchester, Mass., more than half the students failed the state math exam. Russo's mandate was to boost student achievement. To do so, she focused on establishing collaborative professional development practices that would help teachers learn from each other and work toward a common goal. With better instruction, she reasoned, those test scores would go up.
Teachers at Murphy now spend three times as many hours on professional development as the district requires. Every public school teacher in Massachusetts must ...
Using Incentives to Motivate Students
Story posted June 2, 2008
Results:
• Substantial decrease in discipline visits to the principal's office
• Increased homework completion rate
• Average number of participating students increased from 100 to between 250 and 300 each month
Cameron Elementary School in Barstow, CA, serves a very diverse population-almost half are Hispanic and a quarter are African-American. Over 70% of students receive free or reduced lunch. School staff faced a daunting challenge: getting students to want to come to school and learn.
Cameron staff wanted to show students, especially those with behavioral issues, about how beneficial and rewarding learning can be. In 2005, former Principal Shirley Lester came up with an idea: a monthly "Principal's Prize"-special events for students who are doing well. With the collaboration of the principal and the PTA, the Prize became a reality that has continued through Ms. Lester's retirement and into current Principal Delton's term. ...
Transforming a School's Culture, One Snack at a Time
Story posted May, 2008
Results:
• Improved school's nutrition environment
• The school cafeteria orders 30% more produce to keep up with demand
• Pre and post- program surveys indicate children eat more fruit, play outside more often and drink less soda
Dr. Crisp Elementary is an inner-city school in Nashua, NH that enrolls 425 students from preschool to grade 5. More than 65% of our students qualify for free or reduced lunch.
In 2003, we had few guidelines regulating school nutrition. Children typically brought sugary snacks to schools. Classroom celebrations often included cupcakes, brownies and soda. The cafeteria's salad bar was empty.
In the fall of that year, the "Changing the Scene" program through the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension opened our eyes to the childhood obesity epidemic. Hardly a week went by without frightening reports on the health of today's children. We decided it was time take action. ...
Empowering Educators to Improve Outcomes
Story posted April, 2008
Results:
• 83.3% of students now read at or above grade level, which is well above state average
A sign in the main office of Southside Primary School lists "protected reading times" for each grade level (for example, 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. for kindergarten). "No interruptions can be made to classes at these times," the sign warns.
Southside's vigilance when it comes to guarding classroom reading time is a reflection of a broader effort at the school to ensure that teachers have not just the time, but also the necessary skills, to help their students succeed. And, at Southside, success is measured according to one major objective: that 100 percent of students will be reading at or above grade level before leaving second grade. ...
Repairing and Using the Environment
Story posted April, 2008
Results:
• Restoration of community land
• Recognition by various local and national agencies for important environmental work
An environmental project more likely to have been spearheaded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency than elementary school students led to Garrett County Public Schools in rural western Maryland receiving the National Civic Star Award for 2008.
The project, known as Crellin Elementary Corps of Discovery, evolved after students at a 2003 science camp noticed orange water seeping from a playground area into a stream known as Snowy Creek near the school property. The seepage was acid mine drainage from water flowing under coal and mine waste that had been spilled and left on the site when Crellin had been a coal mining town from about 1925 to 1960.
Crellin is in the central Appalachian Mountain where pristine streams and beautiful scenery are typical and where much of the land is part of state and federal preserves. Garrett County is also the site of Deep Creek Lake, a popular resort destination. ...
Building Boat Models Aids Math, Science Learning
Story posted April, 2008
Results:
• 87% of 3rd graders have passed the state math test each of the past two years, up from 63% in 2005
Parma City Schools in Parma, Ohio, and General Motors have collaborated in a program for third-grade students at the district's Thoreau Park Elementary School to boost math and science performance.
The program evolved after the school community focused on the fact that students were performing poorly on the Ohio state tests in math and science. At the time, General Motors was a business partner with Thoreau Park Elementary and offered to provide volunteers to implement a proposed program, called World in Motion. The premise was that students learn best when they can connect their learning to real-world aspects of life. In science and math, that involves connecting abstract theory to something tangible.
The program involves students creating small skimmer boats with the help of about 10 GM engineers working in the school's third-grade classrooms for an hour a week for six weeks. ...
Designing an Exemplar: University of Pennsylvania and the Penn Alexander School
Story posted March, 2008.
Results updated January, 2011.
Results:
• In 15 out of 16 standardized tests in 2010, students scored above state averages
• 84% of students met or exceeded proficiency standards on state reading tests in 2009
• 84.1% of students met or exceeded proficiency standards on state math tests in 2009 ...
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