A new report by LFA and Grunwald Associates, with support from AT&T, examines how parents perceive the value of mobile devices, how they see their children using mobiles, and what they think of the possibilities for mobile learning.
Middle School
Success Stories
Transforming School Culture the Waterloo Way
Story posted March 19, 2009
Results:
• Over 80% of students met or exceeded state mathematics standards in 2008, compared to 49% in 2003
• School consistently makes Adequate Yearly Progress in all areas
• Serious disciplinary offenses (as defined by No Child Left Behind) fell 71% (79 to 23) between 2004-2005 and 2006-2007
• First recipient of the New York State School of Character Award and a 2008 National School of Character
Just eight years ago, Waterloo Middle School, located in the heart of New York’s scenic Finger Lakes region, was anything but an educational beacon. The story of its transformation from a school struggling with disciplinary and academic problems into an award-winning model school is proof that committed teamwork can revolutionize school culture. ...
Story posted November 13, 2008
Results:
• Once designated "in need of improvement," the school has recently been commended by the state of New York
• 80 students enrolled in high school-level courses in 2007, up from 30 in 2001
• 28% of students participating in high school-level courses in 2007 were minorities, up from 10% in 2002
• 99% of staff approve of administrators' efforts to empower educators
"Built by the Past-Ready for the Future" is more than a school motto at Isaac E. Young Middle School in New Rochelle, NY. Built in 1925, Isaac became the iconic U.S. secondary school when Dick Sargent's painting of it appeared on the cover of the October 17, 1959, issue of The Saturday Evening Post. The changes that the school has experienced over the last 55 years mirror changes in the suburban United States. ...
Story posted November 6, 2008. Results updated May 22, 2012.
Results:
- In 2011, 91% of 6th graders, 91% of 7th graders and 88% of 8th graders scored proficient or above on state standardized tests in reading (meeting or exceeding both district and state averages)
- In 2011, 77% of 6th graders, 70% of 7th graders and 85% of 8th graders scored proficient or above on state standardized tests in math (meeting or exceeding both district and state averages).
The halls of Boaz Middle School are buzzing with energy. Students walk past bulletin boards displaying their work, as a visitor stops to browse the examples of graphic organizers and short essays. Teachers stand in the open classroom doorways, discussing students, strategies and the day's successes. Students stop to ask teachers for extra help with presentations and projects. Teachers stop students as they pass by just to ask how things are going. ...
Teacher-Driven Inclusion Model Pays off for School
Story posted October 23, 2008
Results:
• Special education students have received 60% fewer detention referrals for poor behavior
• Special education caseloads have declined by more than half since 2002
McKinleyville Middle School serves over 370 students in grades 6-8 in the town of McKinleyville in northwest Humboldt County, California. 43% of the school's students receive free or reduced price meals, and 15% are in special education.
Until 1999, McKinleyville taught special education students in the traditional way: by pulling them out of mainstream classes and teaching them in separate classrooms for most of the school day. ...
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 ...
Story posted June, 2008. Results updated February 28, 2012.
Results:
• In 2011, the percentage of Cashman students meeting or exceeding state standards was higher than the state average on both reading and math tests in grades 6, 7 and 8,* despite Cashman serving a significantly more disadvantaged population than the state as a whole
School improvement demands focus. Staff members at James Cashman Middle School in Las Vegas (where 100% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch) believe that student achievement comes from challenging every student and ensuring that no student is overlooked.
Adopting this belief couldn't have come at a better time for the school. Cashman's students were struggling. The school was in the third year of school improvement, about to be taken over by the state. Teachers had been trained in a myriad of improvement programs, yet progress was excruciatingly slow. ...
Maintaining Excellence during a Demographic Shift
Story posted June, 2008
Results:
• Proficiency level grew to 96% over a five-year period during which the school became economically and racially more diverse
• Out-of-school suspensions have dropped every year since the school began professional development on poverty issues
Kernodle Middle School opened in 2000 in a solidly upper middle class neighborhood with little diversity in the school population. About 85% of the students were white and less than 10% participated in the federal lunch program. In our state-mandated testing program over 90% of the students scored at proficient levels. There was no distinct achievement gap between our white and non-white students. ...
Promoting Academic Success through Community Partnerships
Story posted June 6, 2008
Results:
• 79% of students improved their academic performance
• 87% of students increased state benchmark scores in reading
• 76% of students increased state benchmark scores in math
Historically, George Middle School (a very diverse school with 87% of students eligible for free or reduced lunch) has been known as one of the lower performing schools in the state. Now, after becoming a community school, the school is showing steady growth on academic indicators. In particular, student test scores are at or above the state average. Multnomah County's Schools Uniting Neighborhoods (SUN) initiative, together with the school's lead agency, Metropolitan Family Service (MFS), have been instrumental in providing the supports and resources necessary to make this happen. ...
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 ...
Using Electives to Get Struggling Students More Math
Story posted April, 2008
Results:
• Participants math benchmark assessment scores improved by 17% from 2004 to 2005 and 9% from 2005-2006
• Math Essentials students on average outperformed grade-level students as a whole on the first two benchmark assessments of 2006-2007
The high schools in the Walled Lake Consolidated School District had a problem. Some students were scoring below proficiency on their 8th grade standardized tests. Fueled by the conviction that all students can learn, and that high school is not too late to turn students' lives around, the district tried many strategies to address this challenge: It pulled students out of their grade level courses, subjected them to a computer-based intervention, and stretched a semester's worth of content into a year of instruction. Yet student performance data from these intervention programs showed no effect or, in some cases, even negative effects on student achievement. ...
SIGN UP
Sign up for our e-newsletter on public school success.
A VISION FOR GREAT SCHOOLS
On this website, educators, parents and policymakers from coast to coast are sharing what's already working in public schools--and sparking a national conversation about how to make it work for children in every school. Join the conversation!
