TTB Ranking = New Ideas to Focus on Growth

Written by Jody McKean, Principal, DeWitt High School and Region 6 Representative, MASSP Board of Directors

When the Top to Bottom (TTB) rankings were released this past summer, I was extremely disappointed in our school’s standing among others in the state. Actually, I was a little miffed thinking to myself, “this is not a true reflection of who we are and the quality of education that is provided to our students.” Instantly, the following excuses began to encapsulate my mind, “Students perform better on Day one and don’t care about Days two and three; there is no incentive for students to do well after the merit scholarship was taken away; our students still perform higher than most schools; how did {insert other school} score that high, etc.” How many of you had these same thoughts? Good, I'm not alone. More than ever before, schools were given (or earned) lower grades on the School Report Card than they experienced in years past. We were one of these schools. My M.O. (Mode of Operation) is, “There is no such thing as staying the same…you either get better or get worse.” That’s exactly how we are being measured in this relatively new, value-added, ranking system. As a result, it has opened some eyes and ears, sparked new ideas, and promoted quality conversation among our staff, students and parents.

We rolled up our sleeves to address the situation. Where did we begin? First, we needed to learn more about the ranking system and how we got into this situation. The message was simple. We have to show improvement each and every year, but why aren’t we? Small groups of teachers were formed to discuss this question…Why aren’t our scores increasing and what can we do different to ensure that they do? Everything that entered my mind when the report was released, was brought up by most groups...kids don't take Days two and three of testing as serious as the ACT, there is not motivation or incentive to do well, etc. We had a very good discussion and for the first time in a while, we started having discussions to address student's affective needs.

Since I anticipated the belief students don't try as hard on the MME portion (Day 3), I created a report that shows a correlation of those students reaching benchmark on the ACT and also showing proficiency on the MME. Our presumptions were incorrect. Less than 5 percent of our students did not reach a proficiency level of one or two, but met the benchmark on the ACT. In fact, a majority of our students showed GREATER proficiency on the MME. This single report reaffirmed our initial approach of focusing only on the ACT College Readiness Standards and to continue using our EPAS data. This also led us in a different direction. Now the question became, “How do we ensure students are fully prepared for the ACT and there is a serious/purposeful approach when taking the EXPLORE and PLAN in the 9th and 10th grades?"

In years past, we have always reviewed the data as a staff, in their respective departments, and issued the reports back to students and their parents. Our approach this year is to inform students and their parents the importance of the EXPLORE and PLAN test. In Seminar, teachers are having students go through the test and have them identify their strengths and weaknesses. Once they determine those, students will put together an action plan of strategies, just like we ask staff to do for SMART goals. We also purchased a new bulletin board and displayed it in our main hallway. Our "Data Board" will represent annual student achievement data for each cohort (EPAS), five-year trend data on Advanced Placement tests, five-year trend data on the MME, and side-by-side school comparison of last year’s MME data. I want students to have a daily reminder of our current “status” and what they have to do in order to show improvement. Along with posting this valuable and relative data, I compiled this data on a PowerPoint and shared with staff to review with students during our Seminar.

Teachers are also taking it upon themselves to have friendly competitions, among their respective grade levels, based on student performance on the EXPLORE, PLAN and ACT. During October, we have an all-school testing day, where students take a practice test. This data will be used to monitor student progress throughout the year. If students are not making steady progress or have regressed, they will be required to visit our Writing Center or Math Lab to receive additional support. An incentive program was also created to reward students who show improvement throughout the year on the EXPLORE, PLAN, and ACT. Local businesses have shown tremendous support by donating gift cards, prizes and their services to help our cause, truly making this a community project.

Finally, teachers are really focused on creating relative student growth goals that support our school improvement goals to increase student proficiency in the core areas. All teachers are supporting our efforts to improve literacy by building a stronger vocabulary and reading comprehension skills, as well as providing details in student writing. A common writing rubric (ACT 6-point rubric) is used by all staff members, as well as using the software program TurnItIn.com. Science teachers have incorporated ACT-like questions in their warm-up activities and assessments to prepare students better on all three tests of the EPAS. Overall, we feel substantial improvement will be made on student proficiency by working smarter on a process/system we already have in place. By being more student-centered on individual needs, providing additional checkpoints throughout the year, and rewarding students for better performance on EPAS, our school should ascend in the TTB rankings next year.