Florida Elementary Students Master Reading in Preparation for Junior ...
Clay Hill Elementary School; Jacksonville, FL About the School: Grades:
K-6
About the Students: African American:
1%
Number of Students: Test(s):
593 FCAT
Caucasian: Hispanic:
97% 1%
Reduced Price Lunch:
47%
Asian: Other:
1%
ELL
-
Florida Elementary Students Master Reading in Preparation for Junior High In the mid 1990s, roughly 40% of Clay Hill Elementary School students in Grades 3-6 read below grade level. After using SRA/McGraw-Hill’s Direct Instruction programs Corrective Reading and Reading Mastery, more than 72% of its students scored at or above grade level on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) in 2005. Clay Hill Elementary School’s teachers started using Corrective Reading with all of the students in Grades 4-6 during the 1996-1997 school year. Initially, they taught the program for 90 minutes every day. They increased this time period to 120 minutes the following year. Meanwhile, Reading Mastery is still used in Grades K-3, so children can acquire basic reading skills early in their academic careers.
Percentage of Grade 3 Students Scoring At or Above Level 3 on the FCAT 100 89
90
82
77
80 70
75
70 61
60
61
65 66 64
71 73 60
63 2002 2003 2004 2005
50 40 30 20 10
The FCAT was not administered prior to 1998.
0 Grade 3
Principal Lenore Paulk said both programs are taught uninterrupted, which is key to the teaching process. “There are absolutely no distractions allowed during this time,” she said. “That way the children know we are serious about reading success.”
69
68
Grade 4
Grade 5
Grade 6
The FCAT was not administered prior to 1998. National Percentile Scores on the California Test of Basic Skills 60%
55
42
46
44
46
40
40% 30%
50
48
50%
43
43 37
34
36
44
45
47
36
30
28
20%
Clay Hill Students Are Easy to Spot The elementary school’s principal is married to the principal of Wilkinson Junior High School, Ed Paulk.
10% 0% 1996
1997 Grade 2
Grade 3
1998 Grade 4
Grade 5
1999 Grade 6
The CTBS was no longer administered after 1999.
“Five elementary schools feed into Wilkinson Junior High School, and it was incredibly disappointing to find a large number of kids reading at the Grade 2 level and not being able to function in class,” he said.
49
Clay Hill Elementary School, pg. 2
Now Ed Paulk can identify Clay Hill Elementary graduates from the other students by their reading ability. “The Clay Hill kids are confident and proud of their reading ability – as they should be,” he said. Declining Reading Intervention Needs After using Corrective Reading for several years, today Clay Hill Elementary School teachers use the program only when necessary. However, they continue to use Reading Mastery in Grades K-3. “Strong phonics knowledge makes a strong reader,” Lenore Paulk concluded. About Clay Hill Elementary School Located southwest of Jacksonville and serving children in Grades K-6, this school’s student population is 97% Caucasian, 1% Hispanic, and 1% multicultural. Forty-seven percent of the children qualify for free or reduced-price lunches. For more information about Clay Hill Elementary School, visit www.clay.k12.fl.us/che. For More Information If you would like to learn more about success with Direct Instruction programs in your school or district, please contact us today at 1-888-SRA-4543.
K-6
About the Students: African American:
1%
Number of Students: Test(s):
593 FCAT
Caucasian: Hispanic:
97% 1%
Reduced Price Lunch:
47%
Asian: Other:
1%
ELL
-
Florida Elementary Students Master Reading in Preparation for Junior High In the mid 1990s, roughly 40% of Clay Hill Elementary School students in Grades 3-6 read below grade level. After using SRA/McGraw-Hill’s Direct Instruction programs Corrective Reading and Reading Mastery, more than 72% of its students scored at or above grade level on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) in 2005. Clay Hill Elementary School’s teachers started using Corrective Reading with all of the students in Grades 4-6 during the 1996-1997 school year. Initially, they taught the program for 90 minutes every day. They increased this time period to 120 minutes the following year. Meanwhile, Reading Mastery is still used in Grades K-3, so children can acquire basic reading skills early in their academic careers.
Percentage of Grade 3 Students Scoring At or Above Level 3 on the FCAT 100 89
90
82
77
80 70
75
70 61
60
61
65 66 64
71 73 60
63 2002 2003 2004 2005
50 40 30 20 10
The FCAT was not administered prior to 1998.
0 Grade 3
Principal Lenore Paulk said both programs are taught uninterrupted, which is key to the teaching process. “There are absolutely no distractions allowed during this time,” she said. “That way the children know we are serious about reading success.”
69
68
Grade 4
Grade 5
Grade 6
The FCAT was not administered prior to 1998. National Percentile Scores on the California Test of Basic Skills 60%
55
42
46
44
46
40
40% 30%
50
48
50%
43
43 37
34
36
44
45
47
36
30
28
20%
Clay Hill Students Are Easy to Spot The elementary school’s principal is married to the principal of Wilkinson Junior High School, Ed Paulk.
10% 0% 1996
1997 Grade 2
Grade 3
1998 Grade 4
Grade 5
1999 Grade 6
The CTBS was no longer administered after 1999.
“Five elementary schools feed into Wilkinson Junior High School, and it was incredibly disappointing to find a large number of kids reading at the Grade 2 level and not being able to function in class,” he said.
49
Clay Hill Elementary School, pg. 2
Now Ed Paulk can identify Clay Hill Elementary graduates from the other students by their reading ability. “The Clay Hill kids are confident and proud of their reading ability – as they should be,” he said. Declining Reading Intervention Needs After using Corrective Reading for several years, today Clay Hill Elementary School teachers use the program only when necessary. However, they continue to use Reading Mastery in Grades K-3. “Strong phonics knowledge makes a strong reader,” Lenore Paulk concluded. About Clay Hill Elementary School Located southwest of Jacksonville and serving children in Grades K-6, this school’s student population is 97% Caucasian, 1% Hispanic, and 1% multicultural. Forty-seven percent of the children qualify for free or reduced-price lunches. For more information about Clay Hill Elementary School, visit www.clay.k12.fl.us/che. For More Information If you would like to learn more about success with Direct Instruction programs in your school or district, please contact us today at 1-888-SRA-4543.
