We're off the list!

I frequently blog about our need to raise the bar for our students and ourselves. One the ways to do this is to take a long look at our practices and determine what is working and what needs to be improved. Our School Improvement Team has spent the last two years doing this and it has definitely paid high dividends.

We have seen great results from this work.

• First and foremost, as per the most recent accountability list issued by the state education department, we have been removed from New York State’s list of "Schools Needing Improvement."

• Watervliet City School District students in grades 3-8 demonstrated significant progress on the New York state math exam this year, with 15 percent more achieving the two highest levels over previous years.

• District-wide, 86 percent achieved Level 3 or Level 4 on the test administered in March, up from 71 percent in 2007-08, according to results the State Education Department released June 1. Measured over two years, the district has seen a 33 percent increase in the number of students scoring at the top two levels.

• The most significant gains this year were in grade seven, where 41 percent more students scored Level 3 or Level 4.

• Every grade posted achievement gains and met the state benchmark, with significant gains at each grade level. Additionally, students in all subgroups made strong progress in 2009 as the district continues its efforts to eliminate the achievement gap.

• The strong gains in math followed similar results district-wide on this year’s English language arts exam. Overall, 69 percent of the district’s students in grades 3-8 achieved proficiency in ELA this year, a 9 percent gain over 2008 and a 20 percent increase over 2007.

• The most significant ELA gains this year were again seen in grade seven, where 20 percent more students scored Level 3 or Level 4.

• Every grade posted ELA achievement gains and met the state benchmark, with significant gains at each grade level. Additionally, students in all subgroups made strong progress in 2009.

Just because we have been removed from the list of school’s needing improvement, the work of our School Improvement team will not stop. It is my firm belief that all schools should be working to be better at all times. So this year we will be looking even more deeply at our academic program and our practices.

To do this, we need to ask ourselves three essential questions: What are we teaching, why are we teaching it and how will we know our students have learned and mastered the material. Asking ourselves these questions on a daily basis, along with our more formalized school improvement initiatives, will allow us to continue our forward momentum and fulfill the mission of the Watervliet City School District.