ELA Test Week!!!!
What we have spent our last three months preparing for has now come upon us. We have one full day of school left to go over any odds or ends with our students. For the most part, we will have another half of a day to prepare for the second day of testing (for 6th grade, we will have two half days). We can honestly say, to our knowledge, we have provided strong preparation for our students to do well on the test.
Not only is the ELA exam a test to determine if a student has met the state standards, it will measure how much we have progressed as a school. Granted, we have another test in March (the 11th to be exact) which we will immediately begin preparing for as a whole school as well but this test is upon us now. We all know we are going to develop from last year. With the combination of the new discipline code and the hard work of all of you, we can confidently say there was more evidence of sustainability and improvements among our students than ever before. If the results are not as high as we expected (meaning we had more students maintain their level rather than more students progressing), we will have to go back to the drawing board to see what we can put together to allow our students to achieve at the next level. We spent the time researching what we could do to improve our students’ reading and writing skills and we implemented those methods. The next step is to assess whether or not our research paid off. The test is our assessment. It will measure where our efforts paid off and what areas we need to work on in the future.
It’s unfortunate we have to wait several months to get the results back. I would encourage any one of you to attend the sessions for grading the ELA exam. It will give you a better idea of the common mistakes students make during the exam. That research, in itself, will pay dividends for your classroom and the progress of our students. If you are interested in grading the test (it does not matter if you’re an ELA teacher or not), please see Ms. Palermo or me.
Our next steps are to prepare our students for the Math exam coming up in March. Although our first inclination will be to take a break after our investment in the ELA exam, we do not have the time to do so. After the ELA test, we will only have a little over a month to prepare our students for the next state exam. In the 8th grade, we will be exploring ways we can devote their AIS time to preparing for the Math test. We will continue with the Saturday Academy (it just had 50 students this past weekend) which will focus on basic skills, test taking strategies, and moving our higher level students to achieve level 4’s (if you are interested in teaching, see Dr. Phelps).
In summary, your hard work will pay off on the ELA exam. I am confident we will raise the achievement level of our students for another year in a row. I was a witness to our students exploring the best way to attack test questions and your devotion to raising achievement. I feel great about this week and I hope you do too. We are going to prove that it does not matter where your students come from or where your school is located, collaboration and dedication will make a difference in any child’s life. Keep up the great work.
May your preparations meet your vision, your colleagues provide information, and no risk blind you from your mission. Have a great week….
ATTENDANCE FOR THE WEEK
Monday: 89%
Tuesday: 90%
Wednesday: 91%
Thursday: 89%
Friday: 85%
Birthdays:
Ravi Seeram January 5th
Gabriela Vargas January 15th
Esther DeJesus February 22nd
Sheryl-Ann Mayers February 24th
Phil Williamson February 24th
Quote of the Week
“Success is not measured by what a person accomplishes, but by the opposition he or she has encountered, and the courage with which he or she has maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds....”— Orison Swett Marden
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