Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

District "attacking" federal requirements

Attack, attack, attack.

This was the key word at the Prescott School Board meeting Tuesday, Jan.20, as each school told what was being done to meet state and federal requirements.

It began with Prescott High School Principal Carroll Purtle telling the board there could have been problems at the first of the year with one subject, but this didn't happen.

PHS, he said, is not under a warning, and instructors went to workshops to learn how to work with subgroups (such as minority and impoverished) to help improve their test scores as well as to better be able to understand where these students are coming from.

Purtle said one of the problems with the standardized testing, is the tests have been administered in the Spring, and districts haven't gotten results back until September or October. This doesn't give schools time to plan or make changes for improvement.

The Arkansas Department of Education, he said, has promised to get the test results back earlier in the future, but also moved the testing dates back to December. Purtle told the board the results will show what was accomplished in the first half of the year only, and not a full year, so the results will be skewed.

Following the workshops, he said, the instructors were divided into teams for math and language arts. The math groups were further subdivided into different areas of mathematics.

Subgroups, Purtle said, can change, so the idea was to develop an agenda to be able to help all students.

Sallie Nix talked to the board about algebra. The committee, she said, were given end of course (EOC) formula sheets for algebra, along with class rosters to show which students need to be in class and when they should be there.

The subgroups were identified, with attention given to borderline students and those who need motivation sessions. There is mandatory after school tutoring involved if students fail the EOC exam. Rewards for passing include bowling trips.

Stan Moorman discussed geometry, saying the group was provided the same materials students receive for the EOC exams. Students, he said, are asked to do critical thinking more than simple memorization, as these supplies include the formulas used on the test.

The committee was also given a geometry vocabulary list, and attended a class on dealing with the terms used in geometry.

Students in the alert group were identified, with some being what is termed "double jeopardy" students as they are in two subgroups (such as being a minority and impoverished). Benchmark scores were used to identify the borderline students.

Additionally, Moorman said, other teachers were asked not to pull students out of the math classes for things such as photos. He added the focus will be on geometry all year long, with attention given to the test in the second half of the year.

Doyle Malcolm spoke on language arts, saying the students are being "attacked" to get them on target to be where the district wants them to be.

By the 11th grade, he said, all students will have the opportunity to do well in the ACTEP test, and if they don't, the district needs to find out why and try to bridge the gap.

Today's tests, he said, require students to read and write. To help them, the Prescott District utilizes the Step up to Writing program.

Willie Wilson, dean of students, talked about parental involvement. The idea, he said, is to get the parents of students in the subgroups involved so they will help bring their children up to the proficient level on the standardized tests.

The first step is to identify the parents and get their addresses, then make contact with them. "They basically live in clusters," he said.

The next step is community meetings in their neighborhoods. This is to get the parents out and stress the importance of their children doing well on the tests. The effort to get these parents to attend meetings includes making phone calls and providing transportation.

When the meetings are held, he said, students will give presentations in all areas except for math and language arts. Teachers will give the presentations in these areas..

Wilson said it would be a good idea to offer a computer class to teach basic computer knowledge to the parents of students in the subgroups.

Technology, Purtle said, is where the logistics will have to be worked out, as the school's computers will have to be used.

"This is just the beginning," he said. "From the long range view, we're doing what it takes to succeed and developing a system to find our bad spots."