DisaggregatedData

DataAnalysisCategory TraceCrossingsElementary OxmoorValley(*Jones

Valley)
ReadingandMathScores
(2consecutiveyears)

*LevelIV:exceeds
academicstandards
*Seechartsabove

*Seechartsabove

Strategies,Professional
Development,Programs,
Resources
TraceCrossingsElementary
schoolisincrediblyexplicitand
instructionalwiththeirreading
andmathprograms.Theyhave
bothamathandareading
coachthatworkswithstudents
whoseemtobestrugglingin
thoseareas.Thecoacheshold
seminarsandprovide
informationalsessionsin
personaswellasgivingout
manydifferentwebsites,books
andotherresourcesforthe
classroomteachers.Oneofthe
uniquethingsaboutTrace
Crossingsisjusthowopenand
availableallofthepersonnelis
totheparentsandguardians.
Oxmoorhadhugesuccessin
theirtestinginbothreading
andmath.Afterspeakingwith
oneoftheteachersshedid
saythatalthoughthisistheir
firstyeartheteachersare
workingtogetprofessional
developmentgoingandthey
alreadyhavesmallgroups
setinplacewherethey
discusswhatisworkingand
whatisnotworkingforthem.
Weexpecttoseemorefrom
theminthefollowingyearsas
theylaythefoundationofthe
schooldownevenmore.
SchoolsStrengthsand
Weaknesses
Strengths:Readinginschoolyear
201011hadveryhighscoresthat
wereabovestateaverage.
IntheprocessoftakingBIG
initiativestowardsbetter
differentiatinginstructionforall
students.

Weaknesses:Nonwhitestudents
seemtobefallingbehindreading
interventionisabsolutely
necessary!
Strengths:Significantincreasein
testscores.Mathscoresareat
50%@LevelIV.Duringschool
year20112012,almostall
scores(exceptfor
poverty+reading)scoredabove
stateaverage

Weaknesses:Highratesof
povertyinschoolhasnegative
impactsonstudentachievement.
Theseconditionsareoutofthe
schoolscontrol.Schoolisbrand
new,thereforeadjustmentsare
stillbeingmadeandmodified.
Initiatives,School
ImprovementPlans,etc.

Informing/InvolvingParents TraceCrossingslovesparental
involvement!Inthefalltheyoffer
Littletonoparental
involvementbutthiscouldbe
aprogramcalledReadforthe
Recordwheretheyareallowed
theparentstocomespendthe
morningwatchingtheirchildren
takepartintheNational
Campaigntohelppromote
readingintheelementary
schoolsaroundthenation.This
isagreatwayfortheparentsto
seejustwhattheirstudentsare
doing,andtohelpinformthe
parentsabouttheimportanceof
reading.Similarly,Trace
CrossingsalsoheldaPTO
meetingonenightthathada
specificsectiondevotedto
math.TheSamfordStudents
showedgames,andfun
activitiesthatcanbedoneat
hometopromotemath.
becausethiswastheirfirst
year.
AccountabilityResources OnemainresourceTrace
Crossingsusestotrackstudent
progressisGoogleScholar.
Thissoftwareprogramisa
learningmanagementsystem,
whichallowstheadministration,
documentation,tracking,
reportinganddeliveryof
elearningeducationcoursesor
trainingprograms.This
softwareallowsparentsand
studentstofindprescreened
tutorsforavarietyofsubjects
andgradelevels.Parentsare
abletopayforaonetime
homeworkhelporengagein
ongoingtutoringsessions.The
sessionsoccuronthewebsite
andthestudenthasaccessto
anonlinewhiteboard,audioand
video,archivingandbilling.The
programkeepstrackofstudent
progress,thatparentsand
teachershaveaccesstoas
welltomonitorthestudent.
StudentsuseRazkidsfor
OxmoorValleyisinthe
beginningstageoffindingthe
bestresourcestouseto
trackstudentprogress.The
schoolisopentousing
GlobalScholar,andthe
ResponsetoIntervention
programtotrackstudent
progressandalsomonitor
progress.Asofrightnow,
eachclassforeachgradeis
requiredtoposttheirdata
outsideoftheirclassroomon
thewall.Theteachersdonot
meetonastrictregularbasis
todiscussstudentprogress,
buttheyschedulemeetings
everysooftentomonitor
studentsprogresswithin
gradelevels.Theschooljust
recentlyestablishedtheir
onlinewebsite,howeveritis
underdevelopedandno
readingandspellingandIXLfor
mathtolearnandpractice.Both
ofthesesoftwareprograms
havealoginnameforeach
student,sothatthestudents
cankeeptrackoftheir
progress,andtheprogramwill
automaticallybuildonthe
studentsknowledgeand
increaseindifficulty.these
programsareagreatwayfor
thestudenttokeeptrackoftheir
progressatschoolandat
home,andfortheteachersand
parentstomonitorprogressas
well.TraceCrossingsteachers
haveweeklygrademeetingsto
discussandmonitorstudent
progress.
informationonamajorityof
thepages.

RoleSupportPersonnel Mrs.Puchta,themathcoach,is
notonlyinvolvedinimproving
studentstudentachievement,
butalsotakingthetimeto
supportandimproveteacher
instruction.Mrs.Puchtawas
intentionaltotakethetimeto
teachusabouttheimportance
ofindividualinstructionfor
students,andthebestpractice
forhelpingstrugglingstudents.
Mrs.Puchtaisavailableto
teacherstoprovideresources
andteachinstruction.TheELL
instructor,Mr.Pitts,playsavital
roleinhelpingstudentswhoare
fluentinalanguagethatisnot
english.Tracehasalarge
populationofstudentswho
knowenglishasasecond
language.TheELLstudents
havetheopportunitytomeet
withMr.Pittsatleastoncea
weekinordertoimprovein
speakingenglish.Mr.Pittsalso
workswiththeteacherstohelp
improveinstructionforELL
Therearegifted,math,
readingandbehaviorrole
supportpersonnels.TheMath
andreadingteacherswillpull
studentsfromclasstowork
individuallywiththem.
Behaviormanagementisthe
mainfocusrightnow,andthe
roleoftheBehaviorcoachis
togiveamonthlylesson
alongthelinesofcounseling,
andmeetingwithindividual
studentswhoneedhelpwith
angermanagement.Because
theschoolissonewtheir
rolesarenotasconcreteand
developedastheycouldbe
Theserolesupport
personnelsarenotas
availabletotheteachersas
theyaretothestudents.

studentsandprovideteacher
withresourcesforbest
teachingpracticeforthese
students.
DataSharingBetween
Teachers
TraceCrossingsimplementsdata
meetingsforeverygradelevelonce
aweek.TierIIDataispresented
onceamonth.Specificgradeshave
teamdatameetings.TCEalsohas
aleadershipteamthatmeets
monthly.
OxmoorValleypoststheirdata
outsideofeveryclassroomdoor.
Datameetingsareheldregularly
fordifferentgradelevels.
*OxmoorValleyisanewschoolandwasformerlyknownasJonesValley

DataConclusionsandReflection(TCE)

TraceCrossingsElementaryhashadadecreaseintheirtestscoresformathandreading.It
hasbeentakenintoaccountthattheyaregoingthroughsomemajorinterventionconcerning
differentiatedinstructionsacrosstheboardforeverygradelevel.TheyareusingaMathand
Readingcoachthatwillpullstudentsoutwhoneedinterventiontime.Thisstrategyishigh
effectiveandseemstobenefittheschoolgreatly.

DataAnalysis/ActionPlanforIntervention(TCE)

TraceCrossingsElementaryisdistrictedinanareathathasaverydiversepopulationofstudentsfromall
differentsocioeconomicandculturalbackgrounds.Thereare662studentswhoattendTraceCrossings
and50%ofthosestudentsareWhite,32%Black,10%Asian,and8%Hispanic.Thereisalsoalarge
populationofELLstudentsatTraceCrossings.Meetingtheneedsofsuchadiversegroupofstudentsis
verychallenging,butTraceCrossingsprovidesstudentsandteacherswiththeresourcesandinstruction
neededtoimprovestudentachievement.Duetotherapidlygrowingdiversepopulationattheschool,there
isastrongfocusonprovidingstudentsfromdiversebackgroundswithanequalopportunitytolearn.When
researchingthemosteffectivewaystoteachstudentsfromculturallyandlinguisticallydiverse
backgrounds,TraceCrossingspracticesandinstructionalignswiththemosteffectivepractices.Those
responsiblefortheeducationofanincreasinglydiversestudentpopulationcannolongerholdtheattitude
thatitistheculturallyandlinguisticallydifferentstudentsandfamilieswhomustchangeandbemadetofit
existingschoolenvironments(Chu,2011).TraceCrossingsputsstudentachievementattheforefrontof
determiningthebestinstructionalpractices,andrecognizesthatitistheschoolsresponsibilitytocultivate
studentsbackgrounds,andcreatethemostsupportivelearningenvironmentpossible.
Accordingtothetestdata,TraceCrossingshasdeclinedinstudentachievement.Thereisaclear
distinctionbetweentheachievementoflearnersfromculturallydiversebackgroundsandstudentswhoare
notconsideredtohaveculturallydiversebackgrounds.CurrentlyatTraceCrossings,teachersinallgrade
levelsplanaweeklydatameetingtodiscussstudentachievement,andareasthatneedimprovement.Not
onlyareareasofimprovementaddressed,butalsostepsareestablishedtomoveforwardtoimprovethe
issuesaddressed.EventheveryessencethatthestudentsarediverseatTracegivesstudentfrom
nondiversebackgroundstobroadentheirperspectivesandknowledgeofcultureandlanguage.The
teachersareveryconsciousofhowtheyarecultivatinganenvironmentthatisintentionalofincluding
diversestudents,andencouragingdiscussionandgroupworkamongthestudents.Researchhasshown,
thephysicalenvironment,emotionaltone,andqualityofinteractionsamongstudentsandbetweenteacher
andstudentshaveatremendousimpactonwhetherlearningoccurs(Ware,2006).Itismadeclear
throughresearchthat,theassumptionsthatindividualslearnbytheirownvolitionisfalse.Agreatdealof
cooperationandcollaborationareinvolvedinvirtuallyeverylearningsituation(Chu,2011).Research
showsthatTraceCrossingsisfollowingbestpracticetofocusoncollaborationofteachers,and
collaborationofstudentsaswell.Whenstudentsandteachersareworkingtogethertoestablishacommon
goaltoimprovestudentachievement,theadvantageofhavingadiversepopulationofstudentsimproves
thequalityofteacherandstudentinteractions.Testscoresarenotthebestrepresentativesofstudent
achievementthereforeTraceCrossingsshouldcontinuetomaketeachermeetingsapriorityasthey
alreadyare.
Duetothetestscoresdecreasingbetweenthepasttwoyears,itisvitalthataspecificplanis
madetoimprovemathachievementandreadingachievement.Inordertoimprovemathscoresaplanof
actionwouldbetoplantohavethemathcoach,Mrs.Puchtacometoeachgradelevelonceeveryother
weektohelpstudents.Asofrightnowthemathcoachworkswithindividualstudentswhoareinneedof
oneononeinstruction,whichshouldcontinue.Howeveritisimportantthatthemathcoachisaddressing
wholegroupstoensurethatstudentsareontherighttrack.Thesamegoesforthereadingcoach.Itis
importantthatthereadingcoachisplanningtomeetwitheachgradeatleasteveryotherweektoensure
thatsheisidentifyingthestudentswhoneedindividualinstruction.Theteachersintheclassroomscanalso
workwiththereadingcoachtolearnmoreabouthowtobestidentifythestudentswhoneedindividual
instructionwiththereadingcoach.

Workscited:
Chu,S.(2011).PerspectivesinUnderstandingtheSchoolingandAchievementofStudentsfrom
CulturallyandLinguisticallyDiverseBackgrounds.JournalOfInstructionalPsychology,
38(3/4),201209.
Ware,F.(2006).Warmdemanderpedagogy:Culturallyresponsiveteachingthatsupportsa
cultureofachievementforAfricanAmericanstudents.UrbanEducation,41(4),427
456.

ParentLetter:TraceCrossings
Hello4thGradeParents,

Aftertherecentreleaseofthenewesttestscoresweareexcitedtotalktoyouabouttheprogress
ourschoolhasmadefromthe20102011schoolyeartothe20112012schoolyear.TraceCrossingshada
greatyearandourresultsshowtheprogressofeachofourstudents.Wefeelthatitisincrediblyimportant
tosharethesescoreswithyouandtoalsotalkaboutsomeareastoworkonsowhennextyearcomeswe
cankeepimproving.
Lookingattheschoolwidereadingandmathscoresforthe4thgradetheyimprovedfrombyseveral
percentagepointsallovertheboardregardlessofethnicityandpoverty.ThisissuchgreatnewsforTrace
Crossings.Wearesoproudofallofthehardworkour4thgradershaveputintotheirclasswork.Theyhave
reallybeenpracticingjustlikewewereinatestingsituationeveryday.Somuchofthiscreditshouldgoto
ourteachers.Ourteachershavebeenincrediblyintentionalwiththeirlessonplansandhaveallcome
togethertoworkonimprovingthereadingcurriculumaswellasworkingharderthaneveronmathforthe
entire4thgrade.Foryoutobeabletoseethespecificschoolwidescoredwehaveattachedacopyofthe
graphsonthesecondsheet.Wealsowroteinsomesimpledirectionstohopefullymakethemeasierto
understand.
Uponreviewingthedatawealsowantedtocommentthatwerealizejusthopemuchtimeandeffort
theteacherputinbutwhenthestudentsleavethebuildingthelearningandpracticingdoesnotstop.We
feelthatparentalinvolvementisabigstrengthforTraceCrossingsandwewanttokeepthisup.Your
motivationhelpstomotivateus!Fortheparentsthatareworkingwiththeirstudentsdaily,keepupthegood
workbecauseitisnotgoingunnoticed.Forthoseparentswhoarestrugglingtofindtimeto,it'sokayweare
heretohelp.Ifyouareunabletoworkwithyourchildorarehavingahardtimebalancingfindingthetimeto
sitdownwiththemandworktalktous.Wehavefacultythatstaysandworkswithstudentsandwecan
easilyaccommodatetomeetyourchild'sneedsaswell.
OverallwewanttosayaBIGthankyou!Thankyoufortrustinguswithyoursweetchildren.Welove
andcareforthemandwearebeyondproudofeachandeveryoneoftheisaccomplishments.Ifyouhave
questionsfeelfreetocontactus!

Sincerely,
MissDawson
TraceCrossingsElementarySchoolPrincipal

DataConclusionandReflection
OxmoorValleyElementaryhassignificantlyraisedtheirtestscoresoverthepasttwo
consecutiveschoolyears.Theyhavereallyfocusedonreadingandmathinterventionbypulling
individualstudentsfromtheclassroom.Theyarekeepingtrackofstudentprogressby
implementingdatameetingsandarealsopostingtheirdataupoutsidetheclassroom.
DataAnalysisandActionPlan(OxmoorValley)
OxmoorValleyElementarySchool
NoNonPovertyStudents
20102012,JonesValley,nowreferredtoasOxmoorValley,hadnononpoverty
students.Thisstatisticwasshocking.Everyoneoftheirstudentswereconsideredtobelivingin
poverty.AccordingtoChildFund'sarticleonPovertyandEducationintheUnitedStates,
"PovertyamongschoolchildrenlivingintheSouthisanurgentproblem"(2014).OxmoorValley
islocatedinBirmingham,Alabama.Thisissueisingeneraloccurringmoreinthesouth,buthas
beenobservedanddisplayedthroughdataatthisspecificschool.Thefactthatthereisno
nonpovertystudentscanbeunsettlingbecauseofChildFundsstatementsaying,Itistroubling
foranumberofreasons,butoneofthemostdisturbingisthatlowhouseholdincomeclosely
correlateswithpoorachievementinschool(2014).OxmoorValleyshouldnotletthisdiscourage
them,butmotivatethemtoovercomethisstatistic.
Becauseofthecorrelationbetweenlowincomehouseholdsandeducational
performance,schoolteachersneedtobeawareofwaystheycanaddressthespecificneeds
andlearningstylesofthesestudents.NotonlydoOxmoorValleyteachersneedtobeaware,but
theyneedaplantobeestablished.Oneoftheweaknessesthisschoolmighthaveisthatitisa
youngschool,only1yearold.Thiscanbeconsideredaweaknessbecauseoftheeffortand
issuesthatcomeupwhenestablishingaschool,andotherissuestendtogetpushedtotheside
untiltheothersgetfiguredout.Astrengthofthisschoolisthatalotoftheteachersthereworked
atJonesValley,theschoolitwasbeforeOxmoor.Thishelpsbecauseteachershavealready
beenexposedtoworkingwiththisgroupofstudents.
Therearedifferentchallengesteacherswillfaceasateacherinanonpovertyschool.
OneissueteachersmayfaceatOxmoorislackofmotivationfromthestudents.Manyteachers
believethatthisisbecauseofthelackofeffortfromtheparents.Thereisresearchthatsuggest
parentsfrompoorfamiliesworkasmuchasmiddleorupperclassfamiliesdo(ASCD2014).
Theparentsareworkingbutarenormallynotathighendjobswheretheyaremakingalotof
money,butlazinessisnottheissue.Andlazinessisnotagenepasseddownfromtheparents.
Thenonmotivatedfeelthatthesestudentsgiveoffmaynotbeaboutlaziness,butaboutthe
hardshipsfacedathome.Lowsocioeconomicstatusandtheaccompanyingfinancialhardships
arecorrelatedwithdepressivesymptoms(ASCD2014).Inspiteoftheiroftendifficulthomelives,
theteacherneedstostrivetomakeallthedifferencetheycanwhiletheyareatOxmoor.Partof
Oxmoorsplanshouldincludebuildingapersonalrelationshipwiththesestudents.Bygettingto
knowthestudentspersonally,teachersareabletobuildatrustandconnectionwiththestudent
thathelpsencourageparticipationinclass.Also,theteacherwillgettoknowtheirstudents
interest.Thisway,theteachercanincludetheirinterestinthelessontocaptivateandengage
herstudents.Theteachershavetoputinthatextraeffortforstudentstobemotivatedtomake
theeffortintheclassroom.
AnotherissuethatOxmoorteachersshouldinvestinisthestudentsvocabulary.
Childrenwhogrowupinlowsocioeconomicconditionstypicallyhaveasmallervocabularythan
middleclasschildrendo,whichraisestheriskforacademicfailure(ASCD2014).Failureshould
notbeanoptionforOxmoorstudentsandteachers.Thatiswhyvocabularybuildingshouldbea
keypartofteachingandenrichmentforstudents.Teachersshouldincorporatevocabularyinto
everydaylessonsbutalsoplanengagingactivitiesforstudentstocomplete.Teachersshould
alsoreinforcethesewordsinherteaching.
Inordertosetuptheirnononpovertypopulationforsuccess,Oxmoorshouldholdtheir
teachersaccountableforgoingtheextramile,establishingpositiverelationships,andbuilding
vocabularyfortheirstudents.Thefinancialstandingsoftheirstudentshouldnotdeterminetheir
academicsuccess.OxmoorValleycanproducesuccessfulstudentswiththecorrectplanand
passionoftheirteachers.

Mission.(2014,January1).EducationalLeadership:FacesofPoverty:HowPovertyAffects
ClassroomEngagement.RetrievedMay6,2014,from
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educationalleadership/may13/vol70/num08/HowPovertyAffec
tsClassroomEngagement.aspx

News.(2014,January1).TheEffectsofPovertyonEducationintheUnitedStates.Retrieved
May6,2014,fromhttps://www.childfund.org/PovertyandEducationintheUS/

ParentLetter:OxmoorValley
DearFourthGradeParents,
WewantedtosendoutaschoolwideletterinformingyouofOxmoorValley
Elementarysdatacollectionfortheschoolyears20102011and20112012.Wefeelthatitis
importantforourparentstoknowhowourschoolsstudentachievementisprogressingsothat
wecanworktogetherasateamtomeetthemaximumpotentialforourstudents.Overthepast
twoyears,wearehappytoannouncethatwehavemadesignificantadvancementinourfourth
gradereadingandmathstandardizedtestscores!Attachedtothisletteryouwillbeabletosee
thescoresofourstudents(grades38)andthepercentageofthosewhowereeitherbelowor
abovethebenchmarkscoreindatatables.Weunderstandthatthesetablesmaybedifficultto
deciphersowehaveattachedinstructionstodecodingtheinformationthatthisdataprovides.
Westronglyencouragetheparentsofourschoolcommunitytolookintothesedatatablesso
thatyouwillbeabletoseetheevidenceofthisachievementincrease.Afterreviewand
discussionofthisdata,weasaschool,havedecidedthatoneofourgreateststrengthshas
includedourimplementationofschoolimprovementprograms.Wehavereallypushedour
studentstoreachtheirfullpotentialbyholdingourteachersaccountableandhighstandardsover
thepastyear.However,wealsohavetakennoteofthedigressionofthesurroundinggrades.
Weunderstandtheconcernthatyoumighthavewhenyouseetheglaringrednumbers
throughoutthedatatables,butwewishtoputyouateaseandletyouknowthatwehavebeen
takingnoteofthestrategiesthatareremainingsuccessfulforourfourthgradersandhopeto
implementsimilarstrategiesforourothergrades.WewantyoutoknowthatweneedYOU!We
needyoutobecomeeducatedwiththisdata,andwiththatbeingsaidweinviteyouto
afterschooldatameetingsthatwewillbeholdingmonthly!Thiswillbeatimeforyoutocome
andlearnaboutourschoolsdatainafriendlyandsafeenvironment,andwillalsobeatimefor
youtoaskquestions!!Wehopethatyouwilltrytomakeittothesemeetingsbecauseyouare
justasimportanttousasisyourstudent!Herestoanotherwonderfulyear!

Sincerely,
MissLovely
OxmoorValleyElementaryPrincipal

Hello4thGradeParents,
Aftertherecentreleaseofthenewesttestscoresweareexcitedtotalktoyouaboutthe
progressourschoolhasmadefromthe20102011schoolyeartothe20112012schoolyear.
TraceCrossingshadagreatyearandourresultsshowtheprogressofeachofourstudents.
Wefeelthatitisincrediblyimportanttosharethesescoreswithyouandtoalsotalkaboutsome
areastoworkonsowhennextyearcomeswecankeepimproving.
Lookingattheschoolwidereadingandmathscoresforthe4thgradetheyimprovedfrom
byseveralpercentagepointsallovertheboardregardlessofethnicityandpoverty.Thisissuch
greatnewsforTraceCrossings.Wearesoproudofallofthehardworkour4thgradershave
putintotheirclasswork.Theyhavereallybeenpracticingjustlikewewereinatestingsituation
everyday.Somuchofthiscreditshouldgotoourteachers.Ourteachershavebeenincredibly
intentionalwiththeirlessonplansandhaveallcometogethertoworkonimprovingthereading
curriculumaswellasworkingharderthaneveronmathfortheentire4thgrade.Foryoutobe
abletoseethespecificschoolwidescoredwehaveattachedacopyofthegraphsonthe
secondsheet.Wealsowroteinsomesimpledirectionstohopefullymakethemeasierto
understand.
Uponreviewingthedatawealsowantedtocommentthatwerealizejusthopemuchtime
andefforttheteacherputinbutwhenthestudentsleavethebuildingthelearningandpracticing
doesnotstop.WefeelthatparentalinvolvementisabigstrengthforTraceCrossingsandwe
wanttokeepthisup.Yourmotivationhelpstomotivateus!Fortheparentsthatareworkingwith
theirstudentsdaily,keepupthegoodworkbecauseitisnotgoingunnoticed.Forthoseparents
whoarestrugglingtofindtimeto,it'sokayweareheretohelp.Ifyouareunabletoworkwith
yourchildorarehavingahardtimebalancingfindingthetimetositdownwiththemandwork
talktous.Wehavefacultythatstaysandworkswithstudentsandwecaneasilyaccommodate
tomeetyourchild'sneedsaswell.
OverallwewanttosayaBIGthankyou!Thankyoufortrustinguswithyoursweet
children.Weloveandcareforthemandwearebeyondproudofeachandeveryoneoftheis
accomplishments.Ifyouhavequestionsfeelfreetocontactus!

Sincerely,

MissDawson

TraceCrossingsElementarySchoolPrincipal