Friday, January 24, 2003

Schools honored for achieving gain on CRCT tests

The State of Georgia has recognized three south Fulton schools for remarkable testing gains and increased student achievement.

During the December Georgia Board of Education meeting, Conley Hills Elementary School, Oak Knoll Elementary School, and Parklane Elementary School were honored for achieving at least a 10 percent gain in reading, English/language arts, and math scores on the 2001-2002 CRCT in all grades tested.

In January, the Fulton County Board of Education also honored the three schools for this significant accomplishment.

At Conley Hills Elementary, Principal Delores Hall says that her staff closely examined the curriculum to see where the gaps in students' learning were so that they could tailor instruction. Staff then received training in language arts instruction and teaching diverse learners. The school also focused efforts on teacher retention to provide more continuity for the students.

Oak Knoll Principal Cheree Turner credits her staff for closely working together to better prepare students and for compacting the curriculum. To improve math scores, her staff also identified students who were performing below grade level and worked with them twice a week to improve their performance.

Both schools also cite the system's focus on reading, specifically the Reading Discovery program, as a helpful tool in raising student's reading and language arts scores.

Parklane Principal Lee Adams credits a school-wide implementation of teaching model known as the 8-step instructional process to helping improve Parklane's test scores.

Parklane was one of the first Fulton County schools to adopt the 8-Step process, training every teacher, office worker, even custodians and food service workers.

Adams says that this school-wide effort helped students understand some of the confusing educational jargon used on the CRCT and helped alleviate testing anxiety. The school also created smaller reading groups so that students received more focused, individualized help.

The CRCT, introduced in 2000, measures how well students are learning the Georgia Quality Core Curriculum in the subject areas of reading, English/language arts, math, social studies, and science. Georgia law requires that all students in grades one through eight take the CRCT in the areas of reading, English/language arts, and mathematics. Students in grades three through eight also are assessed in science and social studies. The test was administered last spring.