In the 2017-2018 academic school year, the second grade team and the fourth grade Northwood Appold Community Academy I (NACA I) team, worked together to increase each student's i-Ready reading achievement by creating and facilitating a Reading Buddies Program. My fourth grade students in the program serve as peer mentors to our younger NACA I readers in second grade. By engaging in this program, students work with partnered scholars to create genuine relationships and build reading skills. Programs, which intentionally connect younger and older scholars in and outside of our school community build a foundation for students to make dramatic levels of academic growth.
Dramatic Academic Growth
Academic gains are the ultimate door opener – they are the foundation of a truly transformational teacher. Students make dramatic levels of academic growth (that is measurable and rigorous). Families know the level of rigor necessary for college and career readiness in the 21st century.
Introduction
As an educator it is important to know how to gather, analyze, articulate and apply quantitative and qualitative data in the classroom for each student's dramatic academic growth. Throughout my three years in the classroom, I have developed knowledge and a skill set in gathering, analyzing, articulating, and applying quantitative and qualitative data in the classroom to ensure students' growth in foundational reading and math skills aligned to Common Core State Standards. I use the tool set developed to create an academic environment in my classroom to provide students, families, and community members an opportunity to facilitate ongoing student growth.
In my three years in the classroom, I've used the Easy CBM, i-Ready, and a teacher created end of the week assessment to measure student growth with rigorous expectations. In my portfolio, I will highlight two components of intentionally planned academic growth, including Quantitative: Easy CBM (2015-2016) and Qualitative: Fourth Grade End of the Week Assessment (September 2017- November 2017) . Both examples, will demonstrate expectations for measurable and rigorous academic growth and also my ability to communicate with families and community stakeholders for college and career readiness in the 21st century.
My ability to apply and utilize qualitative and quantitative data to my teaching ensures students' access to opportunities moving forward in their schooling. As aligned to the Common Core Curriculum and the district wide i-Ready and PARCC assessment, it is important to provide my students with a measurable and rigorous curriculum, which allows families to know the level of rigor necessary for college and career readiness in the 21st century. This academic year, I moved from examining Kindergarten and first grade common core readiness standards to fourth grade readiness standards. As a fourth grade teacher, I now use the i-Ready assessment paralleled to PARCC expectations to create measurable and rigorous goals moving forward for each student's PARCC achievement, integrating different activities such as reading buddies and teacher created assessments to build and consistently check for student understanding developing accountability towards rigorous and measurable goals for dramatic academic growth.