Schools Micro-Tracking Kids' Progress, Grades Are Going Up

Most parents remember standardized tests from when they were in school; once a year, every student took out his or her No. 2 pencil and started filling in circles.

That still happens, and for many students, it’s more than once a year. But schools are using the information they get from those tests, and from a variety of other sources, to change the way they teach so that students are more likely to end up with the skills they need to succeed.

For example, freshmen in Maine Township High School District 207 this year have a completely revamped curriculum that focuses on skills more than content. In English, that means students learn what they need to be good readers and writers, said Audrey Haugan, the principal at .

The new system is also in place for freshmen at  and  high schools in Park Ridge, and will be expanded each year, with sophomores involved next year, followed by juniors and seniors.

Earlier: 

To make the teaching even more effective, students take a pre-test before each unit to find out what they already know, and then a test at the end of the unit to find out how far they’ve come. If a lot of students are having trouble in certain areas, the teacher knows she must go back and reteach them before moving on. If individual students are having trouble, they are moved from a regular study hall to a supported study hall where they can get help.

Teachers also are getting more help from their peers. Groups of teachers meet weekly and are teaching a common curriculum and sometimes grading the work of one another’s students so that everyone is literally on the same page. Teachers who find great success teaching one component of a class can share their insights with other teachers so all students benefit.

Educators from District 207 planned for the changes for years, visiting many neighboring schools and districts to find what they thought were the best techniques, Haugan said, and after the first semester, they’ve been pleased with the results.

“The discussions have really changed from, ‘What are we teaching today?’ to ‘How can we teach better?’” Haugan said

Fewer freshman failed classes, grades overall were higher and more students were able to move up from regular level algebra to accelerated algebra, she said. Half as many students had to repeat the first semester of algebra as usually do.

The changes were sparked at least in part by the No Child Left Behind law passed in 2001. While nearly all educators point out that the law’s goal of having all students meeting or exceeding state goals by 2014 is unattainable and the punitive measures are at best not helpful and at worst wasteful, the emphasis on looking at testing data from certain groups – low income students, for instance, or different racial and ethnic groups – made educators realize that they were failing some students and that they could do better.

“This is the one good thing about NCLB. We had to ask ourselves, ‘Are we really being effective teachers and really helping these kids?’” Haugan asked.