After four years of not making targets, Central Middle School preparing for latest round of MAP tests

It was well past 3 p.m., but Cathy Kapfer's classroom at Central Middle School was full of activity.

At the front of the room, Kapfer helped fifth-grade students find common denominators. In the back, clusters of students worked on spelling words. Some students bounced between activities.

The classroom atmosphere at the school's after-school tutoring program, Cub Club, is more relaxed, Kapfer said.

"They've got a lot of energy to get out by the end of the day," she said.

The tutoring session, however, gives students another shot at grasping skills, she said. For a couple of hours, students are exposed to a different teacher and methods differentfrom what they might find in the classroom, she said.

The Missouri Assessment Program window opens later this month. Students in third through eighth grades will be tested on math and communication arts. High school students will also take end-of-course exams in English, biology, government and algebra.

Schools are steadily moving forward with practice tests and programs like Cub Club while others are also holding events to get students motivated.

At Central Middle School, students work on their homework after school during Cub Club, which is held three days a week. Principal Mark Kiehne said the sessions average about 125 students, about a fifth of the school's students.

The program gives students extra attention where needed, he said. Because there is a push to expose students to all the materials they will be tested on, there is little time to slow down for remedial work during the year, he said.

Attendance for the program nearly tripled this year, he said. Ten teachers and volunteers from Southeast Missouri State University work with students. A United Way grant helps fund transportation. The program aims to get students home with their homework complete. Parents have also been supportive of the growing after-school program, he said.

Kiehne said he sees improvement from a year ago. He said teachers are reporting grade improvements and that students are becoming more engaged in their studies.

"We are optimistic, but there are no guarantees," Kiehne said.

Title 1 schools, like the middle school, receive money to aid low-income students and face consequences for failing to meet testing standards. Schools must offer school choice and tutoring services depending on the sanctions. Non-Title 1 schools that do not meet the targets are required to implement school improvement plans.

This year, the target for student proficiency in math is 63.3 percent, compared to 54.1 percent in 2009. In communication arts, the target is 67.4 percent, compared to 59.2 percent in 2009. By 2014 the target is 100 percent.

The middle school is in corrective action because it has not met progress targets for four years. Schools in corrective action must offer supplemental tutoring and choose from a list of corrective measures including, staff replacements, professional development and school restructuring. The school contracts with Sylvan to offer tutoring on Saturdays, said assistant superintendent Pat Fanger.

She said the district chose to implement more professional development to comply. The school received $55,000 in federal funds since 2007 for professional development and instructional services required by the sanctions, she said.

Districtwide, one other Title 1 school, Jefferson Elementary, received sanctions.

Coming and going

One of the biggest struggles for the district is students who move in and out of the district.

"We deal a lot with transient students and students that are coming and going," Fanger said.

It is difficult to get students acclimated to the school environment but also to quickly get them on track with new curriculum, she said.

In the Jackson School District, none of its Title 1 schools received sanctions. South Elementary did not meet progress targets for the first time last year. Schools do not receive sanctions until targets are not met for two years.

Principal Bonnie Knowlan said the school made a bigger push this year to help struggling readers. There is a 40-minute reading intervention program called Tribe Time. Students are grouped according to their grade levels for the daily program.

"Our hope is that will transfer into that MAP test," she said.

She said the school shies away from big events to motivate students. The school used them in the past but found the big events distracting. Practice tests throughout the year help students get comfortable with the format, she said.

"We just try to structure our instruction throughout the year toward what they are going to see on those MAP tests," she said.

For a larger district, she said the testing challenges stem from getting the schools on the same page. She said the district has been working to align curriculum at all the schools.

"I think in the last three to four years we've just moved into a really good spot," she said.

Mary Boeller, principal at Nell Holcomb School, said the school focuses on parental involvement.

"If you inform the families and they know how important it is, that takes care of a huge part of preparing these kids for the test," she said.

The school holds a MAP Math Fun Night to educate parents about the test and provide more activities for students.

The school did not meet progress targets for two years, so it is in improvement level one, which requires an improvement plan and school choice, if available.

Boeller said the district is focusing on math skills to help students meet targets in the subject. Teachers are communicating more about instructional strategies and doing math-focused activities.

This year the school started daily math facts. All students study addition and multiplication facts.

"It's great," she said. "You can go along and ask any of our students what the fact of the day is."

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