7 | ACTON-BOXBOROUGH REGIONAL SCHOOL DISTRICT | ANNUAL REPORT 2023–2024
Teaching and Learning
EARLY/ ELEMENTARY LITERACY This was the first year of a five-year plan to implement the new literacy program, EL Education, in grades K-6. EL Education is a language arts program that empowers students to read complex grade-level texts and master literacy standards. It builds students’ knowledge about their world through topics in social studies, STEAM and literature. Early literacy screening assessments, as required by the State, were also implemented this year in grades K-3. These screening assessments are designed to help schools catch learning concerns while they are still in the early stages. The skills that were assessed are the building blocks for reading. Screening makes it possible to see if a student is at risk of developing reading difficulties, including risk of dyslexia. We look at skills that include alphabetic knowledge, phonemic awareness, word reading, reading comprehension, and rapid automatized naming. Screening does not diagnose dyslexia or other disabilities but helps us understand which students may need additional support to be successful readers. Our district uses a literacy screening assessment called DIBELS 8th Edition, which is approved by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. STUDENT LEARNING AT RJ GREY AND ABRHS At RJGrey JH, the leadership team focused on studying how data teams and intervention could be more avail- able at RJ Grey and also led initial staff meetings and conversations on more consistency in curriculum map- ping and grading. These topics will be further explored next year along with implementation planning. The
ABRHS work focused on the five-year course leveling process with the completion of year one this school year. From the student learning experience, 82% of students stated that the work in their class was “a healthy challenge” (spring ’24 student survey data). MULTI-TIERED SYSTEM OF SUPPORT (MTSS) The strategies employed to support data analysis as part of the continued implementation of MTSS in the elementary schools included various structures at the classroom, school, and District levels. At the classroom level, grade-level data analyses informed instructional planning for classroom instruction and FLEX blocks; at the school level, monthly Instructional Leadership Team (ILT) Meetings and periodic data dive meetings, provided opportunities to identify grades and curricular areas that needed additional support.
Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software