From Deseret News archives:
School tries incentives
Uintah County junior high aims to head off No Child sanctions
The school's 132 students are taking tests to meet the federal requirements now. If their scores don't meet state benchmarks, West will have to plan for "alternative governance," such as reopen as a charter school, replace teachers or administrators, or have a private entity or the state run the school, said Karl Wilson, Title I director for the State Office of Education.
West is the only Utah school facing that tough a consequence because its test scores, exam participation or attendance have missed the mark for five straight years. It is one of 1,750 nationwide, according to a national report that predicts the numbers inevitably will rise.
"It's tough on the students because they want to be like everybody else, and they are. We've got great students — students who work very, very hard," West principal Deena Millecam said. "The feeling at the school is it's a positive feeling, but if we can hit (annual progress requirements), we would be in heaven."
No Child Left Behind aims to have all students, regardless of race, income, English language acquisition or disability reading and doing math well by 2014. The law measures schools' progress toward the goal every year.
Utah currently expects 71 percent of its third- through eighth-graders to score as proficient on its language arts CRTs. The math expectation is 64 percent proficiency. Those benchmarks, however, gradually rise. By next year, they'll be 77 percent proficiency in language arts and 71 percent in math.
West missed the mark last year on math and overall school attendance, Millecam said. The year before, it was language arts.
Schools that receive Title I money, reserved to help students in low-income areas, face sanctions if they repeatedly fall short of state expectations. By the fifth year of school improvement, the state has the option of taking over the school.
But Wilson said that's not the state's plan — yet. Restructuring could come next year if the school doesn't progress. But, Wilson adds, "they've already undertaken part of that themselves."
The school is using federal grant money to consult with an education reform foundation, hire two math specialists and provide teacher training for math and special education teachers. Students practice testing protocols, and receive 90 minutes of daily language arts and math instruction — double the time in past years.
A counselor tracks attendance, and sends letters to parents of students with five or more absences, a measure decreasing unexcused absences. The "Principal's 200 Club" has cut behavior referrals by rewarding good behavior with school activities, assemblies and possibly soon, gifts such as bikes or CDs, Millecam said. Students who take tests, regardless of whether they pass them, will be admitted to Lagoon amusement park next week.
Millecam believes 98 percent of students will take tests this year and that the school school will post a 95 percent attendance rate — both within requirements.
The school awaits its test scores.
"Our teachers have worked so hard to get these kids to want to pass," Millecam said. "At this point, if we don't meet (No Child Left Behind goals), if the kids have come up, that is significant for us."
E-mail: jtcook@desnews.com
