FCAT Writing Results are In

--School Stuff: We received our FCAT Writing Scores today. In Florida, students only have to take the writing portion of the FCAT exam in 4th, 8th, and 10th grades. Since this is my 1st year teaching 8th grade (instead of 6th or 7th) and since this is the 1st year the county combined language arts and reading into "one" class, I was very concerned about my students. The students who are in my classes ALL scored a Level 1 on the FCAT last year. (1 being the lowest possible score on the FCAT grading scale.) The state mandates that students who "fail" the FCAT be placed into an intensive reading course the following school year.

I love teaching reading! I love the reading curriculum. I love helping students connect to literature. I love helping "hook" reluctant readers. I am also very fond of the Read180 reading program our district paid literally millions of $$ to Sch.olastic to implement in our county. Last year, reading teachers taught reading using the Read180 program. It was wonderful! Both my current school and the school I transferred from were in the top 5 schools in the county for students who showed reading level gains at the end of the year. (This is a HUGE deal, as I live in a large county which has 30 middle schools in it!)

This year several middle schools opted to have the students' reading teacher also act as their language arts teacher. The idea was that since our reading classes always have a 2 period "block," and the Read180 program is designed for 90 minutes each day, we could use the last 30 minutes of the 2nd period each day to teach language arts. I admit that when my principal discussed the idea with me last summer I was all for it.

Then the reality of the school year set in. Trying to teach writing skills to ALL LEVEL ONE readers in only 30 minutes a day seemed impossible. Being done with Read180 in exactly 90 minutes a day was also nearly impossible. If I needed to "re-teach" or have class discussions on reading topics, we would go over the 90 minutes allotted for reading. Thus all year I've felt off balance....if I devoted the time I felt my students needed for language arts, I knew they weren't getting the time they needed for reading. If I allotted enough time for reading, then language arts was left rushed. Seriously, who can teach a worthy language arts lesson in less than half an hour? To all low level readers/writers. What an absurd concept!

Anyway...I wasn't expecting good results. I know that myself and my 2 co-teachers (one with each "block" of Read180 students) gave it our all. However, I truly wondered if it was enough. Were the needs of our students met?

I almost cried when we got our FCAT Writes results this morning. Cried from joy! On a scale of 1 to 6 (1=low and 6=high), Florida requires students to have a 3.5 or higher on the writing exam to constitute a passing score. 64% of my students scored a 3.5 or higher! And there were NO level 1s! I can't believe it! I am thrilled by this! 96% of these same students received a 1 when they last took the writing exam in 4th grade. ALL of the students began the year as level 1 readers. Yet somehow with only our measly 30 minutes....we taught them to write. Hallelujah!

My two moments that truly did cause me to "well up":
1. One of my lowest level readers, S.W. scored a 4.0. I am SOOO very ecstatic by this. This particular student has a really rough home life. He began the year reading only 60 words per minute. I am thrilled that he has shown such growth!

2. I have a student who scored a 5.5. WOWSERS! There were only 3 "6" scores and 11 "5.5" scores in my entire school. And one of my level one kiddos did it. I AM SO PROUD!

A pleasant surprise----my 2 most non-productive students, AA (mentioned in my "April Books" post) and RL, both of whom have had a D or F in all of their classes all school year due to lack of participation and/or work produced---both scored a 3.5. Wow. I certainly don't credit myself, but I was thrilled that they passed the exam!

So now the yin and the yang....the trying to nudge reading for writing and vice versa feel as though they were all worth it. Let's just hope our FCAT reading scores are also good when we receive them at the end of the school year. But for now-----yippee!

Update

Thanks SO much, kind readers, for your well wishes this week. I so appreciate your words of comfort. :)

My school meeting yesterday went better than I anticipated. Though I'm still frustrated that our department was docked points on the evaluation, at least we were able to vent and discuss things as a group.

The positives:
1. Our reading department bonded and is closer-knit because of our recent frustrations.
2. The principal and vice principal were able to witness first hand that some of the items we had points deducted for, we were NEVER informed about prior to yesterday's meeting. (This is a "positive," because they now know we didn't neglect to do things, rather we were not previously told the policy.)
3. My principal rocks! At the beginning of the meeting, he said he called us all together (himself, vice principal, myself, the other 3 reading teachers in my department, Ms. Cray --the district Sch.olastic Read180 rep, and Ms. Cambell--the district county-employed Read180 rep) so that we could communicate in person. He stated he doesn't like going back and forth behind people's backs, and wanted us to all communicate freely in person. I SOOO appreciate him for this. Some of my prior principals were the exact opposite of this----they'd much rather discuss things with the district reps and then come back and "scold" the reading department. I truly appreciate my principal for making things feel team oriented.
4. We were told that we are one of 4 middle schools in our county who has a team ready for the "next step" in Read180. Ms. Cray reviewed specific reports for us to use during "Checkpoints" in the Read180 curriculum.

The negatives:
1. None of the points from the Cluster visit evaluation are going to be altered. (So though my department and I still feel some things were unfair, the points remain as they are.)
2. Despite never asking to see Ms. J's data notebook, they are still not altering the points indicating that Ms. J lacked data.
3. Despite never asking my students or I where their Sourcebook/portfolios are, and despite the typed "Student Sourcebooks are kept here" sign hanging on my cabinet, they are still not altering the points for my students "lacking" portfolios.

I feel like the district is going against what they train their teachers to do. We are always told to give students rubrics and/or clear expectations for every assignment. We're told that it isn't fair to deduct points from students if they weren't exactly sure what was expected of them beforehand. Yet points were deducted from our department for UNCLEAR expectations. So, my anger is starting to subside...but it's still there, because I feel we've been treated unfairly.

The best news however----the county has heard us loud and clear. Other schools who combined language arts and Read180 are struggling just as much as we are. The district ladies told us yesterday that the district will NOT ALLOW Read180 and Language Arts to be combined next year. YIPPEE! Planning over in 2 minutes....sorry for the long ranting session. At least it's over. :)

April Books

Irish Rebel by Nora Roberts 4 out of 5. My friend MaryAnn introduced me to Nora Roberts a few years ago. Since then, I've read a few Roberts' books each year. They are quick reads, get right to the action, and always have a happy romantic ending. In other words---perfect beach reads, which is why I often read them during school breaks. Irish Rebel was my spring break read this year. I enjoyed this book about a woman whose family owns a horse breeding ranch and her love affair with one of her father's hired horse trainers.



The Film Club by David Gilmour. 5 out of 5. I relished this true-story memoir about a man who allowed his son to drop out of high school at age 15, under the condition that the son view 3 movies a week (of the father's choosing) and discuss the films with the father. The book expresses the father's feelings as he watches his son grow into adulthood. I enjoyed his descriptions of how their film discussions led to conversations about real-life issues. Wonderful story depicting lows and highs in a father-son relationship.
The teacher in me was especially drawn to this book. Though I teach, I don't believe that school is for everyone. For example, I have an 8th grade student, A.A. who is in 8th grade for the 2nd time this year. He is earning Ds or Fs in all of his classes and will fail 8th grade AGAIN this school year. A.A. turns 16 next month and has bragged to his friends about how he'll be able to drive himself to school before the end of the year. While I don't want A.A. to dropout, our school is obviously not doing justice for his education. I wish there were more "alternative" type programs for our students. Sadly, here in Jacksonville, unless a student earns high grades and is accepted into a magnet program, the only "alternative" setting is a school for behavior-issue students. Thus there isn't a "match" to meet A.A.'s educational needs. The son, Jesse, in Gilmour's book reminded me a lot of A.A. and other students I've had who lack motivation. I found Gilmour's "Film Club" solution to his son's poor academic performance, to be an interesting change from the norm. :)


City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. 5 out of 5. I finally found another teen-lit series! Yea! I am a fan of finding series to read...I love the "rush" I feel going from one book to another until the resolution in the final novel. This is a book about a teenage girl, Clary, who learns after her mother is kidnapped, that her mother has been lying to her her whole life. It includes demons, vampires, werewolves, and witches/warlocks all of whom live in New York City. I loved the plot which revolves around Clary learning things about herself (for example, she has the ability to see supernatural beings who are usually invisible to humans) as she pursues a quest to reunite with her mother. In addition, Clary must decide if she will work collaboratively with the "Shadowhunters" or not. Nice sexual tension between Clary and 2 male characters. I don't want to give more away....but I've started book 2 already!

Sighs...can't believe I only read 3 books. I can't wait for summer. :)

Countdown

26--- Days of school left for students

28---# of school days until summer (Teachers have 2 post-planning days after students are out.)

60ish---# of days until I visit OB to take the "next steps" in my trying-to-get-pregnant-again journey. (After my miscarriage in January, I was told to "come back in 6 months if you're not pregnant, and we'll look into things from there...") AF started today...and sadly I'm not optimistic about having a BFP in June or July.

70ish---# of days until I'll see my extended family again. We're not sure the exact dates yet. However, DH, Em and I will be taking a road trip to Ohio to see my parents, younger sis, and some Ohio friends.

93---Days until my Girl Power reunion weekend with my college gal-pals

1---Day left until the meeting with my reading department, principal, vice principal, and district reps. Yikes. (Click here if you're interested in more details.)

2009 is flying by...

Show and Tell--Mall Sign

Today we went to the mall. While Em was playing in the play yard, I figured out the perfect thing for Show and Tell---the sign below is posted in the play yard. Cracks me up every time I see it.




I think the sign is funny, but I also like the disclaimer at the bottom:
"Puppies and espresso will not actually be given. Please monitor your child."

It always makes me wonder if someone ever actually tried to cash in and try to get a puppy and/or espresso.

I took a photo of the sign today on my cell phone. But then found a clearer photo of the same sign I apparently took last year...I don't remember photographing the sign before. But since it makes me smile, I wasn't surprised I had already photoed it.

Check out Mel's Show and Tell to see what everyone else is showing off this week. :)