ABC Results: Richardson Elementary School, Washington, DC

Richardson Elementary School, Washington, DC 1994

Ms. Marlene Guy, then principal of Richardson Elementary School in Washington, DC, wanted to implement the Balanced Curriculum process at her school. Richardson Elementary had successfully used the School Development Program (SDP) to improve the climate and parent involvement. Student achievement improved during initial implementation of SDP, and, despite serving students who were welfare eligible, the school had accomplished near grade-level scores on standardized tests given by the district. A series of half-day workshops conducted on a monthly basis provided the training for Richardson teaching staff. Two teachers were released on a part-time basis to assist other teachers at the school with implementation. I discussed implementation between workshops with Marlene to ensure that progress was being made and questions answered.

As implementation happened, positive results accrued. Figure A compares 1993, which was before implementation, with 1994, when the results of the first year of implementation were available. The results on the Metropolitan Achievement Tests are presented in two ways, by year and by class. The figure indicates that results were better or the same in 1994 at 1st, 2nd, 5th, and 6th grade, or four of the six grades listed. Of course, the kids attending those classes were different. Figure B shows improvements by the same class. For example, Grade 1 scored at 1.9 during 1993; in 1994, the same class in 1994 in 2nd grade scored 2.7, for an improvement of .8.

Figure A

By Grade Test Score Results – Richardson Elementary School, Washington, DC.

Grade	1993	1994
1 Reading	1.9	1.9
2 Reading	2.3	2.7
3 Reading	4.0	3.5
4 Reading	3.8	3.2
5 Reading	4.4	5.0
6 Reading	5.2	5.5

Figure B

Reading Scores Grade to Grade for Richardson Elementary School, Washington, DC.

Reading Grade to Grade	Improvement
1 – 2	.8
2 – 3	1.2
3 – 4	-.6
4 – 5	1.2
5 – 6	1.1

Because the scores are reported in grade equivalents, we would expect a year’s (1.0) growth for a year’s instruction. Three class cohorts exceeded expectations. Fourth grade in 1994 was a problem. Ms. Guy indicated that the two teachers at that grade level were both novices who had difficulty controlling student behavior during the year, which may have partially accounted for the poor results.

(Excerpt taken from Squires, D.A. (2005) Aligning and balancing the standards-based curriculum. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.)

Copyright © 2000 ABC Education Consultants, LLC