Three years after Denver Public Schools leadership threw more energy and money at literacy, district officials, principals and board members said they’re disappointed that the effort didn’t boost third-grade reading scores more this year.
“Our kids deserve to be able to read and write and do math at grade level, and every time we go backward, it’s more discouraging and harder to move forward,” board member Michelle Moss said Wednesday.
While district results mimicked statewide trends, third- graders at 57 city schools did worse on state reading assessment tests than they did last year, and 64 schools are doing worse than scores in 2003.
The Colorado Student Assessment Program results in Denver varied wildly. At Smedley Elementary, for example, proficiency rates jumped by almost 200 percent – the biggest increase in the state. But at southwest Denver’s Godsman Elementary, third-grade reading proficiency dropped by almost 50 percent from last year.
Jay Riley, principal at Smith Elementary Renaissance School of the Arts, said the scores are simply a snapshot. Smith’s proficiency scores fell from last year by 9 percentage points.
“You look at schools and you make judgments based on this (CSAPs),” she said. “There are bigger stories here about issues in kids’ lives and how it affects the way they learn.”
Riley said she’ll add more days to teacher training this fall and try to focus on the struggling kids early. All students take CSAP tests in the spring.
Maxwell Elementary principal Robert Woodson agreed. Maxwell’s proficiency rates are down slightly, but up overall since 2003.
“We just hold our breath for this,” he said. “There is so much pressure. There’s not a teacher in this district who doesn’t want to be successful.”
Chief academic officer Sally Mentor Hay was hired by Superintendent Jerry Wartgow three years ago to implement the literacy program. Her position was created by Wartgow.
The district has added literacy coaches to many elementary schools, started assessing students quarterly to see how well they’re reading, and standardized the curriculum. Hay also pushes students to read 1 million words a year. Two years ago, the district pumped in $13.5 million to improve literacy.
Hay said she is “impatient to make things better.”
“We want it faster, of course,” she said. “But I don’t think there’s anything that suggests we’re giving schools bad advice.”
Hay said the story is what’s happening at different schools. Maybe there’s a new third- grade teacher or a new principal or a new literacy coach.
“You keep looking down the line. There’s usually an answer there,” she said.
School board President Lester Woodward agreed.
“It’s pretty unfair to start blasting somebody without knowing what kind of issues exist,” he said. “We’re not the worst, but I’m sorry that we’re not the best and that we didn’t blast the tops off the charts.”
Parent Susan Molina said she hopes that improving CSAP scores is also a priority for the next superintendent.
Molina, who has a son at Steele Elementary School, said she wishes principals had greater autonomy over their budgets and curricula.
“We need principals who are leaders, principals who are willing to take a step up and see what schools need,” said Molina.
Staff writer Allison Sherry can be reached at 303-820-1377 or asherry@denverpost.com.
