Demographic and Needs Assessment

Landrum Middle School is located in Spring Branch Independent School District (ISD) serving the city limits of Houston, Texas. Of the 1,073 students enrolled in the 2016-2017 school year, 94.0% were Hispanic, 2.2% White, 1.6% African American, 1.6% Asian, 0.2% Native American, and 0.4% identified as two or more races. Eight hundred eighty-five or 82.5% of the students were identified as Economically Disadvantaged, 80.7% were At-Risk, while 51.9% were English Language Learners. Of the students registered in special programs at Landrum, 49.7% were enrolled in Bilingual/ESL Education, 28.2% were enrolled in Career and Technical Education, 4.9% were enrolled in Gifted and Talented Education, and 8.7% were enrolled in Special Education. Grade 5 consisted of 10.2% of the total population, 30.3% belonged to Grade 6, 31.2% were Grade 7, and 28.3% were Grade 8. Landrum Middle School achieved a “Met Standard” accountability rating in the Texas Academic Performance Report for the 2016-2017 school year. Nevertheless, many areas need revision to enable our students to become more scholastically competitive.

Data Collection

The Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR) is a yearly collection of data on the academic performance of Texas Education Agency accredited schools. Over the years, the results obtained in the TAPR have helped educators in assessing the performance of students and identifying areas that require academic intervention. For this assignment, the 2016-2017 Campus Performance Report of Landrum Middle School was studied.

Needs Assessment

Although Landrum Middle School has achieved a Met Standard rating, after assessing how the school fared based on the TAPR, many subject areas require improvement. According to Steven Speyrer, campus principal at Landrum Middle, at least 50% of students have met the minimum standard score (approaches grade level) across all subjects in 2017 (personal communication, June 22, 2018). However, the school is lagging behind the state’s and district’s percent scores based on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR). Of the STAAR tested subjects, Landrum Middle only garnered 61% mastery, 14 points lower than the state’s 75% and 12 points lower than the district’s 73%. One constructive highlight is that scores have increased 5 points from the 56% garnered in 2016. Across subjects, the percent score for Reading, Mathematics, and Writing has risen from 57% to 61%, from 56% to 63%, and from 37% to 50%, respectively. However, Science and Social Studies have recorded a downward trend from 69% to 66% and from 60% to 58%, respectively.

The percentage of students that achieved “Meets Grade Level” has increased across subjects from 2016 to 2017. The percent score for Science has risen 4 points, from 33% to 37%. A five-point increase was observed for Reading and Social Studies, from 21% to 26% and from 20% to 25%, respectively. The percent score for Mathematics has increased from 21% in 2016 to 27% in 2017.  Additionally, Writing has garnered the highest percentage score increase, from 12% in 2016 to 20% in 2017.

Furthermore, the percent score of Landrum Middle School at the “Masters Grade Level” has recorded increase. Reading has improved from 8% to 9%. Three subjects have registered a 2 percent score increase. Mathematics has risen from 6% to 8% while both Science and Social Studies have garnered 9% in 2016 and increased to 11% in 2017. Meanwhile, Writing has recorded 5% for 2017.

Although Landrum Middle School has performed well in increasing its percent scores across subjects, it has consistently lingered behind the district’s and state’s percent scores. The data alone speaks volume on what the school needs to improve in regards to the STAAR assessment. We must strive to reach or even exceed the average percent scores of the district and state.

Proposed Intervention

In reference to how Landrum Middle School performed in the subjects tested by STAAR, a better designed holistic approach to improving student learning across grades and subjects needs to be implemented.

On the state and district level, case studies on best practices among schools can be of great help in providing a jumpstart to increasing performance. In the study of Villavicencio and Grayman (2012), it is noted that qualitative studies at the citywide level rather than just quantitative differences, elaborate the best practices in unifying schools to perform better. These studies could be a tremendous resource for teachers in assessing where their school stands compared to other local schools.

School performance relies heavily on administrators. They carry the burden of developing an academic curriculum that will best suit the needs of all students. Schools need to facilitate learning programs that would encourage students to invest in their learning.

Developing and implementing study skills, encouraging student advocacy within the school, identifying stakeholders and utilizing proper communication strategies between stakeholders are some of the points that can be considered by administrators in decision-making processes in academics (Kuthy and Spicer, 2015).

Meanwhile, Wilcox (2009) identified five critical elements to higher performance in science, which can also be used in other subjects. First creating a climate of fairness and fun that would encourage students to feel capable of exploring and understanding different concepts. Second, by having a collaborative focus so that administrators can quickly identify what areas need to be addressed based on existing data or from information gathered in dialogues with faculty and students. The third is creating a broad foundation by providing students with opportunities to go in-depth in their learning. Fourth is fluency; exposing a well-thought-out and tested curriculum that will increase knowledge about the subject matter. Last is employing highly qualified and skilled teachers who will mentor students and help them become the best that they can be academically.

References

Kuthy, L., Spicer, A. (2015). Academic Planning and Success in Middle School [Powerpoint Slides]. Retrieved from Williamsburg James City County website

TEA Division of Performance Reporting. (2017).  2016-17 Texas academic performance report

Villavicencio, A., Grayman J. K (2012, February). Learning from “Turnaround” Middle Schools: Strategies for Success. The Research Alliance for New York City Schools (page ES-6).

Wilcox, K. C. (2009). What works in middle school science.