Groton School Board Considers Plan To Improve Academic Achievement

The Groton Board of Education reviewed a three-part plan Monday to improve the achievement of low income and special education students and improve the climate in the schools by reducing disciplinary problems.

The plan looks at boosting student achievement over the next three years, as measured by state assessment tests. The first goal is to improve achievement by 15 percent in students receiving free meals. This group makes up 33.8 percent of next year’s prospective student body — more than 1,700 students.

“If we can grab that group and accelerate their learning, we’re going to see improvements in many other [racial and socioeconomic] subgroups," said Mary Anne Butler, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction.

The second goal proposes a 15 percent increase in achievement for students receiving special education services. These students make up 11.7 percent of the prospective student body next year. The plan outlines a strategy for identifying students in need and proposes specially-tailored education programs for each student. The programs would focus on reading.

Denise Doolittle, director of pupil personnel services, said 49 percent of Groton's special education students scored at or above proficieny in reading - 11 percent below the state average.

A $10,000 grant is available to help the district pay for teacher training and other programs that target specific students.

The final goal of the three-part plan focuses on student climate in the schools.

“We grappled with this because it’s hard to measure,” said Butler. “We thought one indicator of school climate would be percentage of students referred to administration [for discipline].”

The plan aims to decrease discipline incidents by 50 percent over the next three years. The district would train staff on how to intervene and encourage positive behavior, encourage community and parental involvement, and increase awareness of anti-bullying practices.

“By next year, the kids will be [under] PBIS, Positive Behavior Intervention, which is going to be in all schools,” said Butler. “It’s going to be something we look at in each and every building.”

The board is waiting on a state report which will give specific data regarding discipline incidents over the last year. If approved, the three-part district improvement plan will be available to the public online.

The school board also discussed a joint effort to improve district efficiency by adopting a standardized curriculum policy.

Groton students improved last year in math and reading in the third, fourth, and middle school grades, according to  and  results released earlier in the month. Scores dipped slightly in four subject areas testing high school achievement. 

Superintendent Paul Kadri also talked to the board about new data that tracks groups of students over time. He said those scores indicate Groton students do exceptionally well at achieving basic proficiency, but could improve in the number of students scoring on the higher end of the spectrum.

“Our whole focus is to move the trend-line forward by moving each individual kid forward," Kadri said. "All the foundational things are in place to make that happen…So now it’s a matter of fine-tuning and being able to dive right in.”