Successmaker Enterprise Software Purchase - Harford County ...

Harford County Public Schools – State Discretionary Grant – HSA FY10
Integration with Educational Reform
Under No Child Left Behind, each state has developed and implemented measurements for determining whether its
schools and local educational agencies (LEAs) are making adequate yearly progress (AYP). AYP is an individual state's
measure of progress toward the goal of 100 percent of students achieving to state academic standards in at least
reading/language arts and math. It sets the minimum level of proficiency that the state, its school districts, and schools
must achieve each year on annual tests and related academic indicators. Maryland has established standards for
schools that serve as the context for school improvement. School progress toward the attainment of Maryland content
standards is measured by MSA in grades 3 through 8 and by HSA in high school. HSA assesses students after they
have completed selected courses – Algebra/Data Analysis, English, Government and Biology. The gap between the
state standards and current achievement on these assessments provides the direction for school improvement.
The Vision of Harford County Public Schools System provides the context for the system’s Master Plan. The Vision
states: Harford County is a community of learners where educating everyone takes everyone. All students are
empowered to contribute to a diverse, democratic and change-oriented society. Harford County Public Schools (HCPS)
Master Plan is further aligned with the Mission of the school system: to foster a quality educational system that
challenges students to develop knowledge and skills and inspires them to become life-long learners and good citizens.
The Master Plan systematically addresses the four Board Goals:
To ensure a safe and positive learning environment;
To improve student achievement and close the minority achievement gap;
To ensure the effective use of all resources; and
To provide a high-quality workforce.
This initiative aligns with federal, state and local requirements, educational priorities and school improvement plans.
Annual data from the state assessments provides schools a snapshot of where students are at a single point in time.
Daily instruction continues between when the tests are given and when the results are returned to schools. Teachers
must know on a day to day basis where their students are in relation to the content standards to have the necessary
information to inform instruction. This on-going monitoring is also the way teachers determine whether their instructional
strategies are working for all students and which students need instructional interventions. Regular examinations of
student performance on assignments and assessments enable teachers to make informed instructional decisions
regarding teaching and re-teaching specific indicators/objectives. It is probably obvious, though not always practiced,
that classroom instruction and assessment must be aligned with the state's content standards if a school wishes to attain
state standards and meet their AYP target.
Understanding the relationship between classroom instruction and student achievement is a prerequisite to clarifying the
problem. Improved student achievement is based in large part on good alignment of instruction with the content
standards and on knowing where each student is in relation to the indicators. Consequently, focusing the collection of
data on what teachers need to know and do to align their instruction and understand where their students are in relation
to the indicators/objectives they are expected to teach will produce the most useful information.
Mortimore and Sammons (1987) found that teaching had 6 to 10 times as much impact on achievement as all other
factors combined. Allen Odden and his colleagues conclude that ―improved classroom instruction is the prime factor to
produce student achievement gains‖ (Odden & Wallace, 2003)
The overall goal of the grant initiative is to promote maximum achievement for all students by combining the best
principles of classroom management, peer assisted learning, and differentiated instruction into a comprehensive system
focusing on accountability, measurable achievement, and improved access to the general education curriculum for
diverse learners. Changing instructional practice is at the heart of improving learning outcomes for underserved and
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