At the Middle School, much of December (2024) was used to take the winter NWEA. The NWEA measures growth. The AASA (state of Arizona standardized test) measures whether or not the student is at grade level. On the AASA, the student is deemed to be either at grade level or not at grade level. The NWEA purely measures growth. The NWEA measures where the student is at the beginning of the school year to where the student is the next spring. The winter NWEA allows us to check for understanding half way through the school year. Many of the Middle School students are well on their way to reaching their goal for growth in the Spring of 2025.
We also installed a metal detector. Along with the new fence around the school, the metal detector will significantly increase student safety. The protocol will be to use the metal detector 2-3 times a week. The district Safety Director made a set schedule on which days the metal detector will be used. On those dates, we will ask the students from 2 busses to go through the metal detector between 7:30am - 8:00am. The Safety Director created the schedule so that the selection of the 2 busses will be random.
We have a new schedule 2nd semester at the Middle School. The key features of the new schedule are: (1) Students will have specials like Culture, P.E., and Keyboarding twice a week instead of once a week. (2) Over 45 minutes a week of time spent on Adaptive Programs is built into the schedule. This means programs such as IXL Math and AR and Epic for Reading will be utilized almost an hour a week.
The new changes have had a significant impact on student behavior. Two weeks into the new semester we have had only 3 referrals. Obviously, the metal detector provides for increases safety. The new schedule provides students with much needed structure.