'Learning community'

Wimauma Elementary School' s FCAT score went from a C to an A thanks to a program that has contributed to the school's success.

By SAUNDRA AMRHEIN
Published November 24, 2006

Giselle Suastegui loves to curl up at home with Thumbelina, The Little Mermaid and Jack and the Beanstalk.

Sometimes she reads her favorite books in Spanish with her mom. Sometimes Giselle, 8, reads them in English with her brother and sisters.

"Even if the parents read in Spanish, it still builds reading skills," says Wimauma Elementary School teacher Susana DeLaMota.

Yet when it comes to standardized testing and general instruction, the school's teachers and administrators face a stiff challenge preparing students to read and write in English when more than 85 percent speak Spanish at home.

Even those who speak English with little problem - as most of them do - reading and writing another language is harder, educators say.

If state test scores are any indication, Wimauma Elementary is doing something right.

The school's Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test grade jumped from a C two years ago to an A last school year.

Special efforts crucial

Principal Eric Cantrell credits the success to a "learning community" at his school.

That includes coaches for students and teachers, small-group instruction, 90-minute reading blocks and after-school classes for those struggling the most.

Wimauma Elementary qualifies as a Reading First school, so it gets extra reading materials and can break instruction time into 90-minute reading blocks.

The biggest difference, Cantrell notes, lies with lifting struggling students' scores.

For three years, the school has held after-school math and reading sessions for students in third, fourth and fifth grades considered in the bottom quarter.

FCAT scores jump

The year the school got a C grade on the FCAT, its overall point score was higher than the year before. The C grade reflected the lagging progress in reading among the poorest-performing students.

But last year, improvements in that group skyrocketed and students at the top end improved, too.

Learning gains in math dipped slightly. The school's overall FCAT score went from 397 to 471.

Cantrell says he's proud of his staff for tackling the challenges with missionlike zeal.

The educators must prepare the children not just for the FCAT, but for academic success in general.

"You have to have a real heart to be here to make a dent in the roadblocks these kids are facing," Cantrell said. "We have a lot of people who roll up their sleeves."

Individual attention

In Lindsy Sembower's class, a few children read along with her during guided reading. Some work on computers with programs used throughout the school that keep up with students' individual progress through passwords and try to advance them.

A volunteer from Sun City Center reads with one student at a time, while other children read together in small groups.

When Sembower begins to clap to a song, the children rotate stations.

In some of the 90-minute reading blocks, the teachers use material on science or social studies so that students learn reading skills while absorbing other subjects, Cantrell said.

Another sign of success, he added, is retention.

Several years ago, 30 third-graders were held back because of FCAT scores.

Last year, 10 kids were held back out of about 100 first-graders taking the test.

The school also does quarterly progress reports for every subject on all 600 students.

Classroom teachers, resource teachers, social workers, guidance counselors and administrators sit in on those meetings, Cantrell said.

Home affects studies

Milady Astacio, the assistant principal and head of the after-school instruction, said the students' parents want to help.

But many of them don't speak English and work long hours.

"Our biggest challenge is that our parents are hardworking and a lot have two or three jobs," she said.

"But they don't have time or the background to support the kids at home. All of it has to happen at the school."

Teachers must overcome other distractions in the students' lives, she said, such as house fires, homelessness and older siblings' gang ties.

Third-grade teacher David Jorden, 30, said he knows what some of the children go through. He grew up in a migrant family, much like about 30 percent of the students.

Not only was his family constantly moving between states and into different school districts, his house was filled with chaos.

He had few good places to study.

"Sometimes people don't realize the luxury of sitting at a kitchen table with decent lighting," he said.

Last year, 97 percent of the students qualified for free or reduced lunches.

For Astacio, like other educators at the school, reaching to the children at these early ages is essential not just for test scores and dropout prevention. It also opens doors to college.

"For a lot of them, (the school) is a clear constant," she said.

FAST FACTS

FCAT gains at Wimauma Elementary

Percentage of students meeting high reading standards:

2004-2005 school year

Percentage making learning gains in reading:

Percentage meeting high writing standards:

Percentage of poorest performers showing reading improvement:

(2005-2006)

(2004-2005 )

(2005-2006)

(2004-2005 )

(2005-2006)

(2004-2005 )

(2005-2006)