Massachusetts

By Will Richmond

The Herald News

Posted May 31, 2010 @ 10:38 PM

FALL RIVER-Plans to create an in-district day school for special education middle school students are moving forward, with the School Committee expected to hear the proposal during June’s regular meeting.

The School Committee’s Alternative and Special Education subcommittee is expected to hear an updated version of the proposal during a meeting on June 9 at the Henry Lord Middle School.

E-mail Will Richmond at wrichmond@heraldnews.com.

Boston

Boston Public Schools has established a set of priorities for both Title I and IDEA funding under ARRA to maximize the benefits of the stimulus funding and ensure the continuation and expansion of efforts that have made the district successful in raising urban students’ achievement levels.

A top priority for the district is restoring the positions of school-based staff. Existing budget deficits will require schools to lay off teachers, school support staff, and administrators. Title I ARRA funding will be used to restore approximately 100 positions back to schools. Another top priority is monitoring student progress for improved teaching and learning. Schools currently use a fractured system of tests that cannot provide useful information to teachers in a timely manner to improve instruction. The stimulus funding will help the district give teachers and schools the right tools to monitor student outcomes (achievement, behavior, attendance) for continuous improvement.

The district’s efforts to improve literacy instruction will be strengthened with the ARRA funding. Many Boston public schools lack the necessary tools to help all students become strong readers. Additional Title I funds provide an opportunity to give teachers the needed tools and training to improve the literacy outcomes for each of their students, with emphasis given to Commonwealth Priority Schools, those the state has identified as underperforming during a specific review period.

Additionally, the district has been working to improve performance in science and math, but some schools lack the necessary tools and teacher preparation to offer rigorous math and science instruction, particularly in the middle grades. Stimulus funding will enable the district to provide teachers the needed tools and training to improve math and science instruction. Existing budget deficits have also forced the district to lay off instructional coaches for English language arts, math, English language learners, and social studies. The district will utilize ARRA funding to restore as many instructional support positions as possible so that those professionals who currently work directly with teachers and administrators to support improvements in teaching and learning can continue their efforts.

Title I funding will also enable the district to redesign and create access to summer school programs for up to 1,600 students in grades 4 and 5. Currently, the district does not provide summer safety nets to fourth- and fifth-graders, and existing summer safety nets will have to be eliminated because of budget shortfalls. This challenge is exacerbated by the shortage of ongoing safety nets to keep high school students on track for graduation when they fall behind. The district also recognizes the need for greater family engagement in student learning to accelerate student performance and decrease persistent achievement gaps. The school system will devote significant amounts of ARRA funding to provide family and community outreach coordinators, fund a parent university, disseminate family engagement materials, and offer translation services for schools.

Boston Public Schools will be using a considerable amount of its State Fiscal Stabilization Funds to restore job positions and to hire teachers of English language learners (ELLs). Funds specifically will be used to support the district’s Acceleration Agenda (Boston’s strategic plan) to help ELLs close the achievement gap, increase professional development to enhance the instruction of ELL students, and expand teachers’ access to appropriate materials and assessments required for effective instruction of ELLs.

Similar to the priorities under Title I, the district will use IDEA ARRA funding to restore jobs, saving the jobs of about 35 school-based instructional and support staff members that had been slated for elimination due to existing budget deficits. The district will also focus on reducing the disproportionately high number of special education referrals. As it stands now, the district lacks systematic strategies and tools for reducing unnecessary special education referrals, particularly for male minority students. Additional IDEA funding makes it possible for the district to increase support to schools for implementing pre-referral academic and behavior interventions, with a specific focus on attendance and truancy issues.

The district will also work to increase inclusionary models and practices in schools, by providing schools with resources and staff to widen the opportunities for students with disabilities to receive instruction in general education settings. Stimulus funding under IDEA also will allow the district to assist schools that lack sufficient staff, materials, and training to fully support students with autism. IDEA funds will provide schools with additional resources and training to enhance in-classroom supports for students with autism.

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