A student’s ability to read at the expected level by third grade is an essential step toward increasing the number of students who succeed academically, graduate from high school on time and do well in life and the workforce.
At Monday’s School Board business meeting, administration from Eden Prairie Schools presented progress made in third grade reading scores. The data highlighted a trend in students who are proficient using multiple measures to assess the growth including the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA), FastBridge, and Fountas & Pinnell (F&P) assessment.
Some of the largest gains occurred in Black or African American students and those who qualify for free and reduced lunch (FRP).
Eden Prairie Schools attributes the gains to following through on promises made during the 2014 referendum. Last year’s third grade class was the first to benefit from passed referendum with lowered class sizes in kindergarten and first grade.
“We believe the combination of low class sizes in K-1, solid instructional practices, and highly qualified staff are the primary reasons we have seen these meaningful student gains,” said Michelle Ament, Senior Director of Personalized Learning.
“This represents significant accomplishment,” said School Board member Adam Seidel. “If you look around at the rest of the metro, very few are achieving this. People should be coming to Eden Prairie to take a look at what we’re doing.”