When reading and math scores fell, a group of New York City Catholic schools took a new approach to teaching
New York City – Two years ago, 13-year-old Liam Seminara struggled at school and moved to the Workers’ Catholic Academy in Brooklyn, looking for change.
Eighth graders are now testing higher than grade levels. He is a member of the school’s robotics team and a passionate reader who says he reads “in more ways” than before St. Joseph.
Published data Last month, the national assessment of education progress assessment showed that reading scores in fourth and eighth grades nationwide have dropped by an average of 5 points since 2019, while Covid-19 No help.
According to the NAEP evaluation, only 30% of eighth graders are now proficient in reading. However, in the parish of Brooklyn, nearly 70% of students currently in grade eight are thriving in English and math, according to regional data.
Prior to the pandemic, the region noticed a drop in scores. So, according to Deacon Kevin McCormack, the dean of the Brooklyn and Queens Catholic School, it decided to change its teaching methods.
“We have to change the way we think,” McCormack said.
Its response is to implement new strategies that include monitoring teachers like Sofia DeMatino to ensure that lesson plans are effective.
Demartino, who teaches high school English in St. Joseph, described her coach Stephanie as “good.”
“She helped me support me,” Demartino told CBS News. “I’ll think, ‘I’m not sure about this lesson. Can you help me?’ She just makes some adjustments to it and says, ‘Instead of doing X, Y, DO Z, A. And I go and do it, It works very well.”
They also tailor each student’s skill level by dividing them into small groups.
“So we all learned the same thing, like the same topic,” Seminara said. “What happened is that smaller groups were taught to take a topic that was easier for them to learn. Sometimes, this also Just the whole class.”
DeMartino said the “great attention” of middle school students is that they won’t gain a love for reading, which will have a “disastrous impact.”
“My kids want to get into the NFL and so on. You need to be able to read the contract and really understand the tricky language that can be present in the contract,” Demartino said.
One-third of students in the area receive financial aid. Tuition and fundraising activities are being paid for the new program.
McCormack believes this may be a model for schools across the United States
“I think it’s OK,” McCormack said. “First, everyone is welcome. That’s the key point here. The second part is that we accept the child’s identity and take them where they are.”
