Tag: Title I

The Wake County Public School System (WCPSS) has numerous programs and strategies to support students who are underachieving. Given the variety of support sources and the different ways in which WCPSS schools keep track of the type of support provided to students, it is often difficult at the district level to discern the full extent to which these students are supported beyond regular instruction, particularly by whom and through what funding source. Information on the types of services provided to students that extend beyond large supplemental programs such as Title I, English as a Second Language (ESL), and Special Education can be most reliably obtained from classroom teachers. To systemically collect data on the amount of need and support services given to K-5 students in 2009-10, elementary school teachers were asked to answer questions about whether their students were having frequent difficulty in literacy and mathematics, and if so, whether they received at least 30 hours of assistance and who provided it. These data were requested in the spring of 2010 as part of the annual K-5 Assessment Data survey completed by elementary school teachers. This report on the instructional assistance data for 2009-10 provides a brief look at the extent to which students had frequent difficulty in literacy and/or mathematics, whether these students received support beyond regular instruction and by whom, and whether the pattern of support differed at Title I elementary schools compared to non-Title I elementary schools.

Full Report (PDF)

In 2003-04, the Title I program was expanded to serve students in grades 3-5. Similar to the Title I K-2 program, the 3-5 program offered accelerated literacy intervention. The vast majority of students were served using the Fast Track Reading curriculum. Fast Track Reading combines explicit reading skills and phonics instruction with comprehension coaching and fluency practice. Fast Track is designed to accelerate student learning to raise students' performance to grade level standards. The demographics of Title I students served in grades 3-5 differs from Wake County Public Schools (WCPSS) grade 3-5 students due to the focus on serving students at risk of failure. The percentage of Title I students across grades 3-5 scoring at Level III or IV (grade level) on End-of-Grade (EOG) tests doubled. Students in grade 5 showed the greatest improvement, followed by students in grades 3 and 4. Increases from Spring 2003 and Spring 2004 in the percentage of students scoring at Level III or IV were strong for all Title I subgroups compared to WCPSS overall.

Full Report (PDF)

The Title I/Accelerated Learning Program K-2 Literacy Program (ALP K-2) served 4,732 students in kindergarten, first, and second grade identified as at risk of failure and in need of assistance in language arts. For a variety of reasons, over half of the students who scored below grade level on local assessments as of spring 2002 were not served, and others who scored at grade level were served. Nearly all of the staff surveyed reported that the program was an effective method of improving students' literacy skills. ALP students' literacy skills did improve. However, the mean gains in print concept scores (for kindergarten) and book level scores (for grades 1 and 2) were no different than for similar students not served. Approximately the same percentage of students were on grade level in spring 2003 as in spring 2002.

Full Report (PDF)