Educational program boosts Conemaugh Valley Elementary scores

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Conemaugh Valley Elementary officials credit the implementation of the Multi-Tiered System of Support programming three years ago with recent, measurable successes in mathematics and reading.

In the 2023-24 school year, every student in kindergarten through sixth grade experienced 100% growth in reading and math, elementary Principal Michelle Salvaggio-LaRose said.

“Conemaugh Valley Elementary has made tremendous strides, with results that have exceeded expectations,” Salvaggio-LaRose said.

She described these successes as “a testament to the effectiveness of the MTSS framework” – a proactive and preventative data-driven approach to for instruction and social- emotional learning and support – “and the dedication of the school community.”

“This has truly been a collaborative team effort,” Salvaggio-LaRose said. “The progress we’ve achieved reflects the dedication and commitment of everyone involved. When we began this journey, we encountered significant challenges but my team rose to the occasion, aligned with the vision and embraced the changes necessary for our success.”

The principal added that she is “deeply grateful for their unwavering support and hard work.”

The Pennsylvania Future Ready Index shows elementary students experienced 76% annual growth in English and 81% in math prior to the COVID-19 pandemic with both statistics dipping to 50% in the 2021-22 school year.

There was a quick rebound the next year to 77% in English and 70% in math, and in the 2023-24 school year, they achieved 100% growth for those subjects.

Science results also saw significant growth for the same period, rising from 64% in 2021-22 to 85% this past year.

Michelle Miller, elementary instructional coach, said three years ago, about 60% of students in kindergarten through sixth grade needed intensive small group interventions, known as Tier 3 support in MTSS.

Now, only about 4% of youngsters in those grades require that level of assistance.

Miller described these trends as “remarkable success.”

The index data shows Conemaugh Valley Elementary learners were above the state average of 62.1% for proficient and advanced scores in English and close to the average of 45.2% for math prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused test results to drop.

Since then, the info demonstrates steadily increasing progress in each category with more than 46% of all primary test takers scoring proficient or advanced in English – a roughly 8% increase in two years – and a jump from 35% of those students earning that mark in math for the 2021-22 year to more than 40% this year.

According to 2023-24 PSSA data, nearly 58% of third-graders were proficient or above in English; 42.4% earned that rank in fourth grade; 34.7% in fifth grade; and 53% in sixth grade – the state average is 53.9%

For math, 45% of third-graders achieved proficient or above; 40.7% of fourth- graders did the same; 16.3% of fifth grade students made that mark; and 27.3% of sixth-grade students were high-achievers – the state average is 40.2%.

Additionally, 74.6% of fourth-grade students received proficient or above in science – the state average is 59.2%.

Salvaggio-LaRose said “every student has at this point shown some type of growth or significant growth.”

That includes the students who were already scoring proficient and advanced on state assessments, which the educators said is rare to see.

“It’s uplifting,” Miller said. “It’s nice to see your hard work pay off.”

For second-grade teacher Tanya Lauer, the implementation of the MTSS program has been a game-changer for her students.

“Now, we have targeted skills we’re looking at and individualized learning for the child,” she said.

Lauer has taught at Conemaugh Valley Elementary for 25 years and described what she’s experienced with the multi-tiered program as a “huge benefit” to the youngsters.

She also enjoys “really diving deep into the data” because of the positive impact that research has on the students.

Additionally, the CV faculty and staff frequently assess the students to measure their progress.

In kindergarten through second grade, students are evaluated every two weeks for below basic scorers with those above basic examined monthly.

Third through sixth grades are also assessed monthly with all grades receiving an additional evaluation three times a year.

Conemaugh Valley Elementary faculty and staff use DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills), Acadience math to measure growth and Spring Math and the Science of Reading as curriculum.

“We’ve spent so much time looking at kids as individuals and focusing on their needs,” elementary Instructional Coach Jen Stiffler said.

Stiffler credits that and the team approach for the continued success.

Although the students have experience measurable growth, Salvaggio-LaRose said this isn’t a time to rest on their laurels.

Faculty and staff are constantly reflecting on what they can do better, she said.

“We all want to give the best to the community and the kids,” Salvaggio-LaRose said.

Image Credits and Reference: https://www.yahoo.com/news/educational-program-boosts-conemaugh-valley-125000127.html