July 2005 — SETDA
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Making a Difference One Student at a Time
St. Louis Public Schools expands the eMINTS program to
boost student achievement throughout the urban district.
With less than 10 percent of St. Louis Public Schools’students reaching the “proficient” level in the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP), the district felt some changes needed to be made, and made quickly. Accordingly, the district turned to the eMINTS (enhancing Missouri’s Instructional Networked Teaching Strategies; www.emints.org) program as a model for moving from a traditional role for teachers—which obviously was not working—to a more constructivist role, which has led to dramatic results.
St. Louis Public Schools is a large urban district that encompasses about 61 square miles, including the entire city of St. Louis. The district is the biggest public school system in Missouri, providing educational programs to a variety of preK-12 students, those in adult education, and to 16 community schools, with a total of 6,048 full-time and part-time employees.
In addition, much of the district’s student population comes from economically depressed backgrounds. According to the 2000 US Census, the median household income for St. Louis was $27,166—well below the 2000 national median of $40,816. More than 80 percent of students in the district qualify for free or reduced price lunches, and the student population is about 90 percent black. While our children have challenges, they deserve a high quality education.
Creating a Student- Centered Environment
To achieve the performance levels indicated in the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), and the levels designated by district goals, we examined our instructional program. The district then decided to continue its successful practices while modifying others: We are focused on creating a student-centered environment in the classroom; holding all central administrators, principals, and teachers accountable; using data to drive decisions; and designing professional development to be in line with what students need to learn.
In support of improving the academic performance of all children, the district adopted the eMINTS program during the 2001-2002 school year. The program was piloted in four third- and fourth-grade classrooms at two elementary schools under the guidance of Myrtle Reed and Chereyl Spann at Peabody Elementary and Carol Strawbridge at Lafayette Elementary.
At both schools, the principals clearly had a well-communicated vision, as well as clear goals and objectives for their students. They worked to create partnerships with parents, business people, and the surrounding community. Inside the school, they recognized the impact of professional development on student learning, understood the relationship between learning and ongoing assessment, and recognized the meaningful role that technology can play in the classroom. This article focuses only on Peabody, as Lafayette was one of several schools closed due to budget limitations.
