Gulf Elementary School
At Gulf Elementary School, first grade and second grade teachers were concerned about their students’ grasp of math concepts.  They had a “feeling” the students weren’t understanding all of the concepts they would need to know for the upcoming Stanford 10 exam, but they didn’t have specifics.  The teachers decided to administer a mirror test to the students in order to gather data on their students’ skills.  The teachers used an item analysis to pinpoint which skills their students had mastered, and which ones needed more practice.  This analysis allowed the teachers to develop and implement lesson plans using specific strategies to target the areas needing re-teaching and practice.  Stanford 10 results support their data analysis and action plan:  second grade scores increased by 7.3%, for a total of 83.4% of students meeting or exceeding the standard.  First grade increases were even greater; 93.6% of the first grade students met or exceeded the standard, an increase of 13.3% over the prior year.  A perfect example of data driving instruction, to the benefit of our students!