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Coffee County schools report progress toward TISA goals, district to spend accountability bonus on instruction
Summary
District staff told the board the district is using benchmark assessments and intervention to reach this year’s TISA targets; the district has $292,197.50 in TISA outcome bonus funds to allocate toward instructional initiatives.
Dr. Cornelius, speaking to the Coffee County School Board on Jan. 14, 2025, gave an update on the district’s TISA accountability goals and the assessment plan ahead of spring testing.
District elementary teachers continue to use the Wonders curriculum and unit benchmark tests now, with a more comprehensive standards-based assessment scheduled in late February using SchoolNet. Middle schools use MasteryConnect to benchmark three times a year in all four core subjects. High schools are measured by Ready Grad; the district reported an October senior ACT retake yielded 22 seniors who raised their composite scores to 21 or above. Districtwide, Dr. Cornelius said roughly 140 students currently meet ReadyGrad criteria and that number could increase after semester transcripts are posted.
Why it matters: The board’s stated district target for third-grade ELA proficiency is 55 percent this year. Dr. Cornelius said meeting that will require attention to standards — especially the writing portion of the TCAP — and targeted intervention for “bubble” students identified in Pearson and other diagnostic reports.
Dr. Cornelius described work already under way: elementary and middle principals received student-level historical testing data in October so teachers can identify gaps and tailor instruction; middle-school MasteryConnect data gives near–real-time diagnostic information; and district-level instructional leadership will solicit principals’ input on how to spend the TISA outcome bonus.
The district reported $292,197.50 was generated as a TISA outcome bonus for spring 2024 testing. Dr. Cornelius said instructional leadership has developed guidelines and will discuss spending options with principals to focus the money on initiatives tied to TISA accountability and instruction.
Board members asked about the attainability of the 55 percent third-grade ELA goal. Dr. Cornelius said the goal is not unattainable, citing examples of schools (he named Hickerson) that are using data folders and teacher-led interventions to “own” their results and improve. He emphasized that skills-based RTI work addresses remediation while curriculum- and standards-based instruction addresses the accountability measures.
The superintendent and staff indicated they will provide another update in April ahead of TCAP testing.
Dr. Cornelius’ presentation covered assessment cadence (benchmarks now; SchoolNet in late February; TCAP in April), tools in use (Wonders, SchoolNet, MasteryConnect, Pearson diagnostics) and the district’s plan to target spending of the $292,197.50 outcome bonus on instructional initiatives.
The board did not take a formal vote on instructional spending in the Jan. 14 meeting; staff said they will return with spending proposals after soliciting principals’ input.
