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District presents PSSA trends, MAP-growth plans and curriculum changes as part of K–8 achievement strategy
Summary
Octorara Area School District officials reviewed recent state test trends, early implementation of CKLA and Amplify literacy materials and plans for math adoption and MAP-based MTSS grouping to address gaps across elementary and middle grades.
Dr. Schultz presented an overview of recent PSSA and MAP data and described how the district is aligning curriculum and interventions to improve K–8 achievement.
He said the presentation was pared down from a larger slide set to focus on “creating mental Velcro” so board members could follow cohort and grade-level trends in math and ELA. He noted that CKLA and Amplify recently were adopted in literacy and that “CKLA and Amplify are not a magic bullet, but they are a standards aligned system that we do think has a lot of vertical integration going from K to 8.”
Dr. Schultz explained that early grades typically show more immediate gains from a standards-aligned curriculum because kindergarten and first grade students receive the full vertical sequence; older students will take longer to show the benefit of new programs. He said math “builds” across grades and emphasized focusing instructional time on major works (power standards) in early grades so students develop number sense that will support later grade-level standards.
The district previewed use of MAP Growth and other diagnostic tools (DIBELS, MCAS) to form MTSS tiered intervention groups and to guide teacher teams in matching strategies to student needs. Dr. Schultz said the district will return to committees for deeper dives into math and MAP data and plans targeted professional development and coaching tied to curriculum pilots.
Board members asked about obstacles; Dr. Schultz identified misalignment between instructional model and current materials as a primary barrier for math. He said the district has “amazing teachers” and that when resources are better matched to the instructional model — for example moving from GoMath toward a math workshop resource aligned with CRA (concrete–representational–abstract) — the district expects progress.
Ending: Administrators said further, more detailed briefings will be scheduled with committee members and staff to show pilot results, professional-development timelines and proposed math materials before a formal recommendation to the board.
