Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Elementary Education topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Matoska International reports strong cohort gains, expansion of immersion and focus on early literacy
Summary
Matoska International principal John Leininger told the board that the school’s fifth‑grade literacy cohort rose from about 32% low risk entering first grade to 75.6% meeting or exceeding state literacy benchmarks; the school is expanding immersion and focusing on early intervention, special‑education gains and math curriculum pilots.
John Leininger, principal of Matoska International, updated the board on the South‑side elementary’s immersion program, student achievement and curriculum priorities, saying the school has seen notable gains particularly in the fifth‑grade literacy cohort.
Leininger said Matoska’s IB and immersion programming is new and growing (42 kindergarten immersion students reported). He highlighted that the fifth‑grade cohort scored 75.6% at meet‑or‑exceed on Minnesota literacy assessments — above the state average of roughly 50% — and noted that cohort’s first grade entry occurred during the pandemic when only about 32% were low risk. "They moved from that 32 percent grown to that 75.6 percent," Leininger said, attributing the change to multi‑year growth and cumulative teacher support.
The principal also described progress for students in special education, citing curriculum‑based measurement (CBM) growth: second‑grade special‑education students averaged start scores around the mid‑30s and grew to roughly the low 70s by year end, a significant percent increase. Leininger framed that progress as evidence of targeted interventions and sustained teacher effort.
Matoska has completed year three of a new English language arts curriculum and is prioritizing early reading intervention to reduce the need for later remediation. The school is also engaged in a math curriculum pilot and reported that 38% of teachers have pursued additional math training voluntarily.
Leininger emphasized student reflection and ownership as part of instruction and described the school’s work to align curriculum, data and individualized instruction. He invited further board engagement and suggested the school will return with additional immersion updates.
Board members asked for cohort data over time and for more granular benchmarks; Leininger and board members agreed that cohort tracking and longitudinal views would be valuable for identifying where instruction yielded the largest gains. No action was taken; the presentation was informational.
