Students in Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont will take the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) tests this month, after having prepared using Study Island, a web-based standards mastery solution from Archipelago Learning.
Built directly from the NECAP content standards, Study Island combines rigorous content in math, reading, writing, science and social studies with interactive activities that reinforce and reward student accomplishments. The program enables students to study in standard test format, interactive game mode, or through the use of classroom response systems. With real-time reporting on student achievement, teachers can differentiate instruction to address learning gaps as they prepare students for the NECAP.
Keene School District in New Hampshire uses Study Island throughout the district to improve NECAP scores and meet Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) goals, as well as to differentiate instruction and address learning gaps. Keene High School selected Study Island as part of its remediation and acceleration plan under No Child Left Behind (NCLB).
“We purchased Study Island for each of our high school students because the program is built from the NECAP standards. It enables teachers to modify assessments, provides immediate feedback to students, and allows parents to track their child’s academic progress,” said Alan Chmiel, principal at Keene High School.
According to Amanda Lecaroz, assistant superintendent at Pelham Memorial School in Pelham, New Hampshire, the Pelham School District used Study Island in an extended learning opportunity over the summer for students entering grades 6-8 who were not meeting proficiency standards in math. “Students engaged in small group instruction and Study Island’s targeted intervention. The program was a phenomenal success with more than 80 percent of students increasing their math proficiency by over 21 percentage points.”
Marshwood Middle School in Eliot, Maine began using Study Island this year to provide students in grades 5-8 with remediation and enrichment, to improve their NECAP scores, and to help meet AYP goals.
“Study Island is a valuable tool that we use to prepare our students for the annual New England Common Assessment Program,” said assistant principal Anthony Bourbon. “We needed a tool that could help with remediation of our lower achieving students, and Study Island has more than met our NECAP preparation and remediation needs. Our students are truly the beneficiaries of the Study Island program.”
