The Bruce Grey Catholic District School Board held their June 22 meeting at Sacred Heart School in Mildmay, in celebration of the school’s success. Sacred Heart has been selected as a "School on the Move" by the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat, from the Ministry of Education.
The Schools on the Move initiative celebrates schools that are making significant and sustained progress in student achievement, and connects them with other schools that have similar backgrounds and challenges. The goal is for schools to share effective strategies and learn from one another.
Student Achievement Officers from the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat work collaboratively with school boards. Together, they select schools that have used data and evidence to significantly improve student achievement over three years.
Of the 4,000 schools across the province, 40 were chosen as potential recipients of this award for 2010. This in itself was a great accomplishment for Sacred Heart. The 40 schools were then visited by a team of Student Achievement Officers from the Secretariat. The team recognized Sacred Heart for "significant and sustained improvement in student achievement" and set out to explore how they achieved their results. In the end, Sacred Heart was among 25 schools selected for the honour, "whose community best exemplified the personal and precise attention to student achievement and the characteristics of a learning community necessary to provide rich effective learning environments for students".
Mildmay has demonstrated constant improvements in EQAO scores over the last 5 years, which have been attributed to positive student attitudes, and strong home, parish and school partnerships. The school enjoys weekly visits from Fr. Terry Sehl, a gospel infused curriculum, a strong parent volunteer presence, and a strong social justice presence in the community. In addition, students enjoy the benefit of extra-curricular programming including a study hall for supporting students with homework and assignment completion. It has been said that the character of a school can be measured in how it responds when students aren’t learning, and Sacred Heart Mildmay has certainly demonstrated their character, and risen to the challenge. Catherine Montreuil, Superintendent of Education, attributed the schools success to a number of factors, including: high staff expectations for students; regular data collection, dissemination and action; personalized support to students; and the development of precise teaching to close student learning gaps. The staff has also had the opportunity for regular learning of evidenced based teaching strategies through work with our Board Assessment Team and literacy specialist Carmel Crevola.
How did Mildmay embark on this journey? Several years ago it was identified that the current grade 3 class, then in kindergarten, was struggling and many of the students were not set up for success in reading, writing and language development. The staff responded to the needs, and developed precision in the teaching of oral language. Despite these efforts, by grade 1 only 7% were reaching targets for their grade level, and the staff responded again. Working diligently and as a team, they successfully brought 32% of the students to grade level by the end of grade 2. This was a tremendous improvement, but there was more work to be done. With these students now in grade 3, the staff responded yet again and maintained their focus. By May 2010, 96% of the students were meeting grade 3 benchmark in oral language, and 88% in reading and writing. This incredible success has been attributed to the persistence and dedication of staff, the use of the assessment team to create shared responsibility for student achievement, the importance of ongoing data collection, a focus on oral language instruction, flexible schedules and reflective practice.
Principal Marion Massaloup is very proud of the work that has been done under her leadership, and the benefits it has produced for the students. However, she is also eager to point out that while the teaching staff have done an incredible job, the success is also due to the collective efforts of all staff, including all teachers and support staff at the school.
In a follow up to their visit, the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat team wrote a thank you to the school. They noted that the discussions the team had with parents added to everything they had already discovered about the school. One parent was quoted as saying, "you can send your child to any school to learn how to count, but at this school they know what counts".
Chair of the Board for the Bruce Grey Catholic District School Board, Norm Bethune, recognizes Sacred Heart as a school that exemplifies our mission, "Committed to a vibrant Catholic education, we ensure quality learning experiences through community partnerships that nurture each student in body, mind and spirit and embrace the teachings of Christ, giving witness to Gospel values." He continued to say that it was an honour to hold our Board meeting at the school, to celebrate Sacred Heart Mildmay and to recognize the Mildmay team, including Principal Marion Massaloup, and teachers Christine Pfeffer, Alexis Kirk, Carrie Girdler, Jeanette Kadlecik, and Michelle Hallahan.
Schools on the Move began in 2006 with 23 schools from across the province. New schools have joined every year and as of June 2009 there were over 140 schools in the network.