Each year it has been tested by the Mississippi Department of Education, the Petal Early Learning Collaborative – which is made up of three classes at Charles Johnson Head Start and one class at Petal Primary School – has received a rate of readiness determination of “Successful,” meaning those students are kindergarten-ready.
That continued this year, when the collaborative received a “Successful” rate of readiness at both schools in the Effectiveness Evaluation for Early Learning Collaboratives and Other Pre-K Classrooms.
The evaluation, which assigns scores based on specific tools that assess how children grow academically and developmentally throughout the school year, is comprised of subscores from the Mississippi K-3 Assessment Support System (MKAS), Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) and the Comprehensive Early Learning Assessment (CELA).
The MKAS, which is a computer-based literacy and numeracy assessment, assigns a score based on the percentage of children that reach a 498 score by the end of the school year or the percent of children that demonstrate an average point gain of 98 per site. Out of a possible maximum of 25 points, Charles Johnson Head Start was awarded 15 points, while Petal Primary School gained 25 points.
“So if we don’t have enough children meeting the 498, then they will look at the growth,” said Dede Smith, director of the Coleman Center for Families and Children. “Sometimes if the children start out really low at the beginning of the year, it’s hard for them to get to the 498.
“But if they grow a large amount, then (MDE) acknowledges that as well.”
The CELA, which in Mississippi is the Brigance III system, is a checklist that identifies how children are developing in certain skills such as counting by rote, recognizing quantity and following verbal directions. Out of a possible maximum of 25 CELA points, Charles Johnson Heard Start and Petal Primary School each received 25 points.
“They’re looking at average growth, and there are certain norms that the Brigance already has set up with their assessment,” Smith said.
The CLASS, which is an observation tool in which certified individuals look for specific indicators in the classroom based on the interactions between the teacher and the children, assigns a maximum value of 50 points. Charles Johnson Head Start received 50 points on the CLASS, while Petal Primary School received 30 points.
Petal Primary did not receive an overall CLASS score, as those scores are not provided when only one classroom was observed at a site.
For their scores in MKAS, CELA and CLASS, Charles Johnson Head Start received a rate of readiness score of 90, while Petal Primary received a score of 80. A score of 70 or above rates “Successful,” while a score of 69 or below rates “Probation.”
If a site scores 69 or below and has been on probation for one year, that site will be rated “Non-eligible.”
“There is always room for improvement,” Smith said. “We’re going to focus a good bit more this year on the instructional support domain, in providing our teachers with some additional professional development.
“We do want to increase the number of children who are reaching the 498 (score) or the 98-point growth. However, that’s just a small piece of the puzzle – I’m really proud that our state does use the Brigance for the developmental growth of those children. The MKAS is a small piece of the puzzle. The Brigance, which really looks at the overall development of the child, is much more telling of whether the child is kindergarten-ready or not.”
In addition to the MKAS, CELA and CLASS, the Petal Early Learning Collaborative also is required by MDE to achieve compliance in certain areas, such as teacher guidelines, professional development, teacher-child ratio and researched-based curriculum. The efforts to remain in compliance are headed up by Missy Hamilton, the center’s readiness coordinator.
“She has a box in her office with all these files in it,” Smith said. “We’re constantly putting documentation in there to show the daily schedule and all of these things.
“And all of these requirements are based on what research shows are best practices for young children.”
