• CMSi Curriculum Audit of the Fort Smith Public Schools

     

    To ensure academic improvement, the district’s Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Department piloted two new programs, E.L. Achieve, and Benchmark Education Consultants, to help teachers implement Benchmark Education with fidelity. The district piloted these two new programs in the 2022-2023 school year in 11 out of 19 of its elementary schools, which received a school accountability letter grade lower than a C.

    E.L. Achieve brought in consultants to work with our teachers to improve scores for English Language Learners. Their work resulted in the following improvements:

    • 194 more students scored as proficient on ELPA21 compared to the previous year;

    • Seven schools (Howard, Morrison, Park, Tilles, Trusty, Sunnymede, and Sutton) increased their English Language Assessment (ELA) scores on the ACT Aspire;

    • Five of the seven (Howard, Morrison, Park, Tilles, and Sutton) schools increased their reading scores on the ACT Aspire.

    The district hired Benchmark Education Consultants to help improve literacy scores in English and Reading for eleven elementary schools (Carnall, Fairview, Howard, Orr, Morrison, Park, Spradling, Sunnymede, Sutton, Tilles, and Trusty). The impact of the benchmark education consultants' work revealed:

    • Nine of the eleven schools showed growth in reading on the ACT Aspire and

    • Seven of the eleven schools showed growth in the English Language Assessment portion of the ACT Aspire

    Since so many schools benefited from the pilot, Fort Smith Public Schools plans to deploy Benchmark Education Consultants in all elementary schools to improve scores throughout the district. The Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Department will launch E.L. Achieve in the middle schools, beginning with Kimmons Middle School.

  • For more information, please contact:

    Laura Gladden

    Laura Gladden

    Supervisor of Curriculum and Professional Development

    479.784.8182 Ext. 75225

     

     Tracy Newhart

    Tracy Newhart

    K-5 Literacy Coordinator

    479.461.7360


    Chandra Brotherton

    Chandra Brotherton

    6-12 Literacy Coordinator

    479.784.8182


     Debra Ellison 

    Debra Ellison

    K-5 Mathematics Coordinator

    479.784.8182 ext. 73541

     

    Erin Likens

    Erin Likens

    6-12 Mathematics Coordinator

    479.784.8182 ext. 73520

     

    Laurie Baldridge

    Laurie Baldridge

    K-12 Science Coordinator

    479.414.3754