Project Match Survey
Dear St. Barnabas Families,
Recent discussions regarding student placement have highlighted the need for a more transparent look at our Project MATCH (Matching Achievement to Curriculum Heights) criteria. These conversations inspired us to reach out to our entire community for feedback, ensuring our program effectively serves every student. As we share the second i-Ready diagnostic results over the next few days, we want to provide you with the context needed to navigate these scores and lead meaningful conversations about your child's mid-year progress at home.
Program Efficacy and Outcomes
We initiate this review from a position of academic strength. Over the past four years, schoolwide proficiency has risen 12% in ELA and 11% in Math, which now means that 82% and 72% of students are on grade level, respectively. Yet, excellence demands continuous improvement. Even with positive results, we remain committed to refining the student experience and strengthening our partnership with you.
Educational Rationale
The philosophy behind Project MATCH is supported by educational research regarding flexible ability grouping. Studies suggest that students achieve maximum growth when instruction is delivered within their "Zone of Proximal Development," the specific range where material is not too easy (causing boredom) nor too difficult (causing frustration). By creating distinct sections, we can tailor the pacing and targeted interventions to hit this optimal zone for more students, more often, than is possible in a large, heterogeneous classroom.
Defining Project MATCH
We want to clarify a common misconception: Project MATCH is not limited to support services. It is the comprehensive instructional model for all students in grades 1-8 (Reading) and 5-8 (Math). Whether in accelerated, traditional, or small, structured groups, every child is participating in Project MATCH.
Curriculum and Materials
Because every section is part of the same program, all students engage with the same core curriculum and utilize the same grade-level materials. Every group is instructed in the same grade-level standards, except for one section of 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade math, where all 5th grade students are invited to test during the summer before entering grade six to truly accelerate and jump a grade level. The primary distinctions between the groups are class size and instructional pacing.
The Placement/Matching Process: Data Criteria
Student placement is determined through a review process utilizing at least 11 specific data points:
- i-Ready Diagnostics: Scores from Diagnostic 1, 2, and 3, plus growth metrics.
- Curriculum-Based Assessments: Scores from BOY, MOY, and EOY assessments.
- Classroom Performance: Grades from all three trimesters.
- Teacher Input: Qualitative observations regarding work habits and classroom readiness.
A successful learning environment is just as critical as the curriculum. Our commitment to intentional class sizing enables us to tailor the environment to each group's specific instructional needs, and our team uses these capacity targets to carefully place each student where they will be heard, challenged, and supported. To ensure that environments like the small, structured setting have a student-to-teacher ratio conducive to the support and differentiation needed the school tries to cap that section at 15 students. This can ultimately impact the class size of the traditional and accelerated sections.
This is a data-informed process that examines academic performance, social-emotional needs, and learning styles. Our goal is not just to place a student in a room, but to place them in a community where they can be their most authentic and successful selves.
Diverse Learning Needs and Placement
It is critical to note that the presence of a diverse learning need, such as an IEP, 504 Plan, or Student Support Plan, does not dictate a specific placement. Students with support plans are enrolled in all three instructional sections based entirely on their academic proficiency data.
Mobility and Flexibility
Research shows that ability grouping is most effective when it is flexible. We are committed to ensuring students are not "pigeonholed." We review student data at the end of each trimester, and if the data indicates a student would benefit from a different setting, we facilitate movement between groups during the school year.
Request for Parent Feedback
As we evaluate our academic programming, we invite you to share your perspective on how Project MATCH has impacted your child’s learning experience by completing this Google feedback survey. If you have more than one child in 1st through 8th grade, please complete a separate form for each child.
We value your input as we continue to review our curriculum and instruction.
Sincerely,
St. Barnabas School