Officials in the Marysville School District are pleasantly surprised with the resiliency of local students despite nearly a full year of virus-impacted learning.
A presentation at Thursday night’s Marysville School Board meeting presented data that showed students are on par academically with previous years, despite months of remote learning to close out last school year and operating this year in a hybrid classroom schedule. K-4 students in the district return to school four days per week starting today, with older students to follow in the coming weeks. The goal is to have all students back in class, with safety precautions, five days per week beginning in April.
While students seem to be performing well overall, there are a handful of exceptions, according to Mark Gallagher, K-12 Multi-Tiered System of Supports Coordinator for the district.
On the academic side, Gallagher said a portion of Marysville first graders are underperforming in issues associated with reading. He said a greater number of students are performing at a level considered “at risk,” a metric being amplified by students deemed to be economically disadvantaged.
Offering potential reasons behind the reading drop-off, Director of Literacy Steven Griffin said he felt it was a residual effect from the end of last year. Griffin said kindergarten students really gain momentum in literacy during the months of March, April and May – the months forced into remote learning last year.
Griffin said he believes the kindergarten students did not make expected strides to close out the year and the ripple effect is being seen in this year’s first grade reading scores.
Pressed on how students will make up ground, Griffin said getting students back in class full time is crucial. He said students who need extra work will be paired with literacy specialists in the elementary buildings.
Specialists were available during periods of remote learning, but Griffin explained that many students did not attend their scheduled online meetings for extra help.
District Superintendent Diane Allen added that plans are also being developed to get at-risk students help outside of school hours. She said principals are currently developing intervention plans for students that can include instruction before and after school, as well as through the summer months.
The superintendent said federal dollars received for pandemic expenses will be used to compensate teachers for the extra work on intervention.
Another troublesome finding revealed that students in grades 7-12 are showing increased suicide risk indicators during social and emotional health testing.
Gallagher said that the remedy for this issue is, once again, getting students back in class full time. Once in the building, students will have access to school navigators who help identify students with emotional issues and guide them to the appropriate support mechanisms.
Perhaps more importantly, though, children need to be in school to interact with other students and work through natural coming-of-age issues, according to Gallagher.
“Those kids thrive on their friendships,” he said.
In other business, the board:
•Learned from treasurer Todd Johnson that commercial valuation in the district has increased by 2.25%, or about $5 million.
•Heard from Johnson that twice-annual casino tax revenue came in at $140,000 in January of 2020, before falling to $73,000 in August because of the virus. But the most recent payment in January saw the payment rebound to $147,000.
•Learned from Johnson that the district received a Bureau of Workers Compensation dividend payment of $795,000 that was not expected.