| Clemmons
Elementary School, the school in which
the framework was originally implemented,
is a large suburban school with a diverse
student population. Some children come
from homes surrounding the school and
others are bused from the inner city. In
any year, 20-25 percent of children
qualify for free or reduced-priced
lunches. Approximately 25-30 percent of
the children are African-American,
Hispanic, or Asian-Pacific Islanders.
Since the program began, the student
population has remained relatively
stable, with approximately 10 percent of
the children moving in and out each year.
All classes are heterogeneously grouped
and contain an average of 22 children. Throughout the year, teachers
conduct assessment by observing and
conferencing with children, taking
running records, and looking at writing
samples. At the end of the year, children
are given the Basic Reading Inventory by
an assessment team headed by the
curriculum coordinator. Instructional
levels are computed using standard
procedures, and include measures of oral
reading accuracy and comprehension as
measured by responses to comprehension
questions. Because the IRI is
administered at the end of the year, an
instructional level of first or second
grade is considered grade level at the
end of first grade, and an instructional
level of second or third grade is
considered grade level at the end of
second grade.
Across eight years
of Four-Blocks instruction, results have
remained remarkably consistent:
• At the end of
first grade, 58%-64% of the children read
above grade level (third grade or above),
22%-28% read on grade level, and 10%-17%
read below grade level (pre-primer or
primer). On average, one child each year
is unable to meet the instructional level
criteria on the pre-primer passage.
• At the end of
second grade, the number at grade level
is 14%-25%. The number above grade level
(fourth grade level or above) increases
to 68%-76%. The number reading below
grade level drops to 2%-9%. Standardized
test data on these children collected in
third, fourth, and fifth grades each year
indicates that 90% of the children are in
the top two quartiles. Most years, no
children’s scores fall in the bottom
quartile.
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