Journal of the Effective Schools Project, Volume 11, 2004 Page: 28
36 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Lessons Learned from Mary
Poppins
Darrell G. Floyd and Debbie Hines
The Gilbert Intermediate campus of Stephenville ISD has em-
braced the philosophy that, as learner-centered educators, the
faculty, staff, and administrators must address the cognitive and
affective domains of our students' education. Faced with declin-
ing academic results, financial exigency, and personnel
reductions, the faculty of Gilbert faced the critical issue of meet-
ing the increasing needs of all learners without additional
personnel or programming. Adopting the Mary Poppins approach
that a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down provided the
impetus for campus reform and increased student success. Pro-
viding critical instructional strategies in a learning environment
promoting individual student support and reinforcement not only
increased student success but additionally increased teacher job
satisfaction.With increased accountability
standards, ever widening pressure
from the public sector to reform
the public education system, and
constantly changing demands for
more information to be covered
in less time, public school educa-
tion is faced with the challenge of
maintaining a balance between
meeting the cognitive needs of our
students while addressing the af-
fective domain of intellectual
development.
Faced with dropping academic
ratings, reduction in personnel due
to the financial exigency of the
district, and a growing awareness
that more of the same approach
would not achieve different aca-
demic results, the faculty at
Gilbert Intermediate School em-
barked on a mission to reach their
students' hearts as well as minds.
With a little innovation as the
sugar and resilient teachers serv-
ing the medicine, the Gilbert
campus applied the Mary Poppins
approach and managed to reduce
personnel, cut the campus budget,
and move from an acceptable cam-
pus rating to exemplary status.Gilbert Intermediate's account-
ability rating had dropped to
Acceptable with the 2000-2001
TAAS results. The low perform-
ing populations were Hispanic and
economically disadvantaged
learners. With an 18% Hispanic
and 36% economically disadvan-
taged student population, these
students often felt isolated and
unmotivated within a predomi-
nately white middle class student
population. Teachers were chal-
lenged to meet the individual and
unique needs of these demo-
graphic populations while
maintaining a challenging pace for
the rest of the students.
Due to the financial status of the
district, the campus experienced
a reduction in personnel resulting
in the demise of a math and read-
ing enrichment program that
previously served students with
prior TAAS failures. This program
had funded two full time teachers
to provide remediation to stu-
dents with 75 or below on any
pre-TAAS or TAAS assessment.
Gilbert Intermediate was staffed
with a highly qualified cadre of
28... the faculty at
Gilbert Intermediate
School embarked on
a mission to reach
their students' hearts
as well as minds.
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Tarleton State University. Effective Schools Project. Journal of the Effective Schools Project, Volume 11, 2004, periodical, 2004; Stephenville, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth201687/m1/30/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Tarleton State University.