A Rural School That Works – ‘Target them early’

The methods behind the educational success of this community, which encompasses four blink-and-you’ll-miss-’em towns stretched out on the flat plains of north-central Kansas, provide a stark contrast to popular education reforms playing out across the United States. Waconda does not link student test-scores to teacher evaluations or offer merit pay to its teachers; it has no plans to distribute iPads to students.

Waconda’s approach is rooted in the basics, with a community that champions education, coupled with faculty dedication and a relentless focus on early intervention and prevention.

"Sometimes you get one of those elements in a school [or] two. But to have three come together, that’s not the norm at all," says John Hill, president of the National Rural Education Association, a membership organization of rural districts and state agencies. "I think that says something very special about that community."

The people here aren’t rich. Nearly two-thirds qualify for the lunch program. Ten percent are foster children. But there’s a community there that has created a great school.

Way to go!

By Sarah Butrymowicz

Full Story: http://hechingerreport.org/content/the-little-district-that-could-how-one-district-keeps-a-near-perfect-record-on-state-exams_8164/