Software Provides Personal Touch for Struggling Students

In a perfect world, Nancy Hill says, there would be a teacher for every struggling student -- someone who could give one-on-one instruction, tailored to each child’s needs.

But the world is far from perfect, especially in cash-strapped public education. So educators at E.O. Green School in Oxnard, where Hill is principal, rely on what they believe is the next best thing.

Using a computer software program called SuccessMaker, students who are not up to grade level in reading, spelling and math get the help they need. About 700 students -- half of the middle school’s population -- are now enrolled in a SuccessMaker class, which they take as an elective.

In the daily class, led by a teacher who roams around the room to offer individual help, students spend 45 minutes at a computer working on spelling words, reading skills and math problems designed for their academic level.

At the same time, their work is being tracked and recorded within the software program, enabling youngsters to set goals for improvement and teachers to set up reward systems for the progress they make.

The program, which is gaining in popularity at other campuses in the Hueneme School District, has boosted academic achievement for many at E.O. Green -- where 40% of students are still learning English and nearly 70% come from poor homes, said Leyla Williams, one of two teachers in the program.

“My kids come in with second-grade spelling skills and are reading at a fourth-grade level,” Williams said. “These are kids who have never been able to be successful because they don’t know what’s going on. This helps them get up to speed.”

Jackie Reyes, 13, for example, entered eighth grade this year doing math at a fifth-grader’s level. In just eight months, she has caught up more than two years’ worth of material, and is now able to grasp concepts at her grade level.”It helps me a lot with math,” Jackie said. “I have an A in algebra now.”

In Stacy Hunter’s seventh-grade class, students who progress through SuccessMaker earn raffle tickets, which they can use to win prizes.

As Tatiana Magana, 12, worked on the spelling section of the program last week, she clicked the button on the screen that tells her how she has done so far. Eighteen out of 18 correct -- 100%.

“See, look,” she said, and then pointed out her name on a wall announcing top students in each subject. “Spelling is my favorite.”

While the SuccessMaker software has been around for years, E.O. Green was the first school in the district to use it as an elective class, Hill said.

She came up with the idea after brainstorming ways the school could help students who arrive already struggling in basic subjects.