Northland Preparatory Academy

NPA has developed and implemented a comprehensive response to address the impact of COVID on its operations and to support the academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs of all students. The overall response has been funded by ESSER I, ESSER II, and ESSER III grants, as well as from NPA general funds.

It should be noted that the activities and measures described below refer to those components funded in our ESSER III grant, and therefore do not include the entirety of our efforts which have also been supported by previous ESSER I and ESSER II funds.

With respect to the academic needs of students, NPA has taken the following steps with the support of ESSER III funds:

>> NPA purchased Chromebook laptop devices to provide students, especially those whose socio-economic background may preclude ready access to computers, with the means to fully participate in remote learning during the earlier remote phase of instruction in place between March 2020 and March 2021 as well as after the return to in-person instruction. All students who need to check out a device from the school for regular use across the school year can do so.

>> NPA purchased hotspot devices and data access for those hotspots to provide internet access to students, especially those whose socio-economic background may preclude reliable access to the internet. While separate ECF funds are expected to fund data access in 2021-22 and beyond, ESSER III funds were used to purchase the hotspot devices and provide line access during 2020-21.

>> NPA purchased diagnostic assessment software to allow for benchmark and diagnostic testing of students in math and language arts, to better identify which students have been impacted by COVID-related learning disruption and to what degree. The data gathered from these assessments is used to inform remediation approaches on both an individual level and a class/grade level.

>> NPA has created a full-time Math Specialist position to address student needs in math success and remediation. When math teachers and/or Special Ed. Teachers determine that a particular student is at risk of falling behind or failing in math, the student is scheduled for time with the Math Specialist, who works with students mostly in one-on-one sessions but also in some small group reteaching opportunities. Students also self-initiate requests to see the Math Specialist for assistance as needed on problems or in advance of assessments. Students meet with the Math Specialist during their study periods, so they do not miss their regular math lessons or their other core periods. Currently, the Math Specialist is working with a caseload of approximately 30 students and seeing those students on average 1 to 3 times per week. Sessions typically range from 30 minutes to an entire 50-minute period.

In providing tutoring service, the Math Specialist regularly consults with the regular math teachers of the students. This occurs through a live (private) document where regular classroom teachers identify areas of concern and content strands where reteaching and reinforcement is needed for each student partaking in the tutoring.

The Math Specialist employs a variety of instructional techniques and effective practices, including but not limited to the following: regular sessions; explanation of what regular classroom teachers are looking for so students understand why they are doing the problem; making real-world connections; example problems; guided problem-solving followed by student practice and quizzing; explanation and examples of alternate ways to solve problems; visual explanations including graphs and animated programs; and seeking direct input from students about how they feel about the material and how well they feel they understand.

The Math Specialist of course ends up utilizing some materials from the main course curriculum (Pearson's Common Core Math enVision series and Prentice-Hall's Middle Grades Common Core Courses 1, 2, and 3) utilized by the teachers of the regular math courses taken by the students (when students bring up particular problems from their classwork), and also employs additional graphic and visualization tools and videos such as ones available at desmos.com, geogebra.org, and mathisvisual.com.

The fact that the tutoring occurs during the school day assures that no students who may have afterschool scheduling or transportation issues are denied the opportunity to participate and receive assistance.

>> NPA initiated a Jump Start summer program for the summer of 2021 (with 2022 and 2023 to follow). The program provides academic support to students identified by teachers and/or self-identified by students/parents as likely to benefit from additional time and remediation to solidify skills and/or content mastery as they prepare for the coming school year. Teachers identified students who could benefit from remediation opportunities. Parents were notified of the opportunity and invited to have their children participate. For three weeks, (7/12/21-7/30/21) approximately 25 middle school students attended half-day day sessions staffed by NPA teachers in Language Arts and Math remediation. For four weeks of half-days (7/12/21-8/6/21), approximately 22 high school students worked through subject-specific modules for credit recovery in courses where they struggled in the prior school year, with direct in-person instruction for math courses and remote teacher supervision and support for other courses. Special Education staff was also in place to assist those students with need for accommodations.

A positive benefit derived from the summer program is the ability to provide additional assistance and access to some student sub-populations within the school. The student population served by the summer sessions consisted of higher percentages of students of color, students from lower income households, and students with learning disabilities than are present in our overall population (33% vs. 24% nonwhite, 9% vs. 2% FRL-eligible, and 36% vs 9% IEP).

>> Starting with the 2021-22 School Year, NPA is providing a supervised after school setting for middle school students to complete homework and get assistance with homework. Currently staffed by one of our special education paraprofessionals, these after school study sessions run for 1.25 hours per day on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, and for an extended 3-hour session on Wednesdays when the school has early dismissal for staff development activities. The sessions are open to all middle school students but have been more frequented by students nominated by teachers for catch up time and by students whose home situations may be less conducive to completion of schoolwork (for example, students with several younger siblings who may be expected to care for those siblings upon arrival at home). Our Counseling and Special Education departments have nominated and invited students to attend these sessions. We have observed that some of our Native American students make up a greater proportion of the students who attend most regularly than the proportion represented in our overall school population, which has been fostered by the fact that the regular facilitator of the sessions is herself Native American.

With respect to the social, emotional, and mental health needs of students, NPA has taken the following steps with the support of ESSER III funds:

>> Within the context of the Jump Start summer program described above, NPA is providing enrichment in the form of a physical education component within each day, during which they participated in a variety of activities to boost physical fitness, self-esteem, and motor skills, while interacting socially with other students in a less structured setting relative to classes and their prior school year experience.

>>Whereas the extended period of remote learning between March 2020 and March 2021 represented a mental health challenge for students, on top of the pandemic-induced emotional stress faced by youths and adults alike, NPA arranged for all staff members who regularly interact with students to take part in an all-day staff training on Youth Mental Health First Aid. According to its developer, the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, "Youth Mental Health First Aid is primarily designed for adults who regularly interact with young people. The course introduces common mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent development, and teaches a 5-step action plan for how to help young people in both crisis and non-crisis situations." Building upon prior internal activities related to mental health awareness and reporting protocols, this grant-funded training day has better equipped NPA's staff to be aware and responsive to students who may be at risk or in crisis.