An Acceleration Story: Pleasantdale School District is Doing the Homework and Embracing the Process

By Melissa Hinshaw and Beth Dirkes

We want students to pay close attention to the lessons in their classrooms. We want them to ask questions and draw their own conclusions. We cheer when their questions show insight, and they can support their ideas because we aim to help them become not just thorough thinkers, but effective actors. It’s the gist of just about every school district mission statement you can find. But many districts have not paid attention to the lessons for them about acceleration.

Pleasantdale School District in Illinois has been paying attention and is taking action to create equitable acceleration policies and practices built on the evidence of decades of research that acceleration is a highly effective intervention[i]. Most importantly, they’re getting results for their students.   

Achieving those results starts with a commitment to serving every student. Pleasantdale has espoused an “all in the talent pool” approach. As one teacher put it, “We’re all together trying to make these kids the best they can be.”[ii] This means including both enrichment and acceleration in the mix.

The Talent Development Model[iii] guides Pleasantdale. They understand that their students’ academic ability is a moving target, starting with potential which can unfold into increased competency and over time grow into expertise. Each student’s academic development is affected by their learning opportunities along the way; and it’s never too soon to start providing those opportunities. With this in mind, Pleasantdale introduced a talent development model  in their elementary classrooms to expand enrichment beyond math and language arts.  The Learning Enrichment Specialist provides weekly lessons on the 4 C's: collaboration, communication, creativity, and critical thinking skills to all students in grades K-3. Creative enrichment opportunities for middle schoolers are on the way.

Acceleration is another important way Pleasantdale is matching learning opportunities to its students’ needs. The district chose the Iowa Acceleration Scale as its framework for this work because it is an objective, vetted tool for decision making. The Scale is based on extensive research but also has been refined by the experience of school districts in all 50 states as well as schools outside the U.S. The Illinois Accelerated Placement Act requires districts to have policies and procedures for both whole grade acceleration and early entrance, which the Iowa Acceleration Scale is designed to support. Together, they represent current best practices for creating a fair and equitable acceleration policy and implementing it smoothly for administrators, teachers, students, and families.

Many of the pieces needed for an effective acceleration process are not difficult to implement, yet school districts often overlook them. Pleasantdale is sidestepping those pitfalls. When considering acceleration placements, the district looks at several indicators: MAP scores, CogAT scores, grade reports, a local writing assessment, and a teacher recommendation. For English language learners, the CogAT nonverbal score is included.

In Pleasantdale’s acceleration process, students and their parents are included in decision making, rather than being expected simply to get onboard with the outcome. In cases where whole grade acceleration is considered, a student’s motivation is key, as are factors such as a sibling’s grade level. Student and parent buy-in can make all the difference.

Of course, teachers are also valuable members of the acceleration team. They consult to identify gaps in curriculum coverage that may occur when skipping a grade. Then the team creates a plan to cover those gaps. A caseworker takes on the job of supporting the transition process, communicating with the family, and monitoring the student’s situation on an ongoing basis.

Pleasantdale’s whole grade accelerations have been successful, bearing out research findings for this strategy.[iv] The goal is for students, teachers, and parents to look back and conclude that it was the right decision for them. Reaching this goal relies a lot on how you play the endgame. Because talents and readiness vary so much for each individual student, Pleasantdale reviews placements annually and on an as-needed basis within the school year. Both individual students and the district’s acceleration process are best served by ongoing review.

When students solve a problem or reach a new level of understanding, the learning process doesn’t end there. We challenge them to find out more, to try new strategies to achieve an even deeper understanding, a more elegant solution. Researchers and school districts like Pleasantdale offer many lessons on acceleration, but their own learning goes on.

[i]  Saying Steenbergen-Hu, Matthew C. Makel, and Paula Olszewski-Kubilius, “What One Hundred Years of Research Says About the Effects of Ability Grouping and Acceleration on K-12 Students’ Academic Achievement: Findings of Two Second-Order Meta-Analyses” Review of Educational Research 86, no. 4 (December 2016): 890. http://www.k12accountability.org/resources/Gifted-Education/GT_Review_of_Ed_Research_Meta_Analysis.pdf

[ii] Comments of Juliette Marrari, Pleasantdale Elementary School Art Teacher https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SK8Laklsd98

[iii] Paula Olszewski-Kubilius and Dana Thompson, “Talent Development as a Framework for Gifted Education” Gifted Child Today 38, no. 1 (2015): 49-59.

[iv] Steenbergen-Hu, “What One Hundred Years of Research Says About the Effects of Ability Grouping and Acceleration on K-12 Students’ Academic Achievement: Findings of Two Second-Order Meta-Analyses” 893.