Mathews Elementary is on the move in the right direction. We are very encouraged about the progress of the students at Mathews. We will send another group of K5 students to 1st grade with greater then 95% of them measurabley ready for 1st grade on both reading and math according to MAP. Roughly 80% of our 1st graders will enter the 22-23 school year as second graders measurably ready for 2nd grade in reading and math. Our rising 3rd graders had hte greatest growth of any second grade class in district 50. Our focus at Mathews, as we move this good foundation out of Kindergarten and 1st grade is to ensure all teachers are appropriately teaching SC standards and properly assessing students in order to prevent any gaps that would hinder the progress of our early childhood and elementary children as they work towards meeting the competencies of the profile of the South Carolina graduate.
Preliminary state scores are showing really grood growth in 4th and 5th grade ELA and Math. While preliminary state scores showed encouraging math growth with our 3rd graders, we were not as pleased with the ELA and Reading progress in 3rd grade. We have made the necessary adjustments to ensure that we will do a better job with our 3rd grade ELA instruction. Overall, we feelt aht if we all keep our nose to the grindstone, Mathews will reach academic heights that we have never enjoyed before.
We have used our state and federal monies to ensure we have class sizes that are reasonable for any teacher to feel comfortable at being able to give our students the individual attention they need throughout the year. As an admin team, we recognize that our main role is not to dictate, but to serve. We feel that if we properly serve teachers, creating an environment they can work in, then our students will be able to meet all of the competencies at the elementary level, thus allowing them to move on to the middle school ready to become even more prepared to go to the next level of achieving mastery as confident learners.
Greenwood District 50 has provided Mathews Elementary with all of the latest technology as all students and staff have Chromebooks. The district also supports teachers and students. Curriculum has been implemented that most closely aligns with our state standards. We are quite confident that if Mathews stays the course set in motion this year, that in the next few years we will be one of the most improved schools in the state.
Barry Jacks, Principal
Debbie Leonard, Assistant Principal
