Delaware secretary of education visits Rehoboth Elementary

Delaware Department of Education Secretary Cindy Marten and a team of DOE leaders visited Rehoboth Elementary Sept. 24.

As one of the state’s high-performing schools, Rehoboth Elementary was selected as part of a statewide series of learning walks designed to highlight promising practices and let officials gather feedback to inform state-level support.

The visit began with a warm welcome and school overview from Dr. Doris Person, principal, who shared information about the school’s demographics and program highlights. As a diverse learning community, Rehoboth Elementary serves approximately 580 students in grades K-5 with nearly 12% classified as English learners. The school offers special programs, such as Spanish Immersion and the Cape Accelerated Program, and has been recognized consistently for its academic growth and commitment to student success.

The focus for the day was early literacy, an area in which Rehoboth Elementary has demonstrated remarkable student growth across multiple grade levels. Measurable gains were seen in third grade, where there was an average 22-point increase in reading proficiency; fourth grade, where 67% of multilingual learners achieved proficiency; and fifth grade, which had an average 54-point increase in writing proficiency.

Most notably, 30% of multilingual language learning students at Rehoboth Elementary reached full English proficiency as demonstrated by WIDA, an assessment that measures academic English proficiency in listening, speaking, reading and writing. These results reflect the school’s strong literacy strategy that is anchored in evidence-based instructional practices and aligned with the science of reading. It’s also a positive reflection on the collaborative and collective effort of teachers, instructional coaches and families.

“We are very proud of the strides our students and staff are making,” said Person. “This learning walk was an opportunity not only to celebrate our progress, but also to collaborate with the Department of Education on how to accelerate learning even further for the young learners throughout Delaware.”

Teachers and leaders had the opportunity to share the intentional approaches behind the success, including their use of high-quality instructional materials, regular administration and analysis of interim assessment blocks, data-driven intervention plans, school-wide implementation and training of +Vantage Math Recovery, and participation in University of Florida Literacy Institute and LETRS programs to strengthen literacy instruction.

The visit included focus groups with school leaders, instructional coaches, and nine K-2 classroom visits. The DOE team engaged with educators to understand the practices driving student success, while also listening for ways the state can continue to strengthen support for schools across Delaware.

“The goal behind the learning walks is to give the state a firsthand look at the incredible work happening in our schools, while also allowing them to hear directly from educators about what they need most,” said Dr. Audrey Dempsey, Cape supervisor of elementary education and early learning. “The progress at Rehoboth Elementary is inspiring, and we hope the lessons learned here will help guide efforts to support literacy growth across the state.”

“Rehoboth Elementary is a shining example of what’s possible when strong instructional practices, dedicated staff and student-centered supports come together,” said Dr. Jenny Nauman, Cape district superintendent. “The academic gains we’re seeing, especially in literacy and among our multilingual learners, are inspiring, and we are committed to building on this success across the district.”

The Delaware Department of Education will use insights from this and other visits taking place across Delaware to shape future supports and initiatives aligned with the state’s literacy and student achievement goals.