Boosting SC READY and EOCEP Scores in South Carolina

A school district made up of 20+ schools in South Carolina has been subscribed to Progress Learning for over 5 years. During this time, they’ve made huge strides, boosting their SC READY, EOCEP, and WIN scores.

We wanted to learn more about how the district is implementing Progress Learning, so we talked to members of their instructional technology team, to see how they’re using the program to drive success.

Test Preparation

Progress Learning is a key tool for the school district, helping students prepare for critical assessments. “A lot of our teachers are using it to prepare their students for standardized testing,” the instructional technology team explained. For elementary and middle school, they use the program for SC READY, and for high schoolers, they use the program for EOCEP and WIN.

Some of their high schools dedicate 30 minutes a day during their College- and Career-Readiness classes to prepare for end-of-year testing. “Students are working on WIN prep, using the EOC material, using the Study Plan, creating benchmarks, and using premium assessments, just primarily to get our kids ready for the end-of-year test that they have to take.”

A major reason Progress Learning is effective for test preparation is that it is fully aligned with South Carolina standards (SCCCR). Educators in the district can always know that they are working with the latest standards and materials.

Using Progress Learning for Daily Instruction

Progress Learning is an integral part of daily instruction for these schools. Teachers frequently use the Study Plan, assessments, and assignments for practice, review, and progress monitoring. 

According to an educator in the district, this has significantly freed up time for staff. “Teachers can float around and meet with their kids and talk about where they are and what they need to learn,” she says. “I definitely think that’s a plus.”

Filling Learning Gaps

Progress Learning is exactly what the district needed to address learning gaps. “The biggest thing is we’re always looking for ways to fill little gaps, monitor our students, and individualize help to kids,” says one of the instructional technologists. “If you want to dive down into some more instruction that might have been missed with a standard, you have the ability to do that, go back, and do remediation. I think right there is the key.” 

They also shared that Progress Learning is an effective tool for revisiting and reinforcing concepts. “The school year is a long school year, but it’s nice to have programs that can refresh kids’ memories on topics that were from the fall while we get prepared for testing.”

Using Reports

Another tool that the district uses is the reports, particularly the progress report and gradebook. As they explained, “Teachers can look at the data and see where students are lacking and assign the remediation using that button right there [Quick Click Remediation]. That’s worked really well for them.” 

At one of their schools, the principal asks the literacy teachers to pull data every month. Progress Learning also makes that easy.

Student and Teacher Feedback

What do students and teachers in the district think of the program? According to the instructional technology team, the students like it and are “willing to try it and use it.” Teachers like that it gives them ownership over their teaching. “I think that’s what’s nice about Progress Learning. We talk about how they can use tests and assessments but we allow them to use the Study Plan and really be the lead of their school.” Teachers have the freedom to use the program however they choose, whether that’s creating assessments and assignments, having students practice independently in their Study Plans, or assigning remediation.

The Results

Since adopting Progress Learning, the district has seen steady improvements on the SC READY and EOCEP. Just in the last year, they’ve ramped up their usage, which has led to noticeable improvements. 

Since 2018, the district’s scores have increased on both math and reading. The mean math score grew by 2.28 points and the mean ELA score grew by a whopping 32.71 points!

These score increases reflect an 8.8% increase in students approaching, meeting, and exceeding standards and an 8.12% decrease in students not meeting expectations from 2018 to 2024.

EOCEP

On the EOCEP tests, there was consistent growth across all subjects, but the most impressive growth was in literacy, with the ELA mean score jumping by over 6 points!

The Importance of Instructional Technology Coaches

Using an educational tool like Progress Learning can be challenging for teachers, especially if the program is new or they are working with multiple tools. They explained that instructional technology coaches are key to helping teachers feel confident and supported. “I think it’s really important because then the teachers have a contact that they can work with and they can feel comfortable with and can guide them.”

An instructional technology coach shared their experience “This year, I had the opportunity to go into several schools and do sessions on Progress Learning and how to use it in their classroom daily. At one particular high school, I worked with the English department, math, science, and social studies, just going in and showing them the different things they can use in their classes… And then going in individually to help the teachers make sure they can pull the reports, assign different things to them, just whatever they need as far as Progress Learning.” Going directly into the classroom and showing teachers how to use the platform has proven to be a very powerful way of getting teachers on board. 

Ongoing Support

At Progress Learning, we take pride in visiting our schools, answering their questions, and making sure they use the program successfully. This ongoing support has been a critical factor in the district’s success. “Your service department does a great job,” they said. “Like Brett [customer success manager], showing teachers how to get to certain locations to make it easier for them. That’s a highlight.”

Thank you for trusting us in your schools! We are so impressed by your results on the SC READY and EOCEP and look forward to continuing our partnership. 

Want to see similar results on the SC READY and EOCEP? Get in touch with us today for a free demo!