502

Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008 'pp. 502530

t
Closing the
Achievement Gap
With Curriculum
Enrichment and
Differentiation:
One Schools Story
Margaret Beecher
West Hartford Public Schools
Sheelah M. Sweeny
University of Connecticut
e focus on the achievement gap has intensied since the No
Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) was passed in 2001. In particu-
lar, achievement gaps among culturally, linguistically, ethnically,
and economically diverse groups pose great concern to educa-
tors and policymakers. Another outgrowth of NCLB involves
the adoption of high-stakes testing to measure achievement and
evaluate school eectiveness (Cronin, Kingsbury, McCall, &
Bowe, 2005; NCLB, 2001). e educational literature is replete
with recommendations for improving student achievement and
closing the achievement gap; however, research suggests that the
gap remains. Since the standards and accountability movement
gained momentum in the 1990s, school report cards, school
Copyright 2008 Prufrock Press, P.O. Box 8813, Waco, TX 76714
s
u
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m
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Beecher, M., & Sweeny, S. M. (2008). Closing the achievement gap with curriculum enrich-
ment and differentiation: One schools story. Journal of Advanced Academics, 19, 502530.
This article summarizes a unique approach to reducing the achievement
gap that strategically blended differentiated curriculum with schoolwide
enrichment teaching and learning. The theories of enrichment and
instructional differentiation were translated into practice in an elemen-
tary school that had previously embraced a remedial paradigm. This
enrichment approach resulted in improved student achievement and the
reduction of the achievement gap between rich and poor and among
different ethnic groups. The school improvement process began with a
thorough analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of all dimensions of
the school, and resulted in the creation of a school mission, strategic
plan with broad instructional goals, specic learning objectives, and
detailed action plans. Enrichment and differentiation were chosen as
the methods to improve the learning environment based on evidence
that engagement in learning is enhanced when students interests and
choices are considered, and the need to provide learning experiences
that were responsive to the learning characteristics of a diverse stu-
dent population. Specic components of the strategic plan were imple-
mented simultaneously while others were introduced over a series of
years. Teachers rewrote the curriculum for reading, writing, mathemat-
ics, and social studies to include enrichment experiences and differen-
tiated instruction. This enriched learning environment extended to an
afterschool program inspired by Enrichment Clusters. Staff development
was essential to the success of each new initiative, and a signicant
amount of time was devoted to teacher training. Teachers were pro-
vided with training, modeling, coaching, and planning time to integrate
the new ideas and skills into their lessons.
504
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
choice through vouchers and charter schools, and school takeovers
through local and state-level oversight and reconstitution have
gained popularity (Harris & Herrington, 2006). Yet, during this
time, the achievement gap has increased (Harris & Herrington,
2006). Progress in reducing school segregation and increasing
achievement during the 1960s1980s has faltered. Communities
have become more economically segregated, resulting in schools
with larger minority and poor populations and lagging achieve-
ment (Foorman, Francis, Fletcher, Schatschneider, & Mehta,
1998; Harris & Herrington, 2006; Lara-Conisomo et al., 2004).
Poverty continues to be one of the most persistent factors that
negatively impacts student achievement (Barton, 2003; Barton
& Coley, 2007; Harris & Herrington, 2006; Lara-Conisomo et
al., 2004; Lutkus, Grigg, & Donohue, 2007; RAND Labor and
Population, 2005).
Under No Child Left Behind (2001), reading and mathe-
matics are the two subjects that are used to gauge the academic
progress of U.S. students in grades 38. Eorts to reduce the
achievement gaps in reading and math have resulted in some
reductions; however, the gaps between White students and
their African American and Hispanic peers, and between stu-
dents from high and low socioeconomic households still exist
(Chatterji, 2006; Cronin et al., 2005; Lutkus et al., 2007).
Factors that aect overall student achievement include
the rigor of the curriculum; the experience, quality, and com-
mitment of the teachers; the learning environment, including
safety and expectations of students; and class size (Barton, 2003;
Chatterji, 2006). e family plays an important role in school
success: Reading to children at home, parent involvement in
school, and regular school attendance promote student achieve-
ment (Barton & Coley, 2007; Chatterji, 2006; RAND Labor
and Population, 2005).
Recommendations for school improvement frequently
include standards-based instruction, curriculum alignment and
coherence, data-based decision making, improving teacher skills
through evaluation and professional development, family and
community involvement, and other research-based initiatives.
505
Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
Although these recommendations have merit, they have not nec-
essarily resulted in signicant dierences in student achievement
in failing schools (ACT, 2006; Education Trust, 2006a, 2000b).
In this article, we summarize a unique approach to this perva-
sive problem and share a solution that blends a focused, rigorous
curriculum with the strength-based methodology of schoolwide
enrichment teaching and learning. is approach resulted in
improved student achievement and the reduction of the achieve-
ment gap between students from high- and low-SES families
and among students of dierent ethnic groups in one school.
What follows is an account of how the theories of enrichment
and instructional dierentiation were translated into practice in
an elementary school that had previously embraced a remedial
paradigm.
Methods
is article is based on 8 years of work within an elemen-
tary school and the historical and working documents accu-
mulated during that time. Information was drawn from sta
meeting agendas and supporting documents distributed to the
sta, from the strategic plan, from materials prepared for profes-
sional development sessions, and from documents created for
specic areas of the curriculum including the Global Studies
theme in social studies, mathematics, and reading. Data that
refer to demographic information were taken from the annual
Strategic School Prole, a document that is required by the state
within which the school was located. Test score data were taken
from the reported scores on the state mastery tests for students
in grade 4.

The Challenge
Central Elementary School was one of 11 elementary
schools in a high performing suburban district bordering a large
506
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
city. However, Central Schools population mirrored its urban
neighbor and was considered a failing school. Students were per-
forming in the 30th percentile in reading, writing, and math-
ematics on state and district assessments. Many of the children
had limited background knowledge, weak expressive language,
nascent English skills, and limited experiences with books and
written language. Poverty was a concern: 45% of the students
received free and reduced lunch. e diverse student population
included 43% culturally and linguistically diverse students. is
gure increased to 75% over an 8-year period. Approximately
30% of the students spoke English as their second language.
e sta was committed to helping each student and had
spent years searching for ways to improve student achievement.
e parent community loved the school and thought that their
children were happy and receiving a good education. However,
the Board of Education and district administrators were alarmed
at the high percentage of students who scored poorly on achieve-
ment measures. ey expected the new school principal to lead
the faculty and sta in reversing the culture of failure that had
plagued the school for years.
e process of changing a school culture is multifaceted.
It involves eort by many individuals, extends over time, and
requires attention to every component of the school day and cur-
riculum. is article highlights initiatives undertaken at Central
Elementary School that relate specically to the use of enrich-
ment and dierentiated instruction. Reducing the achievement
gap involved changing the teaching and learning paradigm from
one of remediation to a strength-based, child-centered meth-
odology of enrichment teaching and learning. is process
included the creation of a strategic plan, which guided all eorts
undertaken at the school, including academic, social, emotional
and behavioral needs; a visible commitment to enrichment in
the form of an Enrichment Team; enriched and dierentiated
curriculum; the extension of learning beyond the school day; and
carefully planned sta development.
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Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
A Strategic Plan for School Improvement
Eective school improvement requires a comprehensive plan
of action that is responsive to the unique needs of the school pop-
ulation. e rst step in this process involved a thorough analysis
of all dimensions of the school. is resulted in the determina-
tion that the beliefs about students and teaching and learning
were radically dierent among stakeholders. us, the school
needed to develop a shared vision. For students of color and low
economic status, factors that inuence achievement include the
school setting and vision for students academic progress; teach-
ers understanding of the needs of the student population; the
curriculum, instruction, and assessments used; and the role of
the teacher (Tomlinson, Gould, Schroth, & Jarvis, 2006). e
year-long review of all aspects of the school resulted in a clear
understanding of its strengths and weaknesses and helped estab-
lish four essential questions:
1. What must the school community collectively believe
about children and what motivates children to learn and
grow?
2. How does a struggling school become a successful learn-
ing community where children are actively engaged and
invested in their own learning?
3. What are the essential elements of curriculum and
instruction that make this transformation from failure to
success possible?
4. How can educators change the remedial instruction para-
digm and stress students strengths as a means to improv-
ing student learning and closing the achievement gap?
Once these questions were formulated, a group of teachers, school
sta, parents, and members of the community worked together
to create a multiyear plan for school improvement. A team eort
was necessarily based on the belief that when there is an
. . . unambiguous and shared mission to reverse under-
achievement in low economic students of color, there
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Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
is greater opportunity for more of these students to
experience success and to do so consistently than when
teachers function as soloists, with a lesser school wide
commitment, or with a mission that is more rhetorical
than enacted. (Tomlinson et al., 2006, p. x)
is School Improvement Planning Team reviewed the
school data, studied materials about enrichment learning and
dierentiated instruction (Renzulli, 1995), and used these four
questions to guide their work. e vision of the school lead-
ers played a pivotal role in this process. eir knowledge and
background in the eld of gifted and talented education and
experience using the pedagogy of gifted education, specically
enrichment and dierentiation strategies with all students in
the regular classroom (Beecher, 1995), helped persuade the team
members that enrichment and dierentiation must be integrated
with the academic curriculum. ey developed a school mission
that included the integration of gifted and talented strategies
into the curriculum, broad instructional goals, specic learning
objectives, and detailed plans of action.
Two broad school goals emerged from the mission and the
work of the team. e rst was the use of gifted and talented
strategies throughout the curriculum with all students. e sec-
ond was the immersion of students in other cultures through a
social studies-based Global Studies curriculum. Both practices
addressed the need for a dierent approach to curriculum plan-
ning and innovative instructional practices. Specic, multiyear,
measurable objectives were used to dene action plans and time-
lines. ese plans covered all aspects of the academic curricu-
lum, as well as social and behavior concerns. A selection of the
objectives that utilized enrichment and dierentiation strategies
appear below.
% To create a Schoolwide Enrichment Team that includes
both parents and teachers to provide experiences that
enrich and enhance student learning.
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Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
% To train all sta members in the dierentiation of
daily lessons using the Dierentiated Lesson Planning
Matrix.
% To develop dierentiated, interdisciplinary units of study
for the Global Studies curriculum.
% To write process lessons linked to standards, district
objectives, and the specic learning needs of students.
A Rationale for Schoolwide Enrichment
e schools mission reected the school communitys desire
to provide all students with access to an engaging, stimulating, and
enriched learning environment where they could thrive and grow.
Enrichment is often regarded as something extra, a nonessential
frill that is not considered during serious discussions about student
achievement. Yet, ignoring this critical component of instruction
belies the importance of student engagement and motivation to
learn and the dynamic quality that occurs when this energy exists
in the learning environment. When students interests and choices
related to their own learning are considered, engagement in learn-
ing is enhanced (Reis & Fogarty, 2006; Siegle & McCoach, 2005).
Many children at Central Elementary lacked a desire to learn;
they could not make connections to the curriculum, and they felt
isolated from the learning environment. e eld of gifted educa-
tion has embraced the concept of designing curriculum that con-
siders students talents and interests and uses those strengths to
extend, expand, and accelerate learning. Both the curriculum and
program delivery services can be enriched, with the intention of
designing learning experiences that are responsive to the learn-
ing characteristics of specic students (Schiever & Maker, 1997).
Enriched curriculum may be broader or more in depth than the
regular curriculum, and may extend beyond the traditional school
day (Schiever & Maker, 1997).
e concept of enrichment teaching and learning with an
emphasis on curriculum dierentiation became a focus of teach-
ers eorts to create rigorous, engaging units of study. Enrichment
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Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
teaching and learning are cornerstones of the Schoolwide
Enrichment Model (SEM; Renzulli & Reis, 1985) and its pre-
cursor, the Enrichment Triad Model (Renzulli, 1977), which
is subsumed within SEM. SEM was chosen for use at Central
Elementary School in part because it is the best known and
most widely used enrichment model (Davis & Rimm, 2004, p.
165) in gifted education.
e Enrichment Triad Model (Renzulli, 1977; Renzulli &
Reis, 1985) provided the structure for infusing enrichment into
dierent parts of the school day and curriculum. is model is
composed of three types of enrichment, each designed to accom-
plish a dierent objective. Type I experiences and activities are
designed to expose students to a wide variety of disciplines, top-
ics, or issues not ordinarily covered in the regular classroom. Type
II enrichment includes instructional methods and materials that
promote the development of thinking and feeling processes, such
as creative thinking, problem solving, critical thinking, aective
training, and learning how to learn (e.g., interviewing and classi-
fying). Type III enrichment includes investigative activities and
artistic productions in which the learner assumes the role of a
rsthand inquirer, with the student thinking and acting like a
practicing professional (Renzulli, 1977; Renzulli & Reis, 1985).
e specic initiatives related to enrichment teaching and
learning and dierentiation included the following:
% a Schoolwide Enrichment Team;
% interdisciplinary, dierentiated units of study;
% dierentiated lesson plans across the curriculum;
% extended day enrichment program;
% comprehensive sta development plan; and
% accountability and assessment measures.
A detailed description of each of these initiatives follows.
The Schoolwide Enrichment Team
A Schoolwide Enrichment Team composed of parents and
teachers worked with teachers to determine the types of enrich-
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Beecher & Sweeny
ment needed and located Type I enrichment experiences for
dierent groups and purposes. e student audience for Type I
enrichment included the whole school, one grade level, a class,
a small group of students, or one child. e purpose was always
the same: to enrich the lives of students by expanding their
world and creating a sense of curiosity and wonder. Many Type
I experiences were linked to the curriculum in order to build
background knowledge for at-risk students. ese experiences
created an energy and excitement for learning. e dancer from
India, the Japanese drummer, the childrens author, the parent
from Cuba who shared pictures and memorabilia from her home
country, an Internet simulation of weightlessness on the moon,
and many others brought the outside world into the classroom.
e work of the team resulted in a multiyear connection to a
local theater that brought the arts into all classrooms and eve-
ning family programs to the school.
e results of this eort were noticeable: Childrens expres-
sive language improved when they talked to the teacher and
their peers about their shared experiences. Children whose
reading ability was below grade level began to seek out and
read books related to the topics being discussed. e English
Language Learners (ELLs) receptive vocabulary allowed them
to gain knowledge and become more active participants in the
classroom. e students engaged guest speakers with numerous
questions and frequently searched for more information on the
topics presented.
The Global Studies Curriculum
e second enrichment initiative, development of the Global
Studies curriculum, was more challenging. e school district
provided stipends for teachers from all grade levels to work
for one week in the summer and to write units for the Global
Studies curriculum. Using a template based on an adaptation
of the Enrichment Triad Model (Beecher, 1995, see Figure 1),
teachers wrote dierentiated, enriched units of study that origi-
nated with the regular curriculum but featured more in-depth
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CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
learning opportunities and broader exposure to related topics.
Teachers received training in dierentiation techniques, using
the following description as their guide:
Dierentiating instruction means shaking up what
goes on in the classroom so that students have multiple
options for taking in information, making sense of ideas,
and expressing what they learn. In other words, a dier-
entiated classroom provides dierent avenues to acquir-
ing content, to processing or making sense of ideas, and
to developing products so that each student can learn
eectively. (Tomlinson, 2001, p. 1)
To develop the Global Studies units, each grade level
selected a country, region, or culture to study. e West Indies
unit of study (see Figure 1) demonstrates how the matrix guided
teachers through the planning phase and provided a structure
for integrating enrichment and dierentiated instruction in the
curriculum. Essential questions provided guidance for inclusion
of higher level thinking skills in the curricular objectives that
covered content, learning processes, and assessment. e content
of each study was delivered through Type I experiences such as
guest speakers/experts, trade books at varying levels of diculty,
interest centers, Internet sites, and eld studies. ese experi-
ences included in-school events such as a simulation of the caste
system in India, inclusion of memorabilia from Mexico brought
in by students to add to the interest development center in their
classroom, and an excursion to a Japanese restaurant in the com-
munity. ese experiences piqued childrens interest, enthusiasm,
and curiosity, and expanded their knowledge of the culture or
topic through experiential learning.
Type II experiences or skills were imbedded in the units of
study and included writing skills from the regular curriculum
and process skills from the social studies curriculum. Students in
third grade wrote narrative accounts of life in the West Indies,
while fourth-grade students wrote expository pieces about a topic
of their choice related to India, and fth-grade students wrote
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Beecher & Sweeny
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514
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
persuasive essays about a topic from a European country they
were studying. Process skills such as comparison and contrast,
identifying the main idea and supporting details, analyzing data,
and looking for relationships were some of the skills included
in the units of study. All children were expected to respond to
creative and critical thinking questions either in oral discussions
or in their written work. Fifth graders explored the causes and
eects of the Spanish American War, kindergartners compared
and contrasted United States culture with that of Mexico, and
rst-grade students analyzed migration patterns in Kenya.
Type III training activities required the most signicant
changes in pedagogy for the teachers. ese activities allowed
students to select a topic and project based on their unique inter-
ests, learning style, and talents. e teacher provided instruction
or support for students decision making, planning, organization,
location of resources, problem solving, and product execution as
needed. e teacher guided students in the creation of a content
web and in brainstorming a list of possible product or project
ideas. Students generated their own project and product ideas,
discussed them with the teacher, and pursued the work prod-
uct once parameters were jointly agreed upon. is represented
a departure from previous practices where the teacher dened
projects or work products for the students.
By utilizing the Enrichment Triad Model (Renzulli &
Reis, 1985) to guide curriculum planning, opportunities that
were previously reserved for gifted students were available to all
students in the regular classroom through the Global Studies
units. Examples of students independent work included the rst
grader who developed an illustrated ABC book about the ani-
mals in Kenya; a third-grade student who learned French and
created an illustrated dictionary and audio tape identifying items
in the classroom in English, French, and Serbo-Croatian (her
rst language); and a fth-grade student who built a model of an
arena in Spain with a description of bullghting and moderated
a debate on ethical issues about bullghting.
rough the development of these dierentiated interdisci-
plinary studies, enrichment was infused into the regular curricu-
515
Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
lum. Learning was dierentiated according to the needs of the
students through the use of texts of dierent reading levels or
about dierent topics, identication of the skills and processes
that students needed to achieve success for dierent learning
tasks, and the use of exible grouping, where students were
instructed in small groups of varying size, according to an iden-
tied need or interest. Classrooms became active learning envi-
ronments, and the role of the children and the teachers changed
dramatically. e teacher became the facilitator of students
learning and the students became more independent learners.
Differentiated Lesson Plans
Once the Global Studies units were complete, teachers wrote
specic lessons to include in the units. e concept of dierentia-
tion was prominent throughout these lessons because it encour-
aged teachers to move away from planning whole-class, generic
lessons and to consider the learning needs of small groups of
students or individuals.
e instructional needs of the students were diverse because
reading levels of students in the third grade ranged from rst to
fth grades. Teachers and students had to overcome a variety of
challenges. e schools clientele included fth-grade students
who had attended multiple schools during their elementary
years and had only rudimentary math skills, children who spoke
no English enrolled throughout the school year, youngsters
with chronic illnesses who missed school for weeks at a time,
and children whose parents had lost a job and who had become
homeless.
Teachers understanding of dierentiation strategies was
developed using a conceptual model for dierentiation (Beecher
& Simpson, 1997; see Figure 2). is model begins with the core
curriculum required by the school district, drawn from state and
national standards at the base, and incorporates instructional
strategies for dierentiation and specic means for accessing
content and skills in all disciplines. Once students have acquired
a content knowledge base, dierentiation opportunities help
516
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
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517
Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
them process the information, develop products, and assess their
own work. e six teaching strategies for dierentiation pro-
vided teachers with options for instruction that accommodated
students varied needs and learning styles.
To facilitate the planning process, teachers used a compan-
ion matrix (Simpson, 1997; see Figure 3) to organize individual
lessons. is matrix allowed teachers to plan concurrent dif-
ferentiated learning experiences for students based on a single
instructional objective or a set of related objectives in a subject
area. e process training component of the lesson required
teachers to assess the skills that were most essential for every
student in the classroom. e nal student product and the
assessment of this product might be similar or completely dier-
ent among the exible learning groups. Using the dierentiation
model with the accompanying matrix served as an eective way
to train teachers in this complex process.
Enrichment and Differentiation Across the Curriculum
e Global Studies units represented the rst round of dif-
ferentiated lesson planning and instruction. Over the course of 8
years, each discipline in the regular curriculum was examined and
revised to include enrichment and dierentiation. Existing read-
ing instruction in grades 35 did not meet the students needs
for skill development, nor did it reect an enriched approach to
reading. e sta decided to forgo the use of old, uninspiring
basal readers and chose instead to adopt the Readers Workshop
Model (Fountas & Pinnell, 2001) for reading instruction.
Using grant money that supported the development of dif-
ferentiated instruction, the intermediate grade teachers worked
during the summer to develop dierentiated reading units of
study. e units were structured around a theme such as an
author study or genre and organized across the 10 months of the
school year. Teachers selected a range of books to use for read
alouds, reading strategy minilessons, and exible guided read-
ing groups. ey developed dierentiated lessons for the guided
reading based on elements of the genre, cognitive thinking strat-
518
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
D
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519
Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
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520
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
egies (Harvey & Goudvis, 2000; Keene & Zimmermann, 1997),
or word recognition skills. Reading instruction was dierentiated
by the use of exible groups, texts on dierent reading levels,
student-selected texts during independent reading, and guided
reading groups according to the identied need for individual
students. To enrich reading instruction, the school expanded
classroom libraries to include books representing a range of
genres, topics, and reading levels; brought in guest readers from
the local community; found reading mentors for struggling read-
ers; and invited childrens authors to the school to share their
work with students. Students reading achievement improved
and their greater interest in books became apparent by increased
circulation of books from the school library and the creation of
lunchtime book clubs, organized by students themselves.
Writing instruction became more dierentiated with the
introduction of the Writers Workshop Model (Calkins, 1994)
for writing instruction. e workshop model allowed teachers
to move away from a formulaic process of writing instruction, to
one where students were encouraged to develop their own voice
through writing. Writing instruction was dierentiated by the
creation of skills groups as needed in a classroom, during one-
on-one teacher/student conferences. e collaboration of sup-
port sta, including the ELL teacher, the speech and language
therapist, and special education teachers in an inclusion model
supported the dierentiated writing curriculum. Specically, the
inclusion model utilized special education teachers and sta to
provide small-group or individualized instruction that was coor-
dinated with the regular classroom teacher. Writing instruction
was enriched by bringing in experts in the writing process who
worked with students while simultaneously training teachers.
Storytellers shared oral storytelling traditions and helped stu-
dents translate their oral stories into writing.
For most of the 8 years referred to in this article, there was no
ocial math text; however, math instruction was based on objec-
tives and the state mastery test. Following an analysis of current
practices, outside math experts were brought in to train teach-
ers to provide instruction that stressed math concepts. Teachers
521
Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
created a scope and sequence of skills and developed units and
lessons that resulted in a more conceptual approach to math
instruction. Teachers dierentiated instruction through the use
of exible groups formed through formative and summative
assessments and the use of open-ended problem solving dur-
ing lessons and small-group instruction. Math instruction was
enriched by the formation of interest-based math groups taught
by the math specialist before school and during the school day.
Extending Learning Beyond the School Day
e enriched learning environment extended beyond the
school day through afterschool classes. Inspired by Enrichment
Clusters in the Schoolwide Enrichment Model (Renzulli & Reis,
1985; Reis, Gentry, & Park, 1995), these classes were based on
students interests and academic need and oered during three
8-week sessions. ey were designed to actively engage students
in unique and enriched learning experiences and to provide chil-
dren with opportunities to apply the skills they had learned dur-
ing the school day in new settings. Students from kindergarten
to fth grade chose from 12 to 14 classes geared specically to
literacy, numeracy, social sciences, science, and the visual and
performing arts. A sampling of class oerings included Ancient
Egyptian Murals: A Visual Tour of the Culture; Buon Giorno:
Introduction to Conversational Italian; Chess Club; Reading
Between the Lines; Childrens eater Company; A Mystery for
Young Detectives; Bits & Bytes: Computers for Second Graders;
Fifty, Nifty United States; and Dancing Queen: A Student Dance
Troupe. Some of the products that emerged from these sessions
included a school play, an Egyptian mural, childrens books, and
a chess championship.
Students intense interest in the afterschool classes was evi-
dent in the number of children, 200 on average, who participated
in each session. Classes were of high interest to the students and
oered at no cost. Teacher stipends and materials were funded
by dierent sources including school district funds, an Early
Reading Success Grant, the federal and state funded Family
522
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
Resource Center that was housed in the school, and a local per-
forming arts center.
Planning a Multiyear Staff Development Program
Sta development was essential to the process of closing
the achievement gap and began with the development of the
multiyear School Improvement Plan. At that time, the concept
of gifted and talented education for all students was introduced
to the Planning Team members. It became one of the schools
themes and was embedded in the mission, goals, and action
plans. e development of a Global Studies curriculum, the sec-
ond school theme, also occurred during the rst year and demon-
strated how the concepts of gifted education could be integrated
into the curriculum for all students (Beecher, 1995). e teachers
learned about the Schoolwide Enrichment Model (Renzulli &
Reis, 1985) and began to plan enrichment experiences for their
students. ey learned how to dierentiate the content that the
students learned, the processes used for instruction and learning,
and the products (Renzulli & Reis, 1985; Tomlinson, 1995) stu-
dents created. e development, renement, and implementa-
tion of the Global Studies curriculum continued into the second
year and provided the foundation for training related to enrich-
ment teaching and learning and curriculum dierentiation.
Given the increasing diversity of learners in the school, dif-
ferentiation became the primary focus of all instruction. Teachers
spent approximately 4 hours each month learning more about
dierentiation and making plans to implement dierentiated
instruction in their classrooms. e professional development
focused on identifying students strengths and weaknesses; sys-
tems to make the process of small, exible group instruction
manageable; and the development of leveled classroom libraries.
More enrichment was also integrated into the curriculum with
the resources located by the Schoolwide Enrichment Team that
was formed during the second year.
e focus for Year 3 was the development of dierentiated
lessons plans (Beecher & Simpson, 1997) in all curricular areas.
523
Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
e escalation of enrichment opportunities included a partner-
ship with a performing arts center, the development of dieren-
tiated interest and ability centers, and the expansion of leveled
classroom libraries.
In Year 4, an afterschool enrichment program was developed
and tailored to the needs of the students. Teachers were taught
how to develop enrichment classes related to their areas of inter-
est and expertise. Due to the increasingly diverse student body,
professional development during Year 4 also focused on multi-
cultural awareness and sensitivity. Speakers, videos, and books
guided sta conversations and inuenced their lesson develop-
ment. Dierentiated lesson planning continued to be supported
during sta development sessions.
Teachers received extensive training in Readers Workshop
(Fountas & Pinnell, 2001) and the Four Blocks (Cunningham,
Hall, & Sigmon, 2000) models for reading instruction dur-
ing the revision of the reading curriculum in Year 5. e entire
school participated in professional development about reading
and literacy to develop dierentiated reading plans at each grade
level. All sta members participated in a discussion of Mosaic of
ought (Keene & Zimmermann, 1997) so that a common lan-
guage and shared commitment to literacy were present through-
out the school. Literacy instruction was further improved and
enriched during Year 6 when the Writers Workshop model
(Calkins, 1994) was adopted for writing instruction. During the
nal 2 years of this schoolwide change eort, teachers reviewed,
rened, and updated all enrichment and dierentiation initia-
tives. Curriculum and instruction also was aligned with the latest
math and language arts standards.
is comprehensive sta development program was closely
monitored and adjusted as needed. Teachers were given the tools
and the support to be able to successfully implement the con-
cepts presented. Following the tenets of eective professional
development ( Joyce & Showers, 2002), each new concept was
introduced and training, modeling, and coaching were provided.
Sta development occurred during biweekly grade-level semi-
nars, monthly sta meetings, and weekly school or district sta
524
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
development sessions. e school principal and teaching spe-
cialists conducted the initial training. Ultimately the teachers
became curriculum developers and trainers, and content area
experts were called upon to support the sta development eorts
when necessary.
rough this multiyear eort, a cadre of highly skilled
teachers, who embraced new ideas and strategies, emerged as
sta development leaders as they collectively searched for ways
to improve student achievement. e teachers, not unlike their
students, developed their unique gifts and talents and gained
condence as teachers of other teachers. eir passion for the
success of their students led to the development of the school as
a professional learning community.
Assessing Academic Progress
Ongoing assessment, both formal and informal, and forma-
tive and summative, informed instruction; student progress was
measured on a daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly basis. District
tests and state mastery tests, informal assessments, and an
analysis of student work helped guide instruction, improve cur-
ricular units, and assist teachers dierentiation eorts. Student
accountability was a key ingredient in improving learning and
was manifested in students participation in assessment of their
work. Teachers developed rubrics to assess open-ended student
products, and student portfolios enabled teachers to monitor
students growth and track their learning needs.
Formal meetings between each teacher and the principal
were conducted throughout the school year to review individual
student progress and formulate plans to improve student achieve-
ment. Teachers and support sta met monthly with grade-level
teams to discuss student progress and determine support options
such as in-class enrichment; participation in small groups to pro-
vide interest or academic based enrichment; work with the social
worker or school psychologist for help with social, personal, or
organizational skills; or movement between exible groups dur-
ing in-class instruction.
525
Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
Closing the Achievement Gap
e success of the school improvement eorts was dem-
onstrated in students positive attitudes about school, increased
engagement in learning, and improved achievement on district
and state assessments. Analyses of student achievement on state
tests from 1997 to 2004 showed improvement in all subject
areas and in all levels of prociency. Test results were catego-
rized into three achievement levels or bands that included reme-
dial, procient, and goal. e average percentage of students at
or above goal on state reading, writing, and math assessments
demonstrated improvement in all segments of the population
(see Figure 4). e gaps in achievement between students with
diering socioeconomic status narrowed from 62% to 10%. All
ethnic groups showed improvement in their achievement, with
Asian students making the largest gains at 60% and White and
Hispanic students gaining 5%.
1997 and 2004 Grade 4 State Assessment Results Disaggregated
by SES, Race/Ethnicity
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
No Free or
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Free or
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2004
Figure 4. Improved achievement based on average percentage of students at
goal on reading, writing, and mathematics on the state assessments.
526
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
Additional data demonstrated dramatic improvement by stu-
dents who were in the lowest or remedial band on state assess-
ments. Results for children from the lowest socioeconomic levels
who scored in the remedial band were reduced by 28%, resulting
in only 4% of students remaining in the remedial band. Students
from higher socioeconomic homes moved out of the remedial
band, resulting in only 3% of those students remaining at the
remedial level.
e analysis of data by ethnic groups found that there were
no longer any Asian or African American students in the reme-
dial band. is is in stark contrast to the 1997 test results where
23% of the Asian students and 21% of the African American
students performed at the remedial level. During this same time
period, the percentage of Hispanic students in the remedial band
dropped from 22% to 7% and the percentage of White students
at this same band decreased from 13% to 4%.
When the data were reviewed by subject area and socioeco-
nomic status (see Figure 5), the percentage of students at goal
Achievement Gap Based on 2004 State Assessments in Reading, Writing, and Mathematics
29.00%
76.00%
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40.00%
50.00%
60.00%
70.00%
80.00%
90.00%
Reading Writing Math Average
Results by Free/Reduced Lunch
P
e
r
c
e
n
t
a
g
e

o
f

S
t
u
d
e
n
t
s

a
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G
o
a
l
Free and Reduced Lunches
Non-Subsidies
Figure 5. State assessment results show the achievement gap narrowing in
writing and math.
527
Volume 19 ' Number 3 ' Spring 2008
Beecher & Sweeny
demonstrated that the achievement gap was reduced in writing
to 9%, in mathematics to 7%, and in reading to 30%. Although
the total achievement gap was 15% among this group of stu-
dents, it was far better than the district gap, which remained
much higher at 40%.
ese data illustrated how a large percentage of students from
all ethnic and socioeconomic groups moved from the remedial
band, thereby indicating improved achievement. is provided
evidence that the belief in building upon students strengths with
a dierentiated approach to instruction and enriched learning
experiences could help close the achievement gap between the
rich and poor and among dierent ethnic groups.
The Sights and Sounds of Success
e school improvement process at Central Elementary
School was guided by questions about parents and teach-
ers beliefs about learning, students motivation to learn, ways
to actively engage children in their own learning, the essen-
tial elements of curriculum and instruction, and how to build
upon student strengths in order to improve learning and close
the achievement gap. As the school implemented curriculum
based on enrichment teaching and learning and dierentiation
strategies, the answers to these questions emerged. e expan-
siveness of the enrichment initiatives extended students knowl-
edge, thinking, and view of the world. e varied dierentiation
strategies that were employed required teachers to know each
of their students as individuals with dierent interests, learning
styles, strengths, and academic needs. Teachers received exten-
sive training in all new concepts and, ultimately, embraced the
ideas, generated their own strategies and programs, and became
the trainers of their colleagues.
e success of this improvement eort was evident in the
increase in student achievement and the reduction in the achieve-
ment gap. is resulted from childrens active engagement and
investment in their own learning, parents involvement in their
528
Journal of Advanced Academics
CLOSING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP WITH ENRICHMENT
childrens school lives, and teachers commitment to their stu-
dents. ese sights and sounds of student success demonstrated
that courage to challenge the existing paradigm and explore new
dimensions in learning yielded eective results.
is article describes the experiences of one school and is a
report of one schools journey, rather than an empirical research
article. However, we hope that the ndings that we have shared
will inspire more rigorous empirical research on the eects of
enrichment teaching and learning on academic achievement
and, most importantly, the potential for enrichment practices to
close achievement gaps.
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