News and information for staff members and the Madison community
Vol. I No. 6 - May 2, 2006
Elementary school computer desktops have a new icon which provides access to SIMS: Student Intervention Monitoring System. SIMS is a software program created in MMSD to keep track of interventions provided for struggling students.
SIMS is intended to support the increased use of early intervention to remove barriers to learning and prevent school failure. The initial trial use of the software is in K-5 only, with planned expansion to middle and high schools in the future.
Principals and teachers have tried various strategies to monitor the progress of students who are performing below their same age peers or are making slower than expected progress.
The original paper-pencil method was replaced by several versions of an Excel spreadsheet called the Student Achievement Form. Teachers and principals disliked both of these systems because information didn't move with a student when he/she transferred from school to school or transitioned from grade to grade.
Information about strategies that had been tried and that described what seemed to work best, was lost. Teachers also were frustrated with the inefficiency of entering the same data on report cards and on the Student Achievement form.
SIMS draws upon information in the district student information system to identify students who need additional support in engagement, learning, or relationships. The web-based tool includes initial suggestions for interventions which staff can select, and also allows school staff to design something unique for the student.
The student's progress in response to the interventions provided is carefully monitored to determine whether the intervention is successful and should be continued or whether something new should be tried. This information is automatically available to staff when a student enrolls in a new school.
Funding for the project was made available through an Aristos grant.
To link to SIMS, click here.
The SIMS software program was created through a partnership between MMSD's Kurt Kiefer and Eric Knapp, a computer programming instructor at MATC.
Students taking computer programming classes at MATC work as interns under the direction of MMSD computer programmers in conjunction with their class work. Both MMSD staff and MATC students benefit from the partnership.
Pictured below are SIMS computer program designers Kip Hyatt from MMSD and Nicholas Everson, a student from MATC.
Last Updated: Fri Sep 7 03:02:58 2007
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