by Stephanie Croston

    Although the Seward School District is celebrating its scores on the state report card, Dr. Marlene Uhing, superintendent, said there is still room to improve.
     The state evaluations are only a snapshot of where the district is, she said. However, officials are seeing improvement in the district's scores over time.
     Overall, Uhing said, the state saw a three-percent increase in its reading scores, while Seward's went up 18 percent. In math, the state average was up four percent, while Seward's was up 16 percent. Writing scores are also going up as the district continues to implement the six-trait writing system in all areas of the curriculum.
     Uhing said the most important factor in the improved scores was the quality of the district's teachers and instructional practices. Teachers have focused on aligning their instruction with the district's assessments, she said.
     At the elementary school, Uhing said, the goal is for all students to be reading at their grade level. To that end, the district hired a fourth first-grade teacher to help alleviate large class sizes and offer more individualized instruction, she said.
     In the upper grade levels, teachers are working on different kinds of reading, including technical reading, reading to develop an outline and reading for content. Vocabulary is also a focus across the curriculum, Uhing said.
     One of the goals for the district is to prepare its graduates for work and postsecondary education, she said. To help accomplish this, the district is considering its offerings at the secondary level.
     "We're not willing to add something just because we used to have it, but because it's where we're going as a district," Uhing said.
     She said the support of the building principals has been key to meeting the district's goals.
     The state report card information will be included in the district's annual report. Brad Best, district curriculum coordinator, will be presenting the information at the Monday, Nov. 13, school board meeting, and it will be included on the district's website, sewardpublicschools.org, as well.