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IMACS program to increase second graders’ standardized test scores

Program held for the second year in Plantation after an unprecedented first year of success

PLANTATION, Fla. - Sept. 6, 2007

After a successful pilot program, the Institute for Mathematics and Computer Science (IMACS) is announcing a second round of its BLAST program for second grade students at the IMACS Plantation headquarters.

BLAST, an acronym for Boosted Learning for Achievement on Standardized Tests, is for second grade children who scored below the 70^th percentile last year on the first grade SAT. The program is intended to improve student performance on standardized tests such as the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT).

In addition to raising standardized test scores, BLAST is designed to

§ improve skills emphasized in the Sunshine State Standards;

§ foster true understanding of mathematical concepts;

§ teach logical and critical thinking skills; and

§ build confidence and enthusiasm for mathematics.

Last year’s pilot program exceeded expectations. IMACS researchers tracked participants’ SAT scores before and after BLAST. The researchers discovered an average increase of 15.93 percentage points in the SAT math scores of students who had completed the BLAST program.

In an IMACS survey conducted at the conclusion of BLAST this past spring, BLAST parents reported that their children had developed significantly increased confidence levels and a new joy in solving math problems. Ellie Gonzalez, mother of Katiana Gonzalez of Sunrise, reported, “BLAST went beyond my expectations. In a matter of ten classes, my child has not only developed a love for math, but also works with numbers on her own in her free time. Her self-esteem has soared unbelievably.”

BLAST has roots both in long-standing IMACS curriculum and recent experimental classes. At the heart of BLAST is a version of the IMACS Mathematics Enrichment (ME) curriculum. ME is one of IMACS’s flagship programs offered at all IMACS U.S. locations. ME uses math as a medium to teach children advanced logical thinking.

IMACS has traditionally focused upon providing ME to students who have performed well academically. However, in fall of 2005, IMACS of South Florida experimented with classes for students with a wide-range of abilities at the Downtown Academy of Technology and Arts, a charter school in Fort Lauderdale.

Neither the program at the charter school nor the ME curriculum in general were designed to boost scores on standardized tests, but IMACS researchers began noticing precisely such improvements in the test scores of children who completed the ME-based programs, including students at the Downtown Academy of Technology and Arts. Administrators at that particular school cite IMACS classes, along with other programs at the school, for helping students score well enough on the FCAT to pull the school’s ‘F’ grade up to an ‘A’ grade. IMACS developed BLAST as a means of reproducing and extending the benefits of the ME program.

IMACS does not charge any testing fees to determine eligibility in BLAST. Parents must simply take their children, along with a copy of their children’s first-grade SAT scores, to a free demonstration class at any IMACS location.

The demonstration class schedule for next week is as follows:

Mon., Sept. 10 at IMACS of Coconut Creek at 4 p.m.;

Wed., Sept. 12 at IMACS of Plantation at 4 p.m.;

Fri., Sept. 14 at IMACS of Weston at 4 p.m.;

Sat., Sept. 15 at IMACS of Weston at 10:30 a.m.; and

Sat., Sept. 15 at IMACS of Coconut Creek at 1 p.m.

Additional dates and times are available.

BLAST requires no long-term commitments from parents. The class consists of ten fun and engaging mathematics classes. The cost is $349. Classes will be held in the Plantation location.

BLAST begins the week of September 24 and ends the week of December 3. Classes are held once a week for one hour. Parents may choose from one of four class times: Mondays at 3:15 p.m., Mondays at 4:30 p.m., Thursdays at 3:15 p.m. or Thursdays at 4:30 p.m.

For more information or to register for a demonstration class, contact IMACS at 954.791.2333, or visit them online at http://www.imacs.org.

The Institute of Mathematics and Computer Science uses lively and innovative methods of teaching high-level mathematics, computer science and logical reasoning skills to elementary and secondary school students.

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