When Thurgood Marshall Elementary School in Seattle implemented a system of single-sex classrooms, fourth-grade teacher Cassandra Baddeley researched and incorporated instructional strategies into her all-girl classroom that have proven to be successful in teaching girls. Ms. Baddeley begins each year by making a special learning plan for each student, including goals for both remediation and acceleration. She and the school then align those needs with the state's grade-level expectations to help students reach academic standards. In 2003 and 2004, every one of her students met the standards on the state assessment in reading, and the district's value-added data analysis shows that her students achieve an average of two years' growth in her class. As a member of the school's Building-Level Team, Ms. Baddeley participates in the governance of the school, writing, presenting and implementing the school's transformation plan. Thanks to her effective instruction, the high-achieving girls in her classroom are building the foundation to become the accomplished women of tomorrow.
2001 Western Washington University, B.A.
