Student Success Shines in Patchogue-Medford School District Partnership With TeachTown

PATCHOGUE, NEW YORK—The Patchogue-Medford School District has partnered with the special education curricula company TeachTown to amplify student growth and achievement. By pairing TeachTown’s inclusive curricula and tools with the expertise of Patchogue-Medford’s educators, students have experienced tangible success.

“We immediately noticed how responsive the TeachTown team was,” said Patchogue-Medford School District Director of Special Education Dr. Lori Goldstein. “A TeachTown-provided coach came into the classroom to work with our teachers, demonstrating how to use the technology and providing feedback and suggestions.”

The District utilizes TeachTown’s enCORE, a standards-first, adapted core curriculum for students with moderate to severe disabilities. Built on evidence-based practices, enCORE provides literature, worksheets, lesson plans, and student-led and teacher-led technology activities to enhance student engagement and growth. The curriculum also provides teachers with more time and resources to provide instruction to students and structure lessons to meet diverse learning and behavioral needs in their classrooms.

“EnCORE supports teachers in driving positive student outcomes that align with state standards,” said TeachTown Vice President of Curriculum and Research Dr. Jessica Godsey. “The various lesson plans, resources, and data collection work together to drive student growth across ELA, mathematics, science, and social studies. The curriculum incorporates some of the same tools and strategies used to elevate student achievement in general education, employing these resources for special education classrooms in a manner that supports a wide array of learning and behavioral needs and bolsters student success.”

TeachTown’s curriculum and learning interventions provide the District with data collection capabilities as well, which teachers use to observe trends, adjust lessons, support IEP goals, and showcase student growth.

“I think the most rewarding part of teaching my students is seeing their progress as they grow,” said River Elementary School special education teacher Lauren Varricchio. “One of my students was not very attentive or social until a couple of months into using enCORE in the classroom. He started to perk up, became more attentive, and was communicating and vocalizing during whole-group lessons. That was the moment when I realized this was truly working. These students are learning the state standards like their general education peers, just in a different way.”

The Patchogue-Medford School District first piloted TeachTown during the 2023-2024 school year in three classrooms. Results from the pilot program demonstrated that students in classrooms using TeachTown scored higher on the New York State Alternate Assessment than their peers not using the program. The District decided to adopt TeachTown and implement it in 10 classrooms for the 2024-2025 school year. With a track record of continued success and positive teacher feedback, the District is continuing to expand its use of the enCORE curriculum to enhance the educational experiences of its students.

“A student in my class did not previously have much language,” said River Elementary School special education teacher Erin Rotanz. “The fact that she is reading now, identifying vocabulary words, and putting together four- and five-word utterances is huge.”

For more information about the Patchogue-Medford Union Free School District, please visit the District’s website at www.pmschools.org. Happenings in the District can also be followed on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PatMedSchools/. #PatMedPride.