Hint: Get students angry so they work harder to destroy performance pigeonholes.

Not all accountability news is dreary on the NCLB front. While some states and districts are struggling, the State of Kansas reached AYP goals in a whopping 92 percent of its schools this year, according to recently released data.

Eli got an inside take on the state's performance-boosting strategies; read on for proven tips to boost your students' scores:

Decorate The School With Your Data Story

The good news: You already are familiar with the ABC's of improving AYP: you know to use data, carve out collaborative planning time and practice tiered interventions. Here's how to really ramp up those efforts:

#1: Visualize the data: Keep student progress at your fingertips by creating a "data wall" at your school. Dedicate a wall in your administrative office to charting out the five performance levels -- advanced, proficient, basic, below basic, and far below basic -- and post the name or picture of the children in your school on the chart according to their current achievement level, suggests Alexa Posny, commissioner of education for the State of Kansas. This technique helps you visualize which students need more specialized attention and it allows you to see your progress as the year progresses.

#2: Strengthen teachers' connections: Ensuring collaborative planning time among grade-level teachers is not always enough to make a visible difference in scores, warns Posny. In addition, encourage teachers who teach similar subjects in different grades to come together to share best practices and better familiarize themselves with your students. Schedule these planning meetings within sight of your data wall to help keep your students' individual needs at the forefront of teachers' minds.

#3: Pull out your best weapons: Don't forget to take advantage of Response to Intervention (RTI) strategies to keep students from falling further behind. Kansas schools implement a rigorous series of interventions, called a Multi-Tier System of Supports, before they label students as special needs. Assess every student as soon as they walk in the school door; then, proceed to find ways to engage them in the core curriculum, reminds Posny.

Challenge Students To Destroy AYP Myths

No one likes hearing that people don't expect them to excel. Challenge your students to beat AYP stereotypes by performing beyond expectations.

Try this: Prior to taking state assessments, visit each class to share last year's data with them and discuss the conceptions about continually low-performing subgroups, says Ferrell Miller, principal of Junction City Middle School in Kansas. Example: Miller told his students that some people believe African-American, poor or special needs students can't do well on state assessments. Motivate students by helping them understand they are capable of breaking through these barriers and stereotypes, "After I left some of those classrooms, teachers shared that students were angry about what people were saying and they decided they would 'show them,'" Miller beams.

Tip: Ask local businesses to reject truant students' during school hours.

Truant students not only inconvenience your teachers by forcing them to play catch-up, they also mean less funding for your school since lower attendance numbers translate into decreased allocations. 

Fight against the truancy tide and get students back in their seats with these educator-tested interventions:

Share The Load With Community Members

Don't hesitate to involve local officials and community members in sharing the burden of keeping students in school.

First, determine why students are truant, says Verjeana Jacobs, board of education chair for Prince George's County Public Schools in Maryland. Gang activity and problems at home are potential causes that require assistance beyond the school's reach.

Smart: Call a meeting with the local police department, community leaders and business owners to address the truancy problem and ask for help, Jacobs urges. When community members "own the problem," they can help fix it, Jacobs points out.

Also, consider using public service announcements on local TV stations and community events to get more of the neighboring community involved in anti-truancy interventions. Idea: Host an anti-truancy community walk; participants place posters in local businesses and ask them to turn away truant students during school hours, Jacobs suggests.

It works: When students' regular hangouts tell them to get lost during the day, they'll be left with fewer options when skipping class.

Take it further: Set up a phone number that anyone in the community can call to report truant students to law enforcement.

Offer Parents A Shoulder To Lean On

Be prepared to offer guidance to the families of truant students.

Truant students often come from single-parent families who are struggling to make ends meet, says Tonya Malone of the Truancy Intervention Project in Atlanta. Stress with these parents the importance of getting their child to school.

Make a good case: Not only is it against the law to withhold children ages 5-16 from school, but a record of truancy can negatively impact families receiving housing assistance, Malone informs.

Help ease tensions by maintaining a relationship with the family and saying that the school is there to help, Malone says. Tell parents that community social workers can suggest resources where parents can receive clothing vouchers, transportation assistance and early-morning child care. Also, make sure parents know to write a note to excuse absences when their child is sick, Malone says.

Try this: Create a team of parent liaisons who visit students' homes when you discover a persistent truancy problem, Jacobs suggests.

Tell organizers in 1,000 words or less how you or someone you know is promoting and supporting education in your community and influencing lives in the process.

Award: $10,000 to the educational cause or group of your choice.

Eligibility: Legal residents of the United States ages 18 and up.

Deadline: Oct. 10, 2008

Apply: https://www.timeinc.net/people/secure/sweeps/maybelline2008/