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Ottumwa Needs AssessmentWinter 2014

School Improvement Needs Assessment

Conducted by the Iowa Association of School Boards

(IASB)

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Needs Assessment ComponentsCharacteristics Common to High Performing Schools

• Clear shared vision, purpose, and goals

• High expectations for student learning

• Leadership and teamwork at all levels

• Rigorous content standards and a comprehensive assessment system

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Needs Assessment Components (Cont’d)Characteristics Common to High Performing Schools

• High quality instruction • Professional development

focused on improvement• Access to and use of data• Family and community

connections

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Survey Respondents

• 7 Board Members• 21 Administrators• 245 Teachers• 49 Other Staff Members• 171 Parents/Community

Members• 837 Students

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Roles of the Board/Leadership Teams

• Set clear expectations & create urgency around the need to improve.

• Create conditions for success.• Hold the system accountable to the

expectations.• Build public will. • Learn together as a team.

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Findings

The results of the Needs Assessment are displayed

graphically in the next sets of slides. Results are compared for district board members and staff, district parents and community

members, and students.

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Caution

The survey results represent peoples perceptions/opinions about the current district status. It is not uncommon for perceptions to be different than reality.

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Goals and Expectations

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Indicators of High Expectations

1. People indicate that they can get better.

2. There are ambitious/stretch goals.

3. There is a lack of excuses.

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Percentage of Students Believed to be at Grade-Level

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Survey Item#1 - "The current level of student achievement is about what we can expect."

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Survey Item#2 - "This district does not make or accept excuses for the current level of student achievement."

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Survey Item#6 - "Virtually all children can learn at high levels."

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Survey Item#11 - "Student achievement barriers, such as poverty and lack of family support, can be overcome by quality teaching &

learning."

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Indicators of Goals & Priorities

1. There are clear goals with measurable targets.

2. At least one goal identified as highest priority.

3. There is a shared understanding of what the district is trying to improve.

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Survey Item#3 - "There is a shared understanding of what we are trying to improve in this district."

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“Top Priorities” from Parent SurveyImplementing/meeting standards 8

Improved instruction 8Improved achievement scores 7

Improved student attitudes/behavior 6Graduation rate 6

Meeting individual student needs 5Smaller class size 5Reading/Literacy 4

Parent communication 3Writing 3Safety 2

Parent involvement 2Textbooks/Materials 2

Math 2Student engagement in learning 2

College readiness 2Grading and report cards 2

Teacher professional development 2Technology 2

Bussing 2

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“Top Priorities” from Staff SurveyReading/Literacy 32Graduation rate 27

School climate/culture/morale 17Improved achievement scores 12

Implementing/meeting standards 11Writing 10Math 10

Improved communication 8Improved instruction 7

Improved student attitudes/behavior 6Teacher professional development 5

Leadership 5Meeting individual student needs 4

Teacher collaboration 4Student responsibility for learning 3

Parent involvement 2Student engagement in learning 2

Technology 2Science 2

Closing achievement gaps 2

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“Top Priorities” from Student SurveyMutual respect among students 13

Improved teaching 8Anti-bullying 8

Student achievement 5Lunch improvements 5Diploma/Graduation 5

Student behavior 4Student activities 4

Sports 3Technology 3

Better teacher materials/supplies/textbooks 3Math 3

Technology 3Reading 3

Student engagement 2Individual student help 2Gym activities/exercise 2Real world applications 2

Facilities 2Less homework 2

More instructional time 2Increase passing time 2

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Goals and ExpectationsStrengths:

1. All respondent groups believe that more students can be expected to achieve at grade level.

2. Board members and administrators strongly agree that virtually all students can achieve at high levels and that barriers can be overcome.

3. Most staff and students believe there is a shared understanding of what the district is trying to improve.

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Goals and Expectations Recommendations:

1. Create urgency around the belief that virtually all students can learn at high levels, that barriers can be overcome, and that major improvements can and will be made in student achievement.

2. Identify one or two top priorities, based on student achievement data and ensure that all publics are informed and are in support.

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Leadership and Teamwork

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Indicators of Leadership and Teamwork

1. District leadership teams are established.

2. People can identify how they have a voice.

3. Everyone is clear on roles and responsibilities.

4. Leaders protect the focus and ensure goals are met.

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Survey Item#16 - "We have effective leadership teams in this district."

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Survey Item#4 - "I have a voice in decision making."

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Survey Item#14 - "Local school boards can impact their school system in ways that improve student achievement."

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Leadership and TeamworkStrengths:

• Staff and parents strongly believe that the school board can make a positive difference on student achievement.

• Most students and staff believe that the district has strong leadership teams.

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Leadership and Teamwork Recommendations:

1. It should be made clear how all have a voice in decision making and can participate on leadership teams.

2. All stakeholders should help to determine priorities, based on data.

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Student Achievement

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Indicators of Student Achievement

1. The percentage of students meeting standards is high

2. There are improvement trends over time

3. Achievement gaps closing

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Iowa Student ProficiencyIowa Assessment vs National Assessment

4R 4M 8R 8M 11R 11M

78 75 7365

81 83

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33 3439

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ITBS NAEP

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Average Daily Attendance

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Graduation Rate

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Graduates’ Future Plans

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ACT Scores

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Student AchievementStrengths:

1. The daily attendance rate is high.

2. The graduation rate is high.

3. The poverty gaps for students eligible for free/reduced lunch are relatively small.

4. The district ACT average is above the national average.

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Student AchievementNeeded Improvements:

1. Many five-year achievement trends are flat or declining.

2. Many students are not meeting the relatively low state proficiency standard.

3. Many more students should be college-intending and fewer should be “unknown”.

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Three Curricula

1. Written Curriculum – Standards and Grade-level Expectations

2. Assessed Curriculum – Tests and Other Achievement Measures

3. Taught Curriculum – Teaching and Learning

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Standards and Benchmarks

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Indicators of Standards/Benchmarks

1. Attainable? - The number and content of expectations must be such that learners and teachers have enough time to ensure mastery.

2. Comprehensive? – All major content of the Iowa Core must be included.

3. Rigorous? – There must be a good distribution across the levels of cognitive demand (Bloom’s Taxonomy, revised 2001).

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Survey Item#5 - "Our district standards are clear and rigorous."

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Survey Item#7 - "Important areas of student learning are missing in our current curriculum."

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Standards and Benchmarks Strength:

Most students and staff believe that the district standards are clear and rigorous. This is an indication that the clear and rigorous Iowa Core Curriculum standards are being embraced in the district.

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Standards and Benchmarks Recommendations:

1. Align to both the content and rigor of the Iowa Core Standards (Common Core).

2. Prominently display the standards expectations in classrooms, on the website, and in parent documents.

3. Use the standards to drive classroom instruction at the secondary level.

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Assessment System

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Indicators of Assessments

1. Aligned to standards? – The assessment system must measure the student expectations in the ICC.

2. Rigorous? – The assessment items must have a blend of cognitive demand to match the ICC.

3. Balanced? – There must be multiple formats (e.g. multiple-choice and performance tasks) and criterion-referenced items.

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Survey Item#17 - "Our district's assessments do a good job of measuring important student learning."

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Assessment System Strength

Most students believe that the district assessments do a good job of measuring student learning.

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Assessment System Recommendation:

Carefully design a comprehensive assessment system, of multiple formats, aligned to the content and rigor of the ICC.

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Classroom Instruction and Professional Development

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Indicators of Classroom Instruction

1. Instruction actively engages the students.

2. There is evidence of research-based instructional practices.

3. Instructional tasks include a blend of cognitive demand/rigor.

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Survey Item#9 - "Our students are actively engaged in classroom learning tasks."

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Survey Item#15 - "We use research-based instructional practices in this district."

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Indicators of Professional Development

1. Student learning needs drive the professional development.

2. Adequate time is allocated for collaboration.

3. Professional development is focused on improving instruction.

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Survey Item#8 - "Student learning needs drive our teachers' professional development."

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Survey Item#10 - "We have adequate time for teacher collaboration."

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Survey Item#12 - "We need to focus major attention on improving professional teaching practices in the classroom."

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Instruction & Professional DevelopmentStrengths:

Most board members, administrators, and teachers believe that the students are actively engaged, that teachers use research-based instructional practices, and that learning needs drive professional development.

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Instruction & Professional Development Needed Improvements

• Efforts should continue to improve instructional rigor and relevance and student engagement.

• More time should be provided for teacher collaboration.

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Board and Staff Perceptions of

Parental Involvement and Satisfaction

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Indicators of Parental Involvement/Satisfaction

1. Parents are satisfied with the school.

2. Parents report being involved in their child’s education.

3. Parents report being informed of their student’s progress.

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Survey Item#13 - "Parents and community must be partners with the school district in order to improve student learning."

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Survey Item#18 - "Our parents are informed of their student's progress."

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Parent/Community Involvement Strengths (As perceived by Parents & staff):

• Staff and parents overwhelmingly believe that parents must be partners in improving student learning.

• Strong majorities of all response groups believe that parents are well informed of their students’ progress.

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Parent/Community InvolvementNeeded Improvements

School leaders and teachers should continue their efforts to communicate with parents and elicit their support.

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Major Findings and Conclusions

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“District does well” - Parent Survey

Hire quality, caring teachers 19

Parent communication 17

Math instruction 4

Recognize student achievements 4

Gifted education 3

Teacher professional development 3

Meet individual student needs 3

Facilities 3

Student activities 2

Balanced course offerings 2

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“District does well” - Staff SurveyTeacher professional development 30

Math instruction 19Promote educational research findings 15

Hire quality, caring teachers 14Curriculum alignment/Standards 11

Communication 10Meet individual student needs 5

Sports programs 5Strive for improvement 4

Literacy/Reading instruction 4School safety 4

Teacher collaboration 3Welcome students and parents 3

School climate 3Support teachers 2

Data-driven decisions 2Parent involvement 2

Hire quality, caring administrators 2Fiscal planning and management 2

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“District does well” - Student Survey

Quality teaching 38Meet student needs 8

Math instruction 7School spirit 7

Maintain order/rules 7Lunch program 5

Student activities 4Special Education 3Course offerings 3

School safety 3Teaching for understanding 2

Anti-bullying 2Communication 2

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Major Strengths:

• Board members and administrators strongly agree that virtually all students can achieve at high levels and that barriers can be overcome.

• Staff and parents overwhelmingly believe that the school board can make a positive difference on student achievement.

• Average daily attendance and graduation rates are high.

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Major Strengths (Cont’d):

• The vast majority of staff and parents believe that parents must be partners in improving student learning.

• Strong majorities of all response groups believe that parents are well informed of their students’ progress.

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“Need to Improve” - Parent Survey

Leadership 15Communication 7

Parent involvement 4Find quality teachers 3

Meeting student needs 3Implementing standards 3Curriculum management 2

Anti-bullying 2Reduce early outs 2

Behavior management 2Class size 2

Challenging students 2Parking and traffic flow 2

Grading policies 2

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“Need to Improve” - Staff SurveyLeadership 26

Communication 14Teacher input 12

Grading policies 12Collaboration time 10

Professional development 8Student discipline 7

Staff morale 6District assessments 5

Improve poor teachers 4Implement standards 4Literacy curriculum 4

School culture/climate 3Technology 3

Consensus-Building/Trust 2Student responsibility for learning 2

Meet student needs 2Class size 2

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“Need to Improve” - Student Survey

Lunch program 13Student behavior 11Quality teaching 9

Anti-bullying 9High expectations for students 6

Technology 4Free time 4Homework 4

Student activities 3Course offerings 3

Meet student needs 2Passing time 2

Sports 2District assessments 2

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Major Improvement Recommendation #1

Create urgency around the need for improvement.

How to get started – Make a presentation to teachers, to students, and to parents. Include the sobering data that show far too many students not achieving and the lack of progress over time. Describe examples of schools that have become high performing, made major improvement, and closed the achievement gap. Describe the actions those schools took, and you will take, to make major improvement.

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Major Improvement Recommendation #2

Design an assessment system to align to the rigor and content of the Iowa Core.

How to get started – To make progress, teachers, students, and parents must know how students are preforming. Download the Guide to Districtwide Assessment from www.ia-sb.org. Select or create new assessments and first pilot them with a few volunteer teachers. Implement rigorous performance assessments for early reading (e.g. BRI or DRA), for writing, for math problem solving, and for science inquiry.

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Major Improvement Recommendation #3

Ensure that all instruction overtly identifies standards from the Iowa Core, is rigorous and

relevant, and engages students.

How to get started – Require teachers to write the Iowa Core standard for each lesson on the board and on student materials. Enlist students to focus on mastery of the standards, to self-assess, to set goals, and to track their own progress. Set up a system to regularly monitor the rigor of instruction and student engagement.

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Major Improvement Recommendation #4

Design professional development focus on improved student achievement.

How to get started – Provide time for teacher collaboration, at least twice a month for at least 90 minutes. Organize teachers in professional learning teams of three to five by grade and/or content. Each time require teachers to identify a student standard, to bring student work samples, and to submit a brief action plan based on their learning.

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Major Improvement Recommendation #5

Ensure that parents know the Iowa Core standards expected of their student and enlist their support and

help to attain mastery.

How to get started – Parents want their child to succeed. Provide each parent with a copy of the Iowa Core standards for their student. Ask the parents to help assess and ensure their student’s mastery of those standards. Report student progress to the parent regularly.

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Ottumwa Needs AssessmentWinter 2014

School Improvement Needs Assessment

Conducted by the Iowa Association of School Boards

(IASB)