With seven standards to be fulfilled in the “operational” category, the Hope Public School District was found lacking in the documenting and using results standard by the team that reviewed the district for North Central Accreditation, a research based accreditation dedicated to advancing excellence in education.
However, as part of the accreditation process, the district was required to submit a report identifying where it saw itself and did not find itself on the same level or “grade” as did the accreditation review team.
In each of the seven standards, the school district can be classified as “not-evident (lowest level), emerging, operational, or highly functioning.” The seven standards include: vision and purpose, governance and leadership, teaching and learning, documenting and using results, resource and support systems, stakeholder communications and relationships, and commitment to continuous improvement.
The review team found the district in the “emerging category” in the “documenting and using results” standard. The district reported itself in the “operational” category.
Hope Schools Public Relations Officer Lori Finley said Hope did not receive the “operational” standard in the documenting and using results standard mainly because the district has not aligned its curriculum across K-12.
“Individual schools have been working toward curriculum alignment, but the district is not complete in the process. The team found the district to be emerging in this area. The process requires assessing the district on a large number of indicators for each of the seven standards,” Finely said.
The report provided to the district by the quality assurance team described the documentation standard as follows, “The system enacts a comprehensive assessment system that monitors and documents performance and uses these results to improve student performance and effectiveness.”
The report said district-wide assessment is aligned with state frameworks and local district pacing guides. Literacy and mathematics instructional facilitators help gather student data and make these data available to appropriate staff members for analysis and use.
The quality assurance team said the Learning Institute provides chunk tests that are aligned with the district curriculum and pacing guides.
Same day results provide teachers opportunities for timely remediation and interventions for students.
The report found internal stakeholders are aware of the assessment schedule, however parents and community stakeholders have limited knowledge of the nature of the tests and testing dates.'
The report stated the team did not see a district-wide evaluative tool used for monitoring instructional and intervention program effectiveness.
The team said the data shared and observed focused on student performance, however, no data were shared about the rich array of intervention programs used throughout the district.
Information is communicated through the student website to parents and effective stakeholders. It is given out through the annual report to the public, quarterly newsletters and mail.
The report said many parents and community members interviewed by the team indicated a desire to be more involved in planning and decision making rather than just attending meetings to hear information.
They indicated the website was not available to many parents who do not have access to that mode of communication.
The QAR team report said some schools have a system for reviewing data regularly through the Learning Institute; however, for Hope, a district-wide system was not evident.
“The district does not regularly compare its performance to like districts with similar demographics. Long term trend data for the district are not currently being collected and maintained,” the report said.
Finley said the district was already working to improve these areas.
“We are using data to drive decisions, and our work with the Learning Institute has improved the process. We have an abundance of information to work with. Alignment of the curriculum is taking place on each campus. We now need it to be 'seamless' across all grades and to develop a comprehensive system for evaluating the effectiveness of the instructional program,” Finley said.
In this area, the report identified Hope as being successful in the following practices:
--The district has acquired help in matching assessment to curriculum through the Learning Institute.
--The work of the Learning Institute is highly valued by staff members who seek the Institute as a provider of both specific data and professional development for key instructional leaders.
--A rich array of data resources are in place for the future analysis as part of a systemic plan for evaluating the effectives of programs.
Opportunities identified for the district include developing a comprehensive system to evaluate instructional programs effective across all parts of the district.
A second opportunity identified included creating a process for reviewing data collected by schools in order to develop a seamless K-12 alignment of information to drive instruction and improve curriculum.
An offer of improvement was the creation of an action plan to increase student performance on all standardized state and national assessments currently being used by the district.
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With seven standards to be fulfilled in the “operational” category, the Hope Public School District was found lacking in the documenting and using results standard by the team that reviewed the district for North Central Accreditation, a research based accreditation dedicated to advancing excellence in education.
However, as part of the accreditation process, the district was required to submit a report identifying where it saw itself and did not find itself on the same level or “grade” as did the accreditation review team.
In each of the seven standards, the school district can be classified as “not-evident (lowest level), emerging, operational, or highly functioning.” The seven standards include: vision and purpose, governance and leadership, teaching and learning, documenting and using results, resource and support systems, stakeholder communications and relationships, and commitment to continuous improvement.
The review team found the district in the “emerging category” in the “documenting and using results” standard. The district reported itself in the “operational” category.
Hope Schools Public Relations Officer Lori Finley said Hope did not receive the “operational” standard in the documenting and using results standard mainly because the district has not aligned its curriculum across K-12.
“Individual schools have been working toward curriculum alignment, but the district is not complete in the process. The team found the district to be emerging in this area. The process requires assessing the district on a large number of indicators for each of the seven standards,” Finely said.
The report provided to the district by the quality assurance team described the documentation standard as follows, “The system enacts a comprehensive assessment system that monitors and documents performance and uses these results to improve student performance and effectiveness.”
The report said district-wide assessment is aligned with state frameworks and local district pacing guides. Literacy and mathematics instructional facilitators help gather student data and make these data available to appropriate staff members for analysis and use.
The quality assurance team said the Learning Institute provides chunk tests that are aligned with the district curriculum and pacing guides.
Same day results provide teachers opportunities for timely remediation and interventions for students.
The report found internal stakeholders are aware of the assessment schedule, however parents and community stakeholders have limited knowledge of the nature of the tests and testing dates.'
The report stated the team did not see a district-wide evaluative tool used for monitoring instructional and intervention program effectiveness.
The team said the data shared and observed focused on student performance, however, no data were shared about the rich array of intervention programs used throughout the district.
Information is communicated through the student website to parents and effective stakeholders. It is given out through the annual report to the public, quarterly newsletters and mail.
The report said many parents and community members interviewed by the team indicated a desire to be more involved in planning and decision making rather than just attending meetings to hear information.
They indicated the website was not available to many parents who do not have access to that mode of communication.
The QAR team report said some schools have a system for reviewing data regularly through the Learning Institute; however, for Hope, a district-wide system was not evident.
“The district does not regularly compare its performance to like districts with similar demographics. Long term trend data for the district are not currently being collected and maintained,” the report said.
Finley said the district was already working to improve these areas.
“We are using data to drive decisions, and our work with the Learning Institute has improved the process. We have an abundance of information to work with. Alignment of the curriculum is taking place on each campus. We now need it to be 'seamless' across all grades and to develop a comprehensive system for evaluating the effectiveness of the instructional program,” Finley said.
In this area, the report identified Hope as being successful in the following practices:
--The district has acquired help in matching assessment to curriculum through the Learning Institute.
--The work of the Learning Institute is highly valued by staff members who seek the Institute as a provider of both specific data and professional development for key instructional leaders.
--A rich array of data resources are in place for the future analysis as part of a systemic plan for evaluating the effectives of programs.
Opportunities identified for the district include developing a comprehensive system to evaluate instructional programs effective across all parts of the district.
A second opportunity identified included creating a process for reviewing data collected by schools in order to develop a seamless K-12 alignment of information to drive instruction and improve curriculum.
An offer of improvement was the creation of an action plan to increase student performance on all standardized state and national assessments currently being used by the district.
