School District No. 50 (Haida Gwaii/Queen Charlotte) Accountability Cycle 2007

Accountability Cycle Presentations 1. Accountability Cycle Feb 5 QCSS Feb 7 TAH 2. Evidence Feb 26 GMD Feb 28 SNES 3. School Plans Mar 26 PORT Mar 28 ALM

Accountability Cycle Elements of the accountability framework including overview of School Planning Councils, District Review, Enhancement Agreement and Accountability Contract. Copy of presentation available.

Evidence Building skills and knowledge for understanding evidence that is available, common sources of evidence used in schools in BC to aid in decision-making and goal setting. Copy of presentation available.

School Plans Planning for student improvement, school plan development, reviewing progress of the plan currently in place and writing the plan.

Accountability Cycle includes: School Plans District Review Enhancement Agreement Accountability Contract

Goals of today’s session 1.School Planning and SPCs 2.Plan development 3.FAQ’s 4.Further Information & Questions School Plans : Planning for improvement

School Planning School planning councils are advisory bodies. Their major responsibility is to develop, monitor and review school plans for student achievement in consultation with the school community. Policy 3200 (SPC Binder)

Membership The school planning council consists of:

Note A parent is defined in the School Act as: a.the guardian of the person of the student or child, b.the person legally entitled to custody of the student or child, or c.the person who usually has the care and control of the student or child.

School Plans focus on student achievement support safe, caring and orderly schools reflect the context of the school and the range of students served consider a range of information in their planning

School Plans consider the performance of significant groups of students must follow SD 50 policy process for submission and approval of school plans are an integral to the district accountability contract and district review process.

School Plans School planning council: Revises school plans, if requested to do so by the school board. Does not discuss or provide advice about: –personal or confidential information about students, parents, teachers or staff; –or make complaints about individuals or personnel matters.

Development of Plans

Working Together School Planning Council resource Guide (SPC Binder) Teamwork Building Consensus

Working Together Teamwork  Attention to task  Attention to process  Attention to relationships  Roles and expectations

Working Together Teamwork  Attention to task Requires each team to be time and energy efficient. It is important to establish and maintain clear goals and criteria for success, keep on task, and use data to make decisions. Each group should decide how to operate and how to share useful information that is relevant to your discussions.

Working Together Teamwork  Attention to process Sometimes, slower is faster. Keep in mind how the team is functioning. Develop an agenda. Follow agreed upon protocols and ground rules; assign roles and functions; pause, paraphrase, listen, check assumptions and balance advocacy and inquiry.

Working Together Teamwork  Attention to relationships Relationships grow when people feel safe and participation and contribution are balanced. Effective groups recognize and honour the need for diversity and anticipate that productive disagreement is part of striving for excellence.

Working Together Teamwork  Attention to relationships Although there is no clear consensus about the difference between teams and groups, teamwork seems to require three conditions: common purpose commitment to the goal shared accountability

Working Together Teamwork  Roles and expectations Group members may wish to decide how best to focus their efforts towards completing the work. Here are sample guidelines: Facilitator Recorder/Reporter Timekeeper Full descriptions of each role are in your binder.

Working Together Building Consensus Consensus decisions are useful for School Planning Councils because all members of the team agree to support the group’s decision, even if the selected options is not their first preference.

Working Together Building Consensus Why build consensus? The process involves everyone and incorporates all ideas It generates commitment to action and to each other It helps teams work together in a positive way to develop mutual trust and understanding It helps identify areas of agreement It facilitates discussion

Working Together Building Consensus Coming to consensus is usually dependent upon everyone in the group being satisfied that their concerns have been expressed and considered. More time may be required for discussion, idea exploration, and consideration of all the options. The implementation of change (if applicable) will be much smoother than if members of the group oppose the solution/decision.

Working Together Building Consensus Example of a consensus activity you may use during your SPC meetings. Research states that family and community involvement that is linked to student learning has a greater effect on achievement than more general forms of involvement. Invernizzi, Rosemary, Richards & Richards (1997), Dryfoos (2000), Clark (2002)

Working Together Building Consensus What are the ways to increase family and community involvement that is linked to student learning in your school? Think /Write Pair Share 2 Pairs Share Continue Share One agreed upon statement for the entire group.

Review School planning councils monitor progress in implementing school plans and provide updates to the school community.

Review A consideration of the results is a critical element of the Review phase. Results show whether effective strategies are in place and are meeting school goals and targets.

Review The planning team must look carefully at the achievements of all students and consider:

Review Did the actions in the plan make a difference? How do we know? Are you satisfied with the targets and results? Should the targets change? Unexpected outcomes?

Review Review will help shape future plan and provide valuable insight in how the plan will move forward to improve the life chances for all students in the school.

Collect Information The school planning council considers: information about classroom, school, district and provincial achievement, satisfaction and safety, school and district profiles, school resource allocation information, including funding and staff allocations,

Collect Information The school planning council considers: the values and perspectives of the school community, including specific groups, the district accountability contract, Aboriginal enhancement agreement and the district review report, and progress toward achieving current goals.

Classroom School / school community District/ community Provincial Sources of Evidence Classroom evidence informs instruction and tracks progress of individual students. BC Performance Standards Unit tests and quizzes Report card marks Teacher observations, checklists and notes Assessments developed by teacher, school or district Attendance information

School evidence tracks progress and informs school practices / policies / goals and objectives. Classroom School / school community District/ community Provincial Sources of Evidence Reading assessments School-wide writes Report card marks BC Performance Standards Behaviour & attendance information Satisfaction Surveys

District evidence tracks trends and informs district practices / policies / goals and objectives. Classroom School / school community District/ community Provincial Sources of Evidence District-wide assessments Report card marks Participation rates Discipline & attendance records Demographic information

Provincial evidence tracks trends over time and reveals patterns and systemic strengths and weaknesses. Classroom School / school community District/ community Provincial Sources of Evidence Satisfaction Surveys Foundation Skills Assessment Provincial Exams Dogwood Completion Rate Grade-to-grade transition rates

See SPC binder for: Data Definitions & Commonly Used Measures Classroom School / school community District/ community Provincial Sources of Evidence

Analyze The school planning council interprets information and identifies areas of strength and areas that need improvement. The school planning council shares its findings with the parent advisory council and the school community and solicits feedback.

Connecting evidence sources 1.Look for patterns and trends over time 2.Check participation rates 3.Check the data for sub-populations (i.e. Male, Female, Aboriginal, ESL/ESD) 4.Compare data from different sources 5.Ask questions and generate alternate hypotheses 6.Plan for improvement based on the data Finding the stories behind the evidence:

Interrogating all your evidence Are there patterns that you notice? What appears to be strengths? Have we met our targets – if not, why? Based on evidence what might be the goals; or do we need to revise our present goals?

Interrogating all your evidence What strategies/structures are working well? What strategies/structures need to be revised? Is there evidence that we no longer need? What are some new priorities or challenges that we might need to address?

Plan for Improvement Using the information collected and analyzed, and input from the parent advisory council and school community, the school planning council develops plans for improvement.

Plan for Improvement Include: clearly stated goals, a rationale for the selection of the goals, an indication of specific performance targets for improving student achievement, and a description of the data the school uses to track its progress over time.

Structures and Strategies Structures Structures reflect the way resources, personnel, time, etc are organized to support achievement of goals and objectives. This includes allocating resources in the areas of highest need for improvement. Strategies They are the actions and activities, directed toward student learning in the classroom. The strategies selected to achieve the goals and objectives are drawn from research, best practice, and innovative thinking.

Plan for Improvement See SPC Binder for: School Plan Template including the one page overview form.

Plan for Improvement After consultation with the parent advisory council and the school community, the school planning council submits the completed plan to the school board for review.

Plan for Improvement The school board may accept the plan, return the plan to the school planning council for modification or reject the plan and direct the principal to develop an alternate plan.

Plan for Improvement See SPC Binder for: Submission of School Plan Checklist

Implement School planning councils make plans available to the school community and support the school community as it implements the plans.

Implement Strategies for Communicating To include the entire school community in the work of SPCs, members may wish to develop a communications plan. This plan will keep the school community informed during development of the plan, after adoption of the plan and during implementation and monitoring.

Implement Some ideas to consider: PAC meetings School newsletters Staff meetings Share school goals with the community. SPC works with the PAC and staff to collect input from the whole school community. (See SPC Binder)

Implement Monitoring the Plan Working together all partners must continually monitor and adjust the plans as situations arise and circumstances change. Strive for the School Plan to be a living document.

Implement Monitoring the Plan “ If a plan is simply completed, submitted and then sits on a shelf it will not be effective. ”

Implement Monitoring the Plan Paying attention to the plan by:  Communicating  Sharing  Celebrating the good news  Structure on going dialogue  Monitor and report results regularly

FAQ’s How many goals should a school develop? Two to four key goals are recommended with a maximum of one to three objectives to assist in achieving each goal. Strive to remain specific and focused on key areas.

FAQ’s What if the school planning council cannot agree on goals, directions or process? The school planning council can seek additional expertise to help in its decision-making. This could include assistance from the Parents Advisory Council, or broader community through surveys, newsletters or open meetings.

FAQ’s The school board is ultimately responsible for decisions concerning improved student achievement. It may accept the plan submitted by the school planning council, return the plan for modification or reject the plan and direct the principal to develop an alternate plan.

Binder Review

Further Information School District No Ministry of Education i.e. Webcasts Resources BCCPAC

School District No. 50 (Haida Gwaii/Queen Charlotte) Thank you!