NEWS
School Improvement Plans help define district priorities
Nov. 4, 2010 – As part of the planning process in the Cohoes City Schools, a district leadership team and teams at each school write improvement plans.
These plans help shape decisions about district programs and ensure faculty and staff are constantly working to improve teaching, learning and student outcomes.
The building-level plans are revised yearly by the “building leadership team” at each school. The school teams meet over the summer to discuss goals for their buildings and strategies for meeting those goals. The teams take into account student achievement data and survey results, among other items, when identifying their building's priorities and goals. Once a new plan is written, the entire faculty votes to approve the plan, endorsing it as a map for school improvement.
The administration and Board of Education rely on these as guides for understanding what is important and unique to each building, as well as the district as a whole. District priorities for student learning are a key component to the school budget process.
At the Nov. 3 Board of Education Workshop, the BOE heard directly from VSGS and HHS staff about their school plans.
Van Schaick Grade School
Van Schaick Grade School is focusing on student achievement and a positive school climate as key areas to improve in their building plan.
On both the New York State English language arts and mathematics exams, the school has set the goal of having all students achieve a 3 or a 4, meaning all students would meet or exceed the standards set by the state.
The plan identifies causes and sets action goals of administering practice exams, helping increase student stamina on the tests and creating student responses for the tests so students are even more prepared to do well on the exams.
The desire to work on the school climate is the result of feedback from parent and student surveys. It aligns with the district’s Positive Behavioral Intervention & Supports program, which helps reinforce respect, responsibility and safety in the schools. To create a more positive climate, the school is aiming to increase respect, parent/school communications and help students feel safe from bullying.
Harmony Hill School
The areas identified in Harmony Hill School’s improvement plan include: improving scores on the New York State English Language Arts and math exams, as well as improving the school’s attendance rate and reducing the number of discipline referrals for students.
To improve ELA results, the plan suggests implementing progress-monitoring meetings, reviewing ELA curriculum and holding professional development to identify consistent instructional practice and program gaps, as well as effective instruction, among other items. It also suggests taking steps toward improving math achievement by analyzing NYS test data to target instruction; administering a mock math exam and incorporating some new teaching strategies into instructional practice. In addition, the school would like to try to hold professional development on effective and innovative instructional strategies, particularly in the area of mathematics.
