Area III: Desired Results for Student Learning Part 2

According to the survey results, the following five priority areas for improvement were identified:

Interpersonal Skills: Students deal with disagreement and conflict caused by diversity of opinions and beliefs.

Thinking and Reasoning Skills: Students generate new and creative ideas by taking considered risks in a variety of contexts.

Thinking and Reasoning Skills: Students gather and use information effectively to gain new information and knowledge, classify and organize information, support inferences, and justify conclusions appropriate to the context and audience in written and oral communication.

Learning to Learn Skills: Students reflect on and evaluate their learning for the purpose of improvement.

Personal and Social Responsibility: Students respect themselves and others, and understand and appreciate the diversity and interdependence of all people.

Refer to Graph 3-5 for specific results of Level of Priority for Improvement for each goal indicator.

The committee met with the Steering Committee to discuss the five identified areas of weakness. These were then presented to the entire faculty. Discussion followed among faculty members as well as administration. Inconsistencies in the scores of the Iowa Test of Basic Skills were noted and taken into consideration when determining which three areas would be the focus of the School Improvement Plan. A consensus was reached on the following three areas for improvement:

Thinking and Reasoning Skills: Students will generate new and creative ideas by taking considered risk in a variety of contexts.

Thinking and Reasoning Skills: Students will gather and use information effectively to gain new information and knowledge, classify and organize information, support inferences and justify conclusions appropriate to the context and audience and written and oral communication.

Learning to Learn: Students will reflect on and evaluate their learning for the purpose of improvement.

After identification of the three areas for improvement, the following specific goal statements were developed.

Goal One: Thinking and Reasoning

Students in grades 1-8 will demonstrate the use of prior knowledge/thinking and reasoning skills to create innovative ideas, projects, products, or performances across the curriculum. At the end of a 3 year period, 75% of the students will score a "3" or above on the school-wide 4-point Thinking and Reasoning Rubric.

Note: The Steering Committee constructed this 4-point rubric.

Goal Two: Thinking and Reasoning

Students in grades 1-8 will incorporate a central theme and demonstrate effective organization of ideas in their writing. At the end of a 3 year period, all of these students will score a "4" or above, or increase their baseline score by 1 point on a 6-point school-wide Writing Rubric.

Note: The Steering Committee and the Language Arts

Department Chair will construct this rubric.

Consideration should be given to having a baseline score for each student, and expecting all students to increase their rubric score by at least 1 point.

Goal Three: Learning to Learn – Math

All students of grades K-8 will reach a score of 80% mastery on a grade-level designed, timed, math computation assessment at the end of a 3 year period. Students will identify their strengths and limitations in their learning from their pre-test, and develop strategies for their individual learning style to improve their math computation score.

Note: The Steering Committee and the Math Department Chair will work with the teachers of each grade level in the development of these math assessments. For students with identified learning difficulties, prescribed accommodations will be followed.

It is noted that the administration, faculty, and staff are very much aware of the need for student improvement in dealing with disagreement and conflict caused by diversity of opinions and beliefs. (Graph 3-5) Under the leadership of the school counselor, the faculty and staff will provide instruction in conflict resolution using Peace Education materials. The Advisory Program for grades 7 and 8 will also provide opportunities for students to deal with disagreement and conflict in a positive manner.

INTRODUCTION TO IOWA TEST RESULTS

Incorporated in the committee’s research of Student Learning and Performance is a review of the Iowa Test of Basic Skills scores for 2003, 2004, and 2005. Scores are compared by following the same class for 3 years as well as the same grade level for 3 years. In plotting scores on a graph, it became apparent that there have been inconsistencies in the overall student scores. The committee used this information as supporting evidence to improve Thinking and Reasoning Skills in addition to Learning to Learn Skills.

GRADE 3

Looking at the Grade 3 ITBS during 2003, 2004 and 2005, the Total Reading scores rose in 2004 and declined in 2005, while spelling shows a continual gain over the three year period. Total Math scores rose each year at this grade level.

Following the same class for three years, students of Grade 3 in 2003 showed a gain in Total Reading scores as 4th graders in 2004, but a decline as 5th graders in 2005. This same class increased their Total Language scores each year in 2004 and 2005. In their total Math, the students increased their scores in 2004, but declined in 2005.

GRADE 4

Analyzing Grade 4 ITBS scores in 2003, 2004 and 2005, Total Reading dropped slightly in 2004, but rose in 2005. Spelling followed this same pattern, as did Total Language. Total Math declined by 10 percentage points in 2004, but rose by 4 percentage points over 2004 in the fall of 2005. In the areas of Maps and Diagrams, Reference Material, Social Studies, and Science, scores dropped in 2004 but came up in 2005, almost reaching the 2003 scores.

Looking at the same class for three years, students of Grade 4 showed steady decline in Total Reading scores. The same is true in the area of Spelling. Total Language dropped by more than 10 percentage points in 2005 from 2003. The Total Math scores showed a ten point drop in 2004 and a 3 point gain in 2005. Maps and Diagrams, Reference Material, Social Studies, and Science scores declined from 2003 to 2005.

GRADE 5

Reviewing Grade 5 ITBS scores for 2003, 2004 and 2005, Total Reading scores declined each year. Spelling scores dropped in 2004, and remained at the 82nd percentile in 2005. Total Language scores dropped 2 points each year, and Total Math dropped 3 percentage points each year.

Looking at the same class for three years, students of Grade 5 in 2003 showed a decline in Total Reading in 2004, but increased in 2005. Spelling scores declined somewhat each year, as did the Total Language scores. Total Math scores remained at the 77-78th percentile in 2003-2005.

GRADE 6

Analyzing Grade 6 ITBS scores during 2003, 2004 and 2005, Total Reading scores rose in 2004, but declined in 2005. Spelling declined from 2004 to 2005, as did Total Language. The Total Math scores remained almost constant at the 77th percentile in 2003 and 2004, and increasing to the 78th percentile in 2005.

Reviewing the scores of the same class for three years, students of Grade 6 in 2003 rose in their Total Reading in 2004, but declined in 2005. Spelling followed basically this same pattern. The Total Language Skills scores dropped each year. Total math scores dropped between 2003 and 2005 to the 72nd percentile. In 2003 Social Studies scores for the grade level were at the 78th percentile, but dropped to the 64th percentile in 2005. Science scores were at the 77th percentile in 2003 and dropped to the 70th percentile in 2005. Maps and Diagrams were at the 73rd percentile in 2003 and at the 64th percentile in 2005. Reference Material scores in 2003 were at the 79th percentile in 2003 and fell to the 62nd percentile in 2005.

GRADE 7

Looking at Grade 7 ITBS scores from 2003 to 2005, Total Reading rose in 2005. Spelling scores remained almost constant. Total Language scores rose slightly each year, reaching the 78th percentile in 2005. Total Math also increased each year, reaching the 76th percentile in 2005.

GRADE 8

Analyzing Grade 8 ITBS scores during 2003-2005, it is indicated that the Total Reading scores rose in 2004, but dropped to the 70th percentile in 2005. Spelling rose in 2004, and then dropped in 2005 to the 68th percentile. Total Language rose in 2004, but declined in 2005. Total Math followed the same pattern as Total Language. Social Studies and Science showed increases in 2004, but declined in 2005. Maps and Diagrams scores followed the same pattern as Social Studies and Science, while the Reference Material scores rose in 2004, but fell to the 62nd percentile in 2005.

ITBS Writing Analysis For

Grades 5 and 7

The 2005 Iowa Writing Assessment indicates that in both Grade 5 and Grade 7 students scored lowest in Organization and highest in the area of Conventions. In 2006 students in both Grades 5 and 7 scored their lowest in Organization, while Convention scores were significantly higher.