Improve

Introduction

The action plan which follows reflects our plan to improve our school. After reviewing the results of Sections 3 and 4, our committee developed a plan to address the weaknesses revealed through the analysis of the data. This plan represents the next step in our year-long process to strengthen our strategies to better meet the needs of our students. The plan was devised with our school= s mission statement in mind so that we maintain the integrity of our school= s profile, beliefs, desired results for student learning, and analysis of instructional and organizational effectiveness. Following the initial review of the plan by the school improvement team, copies of the plan were provided for the faculty and staff for their review and comment. Suggestions were reviewed by the school improvement team and final revisions were completed.

Based on the evidence from part 3, we have arrived at the following areas that need our attention:

Learning to Learn Skills

Thinking and Reasoning Skills

Communication Skills

Our team reviewed these weaknesses and devised a plan to address these areas along with a time-line, estimated resources needed to implement the plan, and persons responsible for coordinating the action steps.

Finally, the last section of our report includes the description of the measures we will employ to evaluate the effectiveness of the action plan.

ACTION PLAN #1 Desired Results for Academic Achievement: Learning to Learn Skills Goal Statement: Students will demonstrate a commitment to creating quality work and striving for excellence
ESTIMATED PERSON(S) ACTION STEPS TIMELINE RESOURCES RESPONSIBLE
The school= s curriculum will be aligned from grades k-12 horizontally so that there is continuity from grade to grade without overlap. We will evaluate and update current course pre requisites. These course descriptions will be available to the students.	Present to Fall 2004	Release time for teachers to meet and align curriculum or work into our staff development time Personnel to schedule and coordinate meeting times Meeting faculty	Administrators Teachers Counselors
Students within the same grade and subject will have identical goals and objectives and will complete identical course assessments to measure proficiency. These course assessments can be given at any point in the course. Scores will be reviewed and information compiled so that we can determine our strengths and weaknesses and align our curriculum vertically.	Ongoing To be com-pleted by May 2004	Release time for teachers to meet and align curriculum. Personnel to schedule and coordinate meeting times. Meeting facility	Administrators Teachers Counselors Students
Further develop a job shadowing program where students shadow parents and others in the job force to learn about careers. We will invite business, vocational, and technical speakers in to work with our students in pertinent area for the best preparation of our students to the job market.	Ongoing-May 2005	Business community Students Media	Students Business community
ACTION PLAN #1 Desired Results for Academic Achievement: Learning to Learn Skills Goal Statement: Students will demonstrate a commitment to creating quality work and striving for excellence
ESTIMATED PERSON(S) ACTION STEPS TIMELINE RESOURCES RESPONSIBLE
The school= s professional development programs will provide workshops to build understanding of research-based instructional strategies to promote students= effective use of learning to learn skills	Ongoing - May 2007	Release time for Professional Development	Principal Assistant Superintendent

ACTION PLAN #2 Desired Results for Academic Achievement: Communication Skills Goal Statement: Students will demonstrate effective use of communication skills across the curriculum
ESTIMATED PERSON(S) ACTION STEPS TIMELINE RESOURCES RESPONSIBLE
Re-establish a Parent/Teacher Organization. Our school has been without this support group for a couple of years. We need more parent involvement. One purpose of PTO would be informing parents of students= weaknesses in communication skills. Recruit volunteers for a committee to develop methods which parents can team with teachers address this deficiency.	Fall 2004	Meeting facility Parents Teachers	Parents Teachers Administrators
Further develop a job shadowing program where students shadow parents and others in the job force to learn about careers. We will invite business, vocational, and technical speakers in to work with our students in pertinent area for the best preparation of our students to the job market.	Ongoing - May 2005	Business community Students Media	Students Business community
The school= s professional development programs will provide workshops to build understanding of research-based instructional strategies to promote students= effective use of communication skills.	Ongoing - May 2007	Release time for Professional Development	Principal Assistant Superintendent

ACTION PLAN #3 Desired Results for Academic Achievement: Thinking and Reasoning Skills Goal Statement: Students will demonstrate effective problem solving skills
ESTIMATED PERSON(S) ACTION STEPS TIMELINE RESOURCES RESPONSIBLE
In order to better meet the needs of our students, we will offer more classes to accommodate their interests and needs, such as a GED Prep class, advanced history classes, and more elective academic classes	Ongoing to May 2007	Teachers Administrators Students	Teachers Administrators
In order to better prepare our students for standardized tests and to continue our improved test score trend, we will develop prep classes to improve critical thinking skills.	Ongoing to May 2007	Teachers Administrators Students	Teachers Administrators Counselors

The school= s professional development programs will provide workshops to build understanding of research-based instructional strategies to promote students= effective use of problem solving skills.

Ongoing - May 2007

Release time for Professional Development

Principal

Assistant Superintendent

Means of Evaluating the Effectiveness of the School Improvement Plan

A. Plan for Evaluating the Target Area Goals for Student Learning

Goal 1: Learning to Learn Skills

Department chairmen interview teachers to determine the level of quality work students complete in the classroom with reference to assigned projects, to determine their ability to manage time effectively, to determine their capability to work in teams, and to determine the amount of self-discipline they have developed

Interview teachers to determine the degree of personal commitment students have reached when asked to create quality work or strive for excellence

Interview teachers to determine the ability of students to apply learning to learn skills, such as effectively using personal skills to include adaptability, flexibility, perseverance and self-discipline

Administer NSSE= s A Survey of Goals for Student Learning@ as a post test

Goal 2: Thinking and Reasoning Skills

Structured interviews with teachers to determine students= ability to effectively apply thinking skills

Interview teachers to ascertain students= level of analysis and synthesis of information to justify conclusions

Interview teachers to assess students= problem solving techniques

Interview teachers to determine the degree of risks students take when generating new and creative ideas in a variety of context

Test scores from Subject Area Tests, Plan, ACT, and others will be reviewed annually for improvements in student performance

Administer NSSE= s A Survey of Goals for Student Learning@ as a post test

Goal 3: Communications Skills

Teacher reports to indicate students= capabilities of communicating with clarity, purpose, and understanding of audience

Teacher reports to evaluate students= usage of a variety of communication forms to complete projects

Test scores from Subject Area Tests, Plan, ACT, and others will be reviewed annually for improvements in student performance

Administer NSSE= s A Survey of Goals for Student Learning@ as a post test