Evaluation Report 2004-2005
Santa Susana
High School, Simi Valley Unified School District
Smaller Learning Communities Grant Project
Funding Source: U.S. Department of Education
Evaluation Report: Year One, October 2004-October 2005
Prepared and Submitted by Jeanne P. Adams,
Ph.D, External Evaluator
Introduction:
The report which follows is organized
in terms of each of the student and program-specific goals and objectives
established by Santa Susana High School (SSHS) project staff, consistent with
the implementation grant proposal submitted to the U.S. Department of Education granting agency and as appropriate
to first year activity.
SSHS staff initiated preliminary
development of program objectives with
support of a Smaller Learning Communities (SLC) planning grant received in 2003
for the 2003-2004 academic year.
Planning, research, review, and installation and monitoring of program
have been continuous.
In January 2005, a SSHS team, which
included the principal, project coordinator, three teachers, and the external
evaluator, attended a mandatory SLC orientation meeting in San Francisco with
U.S. Department of Education grantor representatives.
Findings, recommendations, and
commendations in this report will reflect program implementation through Fall
semester of 2005. The emphasis of this Year One report will focus primarily on process,
that is, programs and strategies initiated
to promote achievement of objectives.
The external evaluator’s findings,
recommendations, and commendations are based on seventeen on-site visits of two
to five hours each which included opportunities to visit classrooms, conduct
interviews of randomly selected students, staff, and parents, to meet and
confer with the principal and the SLC project coordinator, and to review project
materials. Additionally, the external evaluator’s
observations included those recorded during attendance at the March 2005 New
Student Interviews, February 2005 “Choice” presentations, the August 2005
orientation sessions for 9-12 graders and their parents, a June 2005 student
evening performance, and the opportunities to participate as a Senior Project
Panel member and member of the California Distinguished Schools Visitation
Team.
The target population of this project
for purposes of longitudinal data collection is the 2005 freshmen class of
approximately 390 students; however, the majority of grant project programs
introduced are designed to address the needs of students at all grade levels as
necessary and appropriate.
I.
Student Goal #1: Improved
proficiency in literacy and math for all
students.
A. Intervention Specialist Program
Findings:
In February 2005, SSHS introduced an Intervention Specialist
Program for 9th and 10th grade students whose Grade Point
Averages are below 2.0. Two of the
school’s teachers are identified as Intervention Specialists (IS) who provide
lunchtime and after school support for these students. Grant stipends are awarded to the
Intervention Specialists as compensation for these additional responsibilities.
Based
on the previous quarter’s report cards, the IS’s send letters to parents of all
youngsters whose GPA’s qualify them for this program. Parents are invited to an evening meeting at which the program is
explained to them and at which they are asked to sign a Student, Parent, and IS
contractual agreement regarding the responsibilities assumed by each party to
the contract, as well as the nature and extent to which each youngster is
expected to participate.
Students
are expected to meet with an IS at least once weekly to have assignment books
monitored and signed. IS’s are
available to assist students with problems or concerns, to facilitate a
positive attitude towards learning and school, and to assign rewards and consequences. Parents agree to monitor Agenda Book
assignments daily and to sign Agenda Books weekly.
To
date, student eligibility for the IS program has been significant. The first quarter’s report for the 2005-06
academic year indicates that 240 students (140 freshman, 100 sophomores) posted
GPA’s under 2.0. This is a substantial
increase over the forty sophomores identified the previous semester for IS
participation during first quarter of the new academic year. IS’s make available intervention sessions
every day and report that as many as 61 students have attended at a single
session. Intervention Specialists
communicate student progress to parents regularly via email.
Currently,
there appears to be a delay of three to four weeks between the time that report
cards are issued and IS’s receive the lists of students whose progress reports
indicate GPA’s of less than 2.0. This creates a commensurate delay in the
timeline for notifying parents of student eligibility for the IS program and
scheduling a meeting with them.
IS records are maintained by hand entry as
students report for sessions. The
number of students eligible for program participation and the number actively
participating may exceed the ability of two IS’s to provide the levels of attention
necessary for this population.
Recommendations:
Thus,
the following is recommended:
·
A means be
explored for making student report card
data available to IS staff more quickly so that intervention efforts may
begin before students fall further behind.
More timely reports of student progress would also provide necessary
information regarding participants who are eligible to exit the program, thus
making it possible for IS staff to concentrate efforts on newly identified
participants.
·
Serious consideration
be given to acquiring a software program that will allow the IS staff to create
and maintain electronic records of student demographic, participation, school
attendance, and achievement data. Such
profiles would prove valuable in communicating with parents, the students’
teachers, and school administration, in addition to providing valuable data for
assessing the success of this project program element.
· If the number of eligible and participating
students in the IS program continues at current levels, that consideration be given
to assigning an additional Intervention Specialist.
· Given the numbers of students eligible for
the IS program, that SSHS staff devote time and energy to exploring what instructional and structural
modifications can be made to classroom practices to ensure greater student
achievement, thus reducing the number of youngsters requiring intervention.
Commendations:
The number of students identified as
having GPA’s of less than 2.0 reaffirms the need for and the value of a
formalized intervention program. The number of students participating
indicates that the program is recognized by them and their parents as an
important source of additional support.
The Intervention Specialists are to be
commended for the receptive and supportive environment they have created for
program students and for their substantial efforts to communicate regularly
with parents.
B. Designated Academic Research Time (DART)
Program
Findings:
DART
was originally conceived as a tutorial program specific to each core subject to
be offered during specially constituted periods during the school day. In its early development, however, it became
clear to staff that effective school-wide implementation was hindered by the
school’s desirable flexible scheduling design and by a range of other
conflicting school activities and requirements which made it difficult to
schedule and accommodate students appropriately.
The
Mathematics Department re-examined the possibilities of such a program and has
implemented a modified version of DART.
This version offers an after school tutorial as a student option for
additional assistance. A student who
receives a grade of D or below on any test may attend DART sessions and be
eligible to retake a test and improve his/her grade. Mathematics Department staff report, preliminarily, the
improvement of student performance in class and on state tests which they
attribute to participation in the after school tutorials. It is noted that a percentage of students
who have taken advantage of DART support also participate in the Intervention
Specialist program.
Recommendations:
Other
core course departments are considering establishment of an after school
tutorial program which will allow students to retake low-score tests after
seeking additional instruction. It is
recommended that mathematics staff members share their program’s experience,
relative to student participation and achievement, with SSHS colleagues in
other disciplines.
In
light of the number of students posting GPA’s of less than 2.0, it is
recommended that other departments establish DART or similarly constituted
tutorial pilots to provide additional one-on-one assistance to underachieving
students and to assess success of such efforts to improve student
achievement.
Commendations:
The
Mathematics Department is to be commended for establishing a tutorial
option for improving students’ achievement and grades.
II.
Student Goal #2: Connect
school learning with students post-secondary
plans and future goals
Student
Goal #3: Promote and facilitate
participation in rigorous
academic curriculum
Program Goal
#1: Create personalized environments
for learning
and teaching
Findings:
A.
Troubadour Advisory Period (TAP)
TAP, a shortened period, twice a week for
each grade level, has been established as a setting in which youngsters meet
with a teacher who will remain as a youngster’s faculty advisor throughout
his/her tenure at SSHS. In addition to
establishing an on-going personal connection for each student, TAP provides
opportunities for students to track, regularly, their own academic records,
including transcripts; to confer individually with the advisor about their academic
needs and progress - termed “JIG-ing” (Journey into Grades); to check their
status against University of California A-G requirements; to review
Academy-specific certification requirements and SSHS graduation requirements;
and to understand more fully and take responsibility for their own academic and
personal growth and plans for their post-secondary future.
Surveys, interviews, and observations make
apparent that many SSHS teachers recognize this advisory role has an
opportunity to serve as a coach and mentor who communicates high expectations
for each student’s academic and career choices and performance. A smaller number of advisors appear to have
not yet assumed coach/mentor roles, but do provide valuable experiences for
students in reviewing their academic records and status.
To foster consistency for TAP
implementation, the SLC project coordinator prepares and distributes weekly TAP
Agendas for each grade level which outline the TAP focus for the period’s
activities and which include extensive support materials.
TAP, a newly established element of the SLC
program, has evolved and become more defined since its inception, and the
expectation is that it will continue to evolve as staff extends its
possibilities.
Personal interviews with students, as well
as those with staff, reflect a range of perspectives on the benefits of TAP,
ranging from “the period should be
longer” to “the period should be shorter”.
Teacher surveys indicate concurrence regarding the value of having
one-to-one time to talk with students about grades, their futures, and any
assistance they may need. Several teachers commented that, having had
this opportunity, they recommend smaller TAP classes so that more individual
needs can be addressed and met.
Students interviewed, most particularly 11th
and 12th graders, expressed
appreciation – and surprise – at the opportunity to review
their transcripts to see clearly what they
have or haven’t yet done to meet
graduation and university entrance requirements. As one 11th grader said, “I had
no idea! It was an eye opener to get to
review my own transcript.”
Both teachers and student respondents
commented on the amount of “paper work”, some appearing redundant, involved in
TAP sessions .
Recommendations:
The
concept of an advisory period such as TAP is a widely recognized, research-based strategy for assuring not
only that every youngster has an identified advisor and advocate who knows
him/her well, but for assuring, as well, that a student’s program provides a
regularly scheduled time for discussion of the panoply of issues attendant to a
student’s school life and success. For
SSHS staff, this is a new program which they are refining as they become more
familiar with its possibilities for promoting student success. It can also be a very new concept for
faculty whose prior teaching and advising experiences have been focused
primarily on their academic disciplines.
Thus, it is recommended that SSHS staff have opportunities to explore
professional development experiences related to maximizing advisory programs.
Both
the CSU and the UC systems have available Entry/“A-G” requirement charts
designed for posting in secondary classrooms.
It is recommended that SSHS obtain sufficient charts for each classroom,
the office, and the Counseling Center.
Commendations:
The SSHS staff is to be commended for
embracing a program that may be new to them and for their candor in making
recommendations for
refinements that
will continue to benefit students.
The SLC project coordinator is to be
commended for her role in researching extensively, promoting and monitoring the
establishment, and exhaustive professional support of the Troubadour Advisory
Program.
B.
Schools and Academies
Findings:
SSHS’s
commitment to ensuring smaller, more personalized and responsive learning
communities is manifest in its design and implementation of a structure of
Schools and Academies. This approach to one of the most dramatic and innovative
of the tenets of contemporary high school research and reform, is central to
SSHS’s efforts to create a teaching and learning climate which acknowledges the
current and future needs of today’s high school students.
SSHS is comprised of three
“Schools”. The School of the Arts
incorporates the Academy of
Performing Arts, with emphases in Vocal Music, Instrumental Music, Theatre
and Dance; and the Academy of Fine Arts, which includes program emphases in
Visual Arts, Animation, Technical Arts, Stagecraft Technology, and Media
Arts/Video Production. The School of Academics offers the Academy of Accelerated Academics, with
emphasis programs in Humanities, Science, and Math; and the Academy of Core Academics provides course
offerings in English, Social Science, Mathematics Sciences, Computer Applications,
Health, Physical Education, Fine Arts, Foreign Language, Practical Art, and
Additional Electives. The third school,
the School of Information Technology,
includes five Academies: Digital
Graphics and Publication; Internet Development; Service and Support; Computer
Programming; and Business Ed.com
Students may participate in one or
more schools. While entering students
elect an Academy of which to become a member, all students’ programs include
core academic courses to meet graduation and university entrance requirements
while providing an environment in which to pursue special interests and/or
preparation for specialized college/university programs and careers.
Student applications and responses to
New Student Interviews, as well as responses of students and parents to
personal interviews confirm that this structure and the reputation it has
earned have drawn families to apply for admission to SSHS. One 11th grade parent interviewed
indicated that the value of her daughter’s three year participation in the
School of the Arts warranted the 110-mile roundtrip she made daily to transport
her child to and from SSHS.
The responses of twenty-one students
to the interview question, “What would you tell a student from out of town
about SSHS? About your Academy?”
consistently yielded comments paralleling that of one 11th grader
who answered, “This is very
different from other schools. There are
no cliques. There are no cheerleaders or football teams. People are nice and
our teachers are motivated. We all know
one another and our teachers know us.
We can go to any teacher or to Mrs Carter or Mrs. Johnson with any
problem and they know who we are and will help us. I’m learning things I can use after I
leave here….”
A small number of students have enrolled at SSHS primarily because
its location is convenient to their families.
Six of these students interviewed expressed less identification with or
interest in any particular Academy.
The talents and achievements of some
SSHS students, most particularly those in the School of Arts, have been
recognized by professionals in related fields.
Partnerships have been formed with SSHS to offer students internships
and other entry level work experiences.
While these opportunities are recognized as valuable for and to
students, SSHS staff and administration express concern regarding students’
ability to maintain strong academic performance and records as they engage in
these early workplace experiences. SSHS
administration has met with representatives of firms offering student
internships and other professional experiences to agree on limitations so that
student school responsibilities will not be compromised.
Recommendations:
Although those students who have not
“declared” a School/Academy appear to
be a small population of SSHS students, it is recommended that their attendance
and performance records be closely monitored for any indications of
disenfranchisement.
Because there is concern that students
who are highly active participants in the arts may be distracted from their
academic responsibilities and jeopardize their ability to meet graduation
requirements, it is recommended that continued, focused attention be given to
the requirement for a minimal 2.0 GPA standard for eligibility for performing
and for participating in internships and other similar out-of-school
programs.
Commendations:
SSHS is to be commended for the
facility and expertise with which it has established a very effective model for
smaller learning communities via its School/Academy structure.
SSHS is to be commended for its
partnership with the Regional Occupation Program, which has brought to the site
valuable and broadened learning experiences, well incorporated in the
School/Academy structure.
SSHS administration and staff are to
be commended for their outreach efforts which have resulted in ongoing
communication with businesses, agencies, studios, colleges and universities,
resulting in the establishment of internships, community service projects, and
other enriching classroom and out-of-classroom experiences for students.
SSHS is to be commended for its
effective transformation of a “traditional” high school bell schedule to a
system of Flexible Scheduling (Deregulated School Attendance Time – D-SAT)
which extends the instructional day to nine periods. This approach to scheduling not only accommodates the sometimes
unusual scheduling needs of Schools/Academies, internships, and community
service projects while guaranteeing that a minimum of six periods remain
available for core courses throughout the instructional day, and provides
students and staff the rare option of choosing when to begin and end their
instructional day, but also makes it possible for a student to accelerate
his/her completion of graduation requirements by maximizing the additional
class periods.
III. Program Goal #2: Revamp staff development and teacher collaboration of the SLC
Implementation
Findings:
The
establishment of Flexible Scheduling, offering a nine period day, has made it
possible to create an early morning block of time for “FMM”, Friday Morning Meetings, a setting for regular professional
development and collaboration, as well as department meetings. Agendas for these meetings reflect the
staff-wide attention which is focused on examining and refining elements of the
SLC program.
Additionally, a professional
development roster indicates that SLC grant funds have supported the
participation of better than 56% of SSHS staff members in one or more workshops
and conferences related to teaching and learning and to sustaining a learning
environment which promotes student success. Other funding sources have made it possible for all staff members
to participate in one or more such professional development experiences. Staff members have attended these workshops
and conferences as teams, a strategy proven highly successful for advancing
site implementation, collegial support and collaboration, and dissemination of
new and innovative approaches to instruction and programs.
Recommendations:
It
is recommended that, in addition to continued participation in targeted
out-of-area professional development offerings, SSHS staff review those offered
by the Ventura County Superintendent of Schools Office, an increasing number of
which have begun to address the unique needs of high schools.
In
light of the significant number of students who have posted GPA’s of less than
2.0, and may be thus considered at risk, it is recommended that SSHS staff
continue to collaborate on this problem and create an ongoing professional
development plan which focuses time and funds on mitigating this need.
To
further refine the delivery of TAP, it is recommended that SSHS staff have
opportunities to research and visit other successful high school advisory
programs.
Commendations:
SSHS
staff is to be commended for how precisely it has targeted its professional
development grant dollars on topics and experiences which will enhance SSHS
implementation of its Smaller Learning Communities program for increased
benefit to students. The SSHS
commitment to continuous professional growth, an excellent model for teenagers
of the value of lifelong learning, makes clear staff’s understanding of the
increased and changing demands and expectations for the work and structure of
high schools.
SSHS
is to be commended for its collegial team approach and commitment to
professional growth. Research and
experience have demonstrated the critical value of this investment in cohorts
of staff stakeholders for initiating and sustaining important organizational
change.
Conclusion:
Recommendations notwithstanding, Santa
Susana High School has many important successes to its credit, not the least of
which are its designation as a 2005 California Distinguished School and its
2005 API score of 807.
Anecdotal and other data collected present
a portrait of SSHS as an environment whose culture and climate are open,
professional, learner-centered, consistently attendant to the needs of students
and their families, and one which encourages and celebrates innovative and
critical thinking. Students and their
parents know where to seek support and information and find it readily
available. An assessment of SSHS’s enviably
positive climate and culture would be remiss if it did not acknowledge
classified staff, often the first “line” of school personnel visitors meet, as
unfailingly friendly, receptive, and knowledgeable.
Efforts to communicate regularly with
families and community via such means as the Troubadour Express, prepared weekly by Assistant Principal, Mrs. Lynn Johnson, and available
electronically as well as in hard copy; attractive school and academy
information brochures created by school/academy students; regular videocast
programs for both the school’s internal and external populations; frequent
teacher and administrator email exchanges with one another and with parents, high levels of parent engagement in school
activities and program meetings, and the breadth of information made available
through TAP by the project coordinator are to be commended as effective models for
inclusion of all members of the school community and for other schools’
consideration.
SSHS
deserves recognition for its excellent study and use of contemporary research
to build its programs. In recent years,
much attention has been directed to the dramatically changing needs of high
schools, the organization and professional practices of many of which continue
to resemble those of secondary institutions built to meet the requirements of
the Industrial Revolution more than a century ago. SSHS administration and staff have moved well beyond that model,
and are employing effective research-based practices drawn from such high
school reform initiative studies such as those included in Breaking Ranks
II, Aiming High, California’s High Performing High School’s
Initiative, Stanford University’s Redesigning Schools, and the
seminal research on change conducted by Toronto University’s Dean, Michael
Fullan.
Principal Pam Carter, and SLC project
coordinator, Sara Leibman are avid, expert
students of high school research
studies and bring this body of research,
as well as timely grant opportunities, to staff, thus enlarging on the
knowledge base of SSHS’s community of learners.
Reducing
the number of students requiring intervention and increasing the number of
students meeting rigorous academic standards, graduation and university
entrance requirements will, needs be, ongoing goals of SSHS. The research-based programs and SLC strategies
put in place to foster greater student success show much promise that those
goals will be met.
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