What information will convince you that your chosen strategies are working?
For our chosen school goal, there are several key pieces of information that will indicate whether we are moving in the right direction.
We will see a greater connection to school from our students. This is data that is both quantifiable as well as anecdotal.
We will see a reduction in both overall absenteeism, but more specifically, a reduction in the percentage of students that are "chronically absent", which is defined as missing more than 2 unexcused absences per month.
We will see an improvement in key academic benchmarks:
Students that are on-track in core academic subjects
Students that are on-track in standardized assessments like the FSA's
A more anecdotal improvement in student engagement, with teachers being the best source for this "street data".
We will see an increased percentage of students that indicate their learning is interesting and relevant.
We will see an increased percentage of students that indicate their learning has an element of choice.
How will you triangulate this collection of evidence to check for understanding?
With the initial raw data that has been collected, there are numerous ways to triangulate. In our initial year, being sure to frequently bring the topic up at staff and EA meetings will be important. We will also need to check in with parents and students regularly to ensure engagement.
School administration will also plan to connect with other elementary schools in the district that have established PBIS structures, as that will certainly be a very useful tool for comparison and learning.
How will you disaggregate important pieces to track information more deeply and for specific groups?
The first level of disaggregation for all data is by classroom and grade level.
From there, you can move deeper into a variety of levels that can be based on gender, indigenous ancestry, designations, and a variety of other factors.
We are always looking for our most vulnerable learners. While there is some predictability to that group, there can be surprises uncovered when looking closely at the data.
When implementing a school-wide goal that is focused on student agency and relevant learning, it will be critical to understand who is and is not engaging with this school goal, primarily with the students, but also amongst staff.
What information are teachers using to inform this instruction?
As it related to student agency and puposeful, relevant learning, this goal is newly formed and will be the foundaion of learning over the next school year. The information sources will come from internal learning and experience, requesting support from district-level staff, as well as resources found outside of the school.
As the idea of a PBIS framework is new to staff, administration is providing a series of references and resources for staff to examine, as well as discussion at staff meetings. This process has already begun. With a clear understanding of our objectives, staff will be able to use the information they are seeing both in their classroom and school-wide to see how to alter their practice of addressing, teaching and recognizing positive behaviours.