Marshall School Improvement Plan (2019-20)

Outcome 1: Be compassionate and kind.

  1. Be aware of and appreciate one’s similarities and differences with others.
  2. Listen well and cooperate with others.
  3. Demonstrate awareness of one’s own thoughts and emotions and how they impact behavior.
  4. Express emotions, thoughts and impulses in positive and beneficial ways.
  5. Resolve conflicts and repair relationships.

Metric

We will look at data from the following sources:

  • School Student Climate Survey
  • Bully Survey
  • HIB Discipline referrals

Goal

Students will demonstrate an increase in positive responses for students feeling peers at their school are compassionate and kind toward each other as shown through the school's climate survey data from spring 2019 to spring 2020. Specifically, the percentage of students who say "Strongly Agree and Agree" will increase from 50% (Spring 2019) to 65% (Spring 2020).

Action Plan

We will implement many strategies schoolwide and some at specific times or in specific classrooms. All together, we will create a culture that emphasizes kindness and compassion. Some of our strategies are:
 

  1. Initiate professional development for all staff on restorative practices at August staff retreat and revisit at monthly staff meetings. This training will include the use of circles to help staff solve problems in classrooms.
  2. Initiate professional development for all staff on ACES and trauma-informed practices at August staff retreat and revisit on October 11 professional day, in January and in March. 
  3. Invite Dr. Joyce Gilbert to present information about ACES and trauma to the staff in both August and January.
  4. Analyze attendance and discipline data to identify disproportionality. 
  5. Create and staff a "Restorative Center" to provide a mechanism for students to restore harm done to others.
  6. ASB will adopt a "Kindness" theme for the year, creating posters, shirts and inspirational messages and inviting Stu Cabe to put on an inspirational assembly about kindness in September.
  7. Emphasize a "Character Trait of the month" throughout the school year, reading a different quote about the theme every week and identifying "students of the month" who have illustrated that character trait.
  8. Start an Advisory program that will meet every Monday throughout the school year with lessons focusing on kindness and social-emotional learning.
  9. Ensure counselor Todd Fulton speaks to all students through Social Studies classes about harassment, intimidation and bullying and the difference between a bystander and an upstander.
  10. Continue to hold a Martin Luther King, Jr. assembly focused on student voice, standing up for others and being antiracist.
  11. Continue to involve all students in our annual Day of Service in January where they all get to experience the joy of helping others.
  12. Continue to implement Second Step curriculum in our Social Organizational Skills class.
  13. Continue to offer a Wellness elective class to 6th graders where they learn to take care of themselves and others.
  14. Start a Leadership Class with an emphasis on creating a culture of kindness.
  15. Continue working toward our goal of all staff becoming "Common Sense Educators" and using weekly library lessons to teach and inform students about social media and digital citizenship.

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Outcome 2: Have the academic and life skills to pursue their individual career, civic and educational goals.

  1. Read, write and speak effectively for a wide range of purposes, including the interpretation and analysis of both literary and informational texts.
  2. Know and apply mathematics to a level of fluency that ensures a broad range of post-secondary opportunities and career choices.
  3. Use analytic and scientific principles to draw sound conclusions.
  4. Analyze multiple causal factors that shape major events in history.
  5. Exit with a personalized post-secondary transition plan for work, career and/or college, and complete the first steps toward achieving post-secondary goals before graduation.
  6. Develop and use conceptual understanding, exploring knowledge across a range of disciplines, and engage with issues and ideas that have local and global significance.
  7. Problem solve using both creative and critical thinking skills.
  8. Demonstrate continuous growth across the disciplines to meet or exceed academic learning standards and work toward graduation.
  9. Apply reliable information and systematic decision making to personal financial decisions.

Metric

ELA/SS
METRIC: Classroom based RATES assessment

MATH
METRIC: MAP Growth Scores Spring 2019-2020.

SCIENCE 
METRIC: WCAS Growth Scores Spring 2019-2020 and growth on individual teacher assessments measured per quarter/semester. 

Goal

ELA and Social Studies
GOAL: Students will demonstrate proficiency in answering text-dependent questions for both informational and literary texts. They will show one level of growth on the RATES (Re-state question, Answer question, Text-Evidence, Summarize) rubric from an initial assessment (by December 15) to a final assessment (by June 1).
 
Math
GOAL: On the spring 2020 Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) for mathematics, all grade levels will have 100% of their students achieve their projected growth goals from spring 2019-spring 2020.

Science
GOAL: All students will increase 1 level (on a standards based scale) by the end of April, 2020, on each part of the teacher-created, common rubric for arguing from evidence.

Action Plan

ELA and Social Studies:
ACTION PLAN: 

  • Revision of the common team-created rubric for RATES
  • Creation/use of common formative assessments
  • Use of Core/Flex time to differentiate instruction
  • Continue to use Dylan Wiliam’s “Embedding Formative Assessment” strategies to increase engagement, critical thinking and achievement
  • Continue to attend Springboard trainings, if offered, to enhance instructional skill

 
Math:
ACTION PLAN:​​​​​​​

  • Continue utilizing ALEKS.com and KEMS program for students with IEPs and in Learning Assistance Program classes (LAP 6th and 8th grade)
  • Continue to use CORE/FLEX Time to assist student gains
  • Continue to use Dylan Wiliam’s “Embedding Formative Assessment” strategies to increase engagement, critical thinking and achievement
  • Collaboration with district and building peers to optimize implementation of Illustrative Math Curriculum
  • Continue attendance at district level math trainings as offered
  • Continue to communicate with parents about upcoming instruction and completion


Science:
ACTION PLAN:

  • Collaborate with science team for PLC
  • Develop a common rubric to assess argument writing
  • Develop a common formative assessment for argument writing
    • Use student samples to calibrate scoring
  • Align science curriculum with NGSS
  • Align Science World magazine readings to Common Core reading/writing standards 
  • Provide field investigation opportunities for all grade levels in order to make science relevant and meaningful to all students
  • Collaborate with community resources to connect students to real-life scientists (guest speakers)
  • Design assessments using question types the students will encounter on the WCAS
  • CSI action plan: Participate in regular field investigations to apply scientific skills and concepts learned in the lab to real-world scenarios and careers.  
  • CSI students will also participate in at least 8 hours of service learning each year which will have a focus on science topics.


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Outcome 3: Advocate for the social, physical and mental wellness of themselves and others and be hopeful about the future.

  1. Communicate effectively.
  2. Develop knowledge and skills to have healthy eating habits, have a healthy body image and access reliable health information and services.
  3. Be physically active and see athletics and exercise as health-enhancing behaviors.
  4. Understand and apply principles of sound mental and emotional health and learn to identify signs of emotional health concerns such as depression, anxiety and suicidal thinking in self and others.
  5. Understand how and when to seek supportive mental and emotional health resources for self and others.
  6. Cultivate healthy relationships that honor each person's personal preferences and boundaries.
  7. Identify and develop personal strengths and interests.
  8. Develop the skills and habits to assess the role of technology and social media in their lives and distinguish between healthy and harmful use.

Metric

  • Annual HIB Survey (MMS survey), questions about accessing resources
  • Healthy Youth Survey, questions about hopelessness and depression 

Goal

A higher percentage of eighth grade students will report feeling  "Moderately or Highly Hopeful" as measured by the Healthy Youth Survey Children's Hope Scale, moving from 83% who say they are "Moderately or Highly Hopeful" in the Fall of 2018 to 95% who say they are "Moderately or Highly Hopeful" in the fall of 2020.

A lower percentage of eighth grade students will report feeling "so sad or hopeless almost every day for two weeks or more in a row that they stopped doing some usual activities in the past year" as measured by the Healthy Youth Survey, moving from 30% who reported feeling that way in the fall of 2018 to 10% who will feel that way in the fall of 2020.

Action Plan

  1. Send both counselor and health teacher to Suicide Prevention Training and then invite Suicide Prevention Trainer to present to our 8th grade Health class in October 2019.
  2. Counselor will implement mental health curriculum through all 6th and 7th grade Social Studies classrooms.
  3. Track and analyze student participation in clubs and activities and identify disproportionality.
  4. Create and staff a "Restorative Center" to provide a mechanism for students to restore harm done to others and to analyze behavior and reflect.
  5. Continue to require all students in our school to take a full year of Physical Education allowing exemptions only with approved PE Waivers.
  6. Continue to offer HUMAN club for all LGBTQ+ students to meet on a weekly basis and to provide resources to help navigate stress related to mental health issues.
  7. Ensure counselor speaks to all students through Social Studies classes about harassment, intimidation and bullying and the difference between a bystander and an upstander.
  8. Continue the Peer Mentor Program in our DLC classes, allowing over 20 8th graders to work with DLC students to help integrate all students into the wider school climate and culture.
  9. Continue to support BHR Therapist and work to link to neediest students.
  10. Continue to work with Bigs in Blue to connect police officers to several of our neediest students.
  11. Continue to use the Emergency Principal's Fund to support the emergency needs of families and students.
  12. Ensure all grade levels receive training from the Olympia Police Department on cyber-bullying and sexting.
  13. Continue to lead schoolwide fundraisers that focus on proactive physical behaviors such as the Mustang Dash.
  14. Invite Dr. Joyce Gilbert to present information about ACES and trauma to the staff in both August and January.
  15. Start an Advisory program that will meet every Monday throughout the school year with lessons focusing on kindness and social-emotional learning.
  16. Continue to offer a Wellness elective class to 6th graders where they learn to take care of themselves and others. 

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Outcome 5: Discover their passions, be curious and love learning.

  1. Broaden their perspectives and seek out various opportunities to explore new ideas, particularly those areas that are unfamiliar or uncomfortable to find their interests.
  2. Experience failure, setbacks and disappointments as an expected and honored part of learning.
  3. Understand and demonstrate the value of service in their community and learning by doing.
  4. Pursue creative and artistic opportunities as a vocation and/or a form of lifelong enrichment.

Metric

  1. Post-community service surveys
  2. Number of students participating in service projects 
  3. Number of students involved in sports and activities 

Goal

  1. By the end of the 2019-2020 school year, 100% of students will have participated in at least 2 service learning projects.
  2. Students will demonstrate understanding of the value of their service as demonstrated by project survey data. 
  3. By the end of the 2019-20 school year, the percentage of students involved in MMS sports or activities will increase by 10% from 250 of 441 (57%) total students participating in sports or activities in 2018-19, to at least a 67% rate of participation in 2019-20. 

Action Plan

  1. Expand service learning opportunities at our school to provide three opportunities throughout the year. 
  2. Extend support to the CTE classes/teachers (Horticulture, Natural Resources, Woodshop and Drone Robotics) in order to enhance those programs. 
  3. Analyze participation rates in sports and activities from 2018-19 and provide an interest inventory to expand opportunities of interest in order to increase participation rates.
  4. Continue to emphasize Dweck's Growth Mindset work and to work with staff to build classroom climates that foster failure as part of learning.
  5. Build an intervention system (Core-Flex) that supports students retaking tests and redoing projects in order to increase proficiency. 

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