|
Welcome to the Lake Shore Central School District web site.
It is
hard to imagine that we are already more than two months into the school year
and have successfully gone through the Opening Day, Homecoming festivities and
various other fall celebrations.
I am
always reinvigorated at the start of the school year as it is an opportunity
for new beginnings and implementing various change efforts. More significantly, it has been apparent
since the beginning of the school year that there is a sense of growing pride
in the Lake Shore School Community.
Students and Community members are commenting that they are proud to be
in the Lake Shore School Community because, "It is a great place to
live"; "We have one of the best schools"; "The teachers are
nice"; "There is a wonderful partnership with the Parent Teacher
Groups"; "We have a Bully Program"; and one of my favorites from
a second grader, "I like to do fun stuff like Math".
These
comments are just some of the reflections, but are indicative of the apparent
ground swell of pride that the School-Community is experiencing. This feeling will continue to be infectious
and, in turn, be the catalyst necessary to allow us to accomplish some very
lofty, yet achievable goals.
The key
goal that I would like to focus on in this issue of the Eagle Express, is the
first Board of Education goal for the 2006-2007 school year. This goal is
critical on two fronts. First and
foremost, it addresses student achievement.
Secondly, it is essential, that, as the Lake Shore School-Community, we
have a collective understanding of achievement so that in the end we can attain
this goal together.
The
first goal for the Board of Education is as follows:
1. By
June 30, 2008, there will be a 10% improvement in the achievement gap for students in grades 3-12 on the NYS assessments.
You may
be asking yourself, "Okay, so what does this really mean?" Well, I am sure you are aware that through
the No Child Left Behind initiative, New York State has instituted a new
assessment format that formally assesses all students in the third through
eighth grades in Mathematics and English Language Arts. This is coupled with the standard
commencement assessments in high school (Mathematics, English Language Arts,
United States History, Global History and a Science).
Through
these required assessments, a student's achievement is progressively measured
and ultimately, if successful, earns a high school diploma. We are committed to ensuring that all of our
students will learn and achieve and, in fact, by 2013 every student needs to
demonstrate proficiency in all areas of the core curriculum. Proficiency is measured by achieving a level
of a 3 or 4 on the elementary and middle level assessments or a 65 percent or
higher on the commencement assessments.
In the areas and/or grade levels where there is a gap between the current achievement levels and the goal of 100 percent proficiency, we intend to make a 10 percent improvement in each gap in every area and/or grade level by June 2008. Please consider the following chart and explanation below:
Results on
NYS
Assessments
|
Percent at
Levels
2-4
|
Percent at
Levels
3-4
|
Performance
Index
|
Achievement
Gap
|
10% of the
Achievement
Gap
|
2008 Goal
|
2013 Goal
|
Grade 6 ELA
|
96
|
73
|
169
|
31
|
3
|
172
|
200
|
We
currently have a performance index of 169 for grade 6 English Language
Arts. The performance index is
identified by the percentage of students achieving at levels 3 and 4, which is
73 percent, and the percentage of students achieving at levels 2 through 4,
which is 96 percent. Therefore, the
percentage of students achieving at levels 3 and 4 are counted twice and the
percentage of students at level 2 is only counted once for a total performance
index of 169. We need to be at a
performance index of 200 by 2013. Therefore,
the current achievement gap is 31, and the Board of Education goal is to close
that gap by 10 percent by 2008. Ten
percent of the achievement gap of 31 is 3.
We realize that this goal is aggressive; however it is essential if we
are to stay committed to ensuring every child learn and reach the mandated
performance index of 200 by 2013.
All
parents are encouraged to engage in a conversation with their child's teacher
with regard to achievement. In fact, at
the Parent-Teacher Conferences scheduled for December 7th and 8th, Parent
Guides to the New York State Assessments for grades 3 through 8 in English
Language Arts and Mathematics will be distributed and can be used for the
critical conversation starter. It is vital to remember that the New York State
assessments are designed to help ensure that all students reach high learning
standards. They indicate whether
students are getting the foundation knowledge they need in order to succeed at
the elementary, middle and commencement levels and beyond.
In
order to bolster the District's efforts in achieving this goal, the Board of
Education has identified four key strategies.
They are as follows: 1.) Benchmark and assess progress toward the goal;
2.) Educate the Board of Education about current programs, resources and data;
3.) Provide the resources to improve achievement and 4.) Celebrate successes in
improving achievement. These key
strategies will be monitored throughout the 2006-2007 school year.
Finally,
I would like to take this opportunity to update the School-Community on the progress of the Elementary Attendance
Committee that has met three times since the beginning of the school year. The committee has been dedicated to:
Recommend
a plan to the Superintendent that balances elementary enrollment, makes
appropriate use of elementary buildings, is fiscally responsible, academically
sound and in the best interests of the entire district. Such plan should consider current and
projected enrollments and class sizes as well as current elementary attendance
areas. The recommended plan should be
presented to the Superintendent by January 15, 2007.
Thus
far, the committee has explored a tremendous amount of data. It has identified several options, including
the closing and/or reusing of various elementary buildings or a combination of
buildings and, as a result, balancing enrollment accordingly. Another set of options include leaving all
elementary buildings as they are currently configured and then balance enrollment
across the district to better utilize all buildings. The committee is continuing its efforts and weighing the positive
and negative implications of all of these options and will be prepared to make
a recommendation shortly. The minutes
from all of the meetings can be accessed from our district's web site at
www.lakeshore.wnyric.org. All meetings
are in the High School Library Media Center and are open to the public.
I wish
everyone a wonderful upcoming Holiday Season and a Joyous New Year.
Jeffrey
R. Rabey
Superintendent
of Schools
|