NCMS School Improvement Plan

NORTH CUMBERLAND MIDDLE SCHOOL

SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PLAN

2009/2010

NCMS 2008/2009 School Improvement Team members:

Dr. Rich Drolet (Principal/Co-chair)

Paula Vadenais (Faculty Representative/Co-chair)

Jean Therien (Faculty Representative/Recording Secretary)

Conor Geary (CTA Representative)

Linda Lussier (ICSE Representative)

Linda Nelson (Parent Representative)

Ginny Vachon (Faculty Representative)

Pam Costa (PTO/Parent Representative)

Tim Draper (Community/Business Partner)

Jason Masterson (Assistant Principal)

A Vision for North Cumberland Middle School:

STUDENTS come to school eager to learn and have high expectations for themselves which allows them to produce meaningful work that demonstrates knowledge of skills in reading, writing, mathematics, and social sciences, as well as the ability to communicate clearly.

TEACHERS & SUPPORT PERSONNEL are highly qualified and certified in their area and have high expectations for all students.

ADMINISTRATORS are educational leaders in this school and district who model high expectations for teachers and students.

PARENTS participate actively in decision-making at the school and district level and share the responsibility, authority, and accountability for improving schools.

COMMUNITY MEMBERS, BUSINESSES, & EMPLOYERS volunteer in classrooms, help to improve school facilities, and support education expenditures.

HIGHER EDUCATION institutions welcome NCMS students and help to prepare them to meet new learning challenges.

EDUCATION at NCMS is a flexible system that supports a wide range of teaching and learning approaches.

TOWN GOVERNMENT funds and keeps education at the forefront of its agenda.

* Adapted from the Cumberland Public Schools Strategic Plan 2003 - 2008

The Mission of North Cumberland Middle School:

To celebrate life, learning, and to pursue academic excellence;

To encourage and inspire respect;

To embrace diversity; and

To value the accomplishments of all members of the NCMS community.

Our Statement of Student Success:

Successful students understand their role in learning and put forth their best effort to exceed their expectations. Students that are motivated and inspired to continuously improve academically and personally are successful. Successful students are respectful and responsible school citizens who contribute to a positive learning community.

Goal #1 – Literacy: Reading & Writing Across the Curriculum

Result Statement: All students will demonstrate literacy skills through their ability to analyze and interpret what they read, and communicate effectively through writing across the curriculum

Evidence: Results of the New England Common Assessment Program, student work, classroom assessment, DRA results

Targets: 85% of all students proficient in Reading. 55% of all students (gr. 8) proficient in Writing

Changes in student learning behavior:

Changing Instruction:

Monitoring Progress with Timelines and Adjustments:

Collaboration and Support:

Resources, School and District:

Evaluation of Success/Reporting to Families and Community

Reading:

Students in all grades will read a wide variety of literary and informational texts for understanding, interpretational and analysis

Students in all grades will demonstrate the understanding of the reading/writing connection to learning by effectively using writing to build understanding and enhance learning

All students below proficient will be given a DRA assessment to determine placement in a reading class

All students will participate in a summer reading program

Teachers in all content areas will initiate discussions that promote critical thinking skills and the synthesizing of information into real life situations and experiences

The reading teacher will administer a DRA assessment to all students scoring a 2 or less on the NECAP to determine reading level, strengths and weaknesses to drive instruction

Teachers in all content areas will ensure that all students read many and varied types of literature, as specified in the Grade Level Expectations

Teachers in all contents areas will monitor students’ reading progress on an ongoing basis. Assessments may include informal and formal checks

Teachers in all content areas will utilize the school-wide writing rubric and hamburger paragraph template quarterky or whenever appropriate

Professional development will be offered to all teachers to strengthen skills and strategies in the teaching of reading and writing in all content areas

Administrators, faculty and staff will review all forms of assessment completed throughout the year. These may include: NECAP data, student work, and classroom assessments

The vehicles for reporting information and evaluations to the families and communities may include: Principal’s newsletter, School report night, Quarterly progress reports and report cards

Writing:

Students in all content areas will write effectively, demonstrating an understanding of the writing process

Students will be given many and varied opportunities to write in all content areas

Teachers in all content areas will use a school-wide rubric for writing assessment

Writing samples will include: summaries, responses to literature, including fiction and nonfiction, note taking, lab reports, and journaling

ELA and reading teachers will model good writing and provide exemplars of good writing in a variety of writing genres and provide corresponding instruction

All content area teachers will meet to review student work and assess student performance on a quarterly basis

Teachers in all content areas will monitor student writing skills on an ongoing basis using both formative and summative assessment

Teachers in all content areas will utilize the school-wide writing rubric and hamburger paragraph template quarterly or whenever appropriate

Professional development will be offered to all teachers to strengthen skills and strategies in the teaching of reading and writing in all content areas

Administrators, faculty and staff will review all forms of assessment completed throughout the year. These may include: NECAP data, student work, classroom assessments

The vehicles for reporting information and evaluations to the families and communities may include: Principal’s newsletter, School report night, Quarterly progress reports and report cards

Word Identification:

Students in all content areas will learn new vocabulary, including general, specialized and technical words

Students in all grades will learn the meaning of specific words, including word origin, word families, root and base words, and prefixes and suffixes

Teachers in all content areas will instruct students in the use of general, specialized and technical words

As pertinent to each content area, instruction will focus on the use of contextual and structural clues, such as root and base words, prefixes and suffixes

Teachers in all content areas will monitor the development of vocabulary on an ongoing basis

Teachers in all content areas will utilize the school-wide writing rubric and hamburger paragraph template quarterly or whenever appropriate

Professional development will be offered to all teachers to strengthen skills and strategies in the teaching of reading and writing in all content areas

· Administrators, faculty and staff will review all forms of assessment completed throughout the year. These may include:

· NECAP data,

· student work, and

· classroom assessments

The vehicles for reporting information and evaluations to the families and communities may include: Principal’s newsletter, School report night, Quarterly progress reports and report cards

Writing Conventions

Students in all grade levels will follow standard writing conventions in all written work (i.e sentence structures, capitalization, punctuation and appropriate word choice)

ELA and reading teachers will instruct students in writing conventions as needed through classroom instruction and modeling

Teachers in all content areas will monitor written and oral work in an ongoing fashion for correctness

An expectation of correctness will be practiced in every classroom

Teachers in all content areas will utilize the school-wide writing rubric and hamburger paragraph template quarterly or whenever appropriate

Professional development will be offered to all teachers to strengthen skills and strategies in the teaching of reading and writing in all content areas

Administrators, faculty and staff will review all forms of assessment completed throughout the year. These may include: NECAP data, student work, and classroom assessments

The vehicles for reporting information and evaluations to the families and communities may include: Principal’s newsletter, School report night, Quarterly progress reports and report cards

Oral Communication

Students in all grades will develop and practice effective oral communication skills.

These skills will include conversing, listening, and oral presentation

All content area teachers will provide varied ongoing opportunities for students to practice oral communication skills. These may include class and small group discussions, and at least one oral presentation per year

All content area teachers will monitor oral communication development in an ongoing fashion

Teachers in all content areas will utilize the school-wide writing rubric and hamburger paragraph template quarterly or whenever appropriate

Professional development will be offered to all teachers to strengthen skills and strategies in the teaching of reading and writing in all content areas

Administrators, faculty and staff will review all forms of assessment completed throughout the year. These may include: NECAP data, student work, and classroom assessments

The vehicles for reporting information and evaluations to the families and communities may include: Principal’s newsletter, School report night, Quarterly progress reports and report cards

Goal #2 – Numeracy

Result Statement: All students will be able to effectively solve multi-step problems across all four content strands (Number & Operations, Geometry and Measurement, Functions and Algebra, and Data, Statistics & Probability) using various strategies. Students will justify their solutions in writing and through discussion. They will also use their mathematical knowledge through real world application.
Target: The percentage of students achieving Proficiency/Proficiency with Distinction at NCMS will increase to 72%
Changes in student behavior:	Changing instruction:	Monitoring progress with timelines and adjustment:	Collaboration and support:	Resources, school and district	Evaluation of success/reporting to families and community
Students will: Produce clear accurate responses verbally and in writing, citing evidence to support their answers Accurately solve multi-step problems using various strategies from all disciplines Work together with peers to share ideas and build solutions cooperatively Routinely check their solutions, reflect on their work and identify their own strengths and weaknesses.	Teachers will: Engage in professional development (via the Dana Center grant Cumberland obtained through RIDE) to create a guaranteed and viable math curriculum, align assessment to standards Model problem-solving strategies across all disciplines Provide opportunities for students to share their strategies with other students and build new knowledge Continue to provide high expectations for student work and hold students accountable Continue to provide extra help for support and enrichment Create tiered tasks that address depth of knowledge Use the Fall ’09 NECAP test score as a 3^rd quarter quiz or test grade to ensure that students know the importance of this state assessment	Teachers will: Create, implement, and revise quarterly assessments, and align these assessment to standards Use NECAP Practice Tests as a preparation tool for state assessment Continue to examine, reflect and revise the Impact Math Curriculum in alignment with the GLEs Examine student work and identify needed instructional changes during Common Planning Time with team members	Teachers will collaborate: Engage in professional development with other teachers (via the Dana Center grant Cumberland obtained through RIDE) from Cumberland, Lincoln, and Woonsocket Use NECAP and quarterly assessment student data to identify strengths and weaknesses and use this data to revise and plan instruction based on student needs Participate in common planning time, working with interdisciplinary team members to promote writing across the math curriculum Participate in K-12 articulation meetings to vertically and horizontally align the curriculum to standards	Administrators will provide: Increased opportunities for K-12 vertical and horizontal articulation of the math program Scheduled time to discuss the integration of math across all disciplines Time for middle school teacher to meet with the K-8 Math Coordinator Professional development opportunities for differentiating instruction and creating tiered assignments Support the exploration and/or implementation of additional interventions/resources/progress monitoring for struggling students Opportunities for parents to gain a greater understanding of the Impact Math Curriculum, such as a “Math Night” Educational support by conducting classroom visits and providing specific feedback	Student proficiency will increase in the following areas: Solving multi-step problems Analyzing and interpreting data Self-evaluation and revision Working collaboratively and independently Sharing both oral and written responses Improved NECAP test scores in each grade Reporting to the Community: School Report Night Parent-Teacher Conferences School and District Websites