DPI Evidence 6: School Improvement Leadership Project
Project Name:
School:
District:
MSA Candidate’s Name:
Principal’s Name:
University Professor: Dr. Camille L. Goins
Course: EDNL 5880-Leading School Improvement and Organizational Change
Internship Supervisor:
DPI Evidence 6: School Improvement Leadership Project 
Descriptors of the elements to be addressed in the evidence: DPI: 1a1, 1a2, 1c1, 1c2, 3a1, 3b1, 6b2, 6b3 
Student’s name: _______________________________________________________________________ 
Description of Project: (Brief abstract describing project) –include number of hours spent on project
 
 
Summary: (Project Evaluation and Impact Summary)
 The scenario at the ST Paul school identified disparities in teacher working conditions as evidenced by the TWCS survey. The root cause for the low performance of teachers at the survey results was the lack of identifying individual needs of teachers to enable professional development in their area of need. Few teachers find it uncomfortable in raising the issues before the administration. There is a lack of trust and mutual respect among some teachers. The access to IT resources and instructional material is not equitable among all the teachers. The majority of teachers spend less than an hour in professional development practice. The survey identified the urgent need for effective professional development in identified areas of interest for the teachers.
The project was implemented under the guidance of the Principal and senior management of the school. The teachers helped in the implementation of the plan effectively. The project will be implemented for a maximum of 6 months and the expected outcomes for the project aim to improve the professional performance of teachers, reduce paperwork, improve IT handling, utilize resources to the maximum level and become more productive for the school.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
    DPI pre-service descriptors 
(Examples listed below) 
    School Improvement Leadership Project Evidence 
(Describe what you did to meet each descriptor and where to locate in project i.e. See Sections 4-5)
    Standard 1: Strategic Leadership 
1a1.  Works with others to develop a shared vision and strategic goals for student achievement that reflect high expectations for students and staff. 
     
    Standard 1: Strategic Leadership 
1a2.  Maintains a focus on the vision and strategic goals throughout the school year. 
     
    Standard 1: Strategic Leadership 
1c1. Works with others to incorporate principles of continuous improvement and 21st Century concepts into the School Improvement Plan  
     
    Standard 1: Strategic Leadership 
1c2.  Works with others to systematically collect, analyze, and use data regarding the school’s progress toward attaining strategic goals and objectives. 
     
    Standard 3: Cultural Leadership
3a1. Designs strategies for achieving a
collaborative and positive work environment within the school
    
    Standard 3: Cultural Leadership
3b1. Uses shared values, beliefs, and a shared vision to promote a school culture of learning and success.
    
    Standard 6: External Leadership 
6b2. Continually assesses the progress of district initiatives and reports results to district-level decision-makers.
     
    Standard 6: External Leadership 
6b3.  Works with others to implement district initiatives directed at improving student achievement
    
Title of School Improvement and Leadership Project
Saint Paul Elementary School is a public school in the Robenson County district, Saint Paul, NC. There are 989 students and has PK-5 grade. The student-teacher ratio is 18:1. The racial
eakdown of the students includes Hispanic (46.7%), African American (20.2%), Whites (15.3%), and others remaining (St Paul Elementary School, 2019). The student population is diverse. The school ranks 1393rd among the 1473 elementary schools in North Carolina, it ranks worse than the 95% of the similar schools in NC providing elementary education. It stands 14th among the 16 public schools in Robenson County (School Digger Survey, 2019). The vision of the school is 'Lighting the way forward'. Per student, expenditure is $8817 annually (St Paul Elementary School, 2019). This expense is the lowest among the 20 elementary public schools in the district of NC (Doss, Akinniranye & Tosh,2020). There are 54.3 full-time teachers. The school stands on the mission "To educate all students by developing a foundation in an ever-changing global society".
Data Collection and Summary Analysis
Qualitative and quantitative data were collected from the school climate/ culture survey of the school from the TWCS survey, Survey Monkey, Great Schools.org, and School digger online portals. The reviews (no more than 2 years old) submitted by parents are collected from these portals. Survey results from parents and alumni were also collected by meeting them personally. Data was also collected from NC school report card 2019 about the students’ discipline and student performance at the school.
Data Collection
Data was collected from the TWCS survey on teachers working conditions. The data was based on the Likert scale and Yes/No questions in different areas like equity, school safety, school leadership, professional learning opportunities, teacher leadership, Managing Student Conduct, and Community Support and Involvement.
The school employs 54 full-time teachers in which there are counselors, assistant teachers, kindergarten teachers, custodian teachers, grade 1-5 teachers, media coordinators, secretary, AIG teacher, Art teacher, social workers, Cafeteria manager, health/PE teacher, School food service, the Music teacher. According to the NC school report card, this school holds a ‘D’ in school performance grade with the grade range of 47. The percent of students attending school daily is 94.5% which is good. The average class size of the school is 17.6, which is good. However, 58% of people agree that the class size is reasonable to provide the teachers adequate time to meet the needs of the students. However, 43% of people are against the adequate size of the classroom. The school achievement score is just 38. The achievement indicators include Reading End of Grade (EOG) proficiency (31 scores), Maths EOG proficiency (36), and Science EOG proficiency (64) (Great School Survey, 2019).
Time
According to TWCS Survey, 43% of parents still disagree that the classroom size is reasonable to give teachers time to satisfy the needs of the students. 25% of people disagree that the teachers have sufficient time to collaborate with the colleagues. 51% people disagree that teachers are allowed to focus on educating the children with minimal inte
uptions. 62% of people disagree that efforts are made to reduce the paperwork for the teachers. The majority of teachers spend 1-5 hours each on an average week in individual planning, collaborative planning, supervisory duties, administrative paper work, staff meetings, and addressing student discipline. 71% of teachers spend less than one hour time in professional development activities.
Facilities and Resources
Though the majority of teachers are given access to digital resources and appropriate instructional material, still 20-30% of teachers have limited or no access to these resources along with communication technology, office equipment, and professional support personnel. The school environment is clean, adequate productive space, supportive of teaching and learning, reliable internet connection. Hunger is a problem in the school however the school has creative strategies to combat it like 2nd chance cafeteria, Grab and Go, Breakfast after the bell, etc.
Community Support and Involvement
The school maintains two-way clear communication with the community however the role of parents needs to be more influential in decision making. The school encourages parent involvement, and parents know what is going on in school. However, the parents do not play a sufficient role in supporting the teachers, in contributing to the success of students. The community is supportive of the school.
School Conduct
Students understand their conduct, the rules are consistently enforced and discipline maintained. The faculty works in a safe school environment. 36% of people disagree that the students follow rule s of conduct. 19% of people disagree that the administration enforces the rules of conduct consistently. 37% of teachers have a small role in selecting the instructional material, 30% of teachers have a small role in setting assessment and student grading practices. 48 % of teachers have a small or no role in determining the content of in-service professional development programs, 32% of teachers do not contribute to determining the student discipline procedures. Around half of the teachers do not have a role in deciding how the budget will be spent and in the selection of new teachers.
There is an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect.
Teachers need professional development in the areas of differentiating instructions, students with disabilities, English language, closing the achievement gap, classroom management techniques, and literacy strategies. In the last 2 years, professional development has been provided in areas of literacy strategies and integrating technology into instructions. The teachers need professional development in many areas like NC standard course of study, student assessment, special education, closing the achievement gap, English language, workforce development, and classroom management techniques.
91% of teachers want to continue teaching in their cu
ent school.
Identification of Area(s) for Improvement
· Teachers need to engage in activities with their mentors for a prolonged duration. For example being observed teaching, developing lesson plans, analyzing student assessment and learning, addressing student behavior needs, reflecting on their effectiveness in teaching, and aligning the lesson planning with the state and local cu
iculum.
· The support provided by the mentors needs to influence the teacher's area of practice in instructional strategies, classroom management strategies, creating...