2013 Data Collections Conference
School Climate Star Rating and the CCRPI
Dennis A. Kramer II Senior Research and
Policy Analyst
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Jeff Hodges Program Specialist, Safe
and Drug Free Schools
Marilyn Watson Program Manager, Safe
and Drug Free Schools
The National School Climate Center (2007)
defines school climate in the following way:
“School climate is based on patterns of students’, parents’ and school personnel’s experience of school life and reflects norms, goals, values,
interpersonal relationships, teaching and learning practices, and organizational structures.”
• This climate includes:
– Youth development and learning necessary for a productive, contributive, and satisfying life in a democratic society.
– Norms, values, and expectations that support people feeling socially, emotionally and physically safe.
– People are engaged and respected.
– Students, families and educators work together to develop, live, and contribute to a shared school vision.
– Educators model and nurture an attitude that emphasizes the benefits and satisfaction gained from learning.
– Each person contributes to the operations of the school and the care of the physical environment.
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Focal Areas of School Climate • Four essential areas of focus (Cohen, 2010):
– Safety: referring to the physical and emotional safety of students and the rules and procedures in place to ensure student safety;
– Relationships: student social support from educators and parents, the level of respect students have for others, school and community engagment, and student and parental leadership;
– Teaching and Learning: a positive and professional student-teacher-school relationship, social and emotional skills training, civic education, and positive support for learning; and
– Institutional Environment: the physical environment of the school.
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Measuring School Climate in Georgia
(GaDOE) • Georgia Student Health Survey II
– The Georgia Student Health Survey II (GSHS II) is an anonymous,
statewide survey administered annually.
– Administered online to all public school students (and private schools
that wish to participate) in grades 6 – 12.
– Covers various topics such as school climate and safety, graduation,
school dropouts, alcohol and drug use, suicide, nutrition, sedentary
behaviors, and teen driving laws.
• School Climate Star Rating – Part of the recently approved new accountability system – College and
Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI).
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GSHS II – Macro School Climate • Collaborative project with The Center for School Safety, School
Climate and Classroom Management at Georgia State University.
– Examined all questions on the GSHS II.
– Conducted Factor Analysis to look at clustering of items which measured
same construct.
– Statistically linked nine (9) questions to the direct measurement of macro
school climate.
• Eleven (11) questions identified in a future analyses.
• Other strands are important to indentifying micro school climate impacts.
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GSHS II – Macro School Climate (cont.) • Identified Questions Assessing School Climate:
– School Climate #1: “I Like School”
– School Climate #2: “I Feel Successful at School”
– School Climate #3: “I feel my school has high standards for achievement”
– School Climate #4: “My School Sets Clear Rules for Behavior”
– School Climate #5: “I know what to do if there is an emergency at my school”
– School Climate #6: “Teachers treat me with respect”
– School Climate #7: “The behaviors in the classroom allow the teacher to teach
so I can learn”
– School Climate #8: “Students are frequently recognized for their good behavior”
– School Climate #9: “I feel my school counselor would be helpful if I needed
assistance”
– School Climate #10: “I get along with other students and adults” **
– School Climate #11: “School is a place at which I feel safe” **
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Focal Areas of School Climate • Four essential areas of focus (Cohen, 2010):
– Safety: referring to the physical and emotional safety of students and
the rules and procedures in place to ensure student safety;
– Relationships: student social support from educators and parents, the
level of respect students have for others, school and community
engaged, and student and parental leadership;
– Teaching and Learning: a positive and professional student-teacher-
school relationship, social and emotional skills training, civic
education, and positive support for learning; and
– Institutional Environment: the physical environment of the school.
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Connecting GSHS II with the
Dimensions of School Climate
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School Climate #4: “My School Sets Clear Rules or Behavior”
School Climate #5: “I know what to do if there is an emergency at my school”
School Climate #11: “School is a place at which I feel safe”
School Climate #3: “I feel my school has high standards for achievement”
School Climate #8: “Students are frequently recognized for their good behavior”
N/A
School Climate #7: “and School Climate #10:
School Climate #6: “Teachers treat me with respect”
School Climate #1: “ I Like School”; School Climate #2: “I Feel Successful at School”
School Climate #9: “I feel my school counselor would be helpful if I needed assistance”
Dimensions GSHS II Questions
The College and Career Ready
Performance Index (CCRPI)
• ESEA Flexibility under NCLB
– Georgia’s next generation accountability system
• Incentivizes student performance across a number of
academic and behavioral areas.
• Student attendance, GSHS II, and student discipline
will be included within the reporting document
– Student attendance having a direct impact of a school’s
accountability score.
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Achievement Score = All Indicators
Progress Score = State Assessments - Student Growth Percentile
Achievement Gap Closure = State Assessments - Student Growth Percentile
Exceeding the Bar = Additional Points Added to Overall CCRPI Score
Financial Efficiency and School Climate = No Points – Star Rating Only
The School Climate Star Rating
• Five-Star Rating that does not factor into overall
CCRPI Score.
• Provides information to school and district leaders as
School Climate is a leading indicator of achievement.
• Will Include: Student responses on GSHS II, Teacher
responses on GSHS II (in development), and
discipline / attendance data.
– GaDOE will be engaging in conversation with school and
system leaders to finalize the components and calculation.
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Dimensions of the Star Rating
School Climate Rating
Attitudes of School Climate
School Level Effectiveness
School Climate Data
Academic Performance
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Attitudes of School Climate • Components Include:
– Georgia Student Health Survey II
• Administered in grades 6 – 12
– Teacher Survey
• First Administration planned for Fall 2012
– Parent Survey
• First administration planned for Fall 2013
• Composite of the 11 questions measuring macro school
climate.
• Points on this dimension will be awarded based on two
criteria: (1) level positive school climate and (2) congruence in
opinions on school climate.
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GSHS II – Macro School Climate (cont.) • Identified Questions Assessing School Climate:
– School Climate #1: “I Like School”
– School Climate #2: “I Feel Successful at School”
– School Climate #3: “I feel my school has high standards for achievement”
– School Climate #4: “My School Sets Clear Rules for Behavior”
– School Climate #5: “I know what to do if there is an emergency at my school”
– School Climate #6: “Teachers treat me with respect”
– School Climate #7: “The behaviors in the classroom allow the teacher to teach
so I can learn”
– School Climate #8: “Students are frequently recognized for their good behavior”
– School Climate #9: “I feel my school counselor would be helpful if I needed
assistance”
– School Climate #10: “I get along with other students and adults” **
– School Climate #11: “School is a place at which I feel safe” **
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School Level Effectiveness
• Components Include:
– Teacher Effectiveness Measures (TEM)
• To be included in 2015-2016 School Climate Star Rating
– Leader Effectiveness Measure (LEM)
• To be included in 2015-2016 School Climate Star Rating
• Points given for percent of effective teachers and leaders
within a given school.
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School Climate Data • Components Include:
– Discipline Data
• Utilization of the discipline data that is reported through the GaDOE
Student Record Data Collection System
• New reporting requirements for student discipline data
– Student Attendance Rate
– School Safety Assessment
• Currently being revised and placed within an electronic reporting
application.
• Points are awarded based on a composite of these three measures
with discipline data and attendance rate playing a predominate
role in the calculation.
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Academic Performance • Components Include:
– Overall CCRPI Score
• On a 0 – 100 scale
• Baseline / Study Year: 2011-2012
– Participation Rate
• Percent of eligible students within each grade level (6-12) taking the
assessment within a given school.
• Points are awarded based on a composite of these two measures
with each of them being equally weighted.
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Calculating the Star Rating • Points Available for Each Dimension
– Attitudes of School Climate: 35 Points
– School Level Effectiveness: 15 Points
– School Climate Data: 35 Points
– Academic Performance: 15 Points
• Star rating provided based on the following:
– 1.0 Star: 01 to 20 1.5 Stars: 21 to 30
– 2.0 Stars: 31 to 40 2.5 Stars: 41 to 50
– 3.0 Stars: 51 to 60 3.5 Stars: 61 to 70
– 4.0 Stars: 71 to 80 4.5 Stars: 81 to 90
– 5.0 Stars: 91 to 100
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GaDOE Online Resources
• State and Regulatory Statues
– GaDOE Policy for Prohibiting Bullying, Harassment and
Intimidation
– Georgia School Safety Plans Law
– Teenage and Adult Driver Responsibility Act (TAADRA)
• GaDOE ToolKits:
– Bullying Prevention Toolkit
– School Attendance Toolkit
– Human Trafficking Prevention/Intervention Toolkit
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GaDOE Program Resources
• School Safety Assessment
– Holistic and in-person review of the school’s policies and procedures to
assess the total school environment.
• Positive Behavioral Supports and Interventions (PBIS)
– An effective proactive and data-driven school-wide system promoting positive
behavior, with a focus on prevention of inappropriate behaviors.
– Defines a set of universal behavior, the use of a common language, and positive
staff-to-student interactions.
• School Safety Hotline
– Designed for crisis prevention, the Hotline allows callers to report an unsafe
situation in school. Depending on the urgency of the call, the Hotline operator
contacts the appropriate law enforcement agency and the local school system
resulting in immediate and appropriate action.
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GaDOE Program Resources •Response to Intervention (RTI):
The process of teachers changing their instruction based on how
well the students responded to it – known as “Response to
Intervention” (RTI) – has steadily become the national model for
successfully reaching students when they are just beginning to fall
behind expected benchmarks and providing appropriate supports
and interventions at increasing levels of intensity.
•Increasing community and family involvement and
support
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GaDOE Program Resources
• Building teacher capacity to re-engage
disconnected students and maintain their
engagement
• Student Assistance Programs (SAP)- The
realization that conditions beyond mere
academics play a pivotal role for students at risk
of failure
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GaDOE Program Resources • Health-Related Fitness Assessment - Students who
participate in fitness assessments and receive instruction
to better understand their health-related fitness levels in
order to improve may positively impact their academic
performance.
– School attendance, fewer discipline issues and
improved academic performance can all be linked to
healthier students. Healthy students are better prepared
to learn.
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Questions?
Dennis Kramer: [email protected]
Marilyn Watson: [email protected]
Jeff Hodges: [email protected]
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