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Education consultant Dr. Deana Stevenson offered a report on the Dunkirk City School District's improvement plan, and a survey of district teachers, students and staff, at a recent Dunkirk Board of Education meeting.
She said the first goal for this school year is to raise district averages on standardized reading and math tests. The district currently averages 68% on math and 69% on reading proficiency. The goal is to get both up to 80%.
The district also wants 80% of students "demonstrating proficiency in setting and monitoring their own goals," as Stevenson's presentation put it. It seeks a 15% boost in positive feedback from students and families "regarding feeling heard, valued, accepted, respected and safe."
Stevenson said the annual district stakeholders survey is a way "to check the vitals of your district." Four surveys were done: for teachers, parents, intermediate school students and secondary school students.
The results were mixed.
On the up side, there is a 22% jump in teachers' positive perceptions of the district's systems and organization. "Teachers realize we have more systems in place" to assist them, Stevenson said.
Some 94% of parents say the district does a good job of sharing the importance of going to school every day and on time. About 87% of parents think their child feels welcome and "that is huge," Stevenson said.
However, just 31% of teachers report that "instructional disruptions due to student behavior are infrequent." That's still a significant improvement from the fall 2022 survey, when 17% of teachers stated that.
"Some systems have been put in place in the buildings to counteract these disruptions," Stevenson said.
Among secondary school students, only 34% say the district deals effectively with bullying. On feeling emotionally safe in school, 35% responded positively. As for principals or assistant principals regularly visiting class, 30% said that.