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DISTRICT SURVEY 2022

School Committee Update

October 4, 2022

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District Survey Response Rates:

Vehicle for engagement: We hear you!

1,847

Parents

Parents/Guardians

of students in grades Pre-K to 12

33% response rate*

3,426

Students

1,106 Grades 3-5

2,320 Grades 6-12

81% response rate

616

Staff

500 Instructional Staff

116 Non-Instructional Staff

72% response rate

* Historical Parent Survey response rate: 34% in 2018 (pre-pandemic) with comparative measures to this year’s survey; 46% in 2020 with a focus on Remote Learning

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�

We used a nationally normed survey from Panorama Education
Panorama’s research-validated survey instrument groups together about five questions or more to provide one measure of an underlying factor
For each question, the percent answering Favorable = top 2 of 5-point scale or top 3 of 7-point scale
Example: How easy is it to communicate with the staff at your child’s school? __Not at all easy __Slightly easy __Somewhat easy __Quite easy __Extremely easy

How 2022 District Survey administered

Just in case those in the community aren’t aware, I’ll quickly explain that for the 2022 data gathering, the district partnered with Panorama Education to administer a nationally normed survey. Each question is measured as a percent Favorable. For example, on the question about “How easy is it to communicate with the staff at your child’s school,” families answered along a 5-point scale from Not at all easy to Extremely easy – and the top 2 (Quite easy and Extremely easy) are included in the percent Favorable. This is different than we’re accustomed to measuring within our district. In previous years, we defined Favorable as the top 3 out of 5 which means that the middle response (in this example: “somewhat easy”) is not calculated into the percentage favorable by Panorama. And Panorama’s survey instrument groups together a series of questions to provide one measure of a specific topic area. Needham Public Schools selected Panorama topics that align with the district’s strategic plan.

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What are the key findings and how will we use the data in supporting the FY23 District Priorities?

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Priority 1	STUDENT MEASURES	STAFF MEASURES	PARENT MEASURES
All Students Are Drivers Of Their Own Learning Strategic Objective 1A: Incorporate opportunities for student choice, independent learning, personalized pathways Strategic Objective 1B: Provide structures and experiences that enable student efficacy, leadership, and voice Strategic Objective 1C: Teach students the content and skills necessary for them to grow personally and academically	Self Management scale (Grades 3-12) How well students manage their emotions, thoughts, & behaviors in different situations Self Efficacy scale (Grades 3-12) How much students believe they can succeed in achieving academic outcomes District items Rating for the 5 Portrait competencies	Self Management scale (Instructional staff) Staff perception of how well students manage their emotions, thoughts, & behaviors in different situations (adapted from Panorama student scale) District items (All Staff) Rating for the 5 Portrait competencies	Learning Behaviors scale Parent perception of their child’s learning related behaviors District items Question on High academic standards, and Rating for the 5 Portrait competencies

- Survey Measures aligned to Portrait Plan -

NOTE: Scales include about 5 or more questions that taken together provide a measure of a single factor. Underlined scales have national benchmark measures from Panorama; other scales/questions are adapted for district comparisons between our stakeholder groups or for district-specific interests.

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Results: Topic of Self Management�How well Students manage their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in different situations

STUDENT RESPONSE:

INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF RESPONSE: much lower -- at 59% favorable overall

GRADE 3 TO 5

GRADE 6 TO 12

% Favorable	9 Questions on topic of Self Management
79%	Keep temper in check
77%	Polite to adults
76%	Prepared for class
67%	Polite to other students
51%	Allow others to speak w/o interruption
50%	Complete work right away instead of last minute
48%	Remain calm even when bothered by someone
47%	Stay focused when working independently
35%	Pay attention and resist distractions

Significant difference in Student compared to Staff % favorable responses

highly favorable overall and within top percentile nationally

n = 500

n = 1,106

n = 2,320

Student responses both for students in grades 3 to 5 and for students in grades 6 to 12 are highly favorable – and as a benchmark within the National dataset from Panorama, Needham students are in the 99^th percentile on this topic for elementary students and 90^th percentile for secondary level students. Panorama’s dataset includes 380 districts, which is about 4800 schools and 3.2 million students. That’s the happy story on the left-hand side of this page. On the right is another story from the Teachers’ perspective where the overall favorable response is 59% (not 82% or 84% as reported by students). Looking at the 9 questions in the table that make up the topic of Self Management, we can see how Instructional Staff differentiate certain behaviors as highly favorable (that’s the top items about “students keeping temper in check” and “students being polite to adults,” “students being prepared for class”). The behaviors with the lower percent favorable (from the staff perspective) are: “Remaining calm, staying focused, paying attention and resisting distractions”. These are areas where we can work to further support our students through our SEL programs.

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Priority 1	STUDENT MEASURES	STAFF MEASURES	PARENT MEASURES
All Students Are Drivers Of Their Own Learning Strategic Objective 1A: Incorporate opportunities for student choice, independent learning, personalized pathways Strategic Objective 1B: Provide structures and experiences that enable student efficacy, leadership, and voice Strategic Objective 1C: Teach students the content and skills necessary for them to grow personally and academically	Self Management scale (Grades 3-12) How well students manage their emotions, thoughts, & behaviors in different situations Self Efficacy scale (Grades 3-12) How much students believe they can succeed in achieving academic outcomes District items Rating for the 5 Portrait competencies	Self Management scale (Instructional staff) Staff perception of how well students manage their emotions, thoughts, & behaviors in different situations (adapted from Panorama student scale) District items (All Staff) Rating for the 5 Portrait competencies	Learning Behaviors scale Parent perception of their child’s learning related behaviors District items Question on High academic standards, and Rating for the 5 Portrait competencies

- Survey Measures aligned to Portrait Plan -

NOTE: Scales include about 5 or more questions that taken together provide a measure of a single factor. Underlined scales have national benchmark measures from Panorama; other scales/questions are adapted for district comparisons between our stakeholder groups or for district-specific interests.

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We’re looking at the percent favorable response to the question: “How high were the academic standards for your child over the past school year?” In the 2022 District Survey, to our surprise, this question was a lower favorable measure than we’ve seen before. In 2013 and 2016, the favorable response was 90% or better – and that was typical in the years before 2013 too. Then in 2018, the measure was 86% favorable with the top 3 favorable measures defined as extremely, quite, and somewhat high standards) -- it’s a little lower than the historical. We didn’t include this question in 2020 during the pandemic. The significant change we see in 2022 had to be looked at. If we were to define favorable this year as the top 3 measures (extremely, quite, and somewhat high standards as we did in 2018), then the percent favorable would be 65% - a drop of 21 percentage points from pre-pandemic at 86% favorable. However, Panorama is now defining favorable as just the top 2 on a 5-point scale so that is a 31% favorable response (compared to the top 2 in 2018 at 57%). Make sense? I translated the data so that we’re comparing apples to apples. Now, is it the pandemic that changed parent perceptions so significantly? This 1 item is intended to help us understand parent perception of the district’s unwavering commitment to high academic standards. So we’ll continue to communicate actual student progress academically and see if parent perception changes now that we’re post-pandemic.

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Priority 2	STUDENT MEASURES	STAFF MEASURES	PARENT MEASURES
All Students Experience Integrative Teaching and Learning Strategic Objective 2A: Extend interdisciplinary teaching and learning practices Pre-K to 12 Strategic Objective 2B: Embed Portrait competencies, Technology, Inclusive practices, SEL, & Equity into all curricula & instructional practices Strategic Objective 2C: Provide opportunities for students to demonstrate knowledge and skills through multiple means of expression	Sense of Belonging scale (Grades 3-12) How much students feel that they are valued members of the school community Cultural Awareness scale (Grades 6 to 12) How often students learn, discuss, and confront issues of race, ethnicity, and culture in school District items 2 Questions on race for grades 3 to 5 adapted from Panorama’s Cultural Awareness scale	Educating All Students (Instructional Staff) Staff perceptions of their readiness to fully support all learners (different cultures/backgrounds/races, learning needs, religions, weight, languages District items (All staff) 2 Questions on race excerpted from Panorama’s Cultural Awareness scale	School Fit Parent perceptions of how well a school matches their child’s developmental needs, sense of belonging, and cultural background District items 2 Questions on race excerpted from Panorama’s Cultural Awareness scale

NOTE: Scales include about 5 or more questions that taken together provide a measure of a single factor. Underlined scales have national benchmark measures from Panorama; other scales/questions are adapted for district comparisons between our stakeholder groups or for district-specific interests.

- Survey Measures aligned to Portrait Plan -

For District Priority 2, the survey provides us with a way to assess the learning experience as an integrative whole. We‘re looking at students’ individual differences and taking into account anything that facilitates or impedes student learning. This district priority reinforces our commitment to equity and inclusion, and to being actively anti-racist. Let me show you the student, staff, and parent measures on a couple of race-related questions, and then a deeper data dive on Cultural Awareness from our students in grades 6 to 12. As a sidebar, I wanted to share that the REAL Coalition comprised of educators, students, parents and community members, met back in June for a half-day workshop where they reviewed this data more comprehensively. For the sake of time tonight, I’ll be summarizing the results of the cultural awareness and race-related questions.

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Family Results: Topic of Anti-Racist Practice�Learning about different races, ethnicities, cultures; having honest conversations about race

Although overall favorable response is 57%, great variability within Subsets of Family respondents

* Race options: African American, Asian, Hispanic/Latinx, Native American, White, Native Hawaiian, Multi-Race, Non-Hispanic/Latinx

Starting with the Family perspective and representing the voices of over 1800 parents & guardians, the overall favorable response on Anti-Racist practice is 57%. However, there is great variability regarding this topic when the data by subgroup is reviewed. For example, the percent favorable is only 35% for our Boston-resident families. It’s 42% for families who identify as Multi-Race, and significantly lower (27% favorable) for families whose confidentiality is protected because they represent 2 or more small subgroups with too few people in the breakdown. (This subgroup of “confidentiality protected” may include African American, Native American, Native Hawaiian and those who opted out of identifying their race. In contrast, the percent favorable is much higher (70%) for families whose children are English Language Learners. We also see some significant differences by grade level. It’s curious, for example, the difference between families whose children are in 3^rd and 4^th grade: 52% favorable in 3^rd grade compared to 70% favorable in 4^th grade. We’re still unpacking these differences across all grades and by school.

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Stakeholder comparisons: �Topic of Anti-Racist Practice�

Staff responses significantly less favorable than responses from families and from students in grades 3 to 5

2 Questions about Anti-Racist Practice	FAMILY (Parent/Guardian) 57% Favorable n=1,847	STAFF (Instructional) 47% Favorable n=500	STAFF (Non-Instructional) 49% Favorable n=116	STUDENTS (Grades 3 to 5) 60% Favorable n=1,106

Q1: Opportunities to learn about people from different races, ethnicities, or cultures	60%	56%	57%	68%
Compared to Family measure		-4%	-3%	+8%

Q2: Confident about adults and students having honest conversations about race	53%	37%	41%	52%
Compared to Family measure		-16%	-12%	-1%

It’s also interesting to look at the Family perspective compared with the Staff and young student perspectives. We learned in the previous slide that the overall % favorable for Families is 57% on the topic of Anti-Racist Practice, and that’s comprised of a question about their students’ Opportunities to learn about people from different races which is 60% favorable and their confidence that adults and students are having honest conversations about race at 53% favorable. Let’s compare these 2 questions with the data in grey in the middle (which is for Instructional and Non-Instructional Staff). Note that the % favorable on both questions within this grey Staff section is similar for the Instructional and Non-Instructional Staff. But for all staff, it’s much lower on the responses about their confidence that adults and students are having honest conversations about race. Compare the staff response in grey on Q2 with the Family measure (16% and 12% lower respectively when compared to Family responses). What we also see on this slide (on the right-hand column) is that our youngest survey respondents in grades 3 to 5 responded much more favorably than the Staff, more like the Family responses, but particularly favorable about having opportunities to learn about people from different races - which is good news for our younger students. Our older students in grades 6 to 12 provided a lot more data for us to analyze…

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Students in Grades 6-12: �Topic of Anti-Racist Practice = 49% Favorable�n=2,320

Secondary level students report favorably on school/teacher supports for anti-racist practice; less favorably on comfort & confidence with difficult conversations

% Favorable	8 Questions
60%	Adults and students at school talk about major news events related to race
58%	Teachers encourage students to learn about people from different races, ethnicities, or cultures
57%	School helps students speak out against racism
50%	Students frequently think about what someone from a different race, ethnicity, or culture experiences
47%	Students comfortable sharing thoughts about race-related topics with other students at school
47%	Confident that students at school can have honest conversations with each other about race
45%	Encouraged at school to think more deeply about race-related topics
24%	Students at school have conversations about race even when they might be uncomfortable

Here’s a summary of the responses to the Survey topic on Anti-Racist Practice from our students in grades 6 to 12. Their survey had a broader range of questions than the other stakeholder groups. Their 8 questions when combined, provide an overall favorable measure of 49%. Here are their 8 questions sorted from highest to lowest favorable. At the top of the list are some good-news items (indicating school and teacher support for anti-racist practice). As the list continues, the emerging theme is about lower measures of student confidence and comfort with difficult conversations about race. This data reinforces the need for continuing our work of embedding inclusive practices and equity into all curricula and instruction, and expanding upon the high school’s CCOR class (Courageous Conversations on Race).

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Priority 3	STUDENT MEASURES	STAFF MEASURES	PARENT MEASURES
All Students Learn and Grow Within Adaptable Environments Strategic Objective 3A: Support and design classroom models and environments that foster collaboration and innovation Strategic Objective 3B: Provide time, schedules, and space that promote learning objectives Strategic Objective 3C: Complement instruction with accessible learning beyond classroom, within community, & in partnership with families	School Climate scale (Grades 3-12) Student perceptions of overall social and learning climate of the school School Engagement scale (Grade 3-12) How attentive and invested students are in school District items (Grades 6-12) 3 Questions on adaptable environment (collaboration, beyond the school day, schedule)	School Climate scale (All Staff) Staff perceptions of overall social and learning climate of the school District items (Instructional Staff) 3 Questions on adaptable environment (collaboration, beyond the school day, schedule)	School Climate scale Parent perceptions of overall social and learning climate of the school District items 3 Questions on adaptable environment (collaboration, beyond the school day, schedule)

NOTE: Scales include about 5 or more questions that taken together provide a measure of a single factor. Underlined scales have national benchmark measures from Panorama; other scales/questions are adapted for district comparisons between our stakeholder groups or for district-specific interests.

- Survey Measures aligned to Portrait Plan -

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Here is a snapshot of the overall percent favorable for each of our stakeholder groups. As is expected, our Elementary students in grades 3 to 5 have the highest percent favorable in their perception of the overall school and learning climate at their school. Their responses are 73% favorable, students in grades 6 to 12 are 61% favorable, and parents are in between the two, at a 67% favorable perception of the school climate at their child’s school. The Instructional and Non-Instructional Staff are at 52 and 53% favorable, down significantly from the families and students. We can understand this difference more when we compare our district’s Climate measures with the National Benchmark Percentiles. This context gives us reason to pause. Our High School students who responded 61% favorable overall on the climate questions that make up this topic, that falls within the 90^th percentile (the highest percentile) of the Panorama data set for High Schools nationally; it falls within the 70^th percentile for Middle School students. This may mean that the percent favorable for our high school students is a reason to celebrate. And for our Instructional and Non-Instructional Staff, compared to the National Benchmark, our staff’s 52 and 53% favorable responses on the topic of School Climate are only in the 20^th percentile of the data set for All Schools nationally. That’s something we need to understand better, so we’ll dig deeper and check out the questions that make up this topic. (See next slide)

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Topic of SCHOOL CLIMATE:�Instructional Staff = 52% Favorable�n=500

* Non-Instructional Staff survey responses are virtually the same as these Instructional Staff responses

% Favorable	9 Questions
74%	Respectful relationship between teachers and students
65%	Teachers trusted to teach in the way they think best
59%	Students helping each other without being prompted
57%	Students supportive in their interactions with each other
48%	Optimistic that school will improve in the future
48%	Positive working environment
43%	Students enthusiastic about being at school
40%	Colleagues supportive of new initiatives
35%	Positive attitudes of your colleagues

Here’s a summary of the responses to the Survey topic on School Climate from the 500 Instructional Staff. Their responses are very similar to the non-instructional staff. At the top of the list are some high favorability items around trust -- staff perception of a trusting relationship between teachers and students and staff feeling trusted to teach in the way they think is best. Also positive is their perception of students helping and supporting each other. The less favorable responses, at the bottom of this list, are about colleagues’ support of new initiatives and colleagues’ positive attitudes. Now what I like to keep in mind when I look at this data is that we’re analyzing the results of a survey completed in June, the end of a challenging school year where COVID took its toll on some students’ mental health, and our staff spent the year continually making transitions to keep our schools fully open for learning. Could there have been a better time for us to administer the District Survey rather than at the end of a monumentally challenging school year? What I know right now is that we can continue to measure School Climate, and we have access to the Panorama survey platform throughout this school year when we’re looking for additional data. I also looked back to the pre-pandemic 2018 Staff data on Climate and this is what I found. (See next slide.)

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Priority 4	STUDENT MEASURES	STAFF MEASURES	PARENT MEASURES
Infrastructure Supports Needs of All Students Strategic Objective 4A: Provide staffing, facilities, and budget resources aligned to district priorities Strategic Objective 4B: Implement recruitment, retention, and development process for staff growth and diversity Strategic Objective 4C: Establish a professional learning structure supporting equity and the Portrait vision	Resources Student perceptions of the adequacy of school’s resources (instructional, human, technology, facilities) District items Programs/services meeting students’ needs; effective communication	Resources (All Staff) Staff perceptions of the the adequacy of school’s resources (instructional, human, technology, facilities) Professional Learning (All Staff) Staff perceptions of the amount and quality of PD and professional growth & learning opportunities available District items (All Staff) Programs/services meeting students’ needs; effective communication	District items 1 Question from Panorama Resources scale adapted (no benchmark measure); Programs/Services meeting students’ needs; effective communication

NOTE: Scales include about 5 or more questions that taken together provide a measure of a single factor. Underlined scales have national benchmark measures from Panorama; other scales/questions are adapted for district comparisons between our stakeholder groups or for district-specific interests.

- Survey Measures aligned to Portrait Plan -

For District Priority 4, the survey focuses on infrastructure and the data that is particularly useful right now is on Professional Learning. The district is exploring which key skills, attitudes, and knowledge our staff and educators need for their future and how best to support them in implementing the district’s strategic plan. With this survey, we collected information about staff perceptions on the amount and quality of PD and the professional growth and learning opportunities available to them. This is timely information since the District Leadership Team developed a preliminary professional learning framework; we envision a cohesive and comprehensive professional learning program evolving over the next few years – and this data informs the process so we can continue to move forward.

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Results: Topic of Professional Learning�Amount and quality of professional growth & learning opportunities available to faculty and staff

INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF RESPONSE:

% Favorable	8 Questions
74%	Helpful ideas from colleagues for improving
67%	New strategies learned through working at school
65%	School supportive of growth
40%	Learning from school leaders
34%	Input into individualizing own PD opportunities
31%	PD opportunities help with exploring new ideas
31%	PD is relevant to job
29%	Available PD opportunities are valuable

* Comparable percent favorable and within the 50^th percentile nationally for Non-Instructional Staff, too

within 50th percentile nationally

n = 500

The Instructional Staff and Non-Instructional Staff responses were remarkably similar, with Instructional Staff at 46% favorable and Non-Instructional Staff at 47% favorable – both are within the 50^th percentile of the Panorama dataset nationally. The 8 questions included under the topic of Professional Learning are shown on the right, listed from high to low percent favorable. The topmost questions indicate learning from colleagues and through on-the-job experience, with an added positive note about the school being supportive of staff growth. The issues that emerge from the bottom of the list are about PD providing opportunities to explore new ideas, relevance of PD, and availability of valuable PD. In addition, there were 375 open-ended comments associated with this topic. We are benefitting from staff ideas on collaboration, working with data, equity, Universal Design for Learning, Inclusive Practices, mental health, resiliency, and curriculum work (noting social studies, history, math, and Portrait competencies), among other meaningful suggestions for professional learning needs.

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Next Steps

Move from understanding to Action; research-backed and evidence based
School-specific reports of survey results will inform updates to School Improvement Plans
Analysis by sub-groups (grade, cluster, race, gender identity, special education, ELL) within departmental data meetings will inform practices and interventions
Training for staff to use survey platform will provide opportunities to measure student progress (by individual students or at the classroom level) throughout the school year
Incorporating respondents’ suggestions into the FY23 and FY24 district plans

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Open-Ended Comments:�Vehicle for engagement: We hear you!��

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“Work on systems level changes – i.e., shifting teaching practices away from siloes & moving towards fully integrated interdisciplinary practices at all levels.”

“Take more parent feedback into consideration.”

FAMILY

“Give kids the help they need.”

“Maybe make the things that we are learning and doing more relatable, with things that we like. Make it more fun for kids.”

STUDENT grade 3-5

“Keep students more up to date on what’s happening in the world.”

”Give us more freedom in our choices; more variety in ways we can learn.”

“Safe spaces for conversations.”

STUDENT

grade 6-12

�

“We need to be more consistent about what teachers are expected to teach, resources they are using to teach, and the pacing.”

“Make sure the physical spaces are adequate for student learning.”

STAFF

n=801

n=988

n=1771

n=415

With close to 4,000 open-ended comments from our families, students, and staff, we are grateful for their level of engagement in this survey process. What a gift to receive stakeholder feedback on the district’s positive aspects and suggestions like these for continually improving the Needham Public Schools. We say Yes to our elementary students that maybe we can make things more relatable, more fun! We say yes to our secondary level students who want more freedom of choice, more variety in the ways they learn. We say Yes to the staff who are looking for more consistency in what’s expected of them, the resources they use, and the pacing of their work. We also say Yes to making sure the physical spaces in our schools are adequate for student learning. And Yes to our families, we need to fully integrate interdisciplinary practices and take more parent feedback into consideration.

Thank you for listening to this presentation. I welcome School Committee feedback and questions.