Community and School Environment Scan Description of School and Community
Section 5: Methods of Instruction
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- Figure 6: Teacher Evaluation Percentiles
- Vocational and Technical – Shared Time
- Somerville Academy for Liberal Arts
- Section 6: Methods of Assessment
- Table 22: Assessments used for SGO Purposes
- Section 7: Extra-Curricular Activities and Program for Special Groups
- Table 23: Extra-Curricular Activities and Clubs
- Table 24: Tutoring Program Schedule
Section 5: Methods of Instruction Since the signing of the TEACHNJ Act, the teachers at XHS are using Achieve NJ to set learning goals for students called SGOs (Student Growth Objectives). The teachers are then “evaluated, in part, on how well their students’ attain goals” (New Jersey Department of Education, 2014). Student Growth Objectives (SGOs) are specific and measureable, aligned to New Jersey’s curriculum standards, and are based on what students learn over the school year. When teachers are evaluated, they are scored as follows:
Figure 6: Teacher Evaluation Percentiles 
(New Jersey Department of Education, 2014) After observing lessons in the XHS, most of the teachers utilize a constructivist learning style. Lesson plans are aligned to the New Jersey curriculum standards and teachers list specific goals and objectives for each grade level or course. The teachers at XHS also make sure that the objectives are addressed in the learning outcomes, activities, and assessments of their students. Teachers also adhere to the Individual Education plans (IEPs) and 504 Plans for students with identified learning disabilities. Professional development sessions are held at least three times a year for teachers where discussions are made about enhancing their teach skills and improving areas of weaknesses on state standardized testing. Departmental meetings are held monthly so that teachers can collaborate with one another about meeting the needs of all students in the high school. In addition to the methods of instruction that take place in the classrooms, the X high school offers various types of instruction to accommodate students of all levels. Special Education The X high school has a small population of students that are considered to be special education students. Students that have been identified as needing additional services meet annually with a case manager to select courses for each school year. Students that have been identified by the Child Study Team that may be in “need of services may complete some of their course work in a resource center program and/or in an inclusion setting” (Program of Studies, 2014). Special education students are placed in a small classroom setting in order to receive personal support from a certified special education teacher. Vocational and Technical – Shared Time Students at XHS may attend Somerset County Vocational and Technical School on a shared-time program if they wish to learn a technical trade. The students will spend a portion of their school day at the high school and the technical school. Independent Study XHS provides an Independent Study program for those students that are motivated to learn on their own and students may receive credits for the work that they complete. A teacher will be assigned to assist a student in the development of a topic or an idea, and the program is designed to provide an opportunity to achieve one of the following objectives:
(Program of Studies, 2014). Honors Programs XHS offers enriched honor courses in English, French, Spanish, mathematics, science, social studies, and music. In order to be eligible for honors placement, incoming freshman must meet the following criteria: have a 90% average in a subject area and have a parent or guardian sign a permission agreement form. Advanced Placement Students that excel in the Honors Program are eligible to take AP classes as either a junior or senior as long as they maintain an 80% or higher average in an honors course. Virtual High School XHS offers a unique, online learning experience for students that are hard-working, self-reliant, and computer savvy through Educere Online Learning (Program of Studies, 2014). Students are granted admission by completing an application and must have administrative approval. Students may take a wide variety of courses such as foreign language courses, health, science, and computer courses. Somerville Academy for Liberal Arts The Somerville Academy for Liberal Arts (SALA) has partnered with XHS and Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC). SALA is an accelerated learning experience for high achieving students and it is a “four-year, full-time program” (Program of Studies, 2014). XHS students that apply and are accepted to the program can earn an Associates of Arts degree in Liberal Arts during their high school years. The admission process is rigorous and students are selected if they meet the following criteria: they qualify to take honors courses in all subject areas courses when going into the 9th grade, they submit three teacher recommendations, and interview with the Raritan Valley Community College. Students must maintain a 3.0 to stay in the program. Naviance Succeed The XHS Guidance Department utilizes a website called Family Connection, which allows students to make decisions about their courses and college choices. Family Connection allows parents to be informed in the college planning and decision process (Program of Studies, 2014). Section 6: Methods of Assessment Assessments are central to SGOs, because they demonstrate how much growth or how much students have learned over the school year. At the beginning of the school year, teachers use an initial pre-test to help them assess where each student is at, and then teachers give their students a post-test at the end of the school year. Also, teachers use a variety of assessments depending on their subject and grade level that they teach. For instance, the teachers at XHS use traditional assessments, portfolio assessments, and performance assessments (Table 22). Many of the teachers also use writing prompts graded by rubrics, homework assignments, discussion questions, authentic assessments, and exit slips for format (SGET, personal communication, February 19, 2014). In addition, students are also assessed by the classroom grades that they receive on projects, tests, and quizzes. Table 22: Assessments used for SGO Purposes
(New Jersey Department of Education, 2014) Parents are able to access their child’s grade and attendance through the parent portal called PowerSchool which is available on the XHS website. In addition, progress reports and report cards are generated and mailed out four times during the school year (“PowerSchool,” 2014). At the high school level, teacher conferences are not scheduled, but parents may call the guidance office at any time to schedule a conference with a teacher. Section 7: Extra-Curricular Activities and Program for Special Groups Beyond the basic curriculum requirements, the XHS offers over 30 clubs and extra-curricular activities (Table 23). Most of the club activities are open to all students, however, there are a couple of the activities that students will need to try out for or meet certain requirements. Table 23: Extra-Curricular Activities and Clubs
(XHS Official Website, 2014) In addition to club offerings, there are other programs for special groups. For instance, there a tutoring program that is held in the high school library every day. Teachers are available for tutoring 7:00 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. and from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., and every day there is a different schedule of specific content areas available to students (Table 24). Students as XHS are also offered other support services which include Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy, English as a Second Language (ESL), Basic Skills, Resource Room, and Home Instruction if needed (XHS Official Website, 2014). Table 24: Tutoring Program Schedule
(XHS Official Website, 2014) The XHS athletic program offers a wide variety of varsity, junior varsity, and freshman team sports (Table 25). In order to be eligible for any of these sports, students must tryout and must also have the following forms completed: Physical Examination, Parent Permission Form, Concussion Fact Sheet and Acknowledgement, Training Rules and Regulations, Steroid Consent, Impact Notification, Guide to Impact Testing, and a Sudden Cardiac Death Sign-off (District policies, 2013). Directory: uploads uploads -> 587 Return function, r i(X) r i(0) r i(1) r i(2) r i(3) 1 0 2 4 6 Thermal Station, I 2 0 1 5 6 3 0 3 5 6 10 uploads -> Department of science and humanities department of mathematics part-a questions and answers uploads -> The Case Against the nypd’s Quota-Driven ‘Broken Windows’ Policing What Is It? uploads -> For want of a nail uploads -> Ownership Models There are two different types of ownership models uploads -> Police Militarization uploads -> City of rising star regular meting thursday, july 14, 2016 uploads -> Township of winfield uploads -> Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act of 2014 uploads -> The Black Panther Party’s Ten-Point Program What We Want Now! Download 298.02 Kb. Share with your friends:
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