WSESU Recovery Plan
Overview
There are three pillars the state has identified for our focus on recovery:
- Social emotional learning/ mental health and well being,
- Engagement and Truancy
- Academic Achievement and Success.
The state has asked that we focus our work on these three areas of need, which has provided a frame for our work .
Planning Process
Recovery Planning Process Steps:
- Assess need at the local level, using readily available information and data. (March and April). Teams reflected on the three areas identified by the VT Agency of Education using measures that were readily available to identify goals based on the needs we were seeing in our schools.
- Create an action plan to meet that need. (May) Multiple recovery teams met weekly to collaborate and develop plans for meetings needs that also would bring forward learning that has occurred across the past year.
- Executing an initial implementation of the action plan. (2021-22 School year) Implementation will begin this summer and continue across the upcoming school year.
- Tuning and refining the plan along the way. This is an important component of the year to come. Across the coming year , we will continue to evaluate our work based on emerging data, reflect and adjust along the way.
Recovery Goals for 2021-24
In planning for the future, we are committed to providing equitable, core instruction that is accessible for all of our students. We also want our schools to be highly engaging places where students experience a strong sense of belonging and where they want to be every day.
We also aim to carry forward the lessons that have been learned about the importance of:
- collaboration
- innovation
- equity and inclusion practices
- meeting students where they are
- cultivating deep learning and engaging curriculum
- technology integration
- partnerships with families
Social Emotional Learning/Mental Health/Well-Being
If we focus our summer and school-year learning programs on engagement, re-integration and social-emotional learning, and if we provide additional mental health supports, students will be more engaged in learning.
Needs-based Assessment Results
1. Panorama Winter 2021 SEL assessment results showed that, on average, our teachers perceive that 50% of our students demonstrate self management skills, 56% demonstrate engagement and 48% demonstrate self-efficacy
2. Results of our Spring 2021 student climate survey indicate that only 54% of our student body have a positive perception of the overall social and learning climate of their school.
Goal #1
~To increase our students’ Social emotional learning competencies of self-management, engagement and self-efficacy.
Activities
Expand the use of PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports), Developmental Designs, Second Step and other school-based SEL (Social Emotional Learning) programs in order to teach and support the core SEL competencies
Develop and implement inclusive summer learning and after-school programming that includes embedded SEL competencies.
Support continued work toward building Flexible Pathways for students including Work-Based Learning coordinator at the secondary level.
Hire additional mental health supports – Clinicians and Social Workers – and provide required supervision.
Measure and Progress
Measure: We will track success on this goal using Panorama survey software (mid-year administration) to examine teacher perceptions of student progress in these areas.
Progress: Only baseline data from 2020 currently available. New survey scheduled for February.
Goal #2
~To increase in the number of students who report a positive perception of the overall social and learning climate of their school.
Activities
Expand the use of PBIS, Developmental Designs, Second Step and other school-based SEL programs in order to teach and support the core SEL competencies
Develop and implement an inclusive summer learning and after-school program that includes embedded SEL competencies.
Support continued work toward building Flexible Pathways for students including the Work-Based Learning Coordinator.
Hire additional mental health supports – Clinicians and Social Workers – and provide required supervision.
Measure and Progress
Measure: We will track success on this goal using Panorama student climate surveys in the fall and spring.
Progress: all 2021 data indicate no change or slight decrease from spring 2021 baseline, resulting from persisting COVID19 impacts. New survey scheduled for spring 2022.
Engagement/Truancy
If we partner with community organizations to improve family outreach, hire family engagement coordinators, provide UDL PD, and utilize EST process to support students, then attendance and engagement will improve
Needs-based Assessment Results
Truancy, as measured by the number of students absent 15 days or more has doubled relative to pre-Covid levels. This indicates a significant increase in the number of students nearly or entirely disengaged from school.
Goal #3
~To decrease the number of students who have been absent for 15 days or more.
Activities
1. Expand partnerships with outside agencies for family outreach and support, including mental health support
2. Embedded professional development (PD) for integrating engagement strategies
3. Hire specialized staff to address high-need families. This may include engagement coordinator, social workers and community partners emphasizing outreach to families who have disengaged
5. Develop consistent protocols for EST (Educational Support Teams) to address truancy issues.
Measure and Progress
Measure: We will track success on this goal using PowerSchool student attendance data.
Progress: 15+ days absent data remain at 2020-21 pandemic levels due to ongoing disruptions.
Academic Achievement and Success
If we hire and support instructional coaches, provide job-embedded professional development in Universal Designs for Learning (UDL) to teachers, further develop our Educational Support Team (EST) process, and track student growth, we will see improvement in assessment scores for underserved populations.
If we provide additional pathways for graduation, provide additional diversity/equity support to teachers through a UDL lens, and additional academic support for struggling students, then engagement and student performance for identified subgroups will improve.
Needs-based Assessment Results
In 2018-2019, students with IEP’s were included at rates below the state average (WSESU- 62.08%, VT State- 77.99%).
Students from underserved populations are scoring at lower percentages than students not in those populations, and not graduating at the same rate
We believe the high levels of unfinished learning after this year’s disruption, particularly for our students with IEP’s, will increase the challenges associated with providing access to grade level content in a general education classroom.
Goal #4
~To increase general education participation rates for students with IEP’s in the 80% or more Least Restrictive Environment category will increase by 15%.
Activities
1. Implement a building-based, instructional coaching model to support embedded, collaborative PD.
2. Provide PD in UDL (Universal Design for Learning) with embedded coaching to ensure all students will receive core instruction and appropriate supports
3. Develop and Implement improved data system to allow more accessibility for teachers and school leaders
4. Evaluate the current state of our EST systems with the goal to adopt best practices for EST processes.
5. Evaluate the effectiveness of our MTSS (Multi-tiered system of supports).
Measure and Progress
Measure: We will track progress toward meeting this goal using Child Count data collected every December, and published in January/February.
Progress: December 2021 Child Count data are not yet available. We do not anticipate major changes as additional inclusion supports have not been in place for sufficient time.
Goal #5
~To decrease the gaps in academic performance, graduation and failure rates between students in underserved populations and their peers.
Activities
1. Implement a building-based, instructional coaching model to support embedded, collaborative PD.
2. Provide PD in UDL with embedded coaching to ensure all students will receive core instruction and appropriate supports
3. Develop and Implement improved data system to allow more accessibility for teachers and school leaders
4. Evaluate the current state of our EST systems with the goal to adopt best practices for EST processes.
5. Evaluate the effectiveness of our MTSS system.
Measure and Progress
Measure: We will determine progress using statewide assessments given in the spring; SBAC English Language Arts and Mathematics, VT Science Assessment (VTSA), and graduation and failure rates determined at the end of each school year.
Progress: Spring 2021 SBAC and VTSA results indicate that poverty and IEP gaps persist. Results for students of color show more varied results with performance gaps not as apparent.
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