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School District 308

Winter 2015 Stakeholder Surveys

School Climate & Culture Survey of Employees

and

Parent Engagement & Satisfaction Survey

Executive Summary

April 2015

National Center for School Leadership

604 Courtland Street, Suite 300 • Orlando • Florida • 32804

888.368.2374, x 802 [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

School District 308 Executive Summary

National Center for School Leadership 2

It is our pleasure at the National Center for School Leadership to present this Executive Summary of

survey finding to School District 308. The Center has worked cooperatively with School District 308 to

administer two separate surveys to key stakeholder groups. These two surveys targeted 1) all employees

and 2) parents of current students. The survey was conducted via an online survey tool through which the

survey was sent to all potential respondents. The parent survey was supplemented with a paper version

for parents without access to the electronic survey. All of the parent surveys were completed online.

The typical purpose of a survey initiative such as this is to better understand the components that lead to

satisfaction, engagement and commitment across key employee and parent stakeholder groups. Most of

the questions on the survey are from the National Center for School Leadership’s databank. As such,

these questions have norm data associated with them providing additional insights into the input of both

employee and parent stakeholders relative to those same stakeholder groups within other school districts.

As with any solicitation of stakeholder feedback, there is always positive and negative input gathered.

The purpose of this initiative is to gather constructive feedback in order to continue to develop and

improve the climate and culture with School District 308’s schools. We hope valuable insight was gained

through this survey process. Our goal in this summary is to provide an overview of our methodology

along with insights that we discover in reviewing the data.

Survey Overview – School Climate & Culture Survey (Employee)

School District 308’s School Climate and Culture survey includes 70 standard multiple-choice items plus

additional demographic and open-ended comment questions, 6 custom multiple choice questions, and 2

open ended comment questions provided by the school district. All multiple-choice items are based on a

5-point Likert scale (i.e., Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree). Respondents were instructed to select the

answer that best represented their opinion related to each item.

Multiple-choice School Climate & Culture survey items were grouped under one of ten dimensions.

These dimensions are the critical components of school climate and culture. The dimensions in this

survey include:

School Pride

Internal Communication

Parent Connection

Work Environment

Organization Dynamics

Accountability

Meeting Student Needs

Readiness for Change

Direction of the Organization

Leadership Dynamics

For questions where norm data was available, results were compared to national norm data from the

Center’s databank.



Survey Overview - Parent Satisfaction Survey

School District 308’s Parent Engagement & Satisfaction survey includes 55 standard multiple-choice

items plus demographic questions, open ended comment questions, 8 custom multiple choice questions,

and 2 open ended comment questions provided by the school district. All multiple-choice items are based

on a 5-point Likert scale (i.e., Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree). Respondents were instructed to

select the answer that best represented their opinion related to each item.

Multiple-choice Parent Satisfaction survey items were grouped under one of ten dimensions. The

dimensions in this survey included:

Academics

Communication

Discipline and Respect

Homework

Monitoring Student Progress

Outreach and Engagement

Quality and Satisfaction

Responsiveness

School Climate

School Pride

For questions where norm data was available, results were was compared to national norm data from the

Center’s databank.

The following observations are based on our personal review of the data, analysis of the data, and

previous experience in working with districts on this body of work. While we attempt to remain objective

and fact-based in our approach, our opinions are often embedded within our findings. Where appropriate

we will note those finding which are subjective and/or opinion based.

I hope that you find our observations useful. I am available to discuss these findings with your team at

length. Please let me know how we may be of service to you and your district.

Stephanie Reis

Decision Support Specialist

National Center for School Leadership



Parent Engagement & Satisfaction Survey Highlights

Based on quantitative survey data, key observations from the parents of School District 308 students are

highlighted as follows:

Normative Data. School District 308 scored close to or below other districts nationally on all of

the dimensions on the Parent Engagement & Satisfaction survey. Year-on-year averages were

also either the same or lower. Based on the results of individual items, dimension summary data

and the Hi-Low report section we may generally infer that the parent population of School

District 308 is slightly less satisfied than they were on the 2012 survey and compared to districts

nationally.

Decreased Response Rate. This year there were about 1,800 fewer completed responses

compared to the 2012 survey. This was a decline of about 70%. Seven schools had fewer than 30

responses on the first question of the survey. With less than 30 responses for these locations we

cannot say that there is a statistically significant sample size. Therefore, results should be

considered anecdotal for those locations.

The summary table below shows the average for each of the 10 dimensions in the survey.

The summary table below shows the average for each of the 10 dimensions in the survey compared to the

results from the last survey in Fall 2012.

Dimension National (Avg) District 308 (Avg) Diff +/-

Academics 3.92 3.69 (0.23)

Communication 4.08 3.96 (0.12)

Discipline and Respect 3.87 3.68 (0.19)

Homework 3.83 3.68 (0.15)

Monitoring Student Progress 3.81 3.73 (0.07)

Outreach and Engagemnet 4.13 4.09 (0.03)

Quality and Satisfcation 3.99 3.78 (0.20)

Responsiveness 3.78 3.57 (0.20)

School Climate 4.13 4.02 (0.11)

School Pride 4.12 3.93 (0.19)

Dimension2012 District 308

(Avg)

2015 District 308

(Avg)Diff +/-

Academics 3.73 3.69 (0.04)

Communication 4.04 3.96 (0.08)

Discipline and Respect 3.74 3.68 (0.06)

Homework 3.74 3.68 (0.06)

Monitoring Student Progress 3.86 3.73 (0.13)

Outreach and Engagemnet 4.12 4.09 (0.03)

Quality and Satisfcation 3.82 3.78 (0.04)

Responsiveness 3.57 3.57 0.00

School Climate 4.07 4.02 (0.05)

School Pride 3.98 3.93 (0.05)



Highlights and bolding on the summary tables follow the criteria below:

Red Highlight: Difference percentage < -5%

Red Highlight and Bolding: Difference percentage < -10%

Green Highlight: Difference percentage > 5%

Green Highlight and Bolding: Difference percentage > 10%

The tables below illustrate the differences by dimension between each school and the district.

School Dimension Avg. Scores Compared to District Dimension Avg. Scores

Percent Difference between School Dimension Avg. Scores and District Dimension Avg.

Scores

Dimension Academics CommunicationDiscipline and

RespectHomework

Monitoring Student

Progress

Outreach and

Engagement

Quality and

SatisfcationResponsiveness School Climate School Pride

Bednarcik 0.15 (0.11) 0.02 (0.01) 0.45 (0.09) 0.10 0.02 0.04 0.02

Boulder Hill 0.02 (0.17) 0.05 0.35 (0.29) 0.13 0.05 0.06 0.08 (0.01)

Brokaw Early Learning 0.59 0.55 0.50 0.22 (0.08) 0.45 0.66 0.22 0.53 0.59

Churchill 0.25 0.29 0.21 0.31 0.09 0.25 0.27 0.01 0.26 0.37

East View 0.02 0.18 0.06 0.31 (0.57) 0.17 0.20 (0.09) 0.19 0.14

Fox Chase 0.01 0.32 0.30 0.28 (0.03) 0.16 0.18 (0.07) 0.13 0.15

Grande Park 0.44 0.49 0.60 0.12 0.13 0.35 0.57 0.30 0.49 0.60

Homestead 0.32 0.35 0.33 0.29 0.09 0.26 0.36 0.04 0.27 0.32

Hunt Club 0.08 (0.10) 0.15 0.19 (0.18) 0.24 0.12 0.10 0.32 0.06

Lakewood Creek (0.30) (0.08) (0.17) 0.31 0.03 0.08 (0.36) (0.19) (0.12) (0.32)

Long Beach 0.02 (0.11) 0.03 0.34 (0.09) 0.04 (0.08) (0.17) 0.01 (0.26)

Murphy (0.07) 0.20 (0.13) (0.33) 0.15 (0.15) (0.13) 0.06 (0.19) (0.40)

Old Post 0.20 (0.02) (0.03) 0.38 0.01 0.19 0.29 0.20 0.31 0.44

Oswego East (0.16) (0.32) (0.18) (0.50) 0.09 (0.27) (0.26) (0.06) (0.26) (0.26)

Oswego High (0.27) (0.28) (0.34) (0.46) (0.07) (0.34) (0.41) (0.05) (0.46) (0.36)

Plank (0.01) (0.05) (0.06) 0.15 0.26 (0.06) (0.07) (0.07) 0.02 (0.18)

Prairie Point (0.08) (0.02) (0.05) (0.03) (0.26) 0.10 (0.06) (0.15) 0.02 0.23

Southbury (0.07) 0.08 0.08 0.27 (0.18) 0.03 0.18 (0.09) 0.22 0.22

Wheatlands (0.03) 0.10 0.18 0.18 (0.16) 0.17 0.18 0.09 0.14 0.27

Thompson (0.22) (0.31) (0.34) (0.14) 0.11 (0.24) (0.29) (0.14) (0.29) (0.59)

Traughber (0.20) (0.03) (0.29) (0.13) 0.30 (0.38) (0.33) 0.02 (0.26) (0.37)

Wolf's Crossing 0.25 0.03 0.30 0.24 (0.02) 0.27 0.35 0.16 0.24 0.48


RespectHomework

Monitoring

Student Progress

Outreach and

Engagement

Quality and


Bednarcik 4.1% -2.7% 0.4% -0.3% 11.3% -2.2% 2.7% 0.6% 0.9% 0.4%

Boulder Hill 0.5% -4.3% 1.3% 9.1% -8.1% 3.1% 1.3% 1.8% 2.1% -0.3%

Brokaw Early Learning 14.8% 12.9% 12.7% 5.7% -2.2% 10.3% 16.0% 6.1% 12.5% 14.1%

Churchill 6.5% 7.0% 5.6% 8.1% 2.4% 6.0% 6.9% 0.4% 6.2% 9.0%

East View 0.6% 4.5% 1.6% 8.1% -16.4% 4.1% 5.3% -2.4% 4.5% 3.6%

Fox Chase 0.2% 7.9% 7.9% 7.4% -0.8% 3.8% 4.6% -1.8% 3.2% 3.8%

Grande Park 11.3% 11.8% 15.1% 3.2% 3.3% 8.2% 14.0% 8.2% 11.4% 14.2%

Homestead 8.4% 8.5% 8.7% 7.7% 2.3% 6.2% 9.0% 1.1% 6.4% 7.9%

Hunt Club 2.1% -2.6% 3.9% 4.9% -5.0% 5.7% 3.2% 2.7% 7.6% 1.6%

Lakewood Creek -8.5% -2.1% -4.6% 8.1% 0.7% 2.0% -9.9% -5.6% -3.1% -8.6%

Long Beach 0.5% -2.8% 0.7% 8.8% -2.3% 0.9% -2.1% -5.0% 0.2% -6.9%

Murphy -1.8% 4.9% -3.6% -9.4% 3.8% -3.8% -3.5% 1.6% -4.9% -10.7%

Old Post 5.2% -0.5% -0.9% 9.9% 0.2% 4.4% 7.4% 5.4% 7.4% 10.5%

Oswego East -4.5% -8.4% -5.2% -14.6% 2.4% -6.9% -7.3% -1.7% -6.8% -7.0%

Oswego High -7.7% -7.3% -9.6% -13.2% -1.8% -8.5% -11.3% -1.5% -12.2% -9.5%

Plank -0.2% -1.2% -1.7% 4.0% 6.6% -1.5% -2.0% -2.0% 0.6% -4.8%

Prairie Point -2.1% -0.5% -1.3% -0.7% -7.1% 2.5% -1.5% -4.1% 0.5% 5.7%

Southbury -2.0% 2.0% 2.1% 7.1% -5.0% 0.6% 4.5% -2.5% 5.4% 5.4%

Wheatlands -0.8% 2.5% 4.7% 4.7% -4.3% 4.0% 4.6% 2.4% 3.5% 6.6%

Thompson -6.1% -8.3% -9.6% -4.0% 2.8% -5.9% -8.0% -3.9% -7.6% -16.1%

Traughber -5.7% -0.9% -8.1% -3.7% 7.7% -9.8% -9.1% 0.6% -6.6% -9.8%

Wolf's Crossing 6.7% 0.9% 7.9% 6.4% -0.5% 6.4% 8.8% 4.3% 5.7% 11.5%



The tables below show improvements and declines in average dimension scores by individual schools.

2015 School Dimension Avg. Scores Compared to 2012 School Dimension Avg. Scores

Percent Change between 2015 School Dimension Avg. Scores and 2012 School Dimension

Avg. Scores


RespectHomework

Monitoring Student

Progress

Outreach and

Engagement

Quality and


Bednarcik (0.01) (0.35) (0.07) 0.11 (0.06) 0.11 (0.10) (0.12) (0.03) (0.19)

Boulder Hill (0.10) (0.41) (0.17) (0.08) (0.42) (0.11) (0.19) 0.05 (0.18) 0.07

Brokaw Early Learning 0.15 0.25 0.12 (0.10) (0.02) 0.18 0.11 0.07 0.17 0.17

Churchill 0.17 0.03 (0.03) 0.05 0.05 0.04 0.17 0.06 0.09 0.10

East View (0.22) (0.12) (0.25) (0.07) (0.69) (0.10) (0.17) (0.09) (0.12) (0.17)

Fox Chase (0.29) (0.10) 0.06 0.00 (0.18) (0.14) (0.20) (0.13) (0.14) (0.25)

Grande Park 0.26 0.17 0.32 (0.25) (0.02) 0.06 0.26 0.27 0.17 0.32

Homestead 0.05 0.09 0.13 0.02 0.01 (0.00) 0.06 0.03 0.03 0.01

Hunt Club (0.22) (0.41) (0.08) (0.21) (0.34) (0.11) (0.11) (0.01) 0.02 (0.17)

Lakewood Creek (0.23) (0.05) (0.16) 0.15 0.13 (0.06) (0.27) (0.08) (0.20) (0.29)

Long Beach 0.22 0.02 0.16 0.18 0.04 (0.03) 0.20 (0.07) 0.03 0.11

Murphy (0.17) 0.03 (0.21) (0.30) (0.27) (0.07) (0.27) 0.04 (0.19) (0.44)

Old Post 0.07 (0.29) (0.29) 0.04 0.02 (0.03) 0.10 0.12 0.11 0.09

Oswego East 0.08 (0.11) 0.07 (0.04) (0.04) 0.06 0.17 (0.01) 0.10 0.25

Oswego High (0.12) (0.19) (0.14) (0.07) (0.28) (0.02) (0.12) (0.06) (0.19) (0.20)

Plank 0.15 0.16 0.05 0.30 0.03 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.04

Prairie Point (0.26) (0.24) (0.14) (0.32) (0.17) (0.13) (0.27) (0.10) (0.16) (0.13)

Southbury (0.31) (0.18) (0.20) (0.01) (0.23) (0.21) (0.20) (0.20) (0.12) (0.19)

Wheatlands (0.24) (0.05) (0.02) (0.07) (0.20) 0.01 (0.16) 0.10 (0.08) (0.09)

Thompson (0.00) (0.03) (0.11) (0.05) (0.14) (0.00) (0.02) 0.01 (0.04) (0.13)

Traughber (0.14) 0.19 (0.13) (0.07) 0.04 (0.09) (0.25) 0.11 (0.23) (0.39)

Wolf's Crossing 0.11 (0.13) (0.03) (0.03) (0.13) 0.00 0.14 0.09 0.04 0.19


RespectHomework

Monitoring

Student Progress

Outreach and

Engagement

Quality and


Bednarcik -0.3% -8.2% -1.9% 3.0% -1.4% 2.7% -2.5% -3.3% -0.8% -4.5%

Boulder Hill -2.5% -9.7% -4.4% -2.0% -10.8% -2.5% -4.6% 1.4% -4.1% 1.7%

Brokaw Early Learning 3.5% 5.8% 3.0% -2.4% -0.5% 4.1% 2.5% 1.8% 4.0% 3.9%

Churchill 4.6% 0.6% -0.7% 1.2% 1.2% 0.9% 4.5% 1.6% 2.1% 2.3%

East View -5.7% -2.7% -6.2% -1.8% -18.0% -2.2% -4.1% -2.6% -2.8% -4.0%

Fox Chase -7.2% -2.2% 1.4% 0.0% -4.7% -3.1% -4.8% -3.6% -3.2% -5.8%

Grande Park 6.7% 4.1% 8.2% -6.3% -0.5% 1.5% 6.4% 7.5% 3.8% 7.5%

Homestead 1.2% 2.2% 3.2% 0.5% 0.3% 0.0% 1.5% 0.9% 0.6% 0.2%

Hunt Club -5.4% -9.6% -2.1% -5.0% -8.7% -2.4% -2.8% -0.2% 0.4% -4.1%

Lakewood Creek -6.5% -1.3% -4.5% 3.9% 3.6% -1.5% -7.4% -2.3% -4.9% -7.3%

Long Beach 6.4% 0.6% 4.5% 4.6% 1.1% -0.7% 5.8% -2.0% 0.7% 3.0%

Murphy -4.5% 0.7% -5.6% -8.3% -6.5% -1.7% -6.8% 1.2% -4.8% -11.1%

Old Post 1.9% -6.9% -7.4% 1.0% 0.6% -0.7% 2.4% 3.4% 2.6% 2.2%

Oswego East 2.4% -2.9% 2.0% -1.3% -1.0% 1.7% 5.0% -0.1% 2.6% 7.4%

Oswego High -3.3% -4.9% -3.9% -2.1% -7.2% -0.6% -3.5% -1.6% -5.1% -5.3%

Plank 4.3% 4.3% 1.4% 8.4% 0.7% 3.7% 3.9% 4.0% 3.7% 1.1%

Prairie Point -6.8% -5.8% -3.8% -8.0% -4.7% -3.1% -6.9% -2.8% -3.8% -3.1%

Southbury -7.8% -4.3% -5.1% -0.3% -6.1% -4.8% -4.8% -5.5% -2.7% -4.5%

Wheatlands -6.3% -1.2% -0.6% -1.9% -5.4% 0.3% -3.8% 2.9% -1.8% -2.2%

Thompson 0.0% -0.9% -3.1% -1.3% -3.5% 0.0% -0.5% 0.2% -1.1% -3.7%

Traughber -3.8% 5.0% -3.8% -1.8% 1.1% -2.3% -6.7% 3.1% -5.7% -9.9%

Wolf's Crossing 2.9% -3.3% -0.9% -0.7% -3.5% 0.1% 3.5% 2.5% 0.9% 4.6%



Ten Highest Rated Questions

Ten Lowest Rated Questions

Dimension Favorable %

Outreach and Engagement 30I believe that parental/guardian involvement is positively

related to a child’s achievement.98%

School Climate 44 School facilities are well-maintained. 93%

Outreach and Engagement 29I attend most school events offered to parents such as

parent-teacher conferences and open houses.90%

School Climate 49 The school encourages students to be responsible. 89%

Communication 10 I am kept up-to-date on school activities and events. 85%

School Climate 47 School staff is courteous and helpful. 84%

Communication 12 I know how to get school information when I need it. 82%

Communication 14My child's school makes effective use of technology as a

means of communication.81%

Discipline and Respect 19The school offers its students a safe environment to learn.

81%

Outreach and Engagement 31There is an active Parent Associate (PTA, PTSA, PTO

etc.) at my child's school.81%

Question

Dimension Unfavorable %

Academics 8The school does a great job of challenging my child to

his/her full potential.21%

Academics 4My child’s school offers him/her opportunities to explore

areas of interest outside the core content areas.19%

Monitoring Student Progress 23I am informed of my child’s academic progress on a

regular basis.19%

Outreach and Engagement 27I am involved in the decisions that affect my child’s

education.18%

Academics 6My child's school is superior to other schools in the area.

17%

Communication 11 I feel well informed about my child's school life. 17%

Discipline and Respect 16My child's school does an excellent job dealing with

student bullying.17%

Homework 21The amount of homework given to my child is appropriate.

17%

Homework 20Oftentimes, my child's homework assignment requires

interaction with me or others in our family.16%

Monitoring Student Progress 24I regularly check my child’s information (such as grades or

attendance) using an online resource.16%

Question



Custom Questions



Areas of Strength – Parent Engagement & Satisfaction Survey

Use of Online Resources. Question 24 pertains to the use of an online resource as a

communication medium with parents. There are two primary factors which may influence

responses from parents including 1) whether or not such an online resource is available and 2)

whether or not parents have knowledge about the resource and actually use it.

The parent population at School District 308 uses online resources significantly more than at

other districts nationally. This question averaged almost 11% higher than the National

Benchmark. Based on the survey it appears the use of online resources has also increased since

the previous survey as this question had a 3.5% increase in average year-on-year.

Like the previous survey, parents of secondary school students are the primary users of the online

resources. The elementary schools at School District 308 are using the resources more than other

elementary schools in the nation, as well as more than they did in 2012. On the last survey this

question received 29% unfavorable responses, but this year only received 25% unfavorable

responses. However, there is still room for improvement. There are a number of factors that limit

positive scores on this item including lack of information or training, lack of staff use, lack of any

system, etc.



Parent Attendance at School Events. Question 29 asks if parents attend most of the school

events offered to them. This question is typically rated highly because parents are essentially

rating their own level of involvement. However, the parents of School District 308 students did

score significantly higher than the National Benchmark, almost 6% higher. The average on this

question also increased slightly compared to the 2012 survey, about 1% increase. Based on

responses to this question and results on parent connections within the School Climate and

Culture survey it is clear the parent population at School District 308 is more involved than other

districts nationally.



Opportunities for Improvement– Parent Engagement & Satisfaction Survey

Academics. The Academics dimensions averaged significantly lower than the National

Benchmark, and had a slight year-on-year decline in average. Seven of the nine questions in this

dimension contributed to the lower score compared to the National Benchmark by having

significant differences with the benchmark. Three of the top ten lowest rated questions on the

survey, questions 4, 6, and 8 were also from this dimension.

Communication about School Life. There are two key questions on the survey (Question 11 in

the Communication dimension and Question 23 in the Monitoring Student Progress dimension)

which ask similar questions we can use to gauge if parents feel they are informed about their

students’ school life and progress. Although neither question scored above our threshold for

concern of 20% unfavorable responses, the scores were significantly lower than the National

Benchmark.

Question 23 averaged over 10% lower than the National Benchmark indicating it is an area in

need of immediate improvement. It also averaged significantly lower than the previous survey, an

8% decline in average.



Discipline and Respect. Although the Discipline and Respect dimension did not average

significantly lower than the National Benchmark, it was very close with a 4.8% negative

difference. Questions 16 and 17 within the dimension did have significantly lower averages than

the National Benchmark, 8% and 5.3% lower. Similar to the last survey there were a high number

of neutrals on these questions (both nationally as well as with School District 308) which may

indicate a portion of the parent population has not had experience seeing how the schools handle

discipline. Secondary students are also continuing to see the lower scores on questions around

bullying.



Homework. Parents of School District 308 students were less positive about whether the amount

of homework and the level of difficulty of the homework are appropriate compared to the

National Benchmark with questions 21 and 22 averaging significantly lower than the benchmark.

Both questions also had a slight, but not significant, decline in average compared to the previous

survey.

It is important to note parents of secondary students scored these questions lower than elementary

schools within the district. However, all school types at School District 308 had lower scores than

their corresponding school types nationally.



Quality and Satisfaction. The Quality and Satisfaction dimension averaged significantly lower

than the National Benchmark, and had a small year-on-year decline in average. Questions 33 and

34 were the drivers of the lower score in this dimension with both averaging more than 6% lower

than the National Benchmark. Question 33 is more difficult to answer positively since it asks

about the needs of all students versus just most or some students. However, it still saw a decline

in average of almost 2%.

Responsiveness. Most of the questions within the Responsiveness dimension averaged

significantly lower than the national average again this year. Averages within this dimension did

not change significantly since the 2012 survey.

Questions 35, 38, and 39 ask about satisfaction with the guidance counselors and college and

career planning. The high neutrals in these questions indicate parents may not be aware what

types of service the guidance counselors provide and if the school is giving the students

information about college and career planning.

The parent population of School District 308 was also less positive about if their child knows who

to talk to at the school if they have a problem, question 40. This could be one of the reasons

parents were less positive about how the school handles bullying.



School Pride. Question 53 and 55 gauge school pride and community perception. Both questions

averaged significantly lower than the National Benchmark and drove the dimension overall to

have a significantly lower average as well. While both also had a slight decline in average

compared to 2012, neither was significant. Question 55 did see a more significant difference in

average between Middle Schools in School District 308 and Middle Schools nationally.



School Climate & Culture Survey Highlights

Based on quantitative survey data, key observations from the employees at School district 308 are

highlighted as follows:

Normative Data. Generally, when comparing School District 308 data to the norm data, School

District 308 results were slightly less positive. There were two dimensions, Internal

Communications and Readiness for Change that averaged significantly lower than the National

Benchmark. Year-on-year averages were also lower. Based on the results of individual items,

dimension summary data and the Hi-Low report section we may generally infer that the

employees of School District 308 are slightly less satisfied than they were on the 2012 survey and

compared to districts nationally.

The summary table below shows the average for each of the 10 dimensions in the survey compared to our

National Benchmark data.

The summary table below shows the average for each of the 10 dimensions in the survey compared to the

results from the last survey in Fall 2012.

Dimension National (Avg) District 308 (Avg) Diff +/-

School Pride 4.12 4.08 (0.04)

Internal Communication 3.65 3.41 (0.25)

Parent Connections 3.43 3.54 0.11

Work Environment 3.96 3.99 0.03

Organizational Dynamics 3.83 3.76 (0.08)

Accountability 3.87 3.71 (0.16)

Meeting Student Needs 3.88 3.70 (0.18)

Readiness for Change 3.64 3.37 (0.27)

Direction of the Organization 3.76 3.62 (0.15)

Leadership Dynamics 3.80 3.73 (0.07)

Dimension2012 District 308

(Avg)

2015 District 308

(Avg)Diff +/-

School Pride 4.20 4.08 (0.12)

Internal Communication 3.44 3.41 (0.03)

Parent Connections 3.64 3.54 (0.10)

Work Environment 4.04 3.99 (0.05)

Organizational Dynamics 3.79 3.76 (0.03)

Accountability 3.78 3.71 (0.07)

Meeting Student Needs 3.76 3.70 (0.06)

Readiness for Change 3.46 3.37 (0.09)

Direction of the Organization 3.76 3.62 (0.14)

Leadership Dynamics 3.76 3.73 (0.03)



Highlights and bolding on the summary tables follow the criteria below:

Red Highlight: Difference percentage < -5%

Red Highlight and Bolding: Difference percentage < -10%

Green Highlight: Difference percentage > 5%

Green Highlight and Bolding: Difference percentage > 10%

The tables below illustrate the differences by dimension between each school and the district.

School Dimension Avg. Scores Compared to District Dimension Avg. Scores

Percent Difference between School Dimension Avg. Scores and District Dimension Avg.

Scores

Dimension School PrideInternal

Communication

Parent

Connections

Work

Environment

Organizational

DynamicsAccountability

Meeting Student

Needs

Readiness for

Change

Direction of the

Organization

Leadership

Dynamics

Bednarcik (0.05) (0.43) 0.09 (0.25) (0.13) (0.16) 0.13 (0.12) (0.02) (0.59)

Boulder Hill (0.05) (0.02) (0.30) 0.17 0.04 0.04 0.21 0.16 (0.02) (0.16)

Brokaw Early Learning 0.26 0.16 0.31 0.13 (0.03) 0.15 0.36 0.38 0.33 0.19

Churchill 0.20 0.13 0.40 0.11 (0.07) 0.16 0.29 0.00 0.16 0.12

East View (0.02) 0.15 0.10 (0.22) (0.07) 0.08 (0.16) (0.01) (0.18) 0.32

Fox Chase 0.38 0.32 0.43 0.23 0.13 0.20 0.31 0.24 0.33 0.16

Grande Park (0.07) 0.03 0.49 (0.27) (0.23) (0.04) 0.13 (0.04) (0.17) (0.06)

Homestead 0.37 0.28 0.61 0.34 0.25 0.24 0.36 0.16 0.29 0.41

Hunt Club 0.07 0.06 0.51 0.44 0.10 (0.02) 0.30 (0.11) (0.10) (0.28)

Lakewood Creek (0.16) 0.29 (0.14) (0.06) (0.08) 0.15 0.28 0.00 0.11 0.37

Long Beach (0.19) 0.28 (0.57) (0.38) 0.12 0.03 0.04 0.23 0.24 0.34

Murphy 0.25 0.07 0.18 (0.05) 0.06 0.07 0.12 (0.07) 0.05 0.04

Old Post (0.11) (0.61) 0.50 0.11 (0.19) (0.38) 0.22 (0.33) (0.26) (0.79)

Oswego East (0.20) (0.26) (0.29) 0.05 (0.06) (0.28) (0.36) (0.28) (0.22) (0.29)

Oswego High (0.32) (0.43) (0.43) (0.16) (0.27) (0.25) (0.51) (0.27) (0.43) (0.38)

Plank (0.01) (0.02) (0.47) (0.07) 0.01 0.10 (0.02) (0.13) (0.09) 0.21

Prairie Point 0.74 0.95 0.66 0.71 0.68 0.58 0.58 0.76 0.81 1.00

Southbury 0.49 0.72 0.46 0.52 0.30 0.52 0.58 0.74 0.81 0.74

Wheatlands 0.34 0.16 0.59 0.16 0.19 0.14 0.17 0.10 0.21 0.12

Thompson (0.48) (0.52) (0.49) (0.36) (0.20) (0.35) (0.45) (0.37) (0.54) (0.67)

Traughber (0.01) (0.09) (0.31) (0.23) 0.00 (0.04) (0.31) (0.05) (0.03) 0.10

Wolf's Crossing 0.11 0.11 0.30 (0.04) 0.01 0.17 0.09 0.07 (0.05) 0.29


Communication

Parent

Connections

Work

Environment

Organizational


Meeting

Student Needs

Readiness for

Change

Direction of the

Organization

Leadership

Dynamics

Bednarcik -1.1% -13.5% 2.5% -6.4% -3.6% -4.5% 3.6% -3.5% -0.5% -17.2%

Boulder Hill -1.3% -0.7% -8.7% 4.3% 1.2% 1.0% 5.4% 4.8% -0.4% -4.5%

Brokaw Early Learning 6.1% 4.6% 8.3% 3.2% -0.9% 3.9% 9.3% 10.6% 8.7% 5.0%

Churchill 4.9% 3.8% 10.6% 2.8% -1.8% 4.1% 7.5% 0.1% 4.3% 3.2%

East View -0.5% 4.4% 2.7% -5.7% -1.8% 2.1% -4.4% -0.3% -5.2% 8.3%

Fox Chase 8.8% 9.0% 11.6% 5.7% 3.5% 5.2% 8.1% 6.9% 8.6% 4.2%

Grande Park -1.8% 0.8% 13.0% -7.0% -6.3% -1.1% 3.5% -1.3% -4.7% -1.7%

Homestead 8.6% 7.8% 15.9% 8.2% 6.5% 6.3% 9.4% 4.8% 7.8% 10.4%

Hunt Club 1.8% 1.8% 13.5% 10.4% 2.7% -0.6% 7.9% -3.2% -2.8% -7.9%

Lakewood Creek -4.1% 8.2% -4.1% -1.5% -2.0% 3.9% 7.3% 0.0% 3.1% 9.4%

Long Beach -4.6% 7.8% -17.7% -9.9% 3.1% 0.8% 1.1% 6.6% 6.4% 8.8%

Murphy 5.8% 2.0% 4.9% -1.2% 1.5% 2.0% 3.2% -2.2% 1.5% 1.1%

Old Post -2.6% -19.7% 13.2% 2.7% -5.2% -10.8% 5.8% -10.2% -7.3% -23.6%

Oswego East -5.0% -7.9% -8.4% 1.3% -1.6% -7.9% -10.2% -8.8% -6.2% -8.0%

Oswego High -8.2% -13.3% -13.0% -4.0% -7.4% -6.9% -14.8% -8.3% -12.6% -10.9%

Plank -0.4% -0.6% -14.2% -1.6% 0.2% 2.6% -0.5% -3.9% -2.4% 5.5%

Prairie Point 16.7% 24.5% 17.1% 16.3% 16.5% 14.5% 14.5% 20.4% 20.1% 23.5%

Southbury 11.3% 19.2% 12.2% 12.2% 7.6% 13.0% 14.6% 19.8% 20.1% 18.1%

Wheatlands 8.1% 4.5% 15.4% 4.0% 4.8% 3.8% 4.6% 2.8% 5.6% 3.2%

Thompson -12.6% -16.6% -14.9% -9.5% -5.4% -9.8% -12.9% -11.5% -16.2% -19.8%

Traughber -0.2% -2.7% -9.2% -5.9% 0.1% -1.1% -8.8% -1.5% -0.8% 2.7%

Wolf's Crossing 2.7% 3.1% 8.1% -1.0% 0.4% 4.6% 2.4% 2.0% -1.4% 7.4%



The tables below show improvements and declines in average dimension scores by individual schools.

2015 School Dimension Avg. Scores Compared to 2012 School Dimension Avg. Scores

Percent Change between 2015 School Dimension Avg. Scores and 2012 School Dimension

Avg. Scores


Communication

Parent

Connections

Work

Environment

Organizational


Meeting Student

Needs

Readiness for

Change

Direction of the

Organization

Leadership

Dynamics

Bednarcik (0.35) (0.60) 0.05 (0.31) (0.22) (0.37) (0.12) (0.46) (0.36) (0.76)

Boulder Hill (0.45) (0.65) (0.28) (0.39) (0.48) (0.48) (0.43) (0.56) (0.76) (0.94)

Brokaw Early Learning 0.21 (0.02) 0.01 0.12 0.05 0.06 0.25 0.25 0.25 (0.04)

Churchill (0.38) (0.29) (0.27) (0.33) (0.27) (0.51) (0.21) (0.52) (0.42) (0.70)

East View 0.07 0.28 (0.16) (0.09) (0.08) 0.07 (0.28) 0.11 (0.15) 0.43

Fox Chase (0.18) 0.02 (0.13) (0.05) 0.00 (0.18) 0.00 (0.12) (0.11) (0.23)

Grande Park (0.23) (0.36) (0.09) (0.20) (0.36) (0.31) (0.26) (0.45) (0.77) (0.49)

Homestead (0.24) (0.17) 0.01 (0.20) (0.13) (0.15) (0.11) (0.13) (0.09) (0.32)

Hunt Club (0.27) (0.35) 0.02 0.11 (0.31) (0.27) (0.13) (0.37) (0.44) (0.71)

Lakewood Creek (0.04) 0.50 (0.39) 0.00 0.06 0.16 0.23 (0.02) 0.11 0.66

Long Beach 0.33 0.85 (0.47) (0.04) 0.37 0.37 0.03 0.24 0.46 1.06

Murphy (0.21) (0.41) 0.04 (0.29) (0.28) (0.03) (0.10) (0.34) (0.35) (0.69)

Old Post (0.24) (0.71) (0.18) (0.13) (0.06) (0.69) (0.21) (0.51) (0.66) (0.56)

Oswego East 0.12 0.20 0.05 0.23 0.15 0.01 0.20 0.06 (0.01) 0.27

Oswego High (0.35) (0.22) (0.12) (0.09) (0.13) (0.12) (0.26) (0.20) (0.33) (0.16)

Plank (0.03) 0.15 (0.33) (0.09) 0.06 0.49 0.06 0.05 (0.08) 0.61

Prairie Point 0.13 0.18 (0.07) 0.10 0.20 (0.03) 0.05 0.02 0.02 0.31

Southbury (0.01) 0.03 0.08 0.03 (0.07) (0.04) (0.06) (0.00) 0.05 (0.04)

Wheatlands 0.18 0.35 0.09 0.12 0.40 0.12 0.08 0.21 0.22 0.31

Thompson (0.30) (0.15) (0.18) 0.04 (0.07) (0.20) (0.28) (0.15) (0.23) (0.21)

Traughber (0.28) (0.24) (0.25) (0.28) (0.27) (0.23) (0.21) 0.04 (0.18) (0.11)

Wolf's Crossing (0.11) (0.22) (0.27) (0.14) (0.24) (0.26) (0.38) (0.43) (0.47) (0.19)


Communication

Parent

Connections

Work

Environment

Organizational


Meeting

Student Needs

Readiness for

Change

Direction of the

Organization

Leadership

Dynamics

Bednarcik -8.0% -16.7% 1.3% -7.8% -5.7% -9.5% -2.9% -12.4% -9.1% -19.5%

Boulder Hill -10.0% -16.1% -7.9% -8.6% -11.2% -11.4% -10.0% -13.7% -17.4% -20.9%

Brokaw Early Learning 5.1% -0.4% 0.2% 3.0% 1.4% 1.5% 6.5% 7.2% 6.9% -1.0%

Churchill -8.2% -7.6% -6.3% -7.4% -6.8% -11.7% -5.1% -13.4% -9.9% -15.4%

East View 1.9% 8.4% -4.3% -2.3% -2.1% 1.8% -7.4% 3.3% -4.1% 11.9%

Fox Chase -3.9% 0.4% -3.1% -1.3% 0.0% -4.4% 0.1% -3.3% -2.7% -5.6%

Grande Park -5.4% -9.4% -2.1% -5.1% -9.3% -7.8% -6.3% -11.8% -18.3% -11.9%

Homestead -5.1% -4.4% 0.3% -4.3% -3.2% -3.6% -2.5% -3.5% -2.3% -7.2%

Hunt Club -6.1% -9.2% 0.5% 2.5% -7.5% -6.8% -3.1% -10.2% -11.2% -17.0%

Lakewood Creek -1.0% 15.5% -10.4% 0.0% 1.7% 4.3% 6.1% -0.7% 3.0% 19.0%

Long Beach 9.2% 30.1% -13.6% -1.0% 10.7% 11.0% 0.8% 7.3% 13.7% 35.3%

Murphy -4.6% -10.7% 1.0% -6.8% -6.7% -0.9% -2.6% -9.3% -8.7% -15.4%

Old Post -5.7% -20.2% -4.3% -3.0% -1.7% -17.1% -5.0% -14.4% -16.4% -16.0%

Oswego East 3.1% 6.7% 1.7% 6.1% 4.1% 0.3% 6.4% 2.1% -0.4% 8.5%

Oswego High -8.4% -6.9% -3.8% -2.2% -3.6% -3.2% -7.5% -6.1% -9.5% -4.4%

Plank -0.7% 4.8% -9.7% -2.3% 1.7% 14.7% 1.6% 1.5% -2.2% 18.4%

Prairie Point 2.7% 4.4% -1.6% 2.2% 4.8% -0.6% 1.1% 0.5% 0.5% 7.1%

Southbury -0.1% 0.7% 2.0% 0.7% -1.6% -1.0% -1.3% -0.1% 1.0% -0.9%

Wheatlands 4.2% 11.0% 2.2% 2.9% 11.3% 3.3% 2.2% 6.5% 6.2% 8.7%

Thompson -7.7% -4.9% -5.6% 1.1% -2.0% -5.5% -7.9% -4.8% -6.9% -6.6%

Traughber -6.5% -6.9% -7.3% -6.9% -6.7% -5.9% -5.9% 1.1% -4.8% -2.8%

Wolf's Crossing -2.6% -5.9% -6.7% -3.4% -6.0% -6.2% -9.1% -11.0% -11.7% -4.6%



Ten Highest Rated Questions

Ten Lowest Rated Questions



Custom Questions



Areas of Strength – School Climate & Culture Survey

Parent Connections. School District 308 has a slight strength relative to other school districts in

the area of Parent Connections. While the overall results for the district have seen a decline since

the last survey of about 3%, respondents still averaged this dimension positively compared to the

National Benchmark. Questions 15, 16, and 21 averaged significantly higher than the National

Benchmark with a greater than 5% increase in average. Unfortunately, questions 16 and 21 also

had declines in average of almost 4% compared to the 2012 survey.

Elementary schools are the drivers of the higher average scores compared to the National

Benchmark.



Work Environment. School District 308 shows slightly higher averages in the area of Work

Environment compared to the National Benchmark. However, it also experienced a slight decline

compared to the 2012 survey. This dimension of the survey measures attitudes on a number of

factors that are specifically important within schools. These factors are related to positive climate

and culture and are considered important within the body of research supporting the link between

positive climate and student achievement.

While no questions averaged significantly higher than the National Benchmark, question 28 did

come close with more than a 4% difference. In Question 28, we can see that employees at School

District 308 rate high in feeling that students respect them. Unfortunately this question also had a

notable drop in average compared to the 2012 survey. This communicates to us that while there

is still a strong feeling of mutual trust between staff and students at School District 308 there

might have been a slight shift.



Opportunities for Improvement– School Climate & Culture Survey

Internal Communication. There were a number of areas within Internal Communication where

employees at School District 308 were significantly less positive than employees nationally. This

continues to be an issue at School District 308 with the overall dimension having a slight decline

compared to the previous survey.

Question 11 relates to whether the staff feel they have time to collaborate on instructional matters.

This question appears in the context of our national survey given a strong belief by many

educators that peer collaboration and planning time is an essential element to improve instruction

and, therefore, student outcomes. This question is again the lowest averaging question on the

survey. It also has the largest negative difference compared to the National Benchmark, almost

17% lower.

School District 308 employees feel as though school-wide meetings are not a good use of time.

These types of meetings can be difficult for school leaders given the requirement to balance the

need for appropriate and topical communication with the desire to keep the flow of information

highly relevant to all employees. This can be challenging as we see that nationally, only 47% of

staff respond favorably to this question. School District 308 scored this item even lower than the

National Benchmark with only 30% of staff responding favorably. This question averaged almost

14% below the National Benchmark.

Questions 10 and 12 also had a significant difference compared to the National Benchmark this

year. These questions gauge the flow of information within the school. Negative responses on

these questions usually stem from feelings of not being heard, not being given adequate

information about students, and/or a lack of trust.



Organizational Dynamics. Questions 31 and 33 in this dimension were the only two that

averaged significantly lower than the National Benchmark. While the overall dimension was not

significantly lower, if it continues to decline it could be the next time the survey is administered.

Question 33 asks a question regarding the amount of work required. Many teachers work hard,

and as a result, this question makes our 10 lowest rated question nationally. Based on our focus

group work, we understand this to be driven by increasing accountability for results, increased

pressure to improve student achievement, and the need to implement new school and district

initiatives. Teachers do, indeed, feel overworked. That situation is even more prevalent at

School District 308 as we can see from the results of this item where 33% of respondents were

unfavorable in the assessment.

It is not clear that there is an answer to this issue. While many teachers in America feel

overworked, there is also a strong belief that public schools need to change their approach and

work harder or smarter to achieve higher levels of student achievement. Unfortunately, any

change in instructional practice translates to additional efforts on the part of teachers. Until we

reach a level in public education where school districts and the public are satisfied with the results

that are being achieved, we expect that schools and school districts will remain under pressure to

change, improve, adapt, and otherwise improve outcomes. This will likely continue to translate

into more work for staff.



Accountability. While the overall Accountability dimension did not average significantly

different from the national average, three questions, 39, 41, and 42 within the dimension did.

Question 39 actually averaged over 10% lower than the national average indicating it is an area in

need of immediate attention. Question 39 asks about student standardized test performance.

Negative results are generally from teachers not being able to access individual student data or

the data is available, but not accessed or used.

Question 41 is different from many of the other survey questions because it refers specifically to

the principal rather than school leadership. Employees respond negatively to this question if they

feel they are not given specific or constructive feedback or they feel time has not been taken to

know the staff members at an appropriate level of detail.

Responses on question 42 can be in reference to either students or employees. Low responses are

typically from feelings of students not being held accountable while at school or leaders having

unequal expectations of employees.



Meeting Student Needs. The Meeting Student Needs dimension was also very close to averaging

significantly lower than the National Benchmark. Four of the seven questions in the dimension

averaged significantly lower than their corresponding national averages.

Questions 43 and 44 ask about the availability and access to student achievement data. Low

responses on these questions are typically from teachers not having complete access to student

data or the data is not easily accessible.

Question 48 asks if teachers actively use student data in collaboration. Low responses on this

question are not surprising given the low scores on Question 43, about access to student

achievement data, and the low scores on Question 11, about availability of collaboration time.

Question 49 is usually harder to respond favorably to since it asks about dealing with the needs of

all students versus just most or some students.



Readiness for Change. The Readiness for Change dimension had the lowest average compared

to the National Benchmark. These results were driven by almost all of the questions. Question 50

had the largest difference averaging 14% below the National Benchmark. Questions 50 and 56

ask if employees are satisfied with the professional development opportunities offered and if

these opportunities are relevant to their work. It is typical to see similar scores on these questions.

The primary factors that we have seen impact responses to these questions are 1) the content

offered and 2) flexibility staff has with choosing which staff development sessions to attend.

Question 55 also averaged significantly lower than the National Benchmark. This question is

typically rated unfavorably or neutral if input is not solicited from the employees or if their input



is rarely incorporated into planning. This further points to the communication problems occurring

at School District 308.

Direction of the Organization. Questions 60 and 61 averaged significantly lower than the

National Benchmark. Question 60 also averaged significantly lower compared to the 2012 survey.

These questions ask if employees know the specifics of how the school intends to improve

student achievement and if there is a high-quality plan in place. The high neutrals on these

questions are also concerning because, there is a portion of the employee population that wants to

respond favorably to this question, but cannot for some reason. This population could be an

opportunity or a threat depending on if the issue is addressed. The results on these questions

indicate there may be a lack of transparency into school leadership planning on student

achievement.



Notes for interpreting survey scores:

Strengths

Scores of 67% favorable are generally considered strengths

Scores of 75% + favorable are generally considered real strengths

Compare favorable percentages for your location to a district or national average. Five percent

above is a relative strength while 10% above is a very positive strength.

Review top 10 highest rated items for your location. Identify those that are not among the top 10

highest rated items for either the national or district sample. These tend to be significant

strengths of your organization.

Opportunities

Scores or 20% - 30% unfavorable are generally considered an area for improvement

Scores of 30%+ unfavorable are generally considered an area for immediate improvement

Compare unfavorable percentages for your location to a district or national average. Five percent

below is an opportunity for improvement while 10% below is a significant risk that should be

explored further.

Review 10 lowest rated items for your location. Identify those that are not among the 10 lowest

rated items for either the national or district sample. These tend to be significant weaknesses in

your organization.

High Neutrals

High neutral scores can indicate one of several things. Most notable high neutrals indicate a

degree of apathy or ambivalence relate to the topic. High neutrals are typically thought to be

either an opportunity in that an organization can sway the thinking of a large percent of the

population by addressing the topic or a threat if the topic remains unaddressed (and the

stakeholder group becomes even less satisfied).

The notes above are based on the assumption that each location has a statistically significant sample of at

least 30 respondents per category. While breakdowns in the data for groups of less than 30 can be

interesting, one must consider this data to be anecdotal.

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