Pennsylvania Department of Education School Climate Surveys April 20, 2015 >

Pennsylvania Department of Education School

Climate SurveysApril 20, 2015

www.education.state.pa.us >


Why Measure School Climate?•Measuring your school climate is the first step toward improving your school climate•Perceptions determine the tone, emotional quality (the “climate”) of the school environment•Perceptions are easier to change and measure than is culture.•Schools with positive, healthy climates have been associated with positive learning outcomes

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PDE Office for Safe Schools Climate Surveys


School Climate

What is School Climate?•refers to the quality and character of school life…and is based on patterns of students’, parents’ and school personnel’s experience of school life…” From the Center for Social and Emotional Education/CSEE, Columbia Univ.)It includes the total of the attitudes and behaviors elicited by:• school policies, practices, and physical environment;• staff interactions with peers and students;• opportunities for student engagement and leadership; and,• beliefs and attitudes students bring to the school from their families and the community.

“School climate is like the air we breathe: you don’t really notice it until it becomes toxic.” --H. Jerome Freiburg

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School Climate vs School CultureSchool culture is the long term result of school climate:

a school culture results from both conscious and unconscious perspectives, values, interactions, and practices, and

it is heavily shaped by a school’s particular institutional

history Culture is much harder to change—in order to change the culture of the school, school climate must be:

1. Measured; 2. Results reviewed and analyzed; 3. Goals to improve the negative aspects of climate set;4. Implement goals5. Evaluate attainment of goals;6. Re-measure climate against original data;7. Results reviewed and analyzed8. Revise goals based on data analysis

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How/why do we measure “climate”?

Does perception (of experience) = reality?Are perceptions one’s reality?People BEHAVE or ACT based on how they PERCEIVE the environment/situation!If perceptions change, so does behavior! Climate (satisfaction) surveys measure PERCEPTIONS!

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Why is School Climate Important?

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Research demonstrates a direct correlation between school climate and student achievement:School Climate Score (SCAI)by Student Achievement (CA API)--John Shindler, 2010 (study of 21 urban high schools in California)



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School Climate is predictive of students’ ability to learn and develop in healthy ways:

•When school climate is positive, school connectedness is strong.

•Students want to attend a school where they feel welcome, safe and included (e.g. where their developmental needs for safety and belonging are being met).



Research proves that a positive school climate directly impacts telling indicators of educational success:

Lowers dropout rates; Decreases incidences of violence; Promotes higher student achievement; Mitigates the effects of self-criticism; Reduces the level of drug usage; Increases student attendance; Reduces incidences of bullying

Article: “School Climate: Research, Policy, Practice, and Teacher Education”, J. Cohen, et.al.,2009

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“Specific school climate attributes influence critical teacher behaviors that improve teaching and learning in the classroom.” (From Answers.com)For example:•If a teacher-student relationship is negative and conflictual in kindergarten, it is more likely that the student will have behavioral and academic problems in later grades (Hamre & Pianta, 2001). •When teachers support and interact positively with students, then students are more likely to be engaged and behave appropriately (E. Skinner & Belmont, 1993).

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Impacts of School Climate on Staff: Ability to make change Successful implementation of programs Emotional exhaustion Depersonalization Attrition and retention Relationships and trust Feelings of accomplishment Commitment to profession Teachers’ efficacy

*From L. Vezzuto, “School Climate: the Missing Link in School Reform”

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More Connections to Positive School Climate:CUBE study (2006): showed that an improved school climate contributes to higher student achievement, fewer dropouts, etc.

CSCS/“California Healthy Kids Survey”: examined issue of school “well-being” (climate) and academic achievements by school ethnic composition. –Greg Austin

Elizabeth Greenburg’s study (2004): showed NAEP math scores increased as climate scores improved

**NSCC/CSEE White Paper (2007): “School climate promotes—or complicates—students’ ability to learn and achieve academically.”—Jonathan Cohen

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Surveys’ Origin:Developed by national researchers:

o American Institute of Research (AIR)o Alaska Department of Education

Types of Surveys:Student surveys:

Elementary: Grades 3-5 Middle school: Grades 6-8 High school: Grades 9-12

Staff surveyParent surveyCommunity survey

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Domains Measured by the PDE Office for Safe Schools School Climate Surveys

There are four domains measured by the PDEOSS School Climate Surveys:

Social Emotional Learning Student Support High Expectations/Academic Rigor/Challenge Safe and Respectful School Climate

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Survey Features: Available in English and common Spanish; Printable versions; Bank of additional questions for customization; Real time results; Drill down capability; Secure website with dashboard for ease of use; No restrictions for administration;

No survey window= ease of planning and administration Results are the sole property of the school entity: PDE

will not review or access results. Any or all surveys can be administered

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Intended use of PDEOSS school climate surveys:

Provide school entities with real time formative and summative data

Use for short and long term planning Use with needs assessments Program effectiveness

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LEA Administration

After a successful logon to the site, you will notice the navigation menu now contains two additional linked items

LEA Administration This particular section will provide the end user the

functionality to: Add, Edit, Copy, and Delete Surveys Generate Reports Generate Brochure Handouts Export and Download custom question data

collections Survey Printable

All surveys have a corresponding printable version for your review

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Survey Respondents

The site offers flexibility on how respondents can answer the various surveys.

The primary way to respond is via the Invitation code as entered on the homepage

This response method is limited to one response per survey and computer

In the cases where respondents don’t have external access to a computer, LEA's can utilize a classroom account an proctor a survey session on multiple computers at once. This is especially useful for grades 3 to 5.

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www.education.state.pa.us > 18

For more information on the surveys in regard to site navigation for both anonymous survey respondents or LEA administration topics

please refer to the user manuals as linked below or available on the homepage of the website – http://www.paschoolclimatesurvey.org/

The mission of the department is to academically prepare children and adults to succeed as productive citizens. The department seeks to ensure that the technical support,

resources and opportunities are in place for all students, whether children or adults, to receive a high quality education.

The administration user guide: http://www.paschoolclimatesurvey.org/Documents/UserGuide-

PAClimateSurvey.pdf The survey entry user guide:

http://www.paschoolclimatesurvey.org/Documents/UserEntryGuide-PAClimateSurvey.pdf

http://www.paschoolclimatesurvey.org/



School Climate Survey AnalysisIn order for the survey results to useful, a thorough analysis of the data needs to be conducted.The survey data can be examined in multiple ways: •Aggregate data= total results of the data by district and school•Disaggregated data=total data that is drilled down to reveal specific information

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Survey Analysis 1.A plan on how the data will be reviewed should be developed.2.Data should be reviewed by a joint team of stakeholders. A plan should be developed on how to share the data with all stakeholders3.Both aggregate (general) and disaggregate (specific) data should be reviewed.4.Let the data speak;

LOOK FOR TRENDS IN THE DATA:• Questions to ask of both aggregate and disaggregate data:

• What are the trends of the data?• What are we doing well?• What do we need to improve?

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Survey Analysis ContinuedOnce decisions are made about areas of success and areas of need, the School Climate Data team needs to develop an action plan based at least two of the greatest area of need:The action plan should contain: 1. Timeline:

What changes/interventions will be implemented and when?

2. Goals 1. Goals should be established for each

intervention2. Goals should be measurable.

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Survey Analysis Continued3.How will implemented changes be measured (ie.re-administration of survey, focus groups)?

3. Persons responsible for intervention:1. Who will be responsible for initiating, implementing and monitoring each intervention?

4. Dates established to review goal-setting progress and corresponding data:1. Reconvene survey intervention team to

review data against the original data and adjust interventions if necessary. Repeat the cycle ( steps 1. 2, 3 and 4).

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Thank you for your participation.Questions? Joseph F. Loccisano, [email protected] Emery, [email protected] support:Jay Wasser

[email protected]

814-262-9695

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