Lakeview Elementary School Report

Brittany Davis

Post University

EDU 515

28 April 2023
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To address the issues that were previously identified (test scores and chronic

absenteeism), I would follow the Golden Rules of Goal Setting. The method of goal setting is a

“process that starts with careful consideration of what you want to achieve, and ends with a lot of

hard work to actually do it” (Mind Tools Content Team, n.d.). Knowing that Lakeview

Elementary School has had poor test scores over the last four years along with chronic absences,

I would address this by using one of the Golden Rules and set SMART goals or Specific,

Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-Bound goals.

Setting specific goals for Lakeview Elementary School is necessary. I would immediately

come up with an action plan and start setting short-term and long-term goals for the organization

to increase the SPI (School Performance Index) for the Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) and

decrease the amount of absences that are being seen. These specific goals will consist of

preparing the students for the test itself inside of the classroom by previewing and practicing the

material, creating benchmark assessments for these students, and even encouraging the parents to

help out at home. Given the fact that tests change frequently due to technology updates, and even

contractor changes, the services that provide the testing will provide demos for said reasons.

These demos will be made available to all students by the teachers to ensure that they understand

the material and also have an idea of what the test will look like.

In addition, to make certain that these goals are met, teachers will be required to have a

set lesson plan to practice and review CMT material and will create benchmark assessments that

will be given throughout the year so that we can assess what the students have retained and what

they might need additional help with. Also, providing brochures and sending mass email

reminders to the parents/guardians of the students of Lakeview Elementary School to encourage

them to practice the material at home will be sent out regularly. These brochures will provide the
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parents/guardians with resources on how to practice with their child at home and what material

the parents can be working on with them at home. These brochures will also include

administrative information and contact information if anyone has any questions or concerns. To

guarantee that these test scores increase, we need consistent attendance and low absenteeism

rates. Providing incentives to these students to encourage them to come to school can include

pizza parties, field trips and other motivating rewards. These incentives can inspire children to

want to learn and can also motivate them to attend school more often, ultimately and hopefully

leading to higher test scores (Sterling, S., n.d.).

To implement these actions and address the issues at hand, I would involve members of

administration so that everyone could be onboard and can also voice their opinions as well as

their questions or concerns. It is important to collaborate with the faculty of the organization as

being on the same page is significant in setting and accomplishing goals. The members of

administration that would be present are the Principal and the Vice Principal as they are needed

for approval in these specific goals. By involving these members of administration, I will first set

up a meeting to discuss and pitch these ideas for said goals. After collaborating and addressing

the issues at hand with an equal understanding of where the matter lies, an action plan and action

steps will be set in place and administration will inform the teachers of what will happen going

forward in regard to test scores and attendance/absences. I would involve the Principal and Vice

Principal due to the fact that a lot of these specific goals need to be addressed by these members

of administration, and cannot be done without their authority. Implementing benchmark

assessments and an even more extensive curriculum that involves strategic lesson plans on CMT

criteria as well as the involvement of mass emails and brochures cannot be done without the help

of administration.
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As stated, to determine the effectiveness of my plan, benchmark assessments will be

given quarterly to determine where each student stands and what needs to be reviewed more by

the teachers. These benchmarks can determine whether the lesson plans are working and what

material the students could use more practice on. Being able to use these benchmark assessments

to measure student progress will ultimately tell us if the action plans and the SMART goals are

effective. In addition, comparing past CMT test scores to current test scores will ultimately

determine whether the plan was effective or not. To measure chronic absenteeism, I would

address this issue by having the teachers take attendance every day. The attendance is to be

submitted to the main office by a certain time of the day and data will be recorded each day and

measured monthly to see the increases or decreases of absences. These measurements are to be

considered a quantitative approach as we will be measuring the attendance results of the students

at Lakeview Elementary School (University of California, n.d.).

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References:

MindTools | Home. (n.d.).

https://www.mindtools.com/a5g2h6s/golden-rules-of-goal-setting

Smart goals: A how to guide - UCOP. (n.d.).

https://www.ucop.edu/local-human-resources/_files/performance-appraisal

How%20to%20write%20SMART%20Goals%20v2.pdf

Sterling, S. (n.d.). 10 Classroom and School Tips to Improve Test Scores. Edmentum

Blog. https://blog.edmentum.com/10-classroom-and-school-tips-improve-test-scores