School Improvement Plan Analysis : School Plan

McKinney Christian School seemed to be committed to quality school improvement in the academic, spiritual and organizational process. All school programs being developed to be addressed in the school Improvement Plan are identified. Individuals who helped formulate the plan are identified as well along with timelines for the implementation. McKinney Christian School seems to meet most of the elements stated in Standard 7.

LaFayette High School’s core curriculum is the basic Math, English, Social Studies, Science, and 2 years of a foreign language, which expands a general knowledge of basic subjects needed for further education. Covenant’s core curriculum, not only includes these subjects, but also strongly emphasizes spiritual and intellectual growth in order for each student to thrive as a Christian and be the person God wants us to be. Davis expands on this by stating, “Liberal arts skills prepare us to work together to discover and develop the potential God built into creation” (pg. 68). Core classes at Covenant also incorporate courses such as “The Christian Mind” and multiple courses teaching about the Bible. That is incredibly different from LaFayette High School, where teachers were discouraged from even mentioning Christianity outside of a history class simply establishing a background over the world’s major

Kingdom education has two purposes. The first is universal and involves the call of God upon each child to accept him as Lord and Savior. The second is personal and involves training each child to obey God’s individual call to serve him throughout their earthly life. Schools prepare students to obey God in this world and “to stand before God for eternity.” (2006, p. 168).

A child is encouraged to see his or her talents as loving gifts from God and to see academic work as a way to cultivate those talents in preparation to love in return. St. Mary of the Angels School also fosters the child’s solidarity with teachers and fellow students, who accompany the child in his or her academic journey, each one helping the other in personal growth and lasting friendship. Our Whole-Family / Whole-Person Philosophy St. Mary of the Angels School has a common mission that includes a commitment to truth and a concern for the whole person of parents, teachers, and of our young people. Parents are the primary educators of their children—they are critical to their children's education—so we strongly emphasize the relationship of the school to the home.

Fortunately and unfortunately, I am a product of charter schools. I attended Achieve Charter Academy from fifth grade to eighth grade. I joined the first year that it opened, leaving all my elementary friends right before graduation. Over the course of the four years I was in multiple advanced courses and performing well. By eighth grade I was in geometry that counted towards high school credit, and feeling good about my academic path. I am grateful of this, but it did not prepare me well for the future years to come. The way we learned was very basic. There was not as much rigor as there would be in a class of that extent. I was never really challenged during the course of the year. I entered high school with high hopes. Unfortunately the

Strategies that are in place are teachers and administration walk-through with feedback for growth. The school also provides support for teachers whose performance was

Some advantages of the self-administered survey are: Low cost. Extensive training is not required to administer the survey. Processing and analysis are usually simpler and cheaper than for other methods. The reduction in bias error. The questionnaire reduces the bias that might result from personal characteristics of interviewers and/or their interviewing skills. Greater anonymity, absence of an interviewer provides greater anonymity for the respondent. This is especially helpful when the survey deals with sensitive issues such as questions about involvement in a gang, because respondents are more likely to respond to sensitive questions when they are not face to face with an interviewer.

The first important concept for Ridgeview Christian School is their mission statement (p. 164). Without their values and mission they would not be set apart from a public school. They have several components of their mission statement and some are as follows: Biblical Worldview-“We aim to teach our students to see the world as God intended, through the lens of the truth of the Bible through every academic subject” (Ridgeview). A second component of their vision is to train students to use their critical thinking skills and not just memorize information. Ridgeview also likes to partner with the families of their students so that their Biblical principles are supported and reinforced at home as well. Like Worth says “Mission is everything to a nonprofit organization” (Worth, 2014) and that is why it is so important for not just Ridgeview but any non-profit.

The Good Will Church, their primary goals of the planned confirmative evaluation is implement skills and standards in the Christian Education ministry. In the Christian Education program, the teachers are not properly trained to study Scripture and evaluate lessons based on pre-develop curriculum, and to prepare their own lesson plans. The adult teachers are volunteers only and they are intrinsic motivated to show their creativity and being enthusing in teaching of the bible among the youth and adults.

In the beginning, Dr. Mark A. Chancey borrowed a report from Texas Freedom Network Education Fund. This report from TFNEF is focusing on 25 Texas public schools offered Bible courses in the 2005–2006 school year, utilizing materials from the previous five academic years. By this evidence, the author notes that the public school Bible courses in Texas always have challenges on the following two aspect: First is the Academic and Legal Appropriateness which including failed or only meet the minimal academic standards for “teachers’ qualifications, curriculum, and academic rigor; and secondly, the Preservation of Religious Freedom which promoting one faith perspective over all others; and push an

Catholic Schools are educational institutions that are devoted to teaching and developing young individuals under the faith and guidance of Jesus Christ (Catholic Education Commission of Western Australia, 2009). Central to the vision of Catholic schools is the belief that Jesus is in the heart of all young Catholic believers (CECWA, 2009). Therefore in order to fulfil the mission and proclaim the gospel students are required to learn about how to live out the life that God intended through the lessons of Jesus Christ (CECWA, 2009). This paper aims to outline unique features that distinguish Catholic education from that of other educational institutions through linking peer-reviewed sources to a school based analysis. The school that will be

San Francisco International Christian Academy believes that the school is the agent of God’s redemptive and reconciling plan to help students establish good habits and manners following the guidance of God. SFICA maintains the Bible as the foundation for the students’ spiritual and academic growth, and each student should follow the instruction of the Scripture and the biblical principles.

An effective school leader possesses skills to create, implement, evaluate, improve and share a staff development plan. I met with Ben Rhodes, Sandy Creek Middle School’s principal, to interview him on the specific elements of his yearly staff development plan. We began with the design process focusing on the district and school goals. District goals include improving literacy across the content areas in reading and writing, Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum (GVC). Guaranteed and Viable Technology (GVT), and Closing the Achievement Gap (Equity in Excellence). Using a variety of assessments to focus on specific needs, Ben Rhodes and Mary Sonya, our Pupil Achievement Specialist, examined CSAP, Explore, MAP, and RAD data. They use the

Achieving high grades and doing well in school has previously been attributed to knowledge of Biblical learning. In his article “The relationship between Biblical literacy, academic achievement, and school behavior…,” William Jeynes talks about how a study was completed by 160 students who were grades 7th through 12th. The student’s Biblical knowledge was tested. The end results proved to be that the students with the highest level of Biblical knowledge also had the highest grade point averages and portrayed the best behavior of students from both public and Christian schools (p. 102-106).

School improvement is transformation. It is one of the most important actions of a school. It is a process that schools must use with fidelity to ensure that at all students are given the opportunity to perform and achieve at exemplary levels. School improvement is vital to schools and it is a process that cannot be done in isolation. It requires team work, collaboration, and constant analysis of data and setting of goals. School improvement goals focus on how to meet the needs of students. Addressing the educational needs, funding, and achievement gaps between subgroups is collaborative effort involves everyone that has a vested interest in the schools. These basic measures set the foundation for improvement. And so, if it is the