Part of The Schools Portlands students deserve Urgent Need to Address Safety in PPS 34 of educators believe their school environment is unsafe PAT survey Last year only 17 felt their school environment was unsafe TELL survey ID: 803577
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Slide1
Creating a Safe Learning Environment
Part of The Schools Portland’s students deserve
Slide2Urgent Need to Address Safety in PPS
34%
of
educators believe their school environment is unsafe. (PAT survey)
Last year only
17%
felt their school environment was unsafe. (TELL survey)
Epidemic of students and staff getting hurt in our schools this year.
A school that is unsafe for staff can’t be safe for students.
Slide3Urgent Need to Address Safety in PPS
“Students do not feel safe because there is, at times, a feeling of chaos. Students who are doing the right thing do not necessarily see anything being done when others don’t do the right thing.”
“I have a student with severe behavioral/emotional needs. He is in my class full time, usually without support. This student is unpredictable. He hits, runs, throws objects, yells and pushes others. I often worry about the safety of my other students.”
Slide4Portland Association of Teacher (PAT)
Advocacy Committee
Al Rabchuk
, Chair, Wilson HS
Michelle Lacaden
, W. Sylvan MS
Tija Smith Wallis
, Lincoln HS
David Child
, Woodlawn K-8
Mike Bauer
, Roosevelt HS
Kevin
Conroy
, W. Sylvan MS
Jeanne Grant
,
SpEd
, CTP
Shelly Simonsen
, CJOG K-8
Slide5About the Safety Survey
Every PAT member got it (excluding substitutes)
30 percent of our members responded
We’re presenting several of the key results tonight
We will meet with the Teaching and Learning committee at a later date to continue the discussion.
Analyzing Three Areas Tonight
PPS Track Record in Developing, Disseminating, and Applying Discipline Policies
Hollowing out Special Education Services and the Impact on Discipline
Patchwork of Discipline Systems
Slide7PPS is doing an poor job following its own rules and the PPS/PAT contract.
Cutting special education
services has contributed
to unsafe classroom conditions.
The
District is using a
patchwork
of disciplinary systems
, and
rarely
provides the
front-end resources necessary to
make them work.
Conclusions
Slide8Discipline Policy:
Disseminationand Application
Slide9Written Student D
iscipline Plan
62%
of respondents
either
do not have
or
do not know
if their school has a written building Student
D
iscipline Plan
Slide10Written Student D
iscipline Plan
“I have asked to see one, and have never been given one. I was told there is no handbook.
”
“
We
have written rules and expectations, but
no
procedures to follow when said rules and expectations are violated.
”
Slide11Clearly Communicated Policies and Procedures
50%
of respondents
do not believe
that student conduct
policies & procedures are clearly communicated.
Disagree
Agree
Slide12“
Staff is not really sure what the policies and procedures are. I am not even sure the
administration
really knows what they are, with all the change happening.”
“
There is no transparency. Students will engage in very unsafe behaviors and administrators respond that their hands are tied by the
district,
that they cannot exclude students. Students get the message there are no real consequences for their behavior, so their behavior escalates to dangerous levels.
”
Clearly Communicated Policies and Procedures
Slide13Consistent Consequences
47%
of respondents
d
o not believe
that
consequences are consistent with written discipline plans or the PPS discipline handbook.
Disagree
A
gree
Slide14“Our written building plan does NOT outline or describe consequences. The district handbook does not seem to be followed at all.”
“
Students at our school are not safe. There are no real consequences for violent behaviors. Students will be sent to the office, only to be returned to class 5 minutes later. Students are bullied, and our administrators are either unwilling or unable to hold kids accountable.
”
“There is minimal
to no
information
shared
regarding
how discipline is determined, defined, assigned, etc. As
a teacher
, I feel in the dark about what discipline issues exist at my school, if there are any trends I should be noticing or anything that may assist in protecting and aiding
students.
”
Consistent Consequences
Slide15Timely Discipline Follow-up
Nearly twice as many
respondents
f
eel they
d
o not
receive timely follow-up to discipline referrals as feel they do.
Agree
Disagree
47%
28%
Slide16“My students have received referrals and there is nothing in Synergy or nothing of substance. When the behavior is repeated and the consequence remains ‘conference’ the behavior DOES NOT CHANGE and the students suffer.”
“I never
hear a word. 99% of the time students are sent back to class or show up the next day.
”
Timely Discipline Follow-up
Slide17Effective Discipline Process
By nearly a
3 to 1 margin
respondents believe that the referral process at their site is not efficient and effective.
No
Yes
7
4%
26%
Slide18“While we write referrals and appropriately escalate, we are told that students cannot be suspended and we have no form of detention or in-school suspension. These factors create a situation in which the students feel they can get away with anything, therefore making our classroom management plans nearly useless.”
Effective Discipline Process
Slide19Special Education
and Discipline
Slide20Special Education Supports
70%
of respondents
believe that Special Ed supports
are not adequate
for behaviors that create
unsafe classroom conditions
Disagree
70%
A
gree
19%
No Opinion
Slide21“
We have worked from September through April to finally get some support through Special Ed for 3 students in this building. It has impacted the entire building and I have to credit
our
Principal for being persistent in helping us get the help these students need
.”
“We don’t have adequate supports and need one-on-ones for certain students. The model we have doesn’t support the number of IEP’s in my classroom. Close to 15 IEPs in one class alone.”
Special Education Supports
Slide22“
There needs to be a more efficient process for taking data, tracking students who are struggling,
and helping teachers design/implement interventions. Many students are falling through the cracks until they get in 2
nd
-4
th
grade, at which time they are already very behind academically and behavior-wise
.”
Special Education Supports
Slide23Discipline System
Patchwork
Slide24Discipline Systems
PBIS 41%
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE 25%
CHAMPS 17%
ENVOY 3%
Slide25“Neither discipline style [PBIS or RJ] has been fully explained. We have just been told we are doing these models. We were explicitly told that the District is making our school do Restorative Justice, but without a RJ trainer. But we are still expected to follow it – whatever “it” is.”
“I strongly believe in the imperative to reduce inequity in student discipline, and I believe that Restorative Justice is a powerful tool in doing so. However, the way it has been “implemented” was to just throw out the referral process. I have had several incidents with students that would previously have gotten them suspended. They experienced no consequences, and then we did not go through a RJ process before the student was returned to my class. This only exacerbates issues rather than resolve them.
Discipline Systems
Slide26Discipline Systems
“
Like so many initiatives, we talk about PBIS. We say it
frames
our work and yet there is not enough time for teachers to develop a meaningful program. We get a superficial set of protocols and structures, but never enough time to develop real embodied understanding.”
Slide27Question for the Board
Do you feel you know what PPS has done differently to achieve the results presented to you last week?