1. Why school climate is
important
Setting the stage for
Students on Board conversations
Prepared by
Center for Public Education
National School Boards Association
August 2011
2. A safe and welcoming learning climate is a
prerequisite to high student achievement. School
districts need to understand climate issues, conduct
assessments, pass policies, and take steps to make
improvement where necessary.
-- Brian K. Perkins
The CUBE Survey of Urban School Climate
3. Early warning signs of dropping out -
it’s both academic and social
Academic • failing grades in English or math
performance • sharp decline in grades
• falling behind in credits in 9th grade
• retained in grade
School • poor attendance (80% or worse)
engagement • failing “behavior” grades in 6th grade
SOURCE: Center for Public Education, Keeping Kids in School, 2009, www.centerforpubliceducation.org 3
4. Indicators that contribute to
a good school climate
• Schools are well-attended by students &
teachers
• Students feel protected and not bullied
• Out-of-school suspensions are minimal
5. Attendance and learning
• Students who miss a lot of school are more likely to
earn low grades and test scores
• Schools with high student absenteeism are more
likely to have low student achievement
• High teacher absenteeism also relates to lower
student achievement
SOURCES: Roby, Research on School Attendance & Student Achievement, Education Research Quarterly, 2003; Gottfried, Evaluating the
Relationship Between Student Attendance and Achievement, AERA, 2010; Miller et al., Do Teacher Absences Impact Student
Achievement? NBER, 2007
6. 1 in 5 middle schoolers miss 3
or more days of school a month
Percent of students responding by race
29
24 23
20 19
12
overall white black Hispanic Asian Native Am
SOURCE: IES, Condition of Education, 2006. Percent of 8th graders
reporting missing 3 or more days the previous month, 2005
7. 1 in 20 teens miss school
because they do not feel safe there
Percent of students responding by race
8.1
5 6.3
3.5
overall white black Hispanic
SOURCE: IES, Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2010. Percent of students aged 12-17 reporting
missing school in previous month because they did feel safe there. www.data-first.org
8. How safe do students think their
schools are?
• Half of all students say there’s a lot of fighting in
their school
• Half of all students witness children being bullied at
least once a month
• Only one third of students believe teachers are able
to stop bullying
SOURCE: percent who agree/strongly agree with statement. Brian K. Perkins, Where We
Learn, NSBA, Council of Urban Boards of Education, 2006
9. Fewer students today report
feeling afraid than a decade ago
Percent of students who feel afraid in or on the way to school
1995 2007
20 21
14
8 9 7
4 2
white black Hispanic other
SOURCE: NCES, US Dept of Education, Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2009, Table 17.1
10. Bullying is one of the most
pervasive discipline problems
• One-third of students aged 12-18 report being
bullied at school
• The most common form of bullying is verbal, either
through insults, ridicule or being the subject of
rumors
• 11% of students report being pushed, tripped or spit
on, and 6% have been threatened with harm
SOURCE: NCES, US Dept of Education, Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2010, Figures 11.1 and 11.2
11. Bullying obstructs learning
• Bullied middle schoolers can see their GPA decline as
much 1.5 points
• Students who are harassed by their peers are less
likely to feel connected to school and more likely to
earn poor grades
SOURCES: Juvonen, Bullying and Violence as Barriers to Achievement, 2009; Eisenberg et al., Peer
Harassment, School Connectedness, and Academic Achievement, Journal of School Health, 2003
12. LGBT students feel being bullied
the most
Percent of secondary students reporting that they …
LGBT secondary students General secondary students
68.2
30
24.9
6.7
missed school because they did not feel were sexually harassed
safe
SOURCE: Kosciw et al, The 2009 National School Climate Survey, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight
Education Network, 2010
13. If we are going to stem the tide in student bullying, it
will not be because of mandates from above, but
rather because local school board members have
drawn out students’ voices, creating conditions for
them to analyze root causes and generate solutions
that work.
-- Mary Broderick
NSBA president, 2011-12
14. The effect of suspensions on
students
• Students who have been suspended are far more
likely to repeat a grade or drop out altogether
• Half of students who were disciplined 11 or more
times end up in the juvenile justice system
SOURCE: Fabelo et al, Breaking Schools’ Rules, The Council of State
Governments/Public Policy Research Institute, July 2011
15. The effect of suspensions on
schools
• Schools with high suspension and expulsion rates
tend to have low school wide achievement.
• Demographically similar schools with strong school-
community partnerships and governance have lower
rates of suspensions and expulsions AND higher
achievement.
SOURCE: Rausch & Skiba, The Academic Cost of Discipline, Center for Evaluation
and Education Policy, Indiana University, 2006
16. Black students are more likely
to be suspended than their peers
percentages
15
7 7 8
5
3
overall white black Hispanic Asian Native Am
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights, 2006. Percent of students who were suspended
during 2005-06 school year. www.data-first.org
17. Black students are
disproportionately represented
in out-of-school suspensions
Percent of these Percent of 1st
Percent referred
whose 1st referral referrals resulting
for disciplinary
was for a code of in out-of-school
action
conduct violation suspension
Black 75.1 94.2 26.2
White 64.8 92.7 18.0
Hispanic 46.9 93.3 9.9
SOURCE: Fabelo et al, Breaking Schools’ Rules, The Council of State
Governments/Public Policy Research Institute, July 2011
18. Why the discrepancy?
• To date, researchers have found no evidence that
black students commit more serious offenses than
other groups
• Some researchers suggest black students are referred
for more “subjective” reasons
SOURCE: Rausch & Skiba, The Academic Cost of Discipline, Center for Evaluation and Education Policy, Indiana University, 2006; Fabelo
et al, Breaking Schools’ Rules, The Council of State Governments/Public Policy Research Institute, July 2011
19. How is your school climate?
Ask the students
The large majority of students say they enjoy learning, trust their
teachers, and like coming to school. But enough students don’t
feel this way to cause concern:
• One third of all students say they don’t believe teachers are
fair to everyone; black students were more likely to feel this
way
• One third aren’t sure if their teachers care about their success
SOURCE: Brian K. Perkins, Where We Learn, NSBA, Council of Urban Boards
of Education, 2006
20. Students cannot learn in chaos, fear, or
embarrassment …. If you really want to know what
people feel about their schools, ask them.
-- The Key Work of School Boards
21. Get the conversation going
• What is school like for you?
• Do you feel safe at school?
• Have you seen someone bullied? Is this common or
rare? Did another student or teacher try to stop it?
• Do you feel respected by teachers and staff? Do they
care if you’re successful?
22. If you were the school board, what would be
one thing you would do to improve the
school?
23. Moving forward
• Use your data. Include a school climate assessment
as part of your annual district evaluation
• Establish an early warning data system to identify
students who may be in danger of dropping out
• Encourage stakeholder involvement in ongoing
discussions. Don’t forget students!
• Establish clear policies to create a positive school
climate
Adapted from Perkins, Where We Learn, 2006, and Keeping Kids in School, Center for Public Education, 2009.
24. Learn more about school climate
policies and practices that work
http://www.nsba.org/Students-on-Board
http://www.nsba.org/Bullying
Notas do Editor
Successful schools make students feel welcome, academically engaged and supported by the adults in the building. Considering the school climate of your schools is as important as examining student scores and graduation rates because a healthy environment can have a tremendous impact on student achievement. This presentation reviews the research on the relationship between school climate and student learning, and gives an overview of what students nationally think and say about the climate of their schools.
Failing students often feel left out of the school culture, and students who are disengaged don’t often produce academically. It’s a chicken or egg situation, and varies from one student to the next. What we know is that students who exhibit these early warning signs are in danger of eventually dropping out. Successful interventions attend to both their academic and social needs to put them back on track.
While this list is not inclusive, these indicators represent a good jumping off point for considering school climate. The slides that follow show data for each of these indicators and how it relates to a safe and productive learning environment and high student achievement.
Attendance is key to student achievement and it’s not just student attendance. High absenteeism among teachers can also have a negative impact on school climate and performance.
Missing 3 or more days monthly is a high rate of absenteeism, and can translate into academic failure and social disengagement. Reading this graph: 20% of all middle school students reported missing 3 or more days the previous month.
Feeling unsafe or bullied in or on the way to school prompts many students to miss school. Reading this graph: 5% of students aged 12-17 reported missing school the previous month because they did not feel safe.
Since the 1990s, US schools have seen a sizable decline in violent crimes committed on their campuses. Nonetheless 5% of all students still do not feel safe in or on the way to school. Students of color are more likely to feel afraid than their white peers.
Even verbal bullying can have a negative impact on student performance.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth report being bullied more than other students. Reading this graph: 30% of secondary LGBT students said they missed school because they did not feel safe compared to 6.7% of the general population of secondary students.
Discipline problems also contribute to a poor school climate. While schools have a responsibility to protect students from disruptive or dangerous peers, it’s important to understand that students who are being disciplined through out-of-school suspensions suffer academically, too, and often end up in the juvenile justice system.
Out-of-school suspensions and expulsions can also have a negative impact on school wide performance. Researchers Rausch and Skiba compared demographically similar schools and found that some schools are able to keep suspensions down and produce higher student outcomes as a result. The effective practices included community partnerships and strong school leadership.
Black students are more likely than other racial/ethnic groups to receive out-of-school suspensions.
Texas researchers found that nine out of ten students who are referred for disciplinary action for the first time are referred for a “code of conduct” violation, which is discretionary and not mandated by state standards. This is true for all races. However, black students are more likely to be given an out-of-school suspension than their white and Hispanic peers for their first offense.
NSBA encourages school boards to hold conversations with students to begin to understand the climate in their district schools. Guidelines for holding these conversations can be found in the “Students on Board” brochure. Here is a sample of some key questions to get the conversation going.
Get students’ ideas about how school boards could improve school climate.
Don’t let the effort stop with the conversation. There are things that school boards can do to improve the climate in their district.