NORTHWEST IS ISD CURRICULUM AUDIT POLICY UPDATES NISD Board of Trustees Report September 23, 2019
BACKGROUND • Conducted under the auspices of Texas Curriculum Management Audit Center with Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) • 10 auditors were present • TCMAC-CMSi certified • Conducted April 30 - May 3, 2018 • 493-page draft was provided to NISD in August 2018 • FALL 2018 - A recommendations committee was formed to review the document • JAN 2019 - Rebuttals from the Audit were submitted for final review • SPRING 2019 - Next steps/Action plan created
NIS ISD RECOMMENDATION COMMITTEE • Outside facilitator - John Doughney • Website: NISD Curriculum Audit Committee • Members • 65 Total Members • 19 District Administrators • 15 Coordinators • 7 Campus Administrators • 24 Teachers
AUDIT STANDARDS 1. The school district demonstrates its control of resources, programs, and personnel. 2. The school district has established clear and valid objectives for students. 3. The school district demonstrates internal consistency and rational equity in its program development and implementation. 4. The school district uses the results from district-designed and/or-adopted assessments to adjust, improve, or terminate ineffective practices or programs. 5. The school district has improved productivity.
AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS 1. Adopt new or revise existing board policies and administrative regulations to communicate, clarify, and expand governance expectations. Improve system and curriculum management by increased control over human resources. 2. Extend and implement coordinated planning processes that produce congruent district and campus plans that are reviewed regularly throughout the year with modifications made as needed. Link district and campus planning to system planning for curriculum management, professional development, student assessment, program evaluation, and budget development. 3. Refine and implement a comprehensive curriculum management system that coordinates and focuses all curriculum management functions. Redesign and direct curriculum revision to ensure curriculum documents and associated district- developed assessments are of the highest quality and deeply aligned in content, context, and cognitive rigor with the TEKS and high stakes assessment s.
AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS 4 . Develop and implement a comprehensive plan for student assessment and program evaluation that requires the use of data at all levels to close the achievement gaps among subgroups and improve overall student performance. The written plan will provide feedback for decision making regarding curriculum management and program evaluation, which includes adoption, implementation, continuation, expansion, modification, or strategic abandonment. 5. Develop and implement a plan of action to address issues of equity in the district, including: student achievement disparities, access to the district curriculum, representation of subgroups in disciplinary actions and advanced courses, and funding distribution to areas of need. Ensure that all efforts to address issues of equity are regularly monitored and evaluated. 6. Develop a comprehensive professional development plan to incorporate systemic coordination, effective classroom strategies for cognitive engagement of learners, and emphasis on growth in curriculum alignment and delivery. Include a process for review of implementation and subsequent evaluation of the quality and effectiveness of both district and building professional development.
AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS 7. Establish an instructional model that clarifies curriculum delivery, and refine procedures for consistent monitoring of district instructional practices across all levels of the school district. Provide principals training in refinements to monitoring of instructional practices and the development of individual reflective practitioners. 8. Develop a comprehensive long-term facilities plan incorporating educational specifications in order to assure equitable facilities support to the district instructional program in all schools, fully functioning physical infrastructure, and safe and healthy building environments throughout the district. 9. Develop and implement a performance-based, data-driven budget development process that emphasizes cost-benefit analysis, linkage to district goals, and prioritization as the driving practices. 10. Develop and implement a system for selecting, planning, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating program interventions.
PURPOSE OF THIS IS REPORT: REVIEW BOARD RESPONSIBILITIES AND AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS AS IT IT RELATES TO THE GOVERNANCE OF TEACHING AND LEARNING Review Standard 1: • The school district demonstrates its control of resources, programs, and personnel. Review Recommendation 1: • Adopt new or revise existing board policies and administrative regulations to communicate, clarify, and expand governance expectations. Improve system and curriculum management by increased control over human resources.
STANDARD 1: : THE SCHOOL DIS ISTRICT DEMONSTRATES IT ITS CONTROL OF RESOURCES, PROGRAMS, , AND PERSONNEL What the Auditors Expected to Find: • A curriculum that is centrally defined and adopted by the Board of Trustees; • A clear set of policies that establish an operational framework for management that permits accountability; • A clear set of policies that reflect state requirements and local program goals and the necessity to use achievement data to improve school systems operations; • A functional administrative structure that facilitates the design and delivery of the district’s curriculum;
STANDARD 1: : THE SCHOOL DIS ISTRICT DEMONSTRATES IT ITS CONTROL OF RESOURCES, PROGRAMS, , AND PERSONNEL What the Auditors Expected to Find: • A direct, uninterrupted line of authority from school board/superintendent and other central office officials to principals and classroom teachers; • Organizational development efforts that are focused to improve systems effectiveness; • Documentation of school board and central office planning for the attainment of goals, objectives, and mission over time; and • A clear mechanism to define and direct change and innovation within the school system to permit maximization of its resource on priority goals, objectives, and mission.
CURRENT POLIC ICIES (E (EXHIB IBIT 1.1 .1.2 OF NIS ISD AUDIT IT) During the course of the Audit: • Auditors reviewed 219 policies, exhibits, and administrative regulations • 121 (55%) were legal policies provided by TASB and another 72 (30%) were local policies developed in-district, 26 (12%) were administrative regulations • Of the 193 legal, local policies in which the auditors reviewed, 102 (53%) have been reviewed and adopted by the district in the past two years
SUGGESTIONS • 31 Legal policies were listed for possible updates (Legal policies compile federal law, state law, and court decisions and involve NO discretionary decision-making authority by the local Board of Trustees) • 18 Local policies were listed for possible updates in 24 areas (Local policies reflect decisions made by the board of trustees to meet local needs) Sections Identified: • Basic District Foundations • Local Governance • Business and Support Services • Personnel • Instruction • Students
LOCAL POLICIES ID IDENTIFIED FOR REVIEW (C (COPIES OF F EACH POLICY ATTACHED IN IN BOARD PACKET) ● AE Local - Educational Philosophy ● DNB Local and Regulation - Performance Appraisal ● BBD Exhibit - Board Member Training of Campus Administrators ● BJA Local - Supt. Qualifications and Duties ● EFA Local - Instructional Resources/Materials ● BQ Local - Planning and Decision Making Process ● EHAA - Basic Instructional Programs- Required ● BQA Local and Regulation - Planning and Decision Instruction Making District Level ● EH Local - Curriculum Design ● BQB Local - Planning and Decision Making ● EHB Local and Regulation - Curriculum Design; Campus Level Special Programs ● CE Local - Annual Operating Budget ● EHBB Local - Special Programs- Gifted/Talented ● DC Local and Regulation - Employment Practices ● EHBD Local -Special Programs- Title I ● DN Local - Performance Appraisal ● EHDC Local - Alternative Methods for Earning Credit ● FB Local - Equal Educational Opportunities
Policy Date Adopted Next Step AE - Educational 5/21/2008 Adopted new policy Philosophy 6/21/2018 (Strategic Plan)
Policy Date Adopted Next Step BBD - Board Members - 5/9/2011 - Local Work with Board and Training and Orientation 2/5/2013 - Exhibit Legal Council to determine if an updated local policy is necessary; Audit suggests a series of board study sessions around the policies that address the criteria of sound curriculum management
Policy Date Adopted Next Step BJA - Superintendent - 11/7/2006 Work with Board and Qualifications and Legal Council to Duties determine if an updated local policy is necessary; Create local policy that calls for the all administrative regulations be up to date
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