Octorara Area School District Survey

Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3

Thank you to the parents, citizens, and taxpayers who participated in the 2014 Octorara Area School District Survey, conducted by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3. I greatly value the feedback and will use the results to help identify priorities and gaps, and evaluate school climate and culture.

Octorara Area School District Survey Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3 Page 2 of 13

Survey Demographics
100% of respondents live within the District (taxpayers owning property, but not living in the District, were invited to participate) 69% of respondents have school aged children Of respondents with children (including non-school aged) o 75% have child/ren attending at least one school within the Orctorara Area School District, o 13% have children who graduated, o 4% have children attending a Charter School, o 4% have children attending a Private School, and o 4% have children not yet school age.

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ABOUT THE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT

20% Octorara has high standards for my students academic achievement. 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

The Octorara campus is safe.

Octorara is a caring and nurturing place.

As a parent/guardian, I feel welcome at the schools.

I have opportunities for involvement at the schools.

The schools look and feel like a place where learning occurs.

The school offices are well run.

School facilities are clean and well maintained.

Overall, Octorara is a good place to learn.

Percentage who Agree or Strongly Agree

Asked of parents with children attending or who attended Octorara. Octorara Area School District Survey Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3 Page 4 of 13

ABOUT THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM

20% Octorara does a good job preparing my student for college. The Octorara does a good job of teaching my student basic skills (e.g. reading). 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50% 55% 60% 65%

Octorara does a good job teaching my student life skills (e.g. responsibility).
Octorara's tests are accurate measures of my students academic performance. Octorara provides individualized instruction for my student. My students school work and homework assignments are meaningful.

Student discipline is fair.

My student has a close relationship with at least one adult at the school. Overall, I am satisfied with my students academic progress.

Percentage who Agree or Strongly Agree

Asked of parents with children attending or who attended Octorara. Octorara Area School District Survey Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3 Page 5 of 13

ABOUT THE ADMINISTRATION

Octorara's Administration deals with problems and conflicts in a fair manner.

Octorara's Administration has excellent communications skills.

Octorara's Administration is well organized.

Octorara's Administration is knowledgeable about teaching and learning methods.

Octorara's Administration keeps the school focused on academic achievement. 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

Percentage who Agree or Strongly Agree

Octorara Area School District Survey Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3 Page 6 of 13

How important is...

40
Accountability at every stage of schooling Higher expectations for all students Consumer rights in education (charter schools, virtual schools, etc)

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

Holding teachers and administrators responsible for student performance

Rigorous assessments on the fundamentals, especially math, science, reading, history and geography Data-driven instruction: computerized databases and assessment tools to give teachers access to large amounts of student data, and ability to tailor Transparency, so parents and the public can discover how the school is serving their pupils Family literacy programs, which improve the reading, language, and life skills of both parents and children from low-income families Abstinence education which teaches abstinence is the only protection that is 100% effective against out-of-wedlock pregnancies and sexually-transmitted Empowering teachers to take reasonable actions to maintain discipline and order in the classroom Tenure systems based on the last in, first out policy being replaced with a merit-based approach Merit pay for good teachers

Creating responsible budgets that represents a a commitment to both fiscal discipline and educational excellence.

Scale: 100 (Very Important) to 0 (Unimporant)

Octorara Area School District Survey Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3 Page 7 of 13

Making the Grade

Overall, what grade would you give to the Octorara Area School District? (Mandatory for All)

A: Exceeds Standards B: Meets Standards C: Approaches Standards D: Needs to Develop F: No Evidence

2% 36% 14% 43% 5%

Overall, what grade would you give to the Octorara Area School Board of Directors? (Mandatory for All)

A: Exceeds Standards B: Meets Standards C: Approaches Standards D: Needs to Develop F: No Evidence

2% 22% 19% 52% 5%

Octorara Area School District Survey Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3 Page 8 of 13

Overall, what grade would you give to Octorara's Administration? (Mandatory for All)

A: Exceeds Standards B: Meets Standards C: Approaches Standards D: Needs to Develop F: No Evidence

0% 28% 17% 47% 9%

Would you recommend Octorara to other families? (Mandatory for All)

Yes No Undecided

50% 36% 14%

Do you plan to enroll/re-enroll your child, at Octorara, next year? (88% Responded)

Yes No Undecided

45% 35% 20%

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If not, why will your child not attend Octorara next year? (45% Responded) I am not satisfied with the school Other Option Child does not want to return Child/family is moving away from the area 42% 54% 4% 0%

Other Option included 43% stating their student has graduated as the #1 answer, and 14% stating Common Core as the second most popular. What improvements need to be made at the Octorara Area School District? (Mandatory for All, could choose multiple) Better test scores More parent involvement More science Special education/needs classes Other Option More field trips Enrichment classes like art, music, and sports More classroom aids More math Organized, attractive classrooms and school grounds 41% 34% 29% 14% 36% 17% 31% 14% 19% 10%

Other Option included a large variety of answers, with the #1 most referenced issue needing improvement was Bullying at 10%. Please Note: Rounding causes some questions to be +/- a percentage point or so off 100% with some questions. Questions that allowed multiple answers will of course total more than 100%, and each question represents the percentage of total respondents. Octorara Area School District Survey Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3 Page 10 of 13

Comments
Respondents were given the opportunity to add their own comments. Comments that were off-topic or inappropriate have been omitted from the report. My personal observation over the years is that students with special needs and high achievers are rewarded with excellent education opportunities at Octorara, while average achievers tend to become invisible. Not sure exactly how to improve this tendency. Perhaps an increase in awareness that human nature interferes at times with good intentions. Otherwise, I am quite pleased with the education, the services and most of the teachers that my children had while attending Octorara. I am not real close to it, having been here only fourteen years, but it seems to me that OSD is facing a much more rapidly growing population than is PVSD. The answer to that is to give the kids from Lancaster county back to PVHS, where they really belong. I know this is hard to swallow for those parents who grew up in OSD while living in Christiana Boro, and assumed their children would do the same. But think what good to the budget cutting back the growth rate would do. This has good results for the students, too. It would, also, reduce the complexities of taxation, where there are the two rates to be dealt with, in budgeting and collection. Those of us who have grown children & facing the retirement years are worried about the ability to be able to stay in our homes or be forced to sell & move because of the high taxes we pay. As far as the teachers, why do they expect benefits that the rest of us in the workplace don't get. Like free health ins. with no co-pays/premiums.... not in this day & age. For God's sake they only work 180 days out of the year. Something has to be done to stop all the fiscal irresponsibility in the school districts & putting the burden on the taxpayers/ homeowners. I'd move out of the district in a heartbeat given the opportunity & I was born & raised here. My children have been out of school for a while now. The math department was terrible in highschool then. I cant really comment of some issues at this time since they are not in school anymore. My biggest concern is TAXES! They are too high and are forcing people out of there homes. My children didn't buy in the district because of this. My husband is retired now and the taxes keep rising. I have been to many meetings over the years and people say they are going to address the issue but why isn't anything happening. This is a very Octorara Area School District Survey Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3 Page 11 of 13

small district and the taxes are slowly killing the area. Glad to see Octorara becoming more community centered. By signing with Althouse Transporation is a huge plus to the community feel of the school district. In working with other districts, Octorara reminds me of an island and they do not want anybody on. Other school districts seem more transparent and in step with todays learning needs. They willing work with others in the community. It's not about this being a "farm school" it is about looking at what is best for your students not at what makes the administration look good at the moment. WAY TO MUCH TESTING not every child learns the same way and same speed test never allow for adjustment periods i am beyond scared for my son to start K this year he has been in the spec ed preschool for a while now but once i started hearing and reading about the common core i am beyond scared ...... The taxes paid for the "privilege" of living in the Octorara School District needs to be addressed. Most residents (who own property) don't have children attended any longer. The district has always catered to those who are in "the group", others, whether it be the children or the parents; their problems aren't addressed or taken care of. This testing crap is destroying the schools. Administrators don't have the spine to stand up to the state and whoever sets those mandates. It's costing the district more to do this than if they didn't. The kids who have special needs suffer because they won't spend money and set precedents hence giving them a quality education. They weasel out of it by spin - the parents who don't know any better accept their BS and nothing changes. Kids don't learn and everyone is frustrated, except the district. The teachers don't listen to the parents, they whine if you want a communication book, no one wants parental involvement, yet most parents know their kids best. Then at the same time the teachers whine because parents are "apathetic" and don't come to parentteacher conferences. Do you want parental involvement or not? Octorara Area School District Survey Conducted and Presented Independently by Timothy J Alexander, Octorara Area School Director Region 3 Page 12 of 13

The teachers are not generally to blame for poor student performance. I think it's a mixture of the nature of this area (being proud of being a redneck) and administrators not spending money on the right things. We are in our first year with the PLC. We found ourselves to be neutral on many issues because we have not had enough experience with the school or district. Our child enjoys attending the PLC, however the common core is a struggle and we do not support it. We wish our child had more time for social opportunities such as lunch/recess, a least a field trip or two, and more hands- on learning. There is too much time placed on testing these young children. It almost feels like a boot camp in certain ways. With our little experience, we do feel there can be a lack/delay in communication from staff with respect to certain things. On a positive note, the building and technology used in classrooms is great and most teachers are very kind and nurturing. We are satisfied but not thrilled with Octorara. We are looking at alternative options for our children for next year, although because of high taxes we most likely will have to return to public education. The children should be better served, for the taxpayers are paying deep into their wallets! A LOT of tax money for a questionable education. Overall I think the OASD does a great job. Like most things nowadays you only hear about the negative things. A great positive that I feel has gone unmentioned is Althouse Transportation. They are a great staple to the Octorara community and always have the best interest of the students and school in mind. They deal with close to 2500 students day in and day out and do a fabulous job. The school board needs to stop spending money in unnecessary things like security. Its not needed here. The administration should be versed on all they possibly can be for our children's safety .Doing the safety drills monthly that they have in place. The teachers need to be in the classrooms not at meetings .They could do that after school as needed . Some of these issues are beyond the control of Octorara, such as the state and federal testing. Not sure how you expect to measure accountability.

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