Blog

So, you’re tasked with leading or helping to lead the development of a new Comprehensive School Improvement Plan (CSIP) for your district. Does thinking about the work involved in developing a CSIP cause panic? Does the whole process seem overwhelming?

Developing a plan that is more than just a document on a bookshelf requires careful consideration and expertise. The process of creating a school improvement plan can be daunting, but you’re not alone in this journey.

Throughout the 2022-2023 school year, the Network for Educator Effectiveness held monthly sessions to support school leaders navigating Missouri School Improvement Program 6 (MSIP-6). During these discussions, it became evident that the most pressing concern among school districts was the construction of school improvement plans. To address this need, NEE invited panelists of school leaders to share best practices and tips for creating an effective CSIP, based on their own experiences.

In this blog post, we share the panelists’ insights and tips, which are relevant to any school district (regardless of location) in the process of developing a CSIP. These best practices offer guidance in your journey of addressing the unique needs of your students and your district through the development of your plan.

Needs Assessment

A district’s needs assessment is a critical component of any school improvement plan. It provides valuable insights into the current state of the district and helps identify areas for improvement. By conducting a thorough needs assessment, school districts can prioritize their efforts and allocate resources such as time, personnel, and funding to more effectively achieve the goals they develop.

Best Practice #1: Stakeholder Surveys

In Missouri, a survey of students, parents/community members, and faculty/staff is a required component of the school improvement process. Our panelists emphasized the importance of addressing the three required questions in each of the surveys:

1. The school system assures student voices are heard and respected.
This indicator should appear in the older student, parent, and staff surveys.

2. The school system provides school culture and climate data and reports periodically to all stakeholders.
This indicator should appear in the parent and staff surveys.

3. Educator teams address positive classroom learning environments.
This indicator should appear in the staff survey.

When developing each survey, it is recommended that districts not only address the questions above but also construct questions specifically designed to gather feedback from each group about the unique needs of their district. This feedback is often more relevant and applicable to current processes and suggestions for future planning than a survey of more general questions.

Best Practice #2: Stakeholder Public Meetings

Involving teachers, students, parents, and other stakeholders in the planning process is essential for success. Nearly every expert in our panel discussion recommended going beyond the survey requirement and holding public meetings to review the current state of the district and gather suggestions for the future.

These meetings provide an opportunity for district leaders to share information about current district activities and progress, and for stakeholders to voice their concerns and offer recommendations about district goals and focus. This input is invaluable in shaping the school improvement plan and ensuring that it is relevant and responsive to the needs of the community.

Involving stakeholders in the planning process also helps to build support for the plan and provides a more comprehensive perspective on the district’s needs and priorities. This can lead to better decision-making and a more efficient process to achieve district goals.

Writing the Improvement Plan

Best Practice #3: Integrating Stakeholder Input into the School Improvement Plan Workgroups

Once stakeholder input is collected, it is important to integrate it with other relevant district data, such as academic progress, discipline data, NEE teacher evaluation reports, and enrollment information. This comprehensive approach to data collection provides a more complete picture of the district’s strengths and challenges.

After seeing the sample CSIP template in the MSIP 6 Comprehensive Guide to the Missouri School Improvement Program, panelists recommended dividing the work of constructing goals into smaller groups of stakeholders. This approach allows for more focused goal-setting and action-planning, as well as greater engagement and ownership among stakeholders.

Each group is responsible for developing goals, associated action steps, timelines, and resources needed to achieve the goals. This collaborative approach to goal-setting and planning helps to ensure that the plan is informed by a broad range of perspectives and is responsive to the needs of the community.

Best Practice #4: CSIP is the District Growth Plan

Our panelists emphasized the significance of the improvement plan as a driving force for district practices. Based on the priorities identified through the needs assessment, the plan should contain a limited number of specific goals. To ensure its effectiveness, it is crucial for the district to consistently align all activities and initiatives with the goals and action steps outlined in the plan.

Avoiding the temptation of shifting focus to new programs and initiatives is key to achieving long-term success. Consistent hard work and perseverance are essential in addressing a well-thought-out plan. While adjustments can be made along the way, the plan’s success relies on sustained effort over time.

In addition, our panelists highlighted the importance of aligning all district and building plans with the district improvement plan. This alignment allows for a unified and efficient use of resources towards achieving district goals.

Best Practice #5: School Board Involvement

Our panelists emphasized the importance of the school board in the school improvement process. By including board members in key events and meetings, such as stakeholder public meetings, they can witness the progress and goals of the district firsthand. This also gives them a chance to engage with community members and understand their perspectives and needs.

Inviting board members to participate in work groups analyzing needs assessment data is another effective way to involve them in the improvement process. This helps them gain a deeper understanding of the district and the goals necessary for real improvement.

Maintaining regular communication with the school board is crucial to keep them informed and engaged in the improvement process. Monthly meetings, presentations, and updates that provide clear, concise, and accessible information about the progress and plans of the district will help keep the board in the know. These updates should cover various aspects of the improvement process and plan and feature information from district leaders, as well as presentations from teachers and administrators on specific goals and action steps.

Finally, aligning the actions of the school board with the school improvement plan ensures that all district decisions are made with consideration of the plan goals, thus maintaining the focus of the district. Our panelists recommended this best practice to ensure the school board’s active attention and focus on the improvement process.

Response to Standards

Best Practice #6: The Response to Standards is your opportunity to share

The district’s Response to Standards document provides an opportunity to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of the school improvement plan process and explain how schools are addressing other MSIP-6 requirements that may not be part of their improvement plan. Our panelists also emphasized that this is a valuable chance for districts to showcase all the excellent initiatives they have in place to address each prompt, even those not included in the improvement plan.

It’s easy to overlook all the systems and structures in place to support student achievement and well-being of students, as well as other district stakeholders. While meeting the requirements for each prompt, it’s also important to highlight and share what makes your district successful and unique.

Although the Response to Standards is a mandatory requirement for all Missouri public school districts, outlining the improvement process and showcasing the support structures in place is beneficial for any district or school to include as part of their improvement plan.

Plan Submission

Best Practice #7: Carefully submit and share the improvement plan

Our panelists stressed the importance of timely and proper submission of the school improvement plan. They advised close attention be paid to the submission requirements set by the state department of education, to avoid any errors during the uploading process.

In addition, it’s recommended to make the improvement plan easily accessible to the public by publishing it on the district’s website. This promotes transparency and accountability and allows anyone interested to have a clear understanding of the district’s goals, action steps, and progress towards improvement.

In conclusion, writing a school improvement plan requires careful planning, stakeholder engagement, and an unwavering commitment to improving student learning outcomes. By following these best practices and tips, public school districts can develop effective plans that will help them achieve their goals and provide students with a quality education.

Chuck Mayes is a NEE trainer and field support representative. He retired in 2020 after 30 years in K-12 public education where he served as a teacher, elementary principal, middle school principal, and for eight years as the Sikeston Chief Academic Officer/Assistant Superintendent working with curriculum, assessment, gifted education, and virtual learning.

The Network for Educator Effectiveness (NEE) is a simple yet powerful comprehensive system for educator evaluation that helps educators grow, students learn, and schools improve. Developed by preK-12 practitioners and experts at the University of Missouri, NEE brings together classroom observation, student feedback, teacher curriculum planning, and professional development as measures of effectiveness in a secure online portal designed to promote educator growth and development.