Analysis of School Policies

Analysis of schoolhouse PoliciesIntroductionAssignment cardinal is to f all told over several policies in an existing school insurance insurance manual and to analyze for each one evaluating its efficacy. The school chosen for this assignment is Miami Shores Presbyterian perform School (MSPCS) located in Miami Shores, Florida. MSPCS is a small religious based school for educatees age eight weeks to fifth billet anatomy and provides families an affordable option for an outstanding academic and social-emotional program.Created in 1966 as a p bents morning out program, MSPCS was, and is, nearly known for its small community and amiable environment. The p bents morning out program transitioned into a preschool program during the 1970s. In 1999 the church added a kindergarten assort to their preschool program. Beginning in 2003 the school began to add one grade each year until finishing with the 5th-grade. In 2008 MSPCS had its first 5th-grade commencement. In July 2013 the sch ool leased a spic-and-span sea captain, and a year later he hired a new preschool director. The school began develop a rigorous academic program. With an increased effort on providing students with a quality school experience and the hiring of new teachers with proper certification/credentials, the school is now seeing the benefits of the trans changeion. indemnity Making ProceduresThe Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School foreign mission, appointed by the Miami Shores Presbyterian Church Session members, governs MSPCS. The School Commission has a roach of specific by-laws, which clearly outline the role of the commission versus the school (Wirth). The insurance manual is intended to provide guidelines and directives from the School Commission to the victor regarding general policies, processes, and guiding beliefs of the School. As such, the document contains critical propoundation for executing management plans and processes necessary to meeting and maintaining the schoo l purposes stated in the Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School Bylaws.Policies outlined in the MSPCS Policy Manual whitethorn be altered, amended, newly established, or repealed by a two- terces majority vote of the Commission at some(prenominal) regular or special meeting, providing that such changes be proposed and presented to the Commission in writing at a previously scheduled commission meeting at least two weeks prior(prenominal). The Headmaster whitethorn create interim policies when necessary, and the indemnity lead remain in effect until which clock time the Commission acts to establish aeonian insurance on the given matter. in that respect ar six overarching sections in the MSPCS Policy Manual. They are academic and program lineal, finance, health and safety, parents, personal and School Commission, and students. For the purpose of this assignment, analyzing one constitution in each section would prove to be beneficial to gathering full insight into the creation , purpose, and efficacy of the schools manual.Challenge of Materials Policy Academic and gentility SectionObjectives To establish a insurance that divine services Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School to respect the convictions of parents and teachers in various academic subject areas, while at the same time maintaining our goal of instruct all subjects in the light of a comprehensive Christian worldview.Scope This policy applies to all literary materials used at Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School.Definitions Objective Materials A subject which Christian families and churches commonly consider divisive, whether or not the introduction of the topic was planned by the teacher or brought up by a student. Examples include Environmentalism, the War Between the States, old earth/young earth, partisan politics, etc.Guidelines The MSPC School Commission has the final authority in retaining or excluding a book from the collection. Any definition of objectionable material needs to keep our target readers in mind. The library exists to meet the needs of chief(a) students. Materials that might be deemed inappropriate for younger readers give not be omitted on that basis.Parents/Guardians that feel a book contains offensive material should follow the adjacent grades to address the issueBring the book in question to a Teacher, Media Specialist or Administrator. The Administrator or Media Specialist will review the book and determine if the offensive material is egregiously and indefensibly objectionable.If the material is not found to be egregiously and indefensibly objectionable, the book shall be returned to the collection. If the material is found to be objectionable, the book will be taken out of circulation.The Challenge of Materials Policy is an original policy from the prior administration, there is no reference number, and the creation date and author are unknown. The policy is designed to address a parent who questions a book or material that the sc hool and the Commission deem to be appropriate. In 1986, in reply to questions from librarians facing book or material challenges, the Intellectual Freedom Committee (IFC) established a list of definitions to explain vocabulary related to challenges (Merola). The overbear for the IFC was to recommend such steps as may be necessary to safeguard the rights of library users, libraries, and librarians, in accordance with the first amendment to the United States Constitution and the depository library Bill of Rights as adopted by the ALA Council (Klipsch). The significant step of defining terms that are universal provides library faculty with an appropriate and consistent oral communication when sufficeing to a complaint. With this understanding, to date, the MSPCS Challenge Material Policy has not been confronted or questioned. Therefore, no revision is necessary to this policy. Although the policy addresses adult concerns, it ultimately affects the students delinquent to the poten tial of removing course session material and media from their library choices. extend Hours Policy Finance SectionObjective To set guidelines for volunteering requirements of families with children who attend the elementary school of Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School.Scope This policy applies to all families with children who participate in the elementary school of Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School.Guidelines Parents or guardians of elementary school students must complete a minimum of 20 family hours of volunteer benefit per year. It is the sole responsibility of parents to sign-in and out on the volunteer card/sheet and to verify the card/sheet is validated by an MSPC or MSPCS staff representative. Volunteer hours that are not completed by April 30th will be charged the appreciate of $25.00 per hour to the familys account.The Volunteer Hours Policy is an original policy from the prior administration, there is no reference number, and the creation date and author ar e unknown. Establishing a policy for mandatory volunteerism theoretically helps give the school and their initiatives to meet the mission. This policy addresses apparent shortcomings or lack of desire for families to be inject involved with their childs education and other school matters.There is currently legislation in California and pop in regards to parent volunteerism. In both instances, the legislation protects families that are required to volunteer at their childs school from their employer who may not allow the time off. As recently as January 01, 2016, California expanded upon the Family School Partnership Act allowing, employees to take job-protected time off to find, enroll, or re-enroll their children in a school or with a licensed child care provider (Corcoran, 2017).The volunteer policy at MSPCS requires families to serve a minimum of twenty volunteer hours per year or pay $25 for each hour under the required minimum. A volunteer is defined by Merriam-Webster (1960) as, a person who voluntarily (proceeding from the will or from ones own choice or consent) undertakes or expresses a willingness to undertake a service. By definition, requiring volunteer hours is an oxymoron and furthermore, charging individuals for not completing the requirement could be justification for litigation. The policy is in need of elimination more than a revision. When parents understand and appreciate the significance of their support, a punitive If then policy is not necessary. When potential parents come to school, they receive the mission statement and discuss its importance with an administrator. The first part of the schools mission statement is A Christ-inspired experience. Being Christ-inspired means for an individual to broaden their sensory faculty of giving to others. As long as parents understand the importance of their participation in their childs education, there is no need of a policy requiring their presence.Evacuation, Reverse Evacuation, and sentr y duty Drills Policy wellness and Safety SectionObjective To set guidelines for Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School stakeholders in being prepared for an event when they may be in potential peril.Scope This policy applies to all Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School stakeholders.DefinitionsEvacuation The immediate and urgent movement of citizenry out of a building from the threat or veritable occurrence of a hazard.Reverse Evacuation The immediate and urgent movement of people inside the building from the threat or actual occurrence of a hazard.Lockdown A confinement of all individuals to a secure location due to a perceived or real threat.Guidelines All drills ( liquidation, puff evacuation, and lockdown) will be held on a monthly basis. During the first week of school, staff members shall take their class for a formula fire drill. Follow the evacuation map in the room using the primary route. The secondary route is overly noted, and there will be one fire drill a year when the secondary route will be utilized. The school is equipped with an intercom, fire alarm system and sprinkler system.The Evacuation, Reverse Evacuation, and Safety Drills Policy is an original policy from the prior administration with two key additions from the current administration in 2013. There is no reference number, and the creation date and author are unknown. forwards 2013, the policy only addressed evacuation drills. The drill is typical in all United States schools and is mandated by federal law. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act), which oversees Floridas business safety and health structure, requires that companies with ten or more employees grow written fire prevention and emergency exit plans, as well as practices for such an emergency for each work bottom.During 2013, the new MSPCS administration included the reverse evacuation and lockdown safety drills to the policy in fightion to the climate of to sidereal days conjunction of schools under attack by unstable or angry people. The first known instance of a reverse evacuation drill policy was aft(prenominal) the state of Kentucky tack out a school crisis planning guide, and then FEMA included the policy in their guide (Dorn). Additionally, in 2013, a lockdown drill was instituted at MSPCS. On December 14, 2012, a tragedy occurred at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, when a disturbed man went into the school and fortuity many students and several teachers. The administration understandd the potential of this occurring anywhere and why it is important to establish a policy for children and educators to understand and know what to do in this type of emergency. The Federal Government does not mandate lockdown drills. However, several states take a crap legislation in place requiring schools practice lockdowns as frequently as they practice evacuation drills.Each of the safety drills and their continued practices is essential to keeping students and educators prepared for an emergency situation. No one can tell how someone may react in an actual emergency, but having the knowledge of what to do, may decrease further stresses or even casualties. There are no plans to revise this policy, because of the eminent danger that society faces.Parental Non-Compliance Policy Parent SectionObjective To establish a set procedure for Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School administrators when parents are not in compliance with school policy or procedures.Scope This policy applies to any time administration believes parents are not in compliance with school policy or procedures.Definitions Non-Compliance Failure to act in accordance with a wish or command or inability to conform to rules or standards.Guidelines When an incident is considered sombre enough according to the schools parameters, all family members will be asked to withdraw from the school regardless of previous incidents. In most instances, the following will take placeFIR ST INCIDENT Written notification regarding the incident or offense will be sent to the family and placed in the families file. A parent or guardian may be required to attend a meeting, at school, with the Administration.SECOND INCIDENT Written notification regarding the incident or offense will be sent to the family and placed in the families file. The parent, parents, or guardian will be required to attend a meeting with the Administration. The family will be put on probation for the remainder of the school year.THIRD INCIDENT All family members will be asked to withdraw from school the following year, or if deemed appropriate, immediately.The administration has an obligation to inform the School Commission of any incident that reaches non-compliance status. In the event of family withdrawal, the School Commission has final authority to accept or reject the administrations recommendation.The Parental Non-Compliance Policy is an original policy from the prior administration along wi th a recent 2015 revision by the new administration. Included in the revised version are the three step process and the paragraph giving final authority to the School Commission. Adding both parts to the policy trains and protects the family and the administration from emotional decision making.There is no federal or state legislation on parental non-compliance at school, but many private schools do have some policy written to safeguard all parties. All members of a school community, including families, educators, students, visitors, and the administration, have the intention to work in partnership to provide the children the best experiences in their education and care. From the onset, families and staff agree at the time of acceptance or employment to acquaint themselves with and meet the terms of the schools philosophy and Code of Ethics. There are quantify when behaviors or actions go against the philosophy or code. Therefore, it is essential to have a policy and process for d ealing with such occurrences. If the administration selects families into the school community that are mission appropriate and who can abide by the schools philosophy, then this policy, in theory, would not be necessary. Unfortunately, circumstance can arise, and each party needs to be protected and valued during trying times.In the next revision, an initial step of a verbal warning may be beneficial in providing due process to the policy and may mitigate any further escalation. Currently, the first step is to write up a warning of the incident, and this does not comply with the schools fondness Community philosophy. Within the Caring School philosophy, one of the schools goals is to empower and listen to others to further understand their perspective. A talk to express the school displeasure with a parents behavior or action allows the parent to provide their point of view. Through respectful and honest conversation, the school and parents may agree on a effect without further i ncident or create hard feelings.Evaluations/Personnel File Policy Staff, Personnel, and School Commission SectionObjectives To ensure consistency of procedure and standards in all performance assessments of the staff of MSPCS.Scope This policy applies to commission paygrades of the Headmaster, the Headmasters evaluation of administrative staff, and the Directors assessments of the teaching staff.DefinitionsEvaluation A procedure for measuring a staff members performance in helping to achieve the goals and policies of MSPCS, the curriculum objectives of the school, and the notification of the guidelines and handbooks.Personnel File A file maintained by the Headmaster in the administrative office of MSPCS for all faculty and staff members of the school.General Statement Several fundamental principles underlie the MSPCS approach to supervision and evaluation. These principles are grounded in current explore that identifies effective instructional practices that maximize student lea rning and achievement. The MSPCS model for supervision and evaluation recognizes the importance of linking teacher evaluation to professional development and student learning. It also finds the value of a differentiated structure that supports teachers at varying stages of their career and experience and promotes greater teacher involvement in the evaluation process.At MSPCS we recognize the importance of the supervision, evaluation, and Professional Growth process. The MSPCS Supervision, Evaluation, PGP program incorporates supervisory options connected to personal growth in a collaborative environment.MSPCS is a professional community, which encourages feedback and coefficient of reflection as a means of promoting continuous teacher growth and repaird student achievement. Meaningful feedback comes from multiple and diverse sources and provides an opportunity for reflection which sharpens our teachers skills of self-assessment.Supervision, Evaluation, and Professional Growth is an synergistic process perceived as valuable by all involved.The MSPCS program involves assessment structures that promote an array of reflective, creative and analytic skills.In the MSPCS program, outstanding teaching is studied, sought, recognized and supported.By promoting structures that encourage professional development, a reflective school culture and research-based practices MSPCS ensures that it will remain focused on its mission, vision, and continued goal to improve student achievement.The objective of teacher supervision, evaluation, and professional learning is to increase student achievement by encouraging and supporting the professional growth of all teachers.Administrators assertionThe MSPCS Supervision, Evaluation, and Professional Growth Plan willProvide clear, concise, comprehensive teaching standards based on current research of best teaching practice.Provide a fair, clear system for teacher evaluation used on current research.Provide useful, timely feedback r elated to MSPCS teaching standards to guide professional development goals. cherish a culture of trust, mutual respect, and constructive professional dialogue, which encourages risk taking in a learning community.Refine the craft of teaching through reflection and risk-taking.Utilize data from student assessment to guide teaching practice as related to MSPCS teaching standards.Encourage teachers to chart their course for professional development. lever the diversity of teachers perspective, skills, knowledge, and practice.All MSPCS educators will haveSupport and encouragement from the Preschool Director, Headmaster and other staff members.Reviewed procedures and be informed on the supervision and evaluation format and forms.Professional development goals that incorporate one or more of the MSPCS Teaching Standards.Numerous opportunities to be observed through walkthroughs.An annual formal written remark grounded on teacher reflection and growth.Opportunities to discuss their growt h with the Preschool Director or Headmaster.Guidelines All employees will be formally evaluated at least once a year. Each director will be responsible for assessing the teachers and staff members immediately under his/her supervision. The Headmaster will be responsible for the evaluations of the directors, the accounting staff, and other support staff, and the commission will be responsible for the assessment of the Headmaster.The evaluations will be based principally on formal observations of the staff member and interviews with the staff member. Observations and opinions of third parties (parents, other staff members, individual commission members, etc.) may only be taken into account if the staff member being evaluated is given an opportunity to respond to the third partys questions/concerns raised before the finalization of the evaluation.The evaluation will be considered finalized when the staff member being evaluated and the one responsible for the evaluation both acknowledge by signature that the assessment has been discussed in detail. When the evaluation is finalized, the Headmaster will place it in that staff members personnel file. Other appropriate inclusions in the archive of staff would include letters of commendation or reprimand, as well as any responses, comments, or relevant data the staff member may wish to add.Under no conditions will a staff members personnel file be made public to other staff members, parents, or anyone external MSPCS line of authority.The file of staff may be used by an authorized representative of MSPCS to draft a letter of recommendation to a prospective employer. The file is only to be used for purposes of refreshing the memory and is not to be reproduced for the prospective employer.The Evaluations/Personnel File Policy, entirely rewritten in 2016, from the original policy that was not a policy but more of an outline of procedures. In the original policy, there was no mention of school beliefs or the purposes of t he assessment. Also, the wording in the original policy was punitive and full of if-than statements as opposed to helping an educator grow and develop their skills.Often formal evaluations cause stress to an educator, because of the plan or perception of another persons point of view placed on the individual. At MSPCS, the elimination of apprehension and the focus on individual improvement and self-reflection help create a positive experience for all parties during evaluations. Marzanos model of instructional evaluation focuses on specific strategies and how well they are working. Taken one step further, MSPCS adds a component where the teacher generates the level of specificity during a self-reflection period and a pre-observation meeting with the administrator. During the pre-observation meeting, the teacher shares the learning targets for the students and how they plan to prepare the students for the lesson. The teacher provides a skeleton overview of the sequencing and strate gies of the content of the lesson, how the students will practice or demonstrate the new content, and how students will summarize the lesson. During the meeting, the teacher selects an area they would like to improve upon and asks the administrator to assess him/her on a specific task or technique. Additionally, the teacher prescribes two or three questions that he/she would like the administrator to ask the students.During the observation, the administrator documents what is heard or seen, without opinion or judgment. He/She then moves around the room asking the prescribed questions the teacher presented to him/her during the pre-observation meeting and documents the answers the students gave to him/her.A post-observation meeting is held within a day or two to capture the momentum and to provide effective feedback. The meeting always begins with the question, On a scale of one to ten, ten being the best, what would you rate your lesson? Not one person in seven years of asking the q uestion has rated themselves a ten, which means the conversation begins with the understanding that everyone has room to improve. Much of the conversation revolves around the administrator continually asking what do you think and why do you think type questions, because the process is a self-reflection, not a judgment of being good or poor. After analyzing the data, we set goals to work on for the next observation, which may not be a formal one. The idea of the evaluation as a growth process instead of a judgment allows teachers to step back and truly look inward at their practice in a non-threatening way. There are no plans to change this policy as it has proven to be very effective.Discipline Policy Student SectionObjectives To ensure consistent scriptural see to it at Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School.Scope This policy applies to all elementary students at Miami Shores Presbyterian Church School.Definitions Discipline The practice of instructing and training people to und erstand and adhere to rules or a code of behavior.Guidelines Each class develops their student appropriate discipline guidelines. Under no circumstances is corporal penalty allowed. Staff members may not withhold the bathroom, withhold food or belittle the student.MSPCS believes that everyone has the right to experience a safe and friendly school environment. Therefore, we have expectations that students willKeep hands, feet and all objects to themselves.Show respect for adults and other students.Cooperate and show self-control at all times.Follow directions the first time without questioning.Be prepared for class each day.Be punctual and attend class each day.The school will not tolerate any of the following behaviors and may be cause for expulsionVerbal and physical fighting.Defacing or damaging school property.Theft of school or personal property.The use of profanity or name-calling.Procedures When a student violates classroom/school rules for the first time, teachers will discu ss the irreverence with the student and document the incident.In the event a student commits a second infraction, the teacher will contact the parent to discuss the issue and document the parent/teacher conference as a Step dickens Referral. A parent must be contacted for a StepTwo Referral to be completed.If a third infraction occurs, the StepThree Referral must be documented on the referral form. If the student is disrupting the class to the point where learning cannot take place in the classroom, they may be sent to speak with the Preschool Director or Headmaster.If infractions continue to occur and are hindering upon the learning process for the student and others, the student may be sent home. A follow-up meeting will happen with the Preschool Director or Headmaster when the student returns to school. This session will be reflective in nature and to set guidelines and goals for the student to meet.All missed class work due to an infraction of a rule must be completed at home and returned to the teacher when the student arrives back to school.Transgressions, including but not limited to fighting, weapons, severe disrespect, bullying, etc. will result in disciplinary action which may include dismissal from school, even for a first offense.Also, if the MSPCS staff identify, through the course of observation and discussion with parents, that a students particular behavioral issues are beyond the capacity of the program to serve them, the school reserves the right to terminate enrollment at any time.The Discipline Policy is an original policy from the prior administration, there is no reference number, and the creation date and author are unknown. All schools have a discipline policy because it is a critical element in maintaining a safe environment for students and staff. In many schools, a discipline policy states all of the things a student cannot do and what will happen if they do it.At MSPCS, the student discipline policy is more of a threat of wrangle on paper, because the current administration does not believe in sending students home as a punishment. Skiba, Shure, Middelberg, Baker (2011) offer there is no take the stand proving that discipline practices that eliminate students from classes by the punitive acts of suspensions and expulsions help to improve either student behavior or school climate. Instead of sending a student home, where they will often be unsupervised, developing an effective intervention at school is more in line with the schools Caring Community philosophy.Another part of this policy that is inaccurate is in the first line that states consistent biblical discipline. The Bibles view on discipline clearly demands that parents be responsible and diligent in spanking, but strongly prohibits physical abuse of any kind (Ingram, 2006). Further, in the MSPCS student discipline policy, it states under no circumstances is corporal punishment allowed. At MSPCS, the administration is not reinforcing the written pol icy properly, and the language in the policy is sending mixed messages to our families. An easy fix to the discrepancy is to eliminate the word biblical from the policy. However, a complete rewrite of the policy is necessary to match the schools philosophy of a Caring Community and preserving dignity for all.The Caring Community requires a positive-based discipline program where students are self-reflective and empowered while maintaining their dignity. The goal is for students to take responsibility for their actions and learn from each of their experiences. At MSPCS, the school teaches students to look inward to work towards developing intrinsic motivation, while at the same time reducing teacher-centric external motivation. The objective is to influence change in a students undesirable behavior through conversation, demonstration, and sending a consistent message. At MSPCS teachers receive training in the art of being an authoritative classroom leader. Bear (2010) states, An auth oritative teacher set high standards and hold high expectations enforce rules and standards in a firm, fair, and consistent manner and promote autonomy by encouraging students active participatio