1. HARRINGTON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL LEXINGTON, MA PARENT SURVEY 2014-2015

2. OVERVIEW

3. 2014 – 2015 SCHOOL BASED SITE COUNCIL MEMBERS Elaine Mead Co-Chair, Principal Michelle Motta DardenoCo-Chair, Parent Representative Mona PotterCommunity Member RuchaLondheParent Representative Jen RoneyParent Representative Micah VianaParent Representative Michelle WrightFaculty Representative Vanessa Wilson Faculty Representative Kathy MartinFaculty Representative Jean KelleyFaculty Representative

4. INTRODUCTION Designed by the SBSC@Harrington to serve to: Understand current status/concerns Identify and prioritize areas of improvement Confirm areas of satisfaction and provide modeling for future initiatives Benchmark against 2011-2012 survey Response rate: 29% (103 /354 families)

5. SURVEY DEVELOPMENT Goal: to keep survey anonymous, short, targeted & with measurable, useable results Preserve some 2011-2012 questions for comparison Parent Representative with experience developing and interpreting surveys designed the survey with input of the SBSC Eight multiple choice questions plus 2 open-ended questions One survey taken per household (IP address)

6. QUESTIONS + RESULTS

7. Q1: GRADE OF CHILDREN

8. BASELINE DEMOGRAPHICS

9. Q2: TIME AT HARRINGTON?

10. BASELINE DEMOGRAPHICS

11. Q3: OVERALL SATISFACTION

13. Q4: HAWKS

15. Q5: SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PLAN (SIP)

17. Q6: SCHOOL-RELATED UNHEALTHY STRESS

19. Q7: LET’S CHAT

21. Q9: BEST MODE OF COMMUNICATION

23. OVERALL IMPRESSIONS & NEXT STEPS

24. HIGHLIGHTS No differences were found in the satisfaction ratings of the participants based on the number of years they have been a parent at Harrington. Number of years at Harrington was related to the knowledge the parents had about HAWKS and the School Improvement Plan. The longer they had been at the school, the more information they had in these areas. Number of years at Harrington was not related to stress experienced by their child and their knowledge of Let’s Chat series.

25. FACTORS THAT CAUSE STRESS (FROM RESPONDENTS’ PERSPECTIVE) FactorExamples Number of comments SocialLack of friendships, social pressures, lack of friendships6 Bullying, teasing7 AcademicCompetition, peer pressure5 Homework2 Lack of academic stimulation2 Length of day for kindergarten2 Class size1 Extra-curricularRecess4 Lack of monitoring2 Music, PE and other activities2

26. MORE ON LET’S CHAT All comments about why parents do not attend the Let’s Chat series were related to the timing of these events and/or scheduling conflicts. Topics Number of comments Academic differentiation5 Bullying5 Recess4 How can parents participate in the child’s educational experience 3 School enrollment1

27. SATISFACTION Parental satisfaction has increased from 2011 to 2014 as is evident from the mean satisfaction ratings (See figure below). In each of the five categories the means were higher in 2014, with the differences for the last two categories (communication and special needs) being statistically significant. *indicates statistically significant difference N = 103(2014) and 177(201) Higher means indicate higher satisfaction

28. REDACTED COMMENTS “Overall, very happy with how my son is progressing. I wish, though, the faculty and staff could provide more guidance and perhaps training to children for dealing with difficult classmates and intervene when there's emotionally or behaviorally challenged child.” “I love the teachers we have had and Harrington is a beautiful building. But the school is missing a sense of community because the parents, who are relied on to run by walks, help at library, run math mornings, feel unwelcome.” “Strong parent community and volunteer-ship; fantastic "special events" like Math Mornings, Family Math Night, Science Fair, Talent Show, Map Night, etc. Would be great to have school-wide, all-day, track and field sports events for all kids to attend and participate (Field Day is only 1.5 hours per grade in a single day).”

29. REDACTED COMMENTS “The anti-bullying campaign has addressed physical bullying - and may have made life better for boys, but has entirely failed to address the much more subtle forms of bullying employed by girls (exclusion, facetious or backhanded compliments with an attitude that delivers a very unfriendly message, general cattiness). In fact, these forms of bullying have flourished, and grown, so that the undercurrent of the behavior is more negative and insidious, and the best of the bullying moves is for the true aggressor to accuse the target of bullying them when they do not get their way or when the target resounds negatively to their continued harassment. The teachers seem to be completely oblivious to these behaviors.”

30. REDACTED COMMENTS “We are so pleased with the effort the faculty and staff make to create a real sense of community, belonging, and emotional safety for all children. Great work! If there were one thing we would like to see improved at the Harrington, it is the differentiation of instruction in the area of mathematics. The first grade mathematics curriculum is far too easy for our son, and for some others in the class as well. And there is no "math morning" for 1st graders--the regular classroom instruction is all they get. The differentiation of instruction in both reading and writing at the Harrington is fantastic-- each child works at his/her own level. But we have not found this to be true with math, and as a result, children with more advanced math skills are languishing, and their skills are not improving. I would think that implementing some differentiation in mathematics would really help with school improvement plan goal #1, which is increasing academic achievement.”

31. REDACTED COMMENTS “ We wish that the leadership would be a bit more emotionally embracing of kids. > Leadership needs to provide direction at this age, and role model good behavior... but they also need to be warm and caring. We find that human element to be missing, and are also fully aware that we are not alone in this sentiment. When feedback is given (and it has) - to the leadership - nothing is done with it. We are professionals too, and work in environments where we understand there is not only one way to see things. When trying to work it like a team approach, we find that the leadership is not coming to the table fully well realizing that we too are accomplished professionals, and actually might have options/solutions that are fair to consider (not necessarily act on, but just consider). There needs to be more of a "team" approach between leadership and the parents of children who are Harrington students. >”

32. DISCUSSION + NEXT STEPS