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Founded in 1885

NEW ENGLAND ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOLS & COLLEGES, INC.
COMMISSION ON PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS

John S. Jasinski
Principal
Narragansett Regional High School
462 Baldwinville Road
Baldwinville, MA 01436

Dear Mr. Jasinski:

The Commission on Public Secondary Schools, at its March 28-29, 2004 meeting, reviewed the evaluation report from the recent visit to Narragansett Regional High School and continued the school's accreditation in the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.

The Commission wished to commend the school on the following:

• the school's efforts to research mission statements in order to develop its own mission
• the communication of the mission statement to the entire school community via print, website, cable and student I.D. cards
• the early stages of use of the mission as a guide for procedures and policies in the school
• the linking of the expectations in the mission with the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks
• the development of rubrics aligned with the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks
• the development of the current curriculum documents
• the active involvement of almost all teachers in the writing of curriculum
• the use of data by some teachers to drive curriculum changes
• the representation of each of the academic expectations in the mission in several courses
• the teachers' incorporation of the mission and expectations into the weekly lesson planner
• the use of course expectation sheets to provide clarity for students
• the use of peer editing, modeling and reflection by some teachers to promote student self-assessment
• the support of the principal for the writing of curriculum guides as a focus for instruction
• the purchase and use of technology to improve student learning
• the supervision and evaluation process which includes pre- and post-observation meetings with
  teachers.
• the adoption of a school and district goal to establish a school-to-career program and officer
• the learning environment created by the facility

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Nevertheless, the Commission expressed concern regarding the school's adherence to the Standards on Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment of Student Learning, and Community Resources for Learning. Concerns include, but are not limited to, the following:

Curriculum

• the lack of specific ownership taken by individual content areas/departments for each of the academic expectations in the mission
• the limited opportunities for students to authentically apply knowledge and skills
• the lack integration in the curriculum which provides students opportunities to make connections across content areas
• the lack of communication to parents and students regarding the opportunities for students to extend learning beyond the normal course offerings and the school campus
• the lack of a formal process for the ongoing development, evaluation and revision of curriculum
• the lack of curricular coordination and articulation between content areas as well as with sending schools
• the limited use of assessment results to improve curriculum
• inadequate financial resources and insufficient time to evaluate and revise the curriculum
• the preponderance of technology that is at the end of its usefulness
• the elimination of courses which limits opportunities for students and increases class sizes for teachers, restricting their ability to personalize education

Instruction

• the limited use of instructional strategies which are based in "best practice" and research
• the over-emphasis on teacher-centered instructional practices which do not afford students opportunities to be actively involved in learning
• the limited opportunities for students to reflect upon their own work and to self-assess
• the limited opportunities for teachers to receive feedback from students and parents
• a professional culture that is limited in supporting reflection, planning, and new strategies
• some class sizes which are too large for personalized instruction
• the limited use of technology to support teaching and learning
• a professional development program which is limited and does not provide all teachers with the necessary skills to engage students as active learners and to involve students in higher order thinking

Assessment:

• the limited use of a variety of assessment strategies
• the lack of a formal process to use the faculty developed rubrics  to assess the extent to which students are meeting the academic expectations in the mission
• the limited understanding of how school-wide rubrics for the academic expectations in the mission can be useful to improve instruction
• the lack of professional development to support teachers in their work with rubrics and other assessment strategies
• the lack of formal opportunities for teachers to meet and discuss classroom assessment strategies and to look at student work
• the lack of performance indicators to assess the civic and social expectations

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Community Resources for Learning

• the negative impact of the elimination of four teachers due to financial constraints on programs available for students
• insufficient materials, technology, equipment, and supplies to allow for the implementation of the curriculum
• inadequate financial resources to insure the outdated textbooks are replaced
• the inability of the school to provide a sufficient quantity and quality of library materials, including current, sufficient print resources, technologies and other services and resources that are responsive to teachers' and students' needs and have resulting in underutilization of the library
• the reduction in programs that enhanced student learning due to budget cuts or change in staffing: Common Ground, Peer Mediation, SADD
• limited staff (one library/media person) serves both the middle and high school and over 800 students

Given these concerns, the Commission voted to place the school on warning for the Standards on Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment of Student Learning, and Community Resources for Learning.

The Commission requests that school officials submit a Special Progress Report by February 1, 2005, indicating how the following recommendations have been addressed:

• indicate the targeted level of acceptable accomplishment in the school-wide rubric developed for each academic expectation in the mission
• each department/course identify the academic expectations in the mission for which it has assumed some responsibility and begin to align the curriculum to such expectations
• develop and submit a copy of a formal, on-going curriculum review process that coordinates curriculum between the high school and the middle school and clearly delineates lines of responsibility
• develop and submit a plan to provide professional development activities in the areas of technology use, effective instructional approaches and authentic assessment, including the use of rubrics
• clarify the school's formal process to assess achievement by all of the academic expectations in the mission using school-wide rubrics
• develop a plan, including input from the stakeholders, to improve communication between the library and those served by the library, faculty and students, regarding materials, programs, staffing, hours, and student access to the library media center
• immediately correct the issues related to mold on the ground level of the building
• provide an update on steps taken to provide courses and staffing sufficient to ensure class sizes that enable teachers to personalize instruction
• develop and submit a five-year maintenance plan
• immediately adjust the layout of the health office to ensure safety and confidentiality
• provide hot water and improve drainage in the locker room showers
• develop a process of communication and collaboration between faculty members and administration that cultivates an atmosphere of trust and respect and that can be used as a model for future communication issues
• provide an update on the adequacy of the budget to address identified needs

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Consistent with Commission policies, the school's warning status will not be removed until the school can demonstrate that it has satisfactorily completed these and other evaluation report recommendations related to the cited Standards areas of concern.

All accredited schools must submit a required Two-Year Progress Report, which in the case of Narragansett Regional High School is due on October 1, 2005. In that report school officials should indicate the status of all recommendations in the school's evaluation report by classifying each in one of five categories: Completed, In Progress, Planned for the Future, Rejected or No Action. In addition, they should provide a brief description of the action that has been taken on each valid recommendation in the evaluation report and include anticipated dates of completion where applicable. Special care should be taken to include appropriate information to justify the Rejected or No Action status of any recommendation.

The Two-Year Progress Report should also provide detailed explanations regarding the manner in which each of the following highlighted recommendations has been addressed:

• submit a plan designed to ensure that the mission and expectations become the guiding principles in making policy and curricular decisions
• develop and implement a process for the regular review of the mission and expectations that includes members of each segment of the community
• confirm the alignment of the curriculum with the academic expectations in the mission
• implement the professional development plan created to provide information to teachers on technology use, effective instructional approaches and authentic assessment, including the use of rubrics
• develop and implement a plan to ensure that all faculty members have access to adequate technology and instructional materials
• develop a plan to increase feedback for teachers from students and parents
• implement a plan to provide for increased opportunities for faculty to engage in reflection and constructive discourse about student learning
• provide opportunities for teachers to look at student work in order to improve instruction and assessment strategies
• develop and submit a plan to ensure that each student has an adult to personalize his/her school experience
• provide examples of the increased use of assessment results, standardized and non-standardized, to inform revisions to the curriculum

The Commission congratulates the school administration and faculty for completing the first two phases of the accreditation program: the self-study and the evaluation visit. The next step will be the follow-up process during which the school will implement valid recommendations in the evaluation report. The Commission's Follow-Up Seminars should help you and your faculty develop a schedule for implementing valid recommendations. In addition, the Commission's Accreditation Handbook provides information on follow-up procedures.

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The school's warning status will be next reviewed when the Commission considers the Special Progress Report. Consistent with the Commission's follow-up procedures, the Special Progress Report should be signed by the principal and chair of the Follow-Up Committee and sent to the Commission office in duplicate by certified mail, return receipt requested.

Sincerely,

Pamela Gray Bennett

PGB/rt

cc:    Stephen Hemman, Superintendent, Narragansett Regional School District
        John Columbus, Chairman, Narragansett Regional School Committee
        Eric Forman, Chair of the Visiting Committee
        Edmund C. Higgins, Chair, Commission on Public Secondary Schools