ANNUAL REPORT TO DISTRICT PATRONS
NORRIS PUBLIC
SCHOOLS
2002-03
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Student Progress toward State
Achievement Test Results ..................................................................................................... 3
Student Progress in Grades 1-3............................................................................................
4
Student Progress in
ACT Scores ........................................................................................................................ 5
Statewide Writing Assessment. ............................................................................................ 5
Student Enrollment Figures....................................................................................................
6
Enrollment by Race .............................................................................................................. 6
Student-Teacher Ratios......................................................................................................... 6
Average Class Sizes.............................................................................................................
7
Average Daily Student Membership and
Attendance.............................................................. 7
Dropouts and Expulsions......................................................................................................
7
Graduation Rate...................................................................................................................
8
Student Mobility Rates..........................................................................................................
8
Student Poverty Rates..........................................................................................................
8
Special Education Population .............................................................................................. 9
Title I Program and Population ........................................................................................... 10
Limited English-Speaking Students ..................................................................................... 10
High Ability Learner Program ............................................................................................ 10
Advanced Placement Classes............................................................................................... 11
Number of Student Days....................................................................................................
11
Number of Staff Development and In-Service
Days ............................................................ 11
Average Teacher Salary ..................................................................................................... 11
Number of Teachers and Experience at Norris .................................................................... 12
Number of Other Personnel ............................................................................................... 12
Number of Administrative Staff ........................................................................................... 12
Professional Preparation of Staff ........................................................................................ 13
Expenditure by Program ..................................................................................................... 13
Revenue by Source ............................................................................................................. 14
Assessed Valuation and Property Value per
Student ............................................................ 14
Transportation Budget ........................................................................................................ 14
Student Transportation ....................................................................................................... 15
High School Courses .......................................................................................................... 15
Graduation Requirements ................................................................................................... 16
Follow-up Study of Graduates ........................................................................................... 16
Building Needs and Plans .................................................................................................... 17
Age of Buildings.................................................................................................................. 17
Americans with Disabilities Act ........................................................................................... 17
Distance Learning ............................................................................................................... 18
Internet Access ................................................................................................................... 18
Local Area Network ......................................................................................................... 18
School Improvement Goals and Progress ............................................................................ 18
Student Progress
toward State
The graph below indicates the average performance of Norris students in grades 4, 8, and 11 with respect to state language arts standards this past school year. There were 11 standards in grade 4, 10 standards in grade 8, and 9 standards in grade 11 that were assessed this past year. Based on the results of the assessments, students are rated as beginning, progressing, proficient, and advanced. This graph shows the overall average percent of students in each of these categories at the three grade levels.
Achievement Test
Scores
The graph below illustrates the percent of students, by grade level, who scored above the 50th percentile in the reading, language, mathematics, science, and social studies sub-tests of the Terra Nova II Achievement Test given to all students in grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 11 this past spring.
Student Progress in Grades 1 – 3
Progress was shown in the areas of reading comprehension, vocabulary and phonetic decoding in first grade this year. The number of students reading at or above grade level increased from 75 to 89 percent according to Individual Reading Inventories. The STAR reading assessment showed that 4% more students were reading at or above grade level in the spring than in the fall. Writing assessments indicated progress in writing competencies as students developed skills in writing sentences and simple stories. In mathematics, students demonstrated increased understanding of the concepts of addition and subtraction. Students also progressed in the skill areas of measurement, time and money, place value and estimation.
According to the Gates McGinitie Standardized Reading test given this spring, 79% of all second grade students were reading at or above grade level. (47% of those students were reading at the 4th grade level or above.) Second grade students take a computerized vocabulary assessment called STAR. 77% of the students scored at or above grade level on this. (On this same STAR assessment, 38% of the students scored at or above a 4th grade reading level.) In writing, students received instruction in 3 or the 6 Writing Traits of Writing. Ideas and Content, Organization, and Conventions. By the end of the year, a majority of second grade students were able to consistently use capital letters and punctuation correctly. In math, students studied addition and subtraction to 20, measurement, time and money, place value and estimation, and fractions. On an end-of-the year cumulative math test, 84% of the students scored at 80% or above.
The number of students reading at or above grade level increased from 90 to 94 percent according to Individual Reading Inventories and from 68 to 83 percent according to the STAR reading assessment at grade 3 this past year. According to the California Achievement Test this past spring 71% of Norris 3rd graders were above the 50th percentile in reading. 79% of the third grade students scored above the 50th percentile in language and 73% scored above the 50th percentile in mathematics.
Student Progress in
A core belief in the Norris Schools is that reading is the key to the universe, and that it is within our power to have at least 90% of students at each grade level reading at or above grade level. Approximately 8% of the population has legitimate learning disabilities or handicapping conditions that will hamper the ability to read. During the past four years, the staff has worked hard on standards and assessments in reading. Improved curriculum materials have been purchased at several grade levels, and summer reading “academies” have been in place in the Elementary five years including this summer.
Research indicates that it is critical for boys and girls to get off on a good start in reading. There are developmental tasks that if not mastered by the end of second grade make it difficult to catch up. Our experience would support that research evidence. Our focus on reading improvement has resulted in the most gains at the Elementary level. The percentages of students who are at or above grade level at the end of the 2002-03 school year are shown in the table below. Evaluation of students was conducted with the STAR Reading Assessment in all grades and also the Individual Reading Inventory grades 1-5.
|
Grade |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
|
IRI (fall) |
75 |
90 |
91 |
89 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
IRI (Spring) |
75 |
89 |
94 |
95 |
97 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
STAR (fall) |
|
73 |
68 |
80 |
74 |
74 |
78 |
62 |
67 |
63 |
63 |
76 |
|
STAR (Spring) |
|
77 |
83 |
89 |
74 |
76 |
67 |
65 |
72 |
84 |
75 |
NA |
ACT Scores
Approximately 60% of the 2002 graduating class took the ACT test and scored as follows compared to state and national averages. Core results are for students who completed 4 years of English and three or more years of mathematics,
Statewide Writing
Assessment
The table below illustrates
how 8th grade students at Norris scored on the Statewide Writing
Assessment this past school year. 91% of
Norris’ 8th grade students scored above the state cut score (4.33),
which is the score at which a student’s performance is considered
proficient. The average Norris score was
5.53. This was significantly higher than
the state average according the Department of Education personnel. It should also be noted that 78% of Norris 11th
grade students scored at the proficient level and a writing assessment scored
at Educational Service Unit 6 in
Student Enrollment
Figures
The enrollment figures below were compiled on the last Friday in the month of September for
each of the given years including the 2002-03 year just completed. Note that the 1997-98 year was the first for the pre-school program and the 1999-00 year was the first for the Midlands Group Home.
Enrollment by Race for
2002-03
Student-Teacher
Ratios
|
|
Ratio |
|
General Education |
1 teacher per 17.5 students |
|
Special Education |
1 teacher per 18.0 students |
|
Title I |
1 teacher per 51.0 students |
Average Class Sizes
The average class sizes for the 2002-03 school year in the table below were computed by dividing the total
number of students enrolled in each grade by the number of teachers assigned to that grade. At the
secondary level (grades 6-12), the average class sizes were computed for reading, English, mathematics,
science, and social studies classes only.
Average Daily
Membership and Attendance
The following table illustrates average number of children enrolled in given grade levels during the 2002-03 school year and the average number of children in attendance each day school was in session.
|
|
2002-03 Enrollment |
Average Daily Attendance |
|
K |
120 |
115 |
|
1 |
113 |
109 |
|
2 |
106 |
102 |
|
3 |
126 |
121 |
|
4 |
109 |
105 |
|
5 |
119 |
115 |
|
6 |
139 |
134 |
|
7 |
140 |
134 |
|
8 |
131 |
128 |
|
9 |
140 |
137 |
|
10 |
148 |
144 |
|
11 |
123 |
119 |
|
12 |
122 |
117 |
Dropouts and
Expulsions
The table below shows the number of dropouts and number of expulsions during the 2002-03 school year.
|
|
Grade 9 |
Grade 10 |
Grade 11 |
Grade 12 |
|
Number of Dropouts |
0 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
|
Number of Expulsions |
1 |
2 |
3 |
0 |
Graduation Rate
The table below shows the number of 12th grade students this past school year who graduated at Mid-term, dropped out prior to graduation, lacked the necessary credits to graduate when the time came, and those who actually graduated in May.
|
Number of 12th grade students who graduated at mid-term |
7 |
|
Number of 12th grade students who dropped out prior to graduation |
0 |
|
Number of 12th grade students who did not meet graduation requirements |
3 |
|
Number of 12th grade students who graduated during spring commencement exercises |
114 |
Student Mobility
Rates
The table below lists the total number of
students by building who moved into or out of the school district from the
beginning until the end of the 2002-03 school year.
|
|
In |
Out |
|
Elementary School |
33 |
27 |
|
Middle School |
16 |
9 |
|
High School |
34 |
33 |
The table below lists the total number of
students who, at one time or another, optioned into the Norris School District
from another school district this past school year and the total number of
students who reside in the Norris School District and optioned to another
school district during the 2002-03 year.
|
Optioned Into Norris |
Optioned Out Of Norris |
|
155 |
127 |
Student Poverty Rates
The table below indicates the number of children in each building who come from families whose income and number of family members meets federal guidelines for poverty levels.
|
|
Elementary |
Middle School |
High School |
|
Number of Children Qualifying for Free Meals |
33 |
12 |
29 |
|
Number of Children Qualifying for Reduced Price Meals |
24 |
1 |