Survey Data Reveals School Strengths And Weaknesses

Nov. 22, 2002

Damascus students praise their teachers and feel they receive a quality education, but many do not care about each other or take pride in their school, according to the results of climate survey data obtained by the Observer.

Last spring, students at each school across the county bubbled in their responses to questions regarding school climate, ranging from teacher effectiveness to building cleanliness. The data demonstrates DHS strengths and indicates areas where improvement could be made. The information was analyzed by principals and summarized for staff before the beginning of the school year.

Teachers seem to get good grades from their students on the survey questions. 85.2% of Damascus students feel that their teachers are "well-prepared to teach." 82.6% agree that teachers help them when they do not understand a subject. 91.5% agree that teachers expect them to do well in class. On the other hand, 72.6% of DHS students feel that their teachers respect students -- 1.7% below the county average.

82.6% of DHS students agreed with the statement that "my teachers help me when I don't understand." DHS scored 2% above the county average on this question, and several others in the "Support of Student Learning" category. "My teachers help me when I want to learn more about a subject," 77.3% of Damascus students said, compared to 73.5% county-wide.

Damascus received particularly high marks on several questions. Damascus students were 5% more likely than other students to agree with the statement that "I often work together with other students on class activities or assignments." DHS students scored 6 points above the average on "I know where to go in my school to get help with my homework assignments." And students at DHS feel that teachers respect their ideas -- 77.3% say that "teachers listen to my ideas" (4.9% above average) and 74.5% agree that "my teachers encourage me to share my ideas in class" (4.2% above average). Students also had high marks for school-parent relationships and citizenry.

While many of the survey results demonstrate school successes, several of the survey question responses demonstrate room for improvement. Damascus students are 10.4% less likely than an average county student to agree that "good grades are important to students in this school,’ for example.

Several of the questions shed light on typical high school shortcomings. 63.3% of DHS students agreed with the statement that "textbooks and other instructional materials I use are in good condition." While this is above the county average, the fact that less than 2 out of 3 students feel their textbooks are in good condition is notable. Only 53.8% of students feel that their teachers return work promptly -- again, above the county average, but again, disappointingly low.

Only 51.47% of DHS students are proud of their school, according to the survey results, versus a county average of 63.4%. Principal Mr. Domergue was surprised by the low percentage. "I think that a lot more kids are proud of their school," he stated. Part of the reason for the negative statistics may lie in the fact that the survey was disseminated only weeks after allegations of racism were aimed at several DHS students.

Damascus's most disappointing survey results come under the "Student-Student Relationships" and "Student Belongingness" categories. This is part of the reason for the implementation of the school's Core Values. Only 58.5% of Damascus students agree that "students help one another in this school," down 9.2% from the county average of 67.7%. And 52.2% feel that "students care about each other in this school," down nearly 9% from the county average.

Some of the survey results seem to contradict each other. While 91.3% of students say that "it is important to me that I do well in class," only 55.5% of DHS students believe that "students respect others who get good grades" -- 8.5% below the county average.

Along with the student survey results, the staff and parents also filled out surveys. While their responses to some of the survey questions differed, building cleanliness -- or lack thereof -- was one issue they could all agree on. "There was concern from students, parents, and staff about the physical environment being clean. That was one of the big things," Mr. Domergue explains. The new coats of paint and the power-washed staircases were an attempt to clean the building up and improve the physical climate. Another issue of agreement was behavior. The staff's survey responses indicated concern over behavior and discipline at DHS. The students seem to agree -- 32.3% of DHS students state that "students in this school behave in an orderly manner." This number is 11.8% below the county average of 44.1%.

While only 51.7% of DHS students say that they "like going to this school," 78.2% believe that they are getting a good education. And some improvement seems to student-student relationships seems to have been made. "People tell me that it's a different climate this year," Domergue says. With specific data detailing the strengths and weaknesses of Damascus, improvements can continue to be made. When students go to bubble in their responses next spring, perhaps the percentages will increase...