Province Launches School Improvement Pilot Program

Eight schools in Nova Scotia will take part in a new pilot program to help create more effective schools. Education Minister Jane Purves today announced funding for the four-year pilot program that will recognize schools for achieving specific goals.

"The education system is one place where we can ensure that our students get the essential skills they need to be successful in school and in life," said Ms. Purves. "These pilot programs will allow the entire school community to work together -- focusing on, and reporting on, what makes a good school even better."

The improvement program will help schools address issues such as literacy and retention rates, physical activity and graduate success in post-secondary institutions. School advisory councils (SACs) in consultation with school staff and home and school associations will play a central role.

Ms. Purves said the program for each school will be different.

"It's about self-examination -- finding your challenges and weak spots and improving them," she said. "It might be about reducing drop-out rates. It might be about dealing with bullying. Or it might be about getting kids more physically active. It will be different for each school."

Schools will work with their SACs to develop school improvement plans in the first year. Once plans are developed an external committee, made up of administrators, teachers, and parents from another school, will evaluate the plan.

Putting the plan to work is the goal in the second and third years. The external team will monitor progress and recommend accreditation or further action to be taken by the school to meet its stated objectives.

"We know that well-designed school improvement plans, when effectively implemented, are directly related to student achievement," said Lawrence Ryan, a school improvement co- ordinator for the Chignecto Central Regional School Board. "When the whole school community participates in the process and works toward meeting specific criteria, schools improve, which improves education for students."

Once accreditation is achieved, new school improvement plans are developed and a five-year implementation cycle begins.

The participating schools are: Southdale North Woodside Elementary, École NDA in Chéticamp, Parrsboro Regional Elementary and Regional High schools, Yarmouth Consolidated Memorial High, Middleton Regional High, St. Michael Junior High in Glace Bay, Strait Area Education Recreation Centre in Port Hawkesbury and Dr. John C. Wickwire Academy in Liverpool.

The Department of Education will support the project over four years with $2,000 per school in the first year to develop school improvement plans. In the second year, the department will work with the school boards to fund the implementation of the plans with a total of $5,000 per school and $8 per student.

This initiative will ensure consistency in the implementation of school improvement plans across the province and will demonstrate the advantages of students, parents and teachers working together to improve education.