Explain the activities in which your school will participate to increase your overall rating. Include specific details.

As evidenced in the SES Band Data, which content area(s) will be the focus for improving student achievement and why was this area chosen?

Dania Elementary's Florida Standards Assessment results shows 53% of the third-grade students are proficient, 41% of the fourth graders are proficient, and 49% of the fifth grade students are proficient in the English Language Arts standards. In math, 54% of third grade are proficient, 66% for the fourth graders and 78% of the fifth graders are proficient in the Math Florida Standards. By analyzing the most recent FSA data, the content area that will be our focus for improving student achievement for the 2018-2019 school year is English Language Arts (ELA) Classroom teachers analyzed previous FSA data fo determine to learn targets and goals. Professional Learning Communities (PLC),  have been implemented based on those goals.  A professional development plan has been initiated, based on FSA Standards, to implement the use of grade level IFC (instructional Focus Calendar) which was designed based on student needs. This allowed grade level teams to follow a scope and sequence to effectively research, discuss, and plan instruction throughout PLC Meetings. Classroom teachers have created SMART goals focusing on student achievement in ELA.  iReady diagnostics will be administered to all students and each student will utilize iReady on a daily basis to meet goals based on their individual needs. BAS will be administered quarterly to monitor the growth of individual students, classes and grade level. Adjustments in-class instruction will be determined by the results of assessments. BSA administered in January will also assist teachers in focusing and reteaching areas of weakness based on results.

What specific BEST Practice(s) will be implemented or scaled-up to improve teaching and learning in order to increase performance within the SES Band?

The BEST Practice Dania Elementary will use to scale-up and improve teaching and learning in order to increase performance within the SES Band is an Embedded high-quality RTI Process. The goal or purpose of this best practice is use student academic and/or behavior information to better identify students with learning or behavior needs in order to give students the necessary supportive interventions that will maximize their full potential and learning.
Teachers will receive training through PD (Professional Development) on the utilization and implementation of targeted interventions. 

Describe in detail how the BEST Practice(s) will be scaled-up.

The BEST Practice Dania Elementary will use to scale-up and improve teaching and learning in order to increase performance within the SES Band is to follow a Comprehensive MTSS/RTI/CPST Action Plan that focuses on making the MTSS/RTI/CPST process better by making sure all classroom teachers understand the logistics of the MTSS Framework, the purpose of the framework, how the framework will be utilized at Hollywood Central, and creating a RTI/MTSS Stakeholders Quarterly Survey to ensure the process is working effectively. 

What specific school-level progress monitoring data is collected and how often?

Dania Elementary specific school-level progress monitoring data is collected at the district and school level through the BASIS 3.0 Data System in order to track student's progress toward the district goals. At the elementary level, the computer adaptive STAR Early Literacy assessment is administered to all kindergarten students to identify early literacy skills during the first 30 instructional school days. This data is automatically uploaded in the Progress Monitoring and Reporting Network (PMRN) where it is used as baseline data to inform early literacy strengths and weaknesses. Kindergarten students are also administered Letter Names, Letter Sounds, and Concepts of Print assessments quarterly for additional literacy progress monitoring. 

In addition, classroom teachers also administer the Benchmark Assessment System (BAS) to diagnose and monitor students’ progress towards meeting grade-level reading proficiency in grades K-3 and for struggling readers (scoring a level 1 or 2 on FSA) in grades 4-5. Classroom teachers in grades K-5 administer the Benchmark Assessment System (BAS) to determine the students' independent, instructional, and frustration reading levels where the data is inputted into BASIS 3.0 three (3) assessment periods per year.

Moreover, English Language Learners (ELL) participate in the same progress monitoring assessments in grades K-12. The Idea Proficiency Test (IPT) is administered to ELL's to monitor English Language proficiency. The English Language Learner (ELL) data is transferred to a software platform system called ELLevation. This assessment is administered to ELL students quarterly. 

Students with disabilities also participate in the same progress monitoring assessments as their peers in grades K-12. 
Students who have significant cognitive disabilities also participate in Access Points aligned to grade-level Florida Standards. The students' progress is measured through curriculum-based assessments. This data is updated into EasyIEP and communicated to parents thoroughly.

Students also will participate in I-Ready diagnostic assessments three times a year. The data will be tracked and recorded in order to progress monitor their progress. 

How does the school ensure the fidelity of students not progressing towards school and district goals?

Dania Elementary ensures the fidelity of students not progressing towards the school and district goals by conducting weekly informal or formal classroom observations to ensure classroom instruction is fully aligned to the Florida Standards. The Strategic Initiative Management (SIMs) document is a rubric and a tool used to effectively increase the development of high-quality lessons and units of study that is aligned to the Florida Standards. As administration and the Leadership Team collects observtional data, the goal of this data is to identify which classroom teachers would benefit from attending professional development courses in order to support high-quality instruction that will lead to an increase of effective best practices and student academic achievement.

 

How does the school ensure that all classroom instruction is accessible to the full range of learners using Universal Designs for Learning (UDL) for effective instructional design (planning) and delivery (teaching)?

Dania Elementary ensures that all classroom instruction is accessible to the full range of learners using Universal Designs for Learning (UDL) for effective instructional design (planning) and delivery (teaching) by incorporating the Broward County's District Literacy Field Guide for educators to use the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) for instructional planning and delivery to increase meaningful access and reduce barriers to learning for all students with a variety of learning needs or learning styles. Dania Elementary also ensures core and supplemental resources meets universal design principles that provides three important components: multiple means of action and expression, multiple means of presentation and usability, and multiple means of engagement.




 

How does the school ensure Tier 1 Standards-Based classroom instruction is being implemented properly and effectively?

To ensure Tier 1 instruction is being implemented properly, teachers will plan all lessons with the State standards at the core. Teachers will make sure the content of their lessons work towards the rigor of the standard. During PLC meetings, teachers will review lessons, student work, and assessment data to ensure the work students are producing is at the correct level of the standard.

Describe texts used for core, supplemental, and intervention programs at each grade level. How does the school ensure students have access to a balance of literary and informational text in a variety of mediums?

Dania Elementary ensures our students have access to a balance of literary and informational text through a process of curriculum review. The Reading coach will assess the curriculum needs of our school and then purchase the needed materials with budgetary funds. The texts used for our core instruction comes from Title 1 Scholastic books for small group reading in ELA and Social Studies. In addition to using texts from core, supplemental, and intervention programs, Dania Elementary will ensure students have access to informational text for each content area in a variety of mediums by organizing a Scholastic Reading Leveled Library also including Journeys, HMH so that teachers can select appropriately leveled text for students to read in small guided groups. When selecting books, teachers must consider the following information: the selection must be on the students' instructional level, the selection must be interesting to the student, and the selection must fit within the students' reading teaching targets. 

Please complete this section based on 2018-2019 end-of-year results.
Instructional Implications: Discuss the success of specific strategies/activities and provide a rationale as to why those academic improvements occurred as a result of those strategies.

Dania Elementary was successfully able to maintain our school grade of an A as a result of our careful planning and implementation of our school improvement plan. Our efforts in the area of data analysis, PLCs and teacher development has led to an increase in the targeted literacy areas. Our school demonstrated improvement in our overall ELA achievement from 54%- 59% but our ELA learning gains and the lowest 25% gains did drop 6 points for learning gains and 17 for our lower quartile students. Our math achievement increased from 72%-76%. Our math learning gains increased from 85%- 87% but our lower quartile math decreased from 74%- 72%. We will continue to reinforce our areas of achievement, and double our efforts to target the lower quartile students.