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Thursday, June 27, 2013

We hear you!


In recognition of the importance of feedback from our parents, students and staff, the Needham Public Schools administered the NPS 2013 Survey. 2179 parents of students in grades 3-12 completed the District Survey – an impressive 52% response rate compared with less than 21% when the survey was previously administered. We combined the results of the Parent Survey with responses from 2999 Students and 511 Staff to measure progress against the District goals.

The survey allows our school district to celebrate strengths and respond to goal areas needing attention. We will engage the staff, students, School Committee, and School Councils in analyzing the survey findings for every school in depth in order to develop and support annual improvement efforts and actions steps.

As promised, we are committed to sharing the results of the survey with Needham Public Schools’ parents, students and staff. Here are some highlights of key findings for the district.

According to the survey results, parents, staff, and students believe:

-The staff and schools have high academic standards
-The staff is responsive to parent input
-Staff care about how much students learn
-Schools are safe and welcoming
-Students are not fearful of being hurt by others
-Staff work well together

The results also suggest areas to explore and consider for improvement:

-Student involvement and decision-making
-Parent understanding of and involvement in student growth and progress
-Student stress and academic pressure
-Student discipline and consequences

We especially appreciate the hundreds of open-ended, thoughtful and caring comments that clarify your experiences with Needham Public Schools. As one family wrote: “We feel so fortunate to be able to be in a school system that has an excellent staff and adequate funding. We are looking forward to the next 9 years!”

We are continuing to analyze the school-specific results and share them with the principals. In the fall, you will learn more about the action steps we are taking in response to your feedback—because we hear you!