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Organizational Analysis Project 1

Organizational Analysis Project

Jou Jou Papailler and Chris Walker

ELFH 662: Organizational Analysis

University of Louisville


Executive Summary

Fern Creek Traditional High School set a record number for disciplinary referrals issued

in one school year, during the 2012-2013 school year. Fern Creek Traditional High School

enrolls 1,400 students and last year issued nearly 5,000 referrals last year alone on over 900

students. Following these results the administrative staff of the school set a goal to lower the

referral count by 33% by the end of the next school year.

To research the root causes, the Governor’s Commonwealth Institute for Parent

Leadership worked with the two needs assessors to develop a plan to research current and future

desirable states of the school. The needs assessment committee used archival data, surveys, and

interviews to determine the root causes for the behavioral issues at Fern Creek. The archival data

consisted of a record of the previous year’s behaviors that resulted in disciplinary referrals,

previously considered interventions, and results of cultural sensitivity training. Surveys were

issued separately to teachers and students asking questions concerning teacher-student

relationships. Interviews were developed to gain deeper contextual information for the responses

from the survey and facilitated by the needs assessment committee.

Two clear causes were determined as a lack of respect from and between both parties

(this occurrence includes the propensity toward a lack of clear communication between teachers

and students), and cultural misunderstandings. The surveys gave a clear indication that respect

was a substantial issue when students believe they get talked down to and are not being heard

while teachers believe that their image as an authority figure is consistently challenged.

Similarly, students believe that their behavior does not merit the reaction they receive and a calm

conversation would resolve most issues. This finally leads to an understanding of the second

problem dealing with cultural issues where students feel more comfortable with teachers whom


they believe they share a common bond or background. Overall, a better rapport between

students and teachers early in a school year may ease future troublesome issues for the upcoming

year.

To address these needs the committee outlined a few recommendations. First, the

organization can organize a group forum for teachers and students. At this forum students and

teachers can air their grievances while simultaneously defining what these grievances are.

Namely, the organization can define what respect means for both parties. Secondly, the group

forum can be broken down into a follow up in small groups between teachers and students. This

second group can establish a pattern for speaking to authority and how to solve behavioral issues

differently in the future. Lastly, the cultural efforts currently established in the school should be

strengthened by better representation of minority populations and sincere efforts participate from

the staff.

Pre-Assessment and Planning

Scope of Analysis

Problem: The rate of written referrals for disciplinary action at Fern Creek Traditional

High School in Louisville, Kentucky, is among the top 10% in the city. During the 2012-2013

school year; there were 4,996 discipline referrals written on 911 students (over 60% of the

student body). Fern Creek’s members of The Governor’s Commonwealth Institute for Parent

Leadership (GCIPL) have requested that an assessment be performed on those involved in

writing referrals (the teachers) and those involved in receiving referrals (the students) to

determine effective strategies which can be used to decrease the rate teachers are writing

referrals, as well as the students’ behavior attributing to the high number of referrals.


Process: The purpose of the needs assessment is to determine the “gap” between where

the referral rates “Should” be and where the referral rates are; also, the assessment will examine

possible “causes” of the referral rates and offer solutions for decreasing the number of discipline

referrals at Fern Creek Traditional High School. The team will be working closely with two

clients. GCIPL will be acting as the contact client and members of the Needs Assessment

Committee. The primary client the committee will be working with is the principal of the school,

Dr. Meyer. The committee’s goal will be to reduce the number of referrals by 1649 or 33% for

the 2014-2015. By doing so the committee should increase the amount of time a teacher gives

instruction in the classroom, while decreasing the amount of time a teacher spends on discipline,

resulting in less disciplinary referrals.

During the pre-assessment phase, GCIPL and the Needs Assessors will meet together

twice to confirm the gap and scope of the needs assessment and agree on appropriate tools for

analysis. During the assessment phase, the assessors will analyze archival data to confirm the

current status of the organization, previously utilized interventions, and previously proposed

interventions that were never fully implemented. Surveys will also be issued to students,

teachers, and security staff of the school which will include both quantitative questions and

qualitative questions. Teachers will also be interviewed by the needs assessors and members of

GCIPL following a semi-structured outline of questions. Lastly, focus groups will be held and

conducted by the needs assessors and GCIPL for both teachers and students which will follow a

semi-structured format similar to the interviews where richer data and themes will be collected.

In the post-assessment phase, the data collected will be analyzed to determine root causes for

the presenting problem. Finally, the needs assessment committee will meet to determine further

actions to take.


Overall Question: How can Fern Creek Traditional High School reduce the number of referrals

by 33% without sacrificing the quality of education?

System, Organization, Department & Workgroup

Makeup

Fern Creek High School was the first high school in Jefferson County in 1923. The

school has since grown from its class of 25 students to enroll over 1,400 students and is now one

of only three career themed schools in Jefferson County; it transformed into a traditional high

school during the mid-nineties.

Jefferson County has an entire public school system known as Jefferson County Public

Schools (JCPS). JCPS caters to over 101,000 students and 172 schools, 19 of which are high

schools. The Parent Teacher Association, which acts as stakeholders for the system of

organizations, is made up of over 41,000 members. JCPS is led by the elected Board of

Education whose mission is to provide relevant, comprehensive, quality instruction in order to

educate, prepare, and inspire students to learn. The Board of Education focuses on increased

learning, graduation rates, engagement of stakeholders, and equipping schools.

Issues

Every high school in JCPS faces the same issues and pressures as each other. Every high

school has a mission to provide quality education for students. Simultaneously, the

administrators in the organization must provide the students with a safe work environment, free

from harassment or other dangers. Expectations are set by the Board of Education which is

elected and faces pressure from voters and particularly the Parent Teacher Association. Lastly,

teachers in JCPS are unionized under the Jefferson County Teachers Association giving

bargaining power in disputes to teachers.


Orientations/Frames

Fern Creek Traditional High School operates in more than one framework and can be

viewed in any framework desired but is dominated by the structural and political frameworks.

Structural Framework: Administrators operate as managers, teachers equate to line workers,

and the clients of the organization are the students. Managers oversee teachers who deliver

academic information in the form of education to their clients. This is a dominant framework.

Human Resource Framework: The school may have a family structure with the principal as a

father figure and vice principals as mother figures. The administration tries to meet the needs of

the students which should be the need of the school organization as well.

Political Framework: At times, teachers are in conflict with others. At times, teachers are also

pitted against each other, possibly inadvertently, by the administrators. When this occurs,

teachers vie for power by putting other teachers down. Teachers talk about administrators and

other teachers when they are not around. This is a dominant framework.


Symbolic Framework: School Spirit through pep rallies, Alma Mater, Fight Songs, and Colors.

Opportunities to Reframe

The human resource framework could be utilized more by moving away from the needs

of the organization as a whole to focus more effort on the needs of the teachers and staff but also

the needs of the students. When teachers are engaged and satisfied, their job performance should

increase, the need should be aligned. Motivation may also be strengthened through the

empowerment of symbols such as mascots.

Stakeholders

As previously identified, the primary client with whom the committee will be working is

the principal of the school, Dr. Meyer, because the principal of the school owns the perceived

behavioral problem from students. However, ultimately the group most affected by the lack of

quality service is the students who operate with a level one need. The level two target group of

the assessment is the teachers who must provide a quality service.

Memo/Statement of AgreementSee Appendix

Analysis Tools

Data Gathering Approaches

Four tools were chosen to complete the needs assessment, however, three were fully

utilized and the fourth is recommended as a follow-up project after the completion of this

assessment when more time is available.

Archival Data

To gain a deeper understanding of the current state of Fern Creek Traditional High

School, the needs assessors reviewed the previous year’s records of all the behavioral incidents

that resulted in a disciplinary referral. Then a table was devised to assess the disciplinary


procedures employed by the teachers and staff. This table was used to isolate the incidents,

which resulted in a disciplinary referral in the 2012-2013 school year.

Other pieces of archival data contained plans the school has already made to improve the

school for better preparation of students for college, better displays of diversity, and integration

of technology into the classroom of the next 90 days.

Survey

Surveys were important to the assessment in order to reach as many participants as

possible. Even though quantitative data was not as high a priority as qualitative, a survey was

still a useful tool to get opinions and information from as many students and teachers as possible

within the allotted timeframe due to the inability to interview as many people from the school.

Therefore, the needs assessors designed a survey that included both quantitative and qualitative

questions. Two different surveys were designed to target students and teachers, separately. Due

to the small number of security personnel they responded to the survey designed for teachers

with the understanding of rewording one or two questions.

Interviews

Interviews were a great tool to get contextual information for teachers. The staff at Fern

Creek Traditional High School was aware of the problem of the high disciplinary referral count

and those members of the staff who were willing to be interviewed had insightful opinions on the

matter. From the interviews, the needs assessment committee/the evaluation team was able to

obtain thoughts, feelings, and opinions from the service providers themselves. The two

individuals willing to participate in interviews were from two extremes in both referral count

issues as well as years of experience teaching. The interviews lasted approximately one hour and

were semi-structured. If the participant felt uncomfortable, they were not pressured to answer.


Focus Groups (later date)

While the initial work plan included time to gather and interview focus groups for both

teachers and students, the time required was greater than initially estimated. When attempting to

interview minors, parental permission is necessary and not easily obtained. Ideally, the focus

groups would have built on the information gathered through surveys and interviews to develop

new questions that probed deeper for contextual information concerning the disconnection

between teachers and students. Students who could not communicate their opinions on paper

would be given the opportunity to voice their opinions to a focus group facilitator (potentially,

the needs assessors or other members of the needs assessment committee).

The needs assessors recommend, although we could not complete the process, that the

organization facilitates a focus group with students when a larger timeframe is available in order

to gather more complete data.

Data Gathering ToolsSee Appendix

Work Plan/Timeline:

Pre-assessment meeting #1: 2/8

Pre-assessment meeting #2: 2/26

Surveys: Through the week of 3/17

Interviews: Through the week of 3/24

Focus Group Meetings: Incomplete

Collection and Analysis of Data: To be completed by 4/8

Final Report Delivered: 4/22


Findings

Data Summaries

Survey Background

Surveys were administered to 130 students during the same week. The intent of the

surveys was to determine the cause of the disproportionate referral rates between African

American students and their Caucasian peers. Three teachers were given the same basic

instructions and then asked to deliver the surveys at their leisure during the week. Due to

incomplete demographic answers, some surveys were discarded. In total, 116 surveys were used

for our study with a return rate of 89%. The evaluation team comprised of GCIPL and the Needs

Assessors developed the survey. To ensure reliability, the teachers were randomly chosen and

the classroom makeup was not pre-determined. Likert scales were used to help ensure internal

validity. At the end of the week, students picked up the referrals from the teachers and delivered

them to one of the members of the evaluation team.

Survey Results

The charts, which follow, reveal that, for the most part, students who participated in the

survey did not feel they were treated any differently by a teacher, regardless of gender or ethnic

background. However, there was an apparent deviation in their answers when questioned about

their feelings of comfort or being corrected by someone not of their background. In both cases,

they expressed uneasiness.


Female

teach

ers iss

ue more

referr

als th

an m

ales

Teach

ers fr

om my g

ender

treat

me bett

er

I feel

more comforta

ble around te

achers

of my g

ender

I resp

ond to co

rrecti

on better

from so

meone o

f my g

ender

A teach

er of m

y back

ground tre

ated m

e bett

er

I feel

more comforta

ble with

a tea

cher fro

m my b

ackgro

und

I resp

ond to co

rrecti

on better

from so

meone o

f my b

ackgro

und0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

Total Student ResponseAv

erag

e St

reng

th o

f Agr

eem

ent

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly Agree

28

59

21

4

Female teachers gave less referrals than male teachers.

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly Agree

29

63

16

3

A teacher of my gender treated me better


Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly Agree

20

63

25

5

A teacher of my background treated me better

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly Agree

21

58

24

6

I feel more comfortable around teachers of my gender

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly Agree

20

56

30

3

I respond to correction better with someone of my gender

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly Agree

17

45

40

9

I feel more comfortable around teachers of my background


7%

36%

9%

39%

9%

Percentage of Students Agreeing with Background Comfort

Asian Black Latino White Other

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Scatterplot of African American Student Responses

Total Surveyed: 31

Repo

rted

Str

engt

h of

Com

fort

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Agree

Strongly Agree

16

46

36

9

I respond better to correction to someone of my background


Sample Responses from Student Survey Open-Ended Questions

Do you feel there’s a way a teacher could speak to you that would change the amount of

referrals given?

“Show respect toward students. Give them simple directions rather than arguing”

“Yes, I think the teacher should speak [to] us and go over what we did wrong”

“Yeah, pull me out in the hallway”

“…not write a referral for stupid things”

“Maybe speak calm and not getting smart (catching an attitude)”

“Yes, I think if we were spoken to like humans than [sic] we would respond positively”

There would be less referrals at Fern Creek if the teachers would…

“Pull them to the side or tell them to stand outside the door till they’re ready to come back in”

“Hear students out”

“Calm down. Not everything is so serious”

“Not give them for stupid reasons”

“Lighten up on dress code”

“Understand the students more”

“Talk to the student as an equal and not degrade them”

“Not be so quick to write them”

“Talk it out instead of getting mad and don’t bring their bad attitude from another class into their

current one”

“Be respectful towards students and ensure that students are learning”

There would be less referrals at Fern Creek if the students would…

“Stop being rude and actually do their work”


“Respect their teachers and do what they tell them”

“Learn how to behave and not create problems”

“Stop beating on each other and being so damn RUDE. They need to grow up and stop acting 5

years old!!!”

“Listen, respect, do work!”

“Not be idiots”

“Shut up! And if they wouldn’t get so offensive [sic] when teachers try to talk to them”

“Look at the reasons behind the rules”

“Stop being disrespectful and grow up. Stop skipping, arguing, and fighting”

Sample Responses From Teacher Survey Open-Ended Questions

Do you feel there’s a way a student could speak to you that would change the amount of

referrals given?

“I feel that if students knew there would be a consequence to their actions (other than taking [sic]

with them and calling parents), they would behave differently”

“If students were calmer, less confrontational”

“Yes-respectful language and desire to have a conversation as opposed to going off on me or a

classmate”

“Just speaking/be more respectful in general”

“Never hurts to be polite and respectful”

“If students were less confrontational and knew how to talk and trust authority figures, the world

would be a happy place”


“Get to know the students on a deeper level”


“Be more patient”

“Be consistent in their discipline and [have and express] clear expectations”

“Not sweat the small stuff-let little annoyance go”

“Be more patient/more understanding/focus less on themselves”


“Comply w/rules set in place”

“Learn to be respectful toward adults and rules”

“Think before they speak and react/act!”

“Respond to behavioral corrections appropriately!”

“Learn to interact with teachers and better choices”

Sample Responses from Security Staff Survey Open-Ended Questions

Do you feel there’s a way a student could speak to you that would change the amount of referrals given?

“Yes, having them listen to advice. Removing them from the situation to allow them to explain

their behavior”

“Treat me with respect”


“Not escalated [sic] situations”

“More close knitted [sic] events. Bring something that students enjoy to the school, something

routinely. Allow students to participate versus preaching…”


“Have parents that are supportive, caring, and participatory”

“Respect each other and adults”

“Listen, open up. Have at least one adult to confide in. If they felt respected”


Interview Background

Interviews were performed on two teachers with referral rates from opposite extremes.

One had written 108 referrals during the 2012-2013 school year. The other had written 5. The

two interview sessions were held during the teachers’ planning periods in the same week and

lasted about an hour. The interview method was chosen to add clarity to the survey results, to

gather candid opinions, and to collect information about incidents and practices, which might

provide for emergent themes. The subject samples were chosen because of their varied degrees

in referral rates. The evaluation team comprised of GCIPL and Needs Assessors performed the

interviews. For these interviews we employed a hybrid approach, using a deductive method for

our questions, but allowing for a more inductive method, too, in which teachers were permitted

to change the subject to speak of any incident, concern, or teaching philosophy as they saw fit.

This approach proved wise because some of the emergent themes had not been found in the

surveys.

Teacher Concerns

Themes Sample Comments

Teachers Overreact “Only a few kids [per class] will [naturally] do what you want them to do”“Referrals might make students feel disconnected. For persons who get into trouble [i.e., students who are habitually written up for behavior issues], it may cause more problems”

Teachers Don’t Understand Their Students’ Culture

“ They [African American students] are more talkative in church…They talk back to the television”“When I first got here, I didn’t know urban slang…they [African American students] let their pants sag”

Students Learning Styles Differ “The American education system is set up for students with white learning styles”


Teacher Suggestions

Themes Sample Comments

Teachers Overreact “Expectations have to be realistic. Don’t take [a students with their] heads down as disrespect…Keep calm”“Talk with them one on one”“Don’t announce the referral [give it to them at the end of class, one on one]”“Allow students to talk back and deal with them later”

Teachers Don’t Understand Their Students’ Culture

“I used to look down at them because they had tattoos. Then someone told me that no one gets a tattoo to make people uncomfortable. They get tattoos because they mean something special. Now I ask them about their tattoos”“We teachers need to have a greater awareness of the cultures in our classrooms. ”“[Talking about the music students listen to and their style of dress] builds rapport”“Now I ask them how many people live with them [at their home]”

Students Learning Styles Differ “We need to allow the students to work the way they like”

Review of Records Background

Results from archival data were taken from a 2012-2013 internal audit on disciplinary

referral incidents.

Review of Records Results

Records were reviewed from data collected on 4496 behavior referrals written on 911

students. These records were from the 2012-2013 school year at Fern Creek Traditional High

School.

60+% of the student body received at least one referral


Though African American males made up 20% of the student body, they received approximately 41% of the disciplinary referrals

Of the 172 schools in the Jefferson County Public Schools System, Fern Creek ranked in the top 10% for the number of disciplinary referrals written

Analysis and Interpretation

By using the data collected from the surveys, interviews, and archival records, the

intention is to answer the question “how can Fern Creek reduce the number of referrals by 33%

without sacrificing the quality of education?” At this time, archival data, survey results and

feedback from students, teachers, and staff alike indicate that the faculty is not able to educate

the students (their clients) without administering an exorbitant number of disciplinary referrals.

Likewise, the faculty is not able to educate its students without administering a disproportionate

number of referrals to their African American male students.

At this time, the most important need is curb the number of referrals administered by the

faculty to the students. Other needs are as follows: to create an understanding of what both

teachers and students mean by the term “respect”; to determine if a student’s “comfort level” has

a causal relationship to classroom behavior; to determine if a teacher’s “comfort level” has a

causal relationship to the rate of administering disciplinary referrals; to create a forum or other

means of communication amongst the teachers, students, and staff whereby all parties can safely

communicate their needs and concerns; and, lastly, to create consistent opportunities for all

parties to interact, build rapport, and appreciate and learn about the cultures within the

organization.

Causal Analysis

The Evaluation Team had several discussions which served as the basis for the following

Cause and Consequence Analysis chart developed by the Needs Assessors.


Need/Concern Causes Consequences Correction

Difficulty

Low/Medium/High

Criticality

1-5

Referral rates need to be reduced by 33%

Teachers desire for respect, teachers overreacting, teachers lack of understanding of the cultures they teach/lack of relationship with their clients

Dissatisfied clients/students; loss of faith in the organization from their clients/students; weakened desire from their clients to cooperate, participate and learn; lost instructional time, damaged reputation/tarnished view of the organization by the public

High 5

Students feel uncomfortable

Teachers being from a different cultural (or economic) background

Students may not trust their teachers/students may have a different worldview

Medium 2

Students do not feel respected

Teachers issuing discipline in a condescending way, teachers losing their temper, teachers not listening to the students’ explanations

Students may shut down, students may not perform to their potential with that teacher

Low 5


Analysis of the data from the archives, the surveys, and the interviews suggests the

following:

The excessively high rate of referrals written and received at Fern Creek Traditional High

School remains consistent in the current school year, 2013-2014. Current data shows that the

number of referrals written during the period of the last half of the 2012-2013 school year

combined with the first half of the school year for the 2013-2014 school year actually exceeds

that of the rate from the year of study with over 5200 referrals written by the completion of this

study and over 40% of them being received by African American males (who represent 20% of

the student body population). Since there were no surveys, interviews, or any other method of

analysis done during the 2012-2013 school year, it is not possible to compare any quantitative or

qualitative archival data to the current such data.

The surveys suggest two major causes for this high rate of referrals. The major cause

seems to be a felt need for “respect” amongst the student body and the teachers, faculty, and

staff. This need is one shared by the majority of those surveyed, regardless of race, gender, or

ethnicity. The other cause seems to be cultural differences. Though racial bias was not found in

this study, racial insensitivity was self-reported by the teachers of whom about half admitted to a

lack of understanding, respect, or comfort toward the culture of their African American students.

Likewise, a greater majority of African American males admitted to experiencing discomfort,

relative to someone of their own culture when it came to comfort and receiving correction. This

organizational phenomenon may contribute to the disproportionate rate of referrals “written on”

and “received by” African American males. Of note, if the rate of referrals written on African

American males was proportional to their student population, the number of referrals would have

been less by over 1000. If each referral only required one minute to write, the students in those


classrooms would gain almost 3 days more of instruction time in a school year. To that point,

Fern Creek Traditional High School loses almost 15 days (equivalence based on a 6 hour day in

one classroom) of instruction per year to referrals at its current rate.

Like with the surveys, the interviews further confirmed the “disconnect” between

teachers and students. Both of those interviewed pointed out that teachers might overreact when

they feel disrespected. At the same time, students might shut down when they feel misunderstood

or disrespected. Both teachers also mentioned that the differences between the African American

culture and their Anglo Saxon culture, sometimes, made “reaching” African American students

more difficult than “reaching” non-African American students. Common sense suggests that it

may be more difficult to teach a student you do not or cannot reach.

Contextual Analysis

Upon analysis of all the data, the gap seems to reflect interpersonal issues more than any

other causes. Of those surveyed and interviewed, most teachers feel disrespected because the

students respond to them differently than they expect. The teachers expect the students to speak

to them as authorities. When they are not spoken to in ways the teachers feel they should be

spoken to, or if the student does not respond to their correction, they feel disrespected and are

more apt to “write up” a student. Seven out of ten of the teachers surveyed reported that they had

written up students for “disrespect” and/or “direct defiance of staff directions”. Likewise, many

students feel disrespected when teachers raise their voices or give them a directive. Forty percent

of the students surveyed mentioned that there would be less referrals if the teachers would either

speak to them with respect-not like they were a child-and/or speak to them in a calm tone (this

response was a theme that repeated more in the surveys than any other theme).


Also, of those surveyed, ethnic background and culture seems to contribute to the causes for

the gap. Out of the ten teachers surveyed, only one reported that students of her gender and

ethnic background responded better to her correction. Of note, she was the only teacher of the ten

who was African American. The rest of the ten had mixed responses. Four of the ten reported

that they felt more comfortable around students of their same background. One of the ten

teachers self-reported “neutral” as his response to the background comfort question. Similarly,

44% of all the students reported feeling more comfortable around a teacher of their background.

Only 5% of the teachers are African American, so the African American students may

experience more dissatisfaction in this instance.

Since both of these causes involve the “culture” of the entire organization population, it is

recommended that the Principal, Assistant Principals, and GCIPL create and facilitate the

following solutions:

Recommendations for Implementation of Change

There are several topics and two tactics, which should be used to address the gap/need in

its current state.

Tactics:

1. Group Forum

The school/organization is experiencing its high rate of referrals due to both its

clients/students and its service providers/teachers feeling the need to be respected by each other.

When either or neither party fails to feel respected, the referral incident problem occurs. Also,

cultural differences present an opportunity for the members of the organization to grow closer

through getting to know more about each other’s background. One might conclude that

“cultural” acceptance is actually an extension of “respect”. Therefore, both causes can be

addressed in the same forum. The forum will allow those participants of the school community


an opportunity to share their concerns, feelings, and desires to make the learning environment

more pleasant. It will also allow them a chance to begin to find common ground and break down

misunderstandings.

2. Small Groups

As a follow up to the group forum, the teachers and students can take the discussions

back into the classrooms for one or more days after the forum. Because the high rates cause the

student body to lose 15 days of instruction over the year, 1 day of this type of discussion should

actually increase the amount of instructional time over the long haul (1 day of the entire school

doing this would still be 500 minutes less than the 5000 minute average per school year spent

writing referrals. That is, at 1 minute a referral. An actual referral usually takes more time to

complete).

Topics for the Group Forum:

1. Respect-What it means to students versus the teachers

2. The purpose of school-how to get what you want from school and better your life versus

how to waste time and distract others/how being prepared for school teaches you how to

be prepared for responsibilities (family, college and/or career).

3. What are the benefits of a culturally diverse classroom? How are all of the needs

(learning styles, cultural sensitivities) of a culturally diverse population being met or how

can they be met? Have you asked the kids? How are dominant personalities punished or

rewarded in a class? How are dominant personalities seen as strengths? How can these

strengths be understood, addressed, and redirected toward learning targets? How can

dominant personalities be taught to address the needs of less dominant personalities?

How can fearlessness be rewarded and redirected? *How often do you have to ask


students to speak up? What can students learn from those who are dominant? What if

they learned how speak up from those who are dominant? Louder is just a qualifier for

volume. The connotation is a negative one, suggesting annoyance. Teach how to adjust

volume, not change the leadership quality of being dominant or assertive.

Topics for the Small Group:

1. How to respect the “position” of authority, even if you don’t respect the authority who

holds the position.

2. How to learn to teach to your clients’ cultures/learning styles.

3. What language helps you get what you want when speaking to teachers/authorities;

Creating friends versus enemies/lovers, not haters.

4. How to discipline without an attitude.

5. How to address a teacher with respect versus disrespect or stalling tactics.

6. How to speak to a student or teacher to help deescalate the situation-how to remain calm

and get the person with whom you’re talking to remain calm.

Other observations and Recommendations:

Though teachers admit they need to know their students better, there seems not to be the

time to do it with the schedule of pacing plans. Furthermore, though Creek Advisory Time

(CAT) sessions are designed, in part, for teachers to get to know their students better, the fact

that CAT teachers only have a few of their actual subject matter students in CAT makes for a


disconnect and possible barrier in establishing a close relationship. Solution: create CAT classes

as an actual extension to an established class. Even if this means the CAT class makeup will

change each trimester, this will provide for the potential of a stronger relationship amongst the

students, teachers, and peers.

Another similar effort could be project based learning opportunities. If the school’s

problem is stated authentically to students and teachers than opportunity is created for everyone

to work together to address the issue and encompasses different personality types from different

backgrounds. The diverse groups working together is provides a strong potential effort for

growth.

The Cultural Response Training (CRT) Team has no African American team members.

At least one member should represent this population, especially since this culture is the majority

of the student population.

The practice of holding a “Teacher Auction” has symbolism relating to a slave auction.

To keep with efforts to try to create a more culturally sensitive atmosphere, the name “Teacher

Auction” should be replaced by something like “Teacher for a Day”.

Though the student population is comprised of a majority of African American students,

roughly 5% of the teaching staff is African American. To address the survey results in which the

majority of African American students suggested comfort in being taught by someone with a

similar ethnicity or background, significant energy should be spent to recruit and hire African

American teachers as vacancies develop.

Support cultural events, for example, the Rap Battle. By attending this type of event,

teachers will learn more about the culture and the students will feel that their culture is

appreciated at the school.


References

About Us. (2014, January 30). Jefferson County Public Schools. Retrieved April 20, 2014, from

http://www.jefferson.k12.ky.us/About/About.html

History. (n.d.). Fern Creek Traditional High School. Retrieved April 20, 2014, from

http://www.jefferson.k12.ky.us/Schools/High/Ferncreek/history.html

Montgomery Township Schools 1110 Organizational Chart. (2009, August 14). Docstoc.com.

Retrieved April 20, 2014, from

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/9864764/MONTGOMERY-TOWNSHIP-SCHOOLS-

1110-Organizational-Chart


Appendix

MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT

THIS AGREEMENT is made and entered into this the ______day of _____________ 2014, by and between Jou Jou Papailler and Christopher Walker (known henceforth as the consultants) and The Organization of Fern Creek Traditional High School and its Administrative Representatives (known henceforth as the client) under the terms and conditions herein set forth:

(a). WHEREAS, “The Consultants” and “The Client” have a shared responsibility of creating a Needs Assessment designed to decrease the number of discipline referrals at Fern Creek Traditional High School by 33% (from 4,496-in the school year 2012-2013-to 3,347-for the year 2014-2015);

NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and the mutual agreements and representations made herein, it is agreed as follows:

1. “The Consultants” agree to “Pre-Assess” the issue “The Client” has requested to be addressed and resolved. During the “Pre-Assessment”, “The Consultants” will do the following: A). Set up a Management Plan for the Needs Assessment, B). Define the general purpose of the Needs Assessment, and C). Identify the major need areas and/or issues, D). Identify existing


information regarding need areas (this includes deciding upon data collection sources, methods, and potential uses). The “Pre-Assessment” will be done by February 26th, 2014.

2. “The Consultants” agree to do an “Assessment” of the aforementioned issue. During the “Assessment”, “The Consultants” will do the following: A). Determine the context, scope, and boundaries of the Needs Assessment, B). Gather data on needs, C). Set priorities for the needs, D). Perform a “Casual Analysis”, and E). Analyze and synthesize all of the data. “The Assessment” will be done by March 28th, 2014.

3. “The Consultants” agree to do a “Post-Assessment” of the aforementioned issue. During the “Post-Assessment”, “The Consultants” will do the following: A). Set level need in priority (1-3). B). Consider alternate solutions, C). Develop an “Action Plan” to implement the solutions. C). Evaluate the Needs Assessment, and D). Communicate the results. “The Post-Assessment” will be completed by April 20th, 2014.

4. “The Consultants” agree to share concerns, important findings which require immediate attention and problems which require immediate assistance (ones which may prevent completion of any of the Assessment phases or ones which may make results invalid or unreliable).

5. “The Client” agrees to elect/choose or assist “The Consultants” in electing/choosing a Needs Assessment Committee (NAC). The NAC will assist “The Consultants” in every phase of the Assessment (from the Pre-Assessment through the Post-Assessment).

6. “The Client” agrees to facilitate in the process of data gathering by either directing “The Consultants” to other administrators, teachers, and staff who have access to necessary information, or by participating in interviews and/or focus groups. 7. “The Client”/Fern Creek Traditional High School agrees to allow the NAC to act in its behalf when schedules do not permit its participation.

8. “The Client” agrees to dedicate all necessary and applicable resources (including in-kind, monetary, and staff) for school improvement toward the facilitation of the Needs Assessment.

9. “The Client” agrees to assist the staff in implementing all the suggested and approved solutions upon completion.

This contract serves as a non-binding contract upon signature by both parties.

Both parties agree to hold the other party and its assigns or agents harmless from any psychological damage or monetary rewards in the event an “act of God (e.g., a national disaster, natural disaster, or death)” prevents the assessment from being performed or completed.

Additional Details to follow as needed/if needed in a subsequent contract.

Consultant Rep. Client Rep.


______________________ ______________________


School Improvement Survey-Students

This survey is for Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors who attended Fern Creek Traditional High School for the entirety of the 2012-2013 school year (the previous school year). This is your chance to voice your opinions about the "referral system" at Fern Creek.

Please DO NOT WRITE YOUR NAME anywhere on this survey; the results will be kept anonymous.

Please use "pen" or "pencil" to answer the following:

Background Information (Circle your answer)Current Class/School Year

Sophomore

Junior Senior

Race/Ethnicity Asian Black Latino White Native American

Other:_______________

Gender Female Male

1. Did you receive a referral for discipline during the 2012-2013 school year (last year) at Fern Creek?

Yes

No

2. How many times were you "written up" for a referral at Fern Creek last year?

3. What did the teacher write you up for? Use the list and circle or underline for as many as you can remember.

Arguing Profanity (about a teacher, but not to a teacher)

Inappropriate sexual behavior

Backtalk Bullying Leaving school groundsBeing Disrespectful Destroying property Sustained disruption of the

classroom/school settingNon-violent threats Fighting Drug/Alcohol possessionNot Following instructions Striking or spitting at staff Terroristic threateningProfanity toward a student Direct defiance of staff

directionsDress Code/Dress Code Related

Other Reason (Explain):_____________________________________________________________________

4. Do you feel there's a way a teacher could speak to you that would change the amount of referrals you would get? If so, please explain. *Use the back if necessary.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. Think about the number of referrals written in your classes last school year and put a check mark by or circle one of the following. I feel that there were...

Not enough referrals written

The right amount of referrals written

Too many referrals written


6. Put a check mark by or circle one of the following. I feel teachers treated me differently than others because of...

The way I talk

The way I dress

The way I look

Other Reason

Teachers HAVE NOT treated me differently from any other student

Please explain your answer here:______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7. Evaluate the following statements. Put a check mark by your choice.

Strongly Disagree

Disagree Agree Strongly Agree

In general last year, I saw female teachers give less referrals than male teachers.In general last year, a teacher of my gender (male or female) treated me better than one who wasn’t of my gender.I feel more comfortable around teachers of my gender.I respond to correction and discipline better with someone of my gender.In general last year, a teacher of my same (or similar) background or ethnicity treated me better than one who wasn’t of my same background.I feel more comfortable around teachers of my same (or similar) background.I respond better to correction and discipline to someone of my same (or similar) background.

8. What do you think needs to happen amongst students and teachers to reduce the amount of referrals? Complete the following:

There would be less referrals at Fern Creek if the teachers would… ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________There would be less referrals at Fern Creek if the students would… ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


School Improvement Survey-Teachers & Security

This survey is for teachers who taught at Fern Creek Traditional High School for the entirety of the 2012-2013 school year (the previous school year). This is your chance to voice your opinions about the "referral system" at Fern Creek.

Please DO NOT WRITE YOUR NAME anywhere on this survey (unless you are open to a follow-up, focus group designed for intervention); the results will be kept anonymous.

Please use "pen" or "pencil" to answer the following:

Background Information (Circle your answer)Years Teaching at FCTHS/Total Years Teaching

Years at FCTHS ______

Total Years Teaching_______

Race/Ethnicity Asian Black Latino White Native American

Other:_______________

Gender Female Male

1. Did you write a referral for discipline during the 2012-2013 school year (last year) at Fern Creek?

Yes

No

2. How many times did you write a referral at Fern Creek last year? Do your best to remember. You can “guesstimate” by approximating how many you wrote per week or month.

TotalOR

Per WeekOR

Per Month

3. What did you “write up” students for? Use the list and circle or underline for as many as you can remember.

Arguing Profanity (about a teacher, but not to a teacher)

Inappropriate sexual behavior

Backtalk Bullying Leaving school groundsBeing Disrespectful Destroying property Sustained disruption of the

classroom/school settingNon-violent threats Fighting Drug/Alcohol possessionNot Following instructions Striking or spitting at staff Terroristic threateningProfanity toward a student Direct defiance of staff

directionsDress Code/Dress Code Related

Other Reason (Explain):_____________________________________________________________________

4. Do you feel there's a way students could have spoken to you that would have changed the amount of referrals you would have given? If so, please explain. *Use the back if necessary.


______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. Think about the number of referrals you wrote in your classes last school year and put a check mark by or circle one of the following. I feel that there were...

Not enough referrals written

The right amount of referrals written

Too many referrals written

6. There were a considerable amount of referrals “written on” African American males. Please be as candid as possible in explaining why you think that occurred.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

*Would you participate in a focus group to help address this issue?

Yes = Name ______________________________________________

No

7. Evaluate the following statements. Put a check mark by your choice.

Strongly Disagree

Disagree Agree Strongly Agree

In general last year, I gave more referrals to males than females.In general last year, a student of my gender (male or female) treated me with more respect than one who wasn’t of my gender.I feel more comfortable around students of my gender.Students of my gender respond to correction and discipline better than those who are not of my gender.In general last year, a student of my same (or similar) background or ethnicity responded to my correction better than one who wasn’t of my same background.I feel more comfortable around students of my same (or similar) background.

8. What do you think needs to happen amongst the student body (all populations) and teachers to both reduce the amount of referrals? Complete the following:

There would be less referrals at Fern Creek if the teachers would… ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________There would be less referrals at Fern Creek if the students would… ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Semi-Structured Questions for Interviews

1. How many years of experience do you?

2. How long have you been teaching at Fern Creek?

3. What subject do you teach?

4. What do you believe makes a model student?

5. What makes a model teacher?

6. What behaviors are deserving of a referral?

7. What negative behaviors in students are inappropriate but do not deserve a referral? Do other teachers believe this?

8. What other actions can be taken to restore order to a classroom without the need for a referral?

9. Why do you believe students act in a disruptive manner that merits a referral?

10. How does culture and background fit into a student’s behavior?

11. What do you believe would be the repercussions if this school issued less referrals?

12. Describe a time in which you knew a referral was entirely necessary?

13. Describe a time in which you may have wished you handled an incident with a student differently.


Potential Questions for a Focus Group (Mixed: Students and Teachers)

1. What makes a model student?

2. What makes a model teacher?

3. Why do you believe teachers write referrals? Do you believe they’re necessary for quality education?

4. What behaviors deserved to be punished with a referral?

5. How do you think other schools in this district handle disciplinary measures?

6. If a student were disrupting a classroom, how would you handle it?

7. How does an outside life affect disciplinary actions in a classroom?

8. If you could only talk to a student/teacher one-on-one to discuss behaviors, what would you say?

9. How can a student and teacher connect with one another?

10. What changes would you most like to see in this school?

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