Once again, we want to thank all of the parents who took the time to complete the SMOS Parent Survey at the end of last school year. As one of our action items in the infographic suggests – please continue to do so, as the information we glean from these surveys is really invaluable for the Administration and School Board to gauge levels of satisfaction with the School, and more importantly, identify areas for improvement.
Some facts about the survey population:
- 242 students are represented (out of a total of 444).
- 20% of those students are students of color (49 / 242).
- 60 middle school students were represented, making up 25% of the sample.
Three main themes come through the data as key takeaways from this survey:
1. Once again, overall people are pretty satisfied with St. Margaret of Scotland School.
We heard things like…
- I am satisfied with the overall responsiveness and accessibility of my child’s teachers
- My child is growing in their spiritual awareness and practice of faith
- My child’s teachers really seem to care about them
- My child is shown respect throughout the school day by adults.
It was noted that families are significantly happy with some of the things that make SMOS School unique – not just the academics, but things like Music Arts, Catholic Faith Formation, and Library.
2. Despite overall satisfaction, there are key areas where there is significant room for growth and improvement – two items that truly stand out are:
Middle School: The experience for middle school students was reported as significantly lower across every category, as opposed to students in other grades. Parents want an academically challenging, yet well-balanced environment, for their middle school students:
- Over half, 56%, mentioned high school preparation was one of their top two goals.
- Approximately one-third, 37%, mentioned study skills / learning-how-to-learn and becoming independent and self-motivated learners as a goal.
- Almost another third, 30%, mentioned character-building and social and emotional growth as a goal for the middle school years.
Safety: Safety issues are still a top priority on everyone’s minds – especially concerns about the school’s ability to navigate through safety challenges in our school community. There was recognition that safety issues are part of a wider societal issue, but still, there is an expectation that SMOS continues to be prepared and support families & students as issues arise.
3. Notwithstanding challenges in recent years, the SMOS Community has come back strong.
Feelings expressed by parents included things like…
- My family feels welcome here.
- My family is connected to a caring community.
Inclusion, Diversity, & Equity
One last item of note, in regards to Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity questions – The experience for students of color, again, for the third year in a row, was reported as no different than other students. However, there was high agreement that teachers should receive training to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion in the school, and information was collected on how to improve teaching about systemic racism and how to increase inclusion.
WHAT’S NEXT? Besides continuing to take the survey, be sure to share these results – talk about them with other school parents, and if you are inspired to get involved, please reach out to the School Board at schoolboard@stmargaretstl.org.
Please see the letter from Mr. Holley (below) regarding end of the year survey results.
