There are PTAs in all public elementary, junior and senior high schools in the commonwealth, but some parents and education officials believe there is a need for a cohesive and single agenda to ensure the success of the fifth element of the school system’s Strategic Priority PLUS ONE agenda.
“We want to work with PSS. We want to be the arm of the students to the Public School System,” said John Sablan, the president of the council during last week’s meeting with Education Commissioner Rita A. Sablan.
“Parent Involvement and Community Partnership” is one of the five priorities for PSS, and under the Strategic PRIORITY PLUS ONE, the PSS leadership and the Board of Education consider parents and the community as “advocates of student-classroom learning” that must be given focus.
“We are making parent involvement and community partnership with our students our priority,” Education Commissioner Sablan pointed out, saying that the school system is also “inviting other groups and organizations” as part of PSS leadership’s ongoing efforts at expanding partnership with the various sectors in the community.
She added, “I am very pleased with the interest that this group is showing.”
In a leadership meeting scheduled for yesterday, Education Commissioner Sablan presented the PSS-PTA Leadership Council initial plan which priorities two areas of student learning: 1) administration/leadership, and 2) infrastructure.
PTA council president Sablan said infrastructure and administration are paramount among other school/student-related issues.
Students can be motivated if there is a supportive school administration and improved infrastructure, he added.
With the July, 2011 deadline for all PSS teaching and non-teaching staff to be highly qualified — by passing both Praxis I and II — and the ongoing improvement in SAT 10 and SBA performance of all students, PSS said its hard work continues to pay off.
For school year 2008-2009, SAT 10 results showed significant increase in overall student performances for grades 6 and 11.
The public schools are performing above the adequately yearly progress target line by 2 percent, PSS said.
The Standards Based Assessment Results measure the improvement in the core content knowledge and skills of students in mathematics, reading, writing, science, and social students, including the Chamorro and Carolinian Language Heritage Studies.
As of Jan. 2010, 71 percent or 403 teachers were already highly qualified.
Among the other personnel, 69 percent of 431 have passed Praxis.
The greater cooperation between the PSS leadership and the PTA Leadership Council is essential to sustain the students’ learning environment, according to council president Sablan.
GTC Elementary School principal Charlotte Camacho noted a 25 percent increase in parental and community participation among public elementary schools.
She said the increase among public junior and senior high schools was even more impressive — 155 percent.
For the council, the challenge remains in getting everyone on board.
“We have to indoctrinate our parents to take advantage with our public schools’ programs and the availability of resources to enable our children to learn more,” PTA Council president Sablan said.
