Transitions impacting students
Significant concerns about the number of transitions students in the Salmon Arm area experience is the driving reason for Salmon Arm school configurations to once again be under discussion. At the School District No. 83 (North Okanagan-Shuswap) Board of Education meeting on Tuesday the Board directed administration to bring forward reconfiguration options for the Salmon Arm area schools.
Superintendent of Schools Donna Kriger noted that the topic was raised in 2019-20, when the district was looking at long range facility planning as, at that point in time, projections showed that enrolment pressure necessitated change. According to new Baragar projection data, the enrolment pressures which once existed in Salmon Arm appear to have changed.
“What remains a significant concern is the number of transitions students in the Salmon Arm area must experience.” She asked that if everyone really thinks about the District’s mission, vision and strategic plan, are these the conditions we are creating for these students? Are we creating the conditions where they thrive? Are we creating the learning relationships and communities?
Kriger pointed out that what the research shows is:
- School transitions negatively impact students who are “at risk” or “”marginalized.”
- Transitions that occur in older grades correlate with higher dropout rates.
- Younger students often achieve at higher levels when they attend school with older students. Student leadership, culture, and access to curricular expertise may all be factors.
- Grade 9 is a critical year for predicting a successful graduation.
- Transitions are more impactful on student success than poor attendance.
She added in a recent Committee of the Whole meeting where this topic was under discussion, local school principals and leaders told trustees that:
- Transitions between schools disproportionately impact diverse learners and Indigenous students.
- Relationships and trust “take time” with parents and with students.
- Difficult to track a successful graduation when it involves multiple schools.
- Multi-grade schools allow for establishing safety and culture which both require time.
- Salmon Arm Secondary is #27 our of 300 plus secondary schools for highest number of graduates. Surrey currently has 29 secondary schools. “We have more graduates at SAS than many of the Surrey schools.”
She also noted that last year’s strategic planning surveys and meetings showed:
- Rightsholders – “Get to know and understand our kids. Learn about their strengths and provide them with opportunities to grow those areas.”
- Provide more opportunities to experience trades, land-based learning, academies, dual credit, etc.
- Students – “Empower us to be leaders within our school.”
- Students – “We need more opportunity to be involved in extra-curricular activities, student leadership and varied course selection.”
- Parents – “Consider the challenges for a family to have kids in so many schools.”
- Staff – “We just begin to know our kids and then they leave us.”
Secretary Treasurer Dale Culler walked trustees through a number of graphs (which can be viewed in the link below) which show the latest enrolment projections along with operating and functional capacity numbers. “We’re just looking at what’s possible. What would it look like if Salmon Arm schools were K-6 or K-7, where are pinch points, what are the challenges. We needed to get an idea of what is possible. Then we took a look at the rural elementary schools and captured that in a graph.”
Kriger said at this point they don’t want to talk about facilities, but rather about transitions and possibilities. “Is there a way to use our facilities to eliminate one or even two transitions for our students?” She emphasized that this was discussions, not decisions, and that if the Board did want to proceed it would require consultation and engagement. “We would be looking to establish a working committee and have a phased in approach.”