Point Loma Connection

February 23, 2015

SCHOOL CLIMATE
Why It Matters | What We Should Do | How To Do It

Why Does it Matter?

research shows that school climate
strongly influences students'
motivation to learn and improve
academic achievement. When school
members feel safe, valued, cared for,
respected, and engaged, learning
increases. Schools that provide
students with support to meet these
basic needs allow them to grow
socially and emotionally and avoid
problems ranging from emotional
distress to drug use to violencein
addition to helping them achieve
academically.
- CA Dept. of Education

What Contributes
to Positive School
Climate?

Student Voice
Parent Engagement
Community Partners
Learning Environment

Social-Emotional
Environment
Physical Environment

Collaboration is Key
When administrators and staff
collaborate in a strong push to foster
an environment in which learning
blooms they will decrease such
negatives as student misbehavior and
faculty grousing and create an overall
positive school culture with a
flourishing staff and students.
- Education World

From the Desk of Alyssa Black

Not Just for the Classroom

We all want our students to be safe in the classroom and excited
about learning. We create rules and routines for our students in
an eort to promote respect and positivity and success, but
school climate is much more than what teachers do within their
classrooms. Everyone that interacts with the school aects school
climate. From parent engagement to teacher interactions to the
very environment students are in all contribute to the climate.

It starts with teachers

When we ask our students to get along, be respectful, and work
collaboratively, we often forget that we are models for that

Point Loma Connection

February 23, 2015

behavior. How are we as teachers showing our students that we

are working collaboratively? How is the school sta as a whole
promoting a positive culture? What can the whole school (admin,
sta, students, and even families) be doing or working towards
together?

What can we do?

Promoting A Positive
School Climate
School-Level Practices
Student-Led activities
(assemblies, teams, clubs..)
Include parents on all
committees
invite community members to
school activities
Teach diverse curriculum with
resources that reflect students
school-led community clean-up
mentoring for new teachers

1. Identify aspects of school that are successful and promote a

positive climate
2. Encourage and reinforce continued, school-wide
implementation of the identified aspects
3. Use surveys and committees to learn what kind of
improvements are needed according to parents, teachers, and
students
4. Establish learning communities and collaboration among
teachers within grade-levels and departments to create shared
learning goals and curriculum
5. Create a behavior system that focuses on prevention before
discipline.

Classroom-Level Practices
peer-mentoring across grades
volunteer opportunities posted
transparency in curriculum for
parents, invite them to class
culture of high expectations
model positive social skills
dont ignore the teachable
moment
encourage positive behavior
and reflective attitudes
collaborative classroom set-up

Student-Level Practices
team-building opportunities
student-parent-teacher
communication (conferences?)
daily routines for socioemotional support
have students develop ideas
for creating safe, inclusive
environment
From the Desk of Alyssa Black

Point Loma Connection

February 23, 2015

Sources:
California Department of Education, Positive School Climate
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss/se/schoolclimate.asp
Is Your Schools Climate Toxic or Positive?, Education World
http://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin
/admin275.shtml
Promoting a Positive School Climate: A Resource for Schools
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/resourcedoceng.pdf

From the Desk of Alyssa Black