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While most students at Ramstein High School spent the second week in April enjoying some fun in the sun for their spring break, the faculty members remained extremely busy preparing for a very important visitor, who was scheduled to come Tuesday to Thursday. It is an organization known as AdvancED who visits schools approximately every five years and evaluates how well they improve themselves.
AdvancED is the largest school improvement organization in the world and affiliates with more than 27,000 different schools.
It is necessary for the program to diligently visit every school in order to ensure that they actually accomplish everything that they say that they accomplish.
AdvancED consistently evaluates their schools according to their seven standards which are:
Standard 1: Vision & Purpose
Standard 2: Governance & Leadership
Standard 3: Teaching & Learning
Standard 4: Documenting & Using Results
Standard 5: Resources & Support Systems
Standard 6: Stakeholder Communication & Relationships
Standard 7: Commitment to Continuous Improvement
The program follows these standards and assesses how well the school measures up and offers feedback and constructive criticism as to what areas improvement is necessary. The organization needs physical evidence in order to prove that the school meets these standards. Many schools set up programs or get the students to internalize the school’s specific goals so that they help the school move in the right direction. The main goals for helping the school fit the criteria is to “improve performance in application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation … and improving performance in clarity, precision, word choice and sentence structure.”
There are also specific subgroups the school focuses on such as students who frequently receive Ds and Fs and students enrolled in the Advanced Placement program.
When asked which areas Ramstein High School hopes to improve, principal Dr. Barriet Smith replied, “We should all be looking for ways to improve student achievement overall.”
In other words, while certain students might need more attention or focus, it is important that all students receive attention and that includes training teachers and faculty for new learning techniques and providing students with more academic resources. It is also very important that every student knows the school mission statement: “Preparing independent thinkers and lifelong learners for an ever changing global society.”
It’s a phrase that practically every Ramstein High School student has the ability to say in their sleep because they hear it during the morning announcements every day.
This is not some archaic school motto however; it’s very relevant to the world that current high school students will shortly enter into. “We want individuals to be able to think critically, to understand that once they leave our educational institution, learning will not cease; it will have to continue,” said Dr. Smith. This is a very contemporary mission for a school to adopt but it is very appropriate considering our constantly evolving world that requires creative and adaptable thinkers.
The school focuses on adapting so they help each student reach their personal best. Ramstein High School expects to pass its examination with flying colors.
