Portsmouth+HS

(Portsmouth High School)

Portsmouth High School looks to be a very great school to attend from its demographics to its academic success. The building and location appear to show class and wealth along with a beautiful place of learning. Similar to the whole school district in Portsmouth, this high school is well supported and well funded by families and the community. As a result, Portsmouth High has highly qualified teachers and scores well on standardized tests. Attendance and graduation rates and students feeling safe are all good compared to the state. Students respect and enjoy their experience at the school and like the appearance of the school building.

Portsmouth High School is a public school located in Portsmouth, RI. Portsmouth is located on the Aquidneck Island, is surrounded by water and boarders Newport and Middletown. There are approximately 1020 students accompanied by 96 teachers. Located on 120 Education Lane, Portsmouth High School's motto is, " // The mission of Portsmouth High School is to be an ever-improving, respectful community where all students are challenged as individuals to develop intellectual curiosities and to use immense bodies of knowledge proficiently as they learn to value the past, thrive in the present and prepare for the future." //Portsmouth High's homepage has a list of upcoming events including homecoming and spirit week, this shows that the students and teachers are involved and take pride in the school. This high school is located north of the center of Portsmouth, close to both 138 and 24. Portsmouth High school does not have a large amount of diversity, most of the students are white and non-Hispanics. There is just about equal amounts of boys and girls. (Rhode Island Department of Education, 2009) (RIDE SurveyWorks, 2009)[1]
 * __Demographics__**

Portsmouth High School is meeting and exceeding all of its standards that it had hoped to accomplish. With nine areas being evaluated and nine being met, Portsmouth High is right where it wants to be. Not only are the AYP scores being met, they are above the target scores and above both district and state levels. AYP tests test on Math, Reading and Writing for grades 3-8 and 11. The SAT scores are above state and nationwide levels in all three categories. Students tend to agree that some, if not most teachers are there to help, support and challenge them in classes. Students feel that some teachers are inspirational and care about them which helps them want to do better in school. Many students feel the expectation to go to college after high school and have guidance counselors to talk to that help them achieve this goal or whatever goal they have. According to the majority of this information, Portsmouth High School students get a sufficient amount of support from teachers and the schools faculty. Students have strong but reasonable expectations that they can and will reach if they take the right steps to their personal goals. (RIDE SurveyWorks, 2009) (RIDE, 2009)
 * __ Student Achievement __**

Teachers in Portsmouth are expected to be involved in their students' academic lives and academic futures. Students tend to agree that their teachers are available to push them, help them and move them forward in life. These are important aspects in schooling because students need to understand that what they do now will have an impact but they also need the support/ helping hand that teachers are expected to provide. Also from the chart, there are no teachers at Portsmouth High school that are not highly qualified for their positions compared to the state having 3% of its teachers that are not qualified. By a small margin, Portsmouth High has a better teacher to student ratio than the state, 10-1 compared to 11-1. Teacher-student ratio is a very important statistic because is shows how possible it is for students to seek and get any help they need. Portsmouth High seems to have the right amount of staff to give more than enough support to its student community. (RIDE SurveyWorks, 2009) (RIDE, 2009)
 * __Teaching__**

Family support of the school and education go hand-in-hand in Portsmouth. Family and other community supporters seem to be in abundance for students. Family and community members have a deep connection to the kids and most kids will agree or strongly agree that there are people who will help them graduate high school and move on to college. This support has a tremendous impact on a community as a whole. The students at Portsmouth High have high expectations, in terms of academics, and have all the necessary tools to keep them advancing. The Stability Index compared to the state is very good, 91% to 85%. Many students are also very active outside of school which helps create a more balanced person as a whole. Students play sports or are active in other after-school extracurricular activities as well as employed. Having the privilege of a balanced academic and social life is a tremendous part of a good future. Students at Portsmouth High have a lot to do and have much support in accomplishing what they need and want to accomplish. (RIDE SurveyWorks, 2009) (RIDE, 2009)
 * __Family Support__**

Portsmouth High School seems to be a safe and quiet school. There are very few incidents compared to the state which must have an impact on the high attendance rates which are 95%. Graduation rates are also affected by attendance and incidents. If a school has a safe and tranquil setting, students will attend school more consistently which promotes a better learning community. Graduation rates were 85.6% in 2010 which is a much better amount compared to the states graduation rate at 75.8%. The student reported information and statistics did not give a great overview of reasons why kids skip or who skips how often because so few students answered the survey questions. The questions were only directed to students who had skipped class. Kids feel safe in the hallways, bathrooms and while walking to school for the most part. Over 50% of students agree that when an emergency bell is sounded, it is cause for alarm. This shows that the school does not have many kids pulling alarms and maintains a learning safe zone where punishment for offenses is taken seriously. Unfortunately, like many schools, Portsmouth has bullying; cyber, physical and social. Around one-fifth of the student body has reported some sort of bullying in school. Bullying is an on-going issue in all schools in Rhode Island and America. (RIDE, 2009) (RIDE SurveyWorks, 2009)
 * __Safety__**

The building, inside and out is generally viewed as physically appealing to the majority of its students. With a median family income of over $68,000 Portsmouth students have enough financial support to be provided with essential supplies and other important utensils. Portsmouth High has an ample amount of computers and computer usage for its classes compared to the state of Rhode Island. Portsmouth High uses computers for a substantial amount of time in all types of classes. This school is equipped with a computer lab with functioning computers as well as printers. Textbooks are available when needed and are relatively new. Most texts are less than 10 years old according to about 50% of students. Students feel comfortable with the amount of light and the temperature in their classrooms for the most part. Obviously temperature and light has a different standard for all students. For the most part, the majority of students are pleased with the general appearances, aspects and classroom settings of Portsmouth High School. (Rhode Island Department of Education, 2009) [2] (RIDE SurveyWorks, 2009)
 * __Funding__**

Portsmouth schools have it going for them. Students and teachers are well-funded and well-supported by the family and community which helps the academic and learning atmosphere as a whole. Any student who attends Portsmouth High will be provided with a great start and a good basis for success in the future if they utilize the tremendous things the school has to offer. This community is very lucky to have so many high qualified teachers, supportive people and aspiring students. Portsmouth High has a great mix of success because of its outstanding abilities to push kids beyond expectations while not pushing them over the edge. Students graduating Portsmouth High are very lucky and privileged to go to such a well-off school.


 * 1) ^ Rhode Island Department of Education. (2009). SurveyWorks! Retrieved from []
 * 2) ^ Rhode Island Department of Education. (2009). Portsmouth High School. //InfoWorks Live!// Retrieved October 24, 2011, from []