Dr.+M.H.+Sullivan+ES

= Newport School District = Dr.M.H. Sullivan Elementary School

Kaitlyn Sharkey


Dr. M.H Sullivan Elementary school has many positive and negative aspects that can either make or break the school when it is being judge. The Newport school system lacks as well as succeeds in many categories comparing to other school districts in the state of Rhode Island. Being such a big school district, Newport has 4 elementary schools, all teaching the same age groups, except one. Dr. M.H. Sullivan school, is an elementary school in the Newport school district, like the rest of the elementary schools, Dr. M.H. Sullivan teaches grades K-4. However, they also have the responsibility of teaching and molding the lives of the 3 and 4 year olds that attend their Pre-K program. Pre-K programs are there to help little kids adjust to school life and guide them along to become accustomed to the structure of schooling. Although it may be the easiest care-free years in a child's schooling, it is the most influential. Because of this, the different aspects of the community and the school itself should be as good as they can be. Many factors contribute to a child's success including, demographics and location, the achievement of the students and teachers, family, community and home life, the safety of the schools, and the funding and resources provided to the schools. Without the success of these areas, the success of the child's schooling suffers (Rhode Island Department of Education, 2010).

In this elementary school, there are different demographics regarding race and gender as well. Out of the 35 kids who answered, 40 % were boys, 42.9% were girls and 17.1 % said they would rather not answer. Compared to the entire state of Rhode Island, 50.8 % said male, 48.8% said female and 2.4 % said they would rather not answer. The gender demographics are pretty even however when looking at the race demographics, it is pretty spread out between different races. In the state of Rhode Island, 64.1% of kids are white, while only 24.2% in Dr. M.H. Sullivan school are white. The rest of the demographics include African American (36.4% in Newport and 7.3% in Rhode Island), Asian (0% in Newport and 3.7% in Rhode Island), and people with more than one race (30.3% in Newport and 12.2% in Rhode Island). Newport, RI is located on the southern portion of an island in Rhode Island.Kids should never have to worry about going to school with the possibility of not having lunch, however 88% of them do, due to poverty in their town. About 28% of the students in the school are receiving Special Education Services, however, it is unclear if that is the percentage of students who receive it because they need it or because they qualify for it. There can be many students under the radar that need the services but don't "qualify" for it due to the tests they must take to assess them. Newport is also a giant tourist place, therefore the area by the beach looks rather nice and upper class looking. However, there are many other parts of Newport that the tourists don't see, which is the area where the lower and middle class citizens live. This area is never really visited by tourists, causing them to think that Newport is one of the "rich" towns in Rhode Island, when in reality it is far from it (Rhode Island Department of Education, 2010). [1] [2]
 * DEMOGRAPHICS**

Much can be said about student achievement just by looking at the test scores given by the school as well as the accounts given by the students. Student achievement based on testing scores can only be determined from the 3rd and 4th graders because younger children are not required to take such assessments. In a chart taken from the "InfoWorks LIVE!" website, each percentage in the column labeled, "% Proficient School," meaning Dr. M. H. Sullivan Elementary School, is lower then that of the state of Rhode Island. In fact every percentage is significantly lower then the state average, which is upsetting. The 3rd grade Math scores are close to half of the proficient scores for the state itself and the 4th grade science scores are the lowest on the entire chart, even though they are not far behind the state average. The Newport school system needs to do something about these low tests scores, otherwise the children who dream of doing well in school will not stand a chance, especially without the proper teaching and help (Rhode Island Department of Education, 2010).
 * STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT**

When looking at teacher achievement, judging by the information reported by the schools and students, teaching in Newport, RI could definitely use some improving. Although the teachers are highly qualified, none of the teachers at this elementary school are Emergency certified. This statistic is very frightening to people who are looking at the statistics, especially parents who are looking to send their kids here. There is much to learn about young children and high certifications are necessary, so it is good to see that all the teachers are. In the higher grades, the teaching is not that great from the kids perspective considering that 29.4% of the students said their teachers always explain something different ways until they understand it. Higher percentages need to come out of this elementary school. Without full effort and proof that they are trying, how are kids suppose to be motivated to put effort and try in school?(Rhode Island Department of Education, 2010).
 * TEACHER ACHIEVEMENT**

From the information from the school and the information from the students, it is easily figured that the kids have a strong support system but are not well off economically. Almost all the students have a very //emotionally// supportive family life however, 88% of them qualify for subsidized lunches, due to income in the household. Overall however, the family/home life that the children in Dr. M H Sullivan Elementary School is very supportive of them. From the information reported by the students, it is evident that they have a positive family life and support system the instant they get home. Out of 32 students surveyed, 100% of them said they agree with the statement, "My parents want to know what I'm doing in school," which is a very good motivator for the kids themselves to work hard and get good grades. In addition, 90.3% of the 31 students asked said they agreed with, "My parents want to know what I'm doing in school," which is also great because they care about their child's education and schooling. Accompanying parents, their friends are a very good support system and 84.4% of 32 kids said they could talk to a good friend about their problems. With the rates the teachers gave, the parents are doing their job better and it is great to see that kids can go home and escape their school problems by having the emotional support they need from their family (Rhode Island Department of Education).
 * HOME AND FAMILY LIFE**

According to the students at Dr. M. H. Sullivan Elementary School, they usually feel safe and are safe, despite the little violence that does occur. When asked if they have been bullied at school, 62.5% out of 32 kids said yes compared to the 57% in the entire state of Rhode Island, making both more than half. In addition to those statistics, less than 25% of the kids surveyed said they were involved in a physical fight (20.7%), saw a weapon in school (22.6%) and have been robbed during school (19.4%). Out of all of those kids, 61.3% of these kids said they felt threatened when they saw strangers in the hallways, which compared to the 45% in the state, is very good. It is important that children in the age groups that attend elementary school are educated on the danger of strangers.Safety can also relate to health when dealing with drugs and alcohol in schools. This elementary school should have 0% next to every category pertaining to that, however unfortunately it isn't. Out of 32 students, 3.1% said they consumed alcohol without their parents permission (4.7% in the entire state) and 9.7% said they smoked tobacco which is more than 3 times the amount of the statewide statistic which is only 3% (Rhode Island Department of Education, 2010).
 * SAFETY**

Funding and resources are two very important categories when judging a school.The attendance rate in this Newport Elementary school is 92%, only 2% behind the entire state! That says a lot, considering that more than half of the students said they were bullied, which can sometimes lead to children not wanting to return to school in order to avoid their bullying. There were 152 incidents of suspension in the school year, compared to the 2,914 suspension rates in the entire state and is also the highest of the other elementary schools in the district. However, 152 is a lot for an entire school year, especially with kids under the age of about 11. In general, the safety of the school seems to be in good condition, especially because the children can recognize danger when they see it. When looking at the information reported by students, the funding and resources in this school see to be very good. Out of all the kids surveyed, 79.4% said that their school looked nice on the inside and 96.9% of the students said that there is enough books for everyone in their class. However, only 14.7% said they use computers in class and 67.6% said that the temperature is just right in their class only sometimes. From this information, the school has pretty good funding. The funding for the school and the information given by students seems to make it seem like the students have enough funding to get the proper resources in school. Each student generally gets their own desk and book, which is very important. The computer problem could possibly be because the teacher doesn't include it in their curriculum, not because they don't have them; it is never really specified (Rhode Island Department of Education, 2010).
 * FUNDING AND RESOURCES**

Compared to the other elementary schools in the Newport school district, Dr. M.H. Sullivan School is probably the worst one. It has to highest the rate of suspensions, and the largest percentage of children who qualify for subsidized lunch. The other elementary schools have far less then 152 suspensions and 88% qualifying for subsidized lunches. They also have close to 300 students in their school which is a lot more then the others as well as the lowest test scores in the district. Despite these statistics that the school has, all the other schools have about the same funding/resources as well as no teachers certified for emergency situations or high qualified. Although this school has its many downfalls, most of the students seem to be happy there and have a strong emotional support system at home. With more improvement, the Dr. M.H. Sullivan School could improve much of their negative characteristics.

> Rhode Island Department of Education. (2010). Dr. M.H. Sullivan Elementary School. //InfoWorks Live!// Retrieved October 31, 2011, from [] > Rhode Island Department of Education. (n.d.). SurveyWorks! Retrieved from []
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