Dear Parents/Guardians:

 

As you may recall, in March of this year you were asked to complete a parent survey that would be included in the school’s Learning Environment Survey.  This survey was recently released to the school and can be viewed on the DOE website. Esther Rosa, our Parent Coordinator and I reviewed the survey and want to address a few issues on the survey.  Please note that these surveys are totally anonymous and this report is based on a general consensus (percent of answers to each question).  We take enormous pride in providing your child with an outstanding education, while ensuring a safe and nurturing environment.  Parent feedback is very important to us and we use that to guide our next steps. Below I’ve highlighted some of the main areas noted in the survey.

 

Some parents have indicated the following:

1. They are not informed about their child’s achievements.
2. They are not made aware of what their child is learning in school.
3. They are not invited to or informed about workshops, performances or events in their child’s school.
4. They are not informed about services available to their child, i.e. Tutoring services, after school services.

 

We keep current records of progress on each of our students, using a variety of tools.  These include student portfolios, conference notes and Acuity, which is an on-line data program that tracks student progress and performance. In addition, over the past few years the following measures have been taken:

 

• When a student is not meeting the standards, parents are contacted immediately and are advised as to how teacher and parents can work together to help student meet their goals.  Monthly newsletters on each grade are distributed informing parents about what is being taught in Science, Computer, Physical Education, Music and Dance.
• Our ARIS Parent Link enables parents to log in and see first hand how their child is performing.  Our P.S. 108 website informs parents of what’s going on in our school.  Notices are distributed letting parents know about upcoming events and workshops (these workshops are based on Parent Surveys sent out in September). In addition, notices are posted on all doors to ensure a parent who may not receive a notice in their child’s backpack, sees the posting.
• After school programs are provided according to student needs and budget availability.  Parents are also informed of any neighborhood tutoring services upon request.
• We’ve recently added a telephone messaging system whereby parents are informed of any event, attendance issue, etc. concerning their child.  Various modes of communication are used to ensure parents are readily informed. Parents should also note that all our class sizes are smaller than city average.

 

When reviewing the section on School Safety and Respect it appears that some parents were uncertain:

1. If their child is threatened by bullies
2. If the staff is disrespectful to students
3. If students are being threatened based on race, color, creed, etc.
4. If there is gang activity or drugs in our school

 

It’s important that parents understand these are NOT issues that exist at PS 108.  Providing a safe environment for all is paramount. The following measures are taken regarding school safety and respect:

• We believe in “Respect and the Best Appropriate Education for All.”  Parents can rest assured that we take every precaution to ensure the safety of our students, as well as, staff members. 
• If an incident occurs it is addressed immediately, whether it concerns a student or a staff member.
• Drugs and gang activity are NON EXISTENT in our school. Both staff members and students are treated with respect regardless of race, national origin or religion.  

We encourage and thank you for your input and we’ll continue to do our best and address those issues which parents feel need to be improved upon.  As always suggestions are welcomed, and we look forward to a great school year.

 

Sincerely,

 

M. Biondollilo

Principal