The Ocean Springs School Board believes that all children can learn and is committed to high levels of achievement for all students in the district.  The following goals apply to the district's program of instruction:

ACADEMIC GOALS

• Mastery of basic skills and fundamental processes
• Acquisition of basic knowledge and skills needed to comprehend and express ideas through words, numbers and symbols
• Ability to utilize all available sources of information
• Ability to think rationally, use problem solving skills, and apply logic and skill of inquiry
• Acquisition of a general fund of knowledge, including information and concepts in mathematics, literature, natural and social sciences
• Development of positive attitudes towards intellectual activity including curiosity and a desire for further learning

VOCATIONAL GOALS

• Career and vocational educational
• Ability to select and prepare for an occupation that will be personally satisfying and suitable to one's skills and interests
• Ability to make decisions based on awareness and knowledge of career options
• Acquisition of skills and specialized knowledge that will help prepare one to become economically independent
• Positive attitudes towards work, including acceptance of the necessity of making a living and an appreciation of the social value and dignity of work

SOCIAL AND CIVIC GOALS

• Understanding and appreciation of cultures and beliefs different from one's own interpersonal understanding and self-realization
• Understanding of how members of a family function under different family patterns as well as within one own's family
• Acquisition of a knowledge of various value systems and their influence on the individual and society
• Ability to assess realistically, and live in accordance with personal potential, strengths and limitations
• Development of productive and satisfying relationships with others based on respect, trust, cooperation and caring
• Knowledge of the history and basic workings of government, economics, politics, and social systems
• Development of a commitment to be civic-minded and socially responsible in one's endeavors

MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

1.    The State Department of Education shall provide an instructional program and establish guidelines and procedures for managing such program in the public schools as part of the State Program of Educational Accountability and Assessment of Performance as prescribed in Section 37-3-46.  Public school districts may (a) elect to adopt the instructional program and management system provided by the State Department of Education; or (b) elect to adopt an instructional program and management system which meets or exceeds criteria established by the State Department of Education for such.  This provision shall begin with the courses taught in Grades K-8 which contain skills tested through the Mississippi Basic Skills Assessment Program and shall proceed through all secondary school courses mandated for graduation and all secondary school courses in the Mississippi end-of-course testing program.  Other state core objectives must be included in the district's instructional program as they are provided by the State Department of Education along with instructional practices, resources, evaluation items and management procedures.  Districts are encouraged to adapt this program and accompanying procedures to all other instructional areas.  The department shall provide that such program and guidelines, or a program and guidelines developed by a local school district which incorporates the core objectives from the curriculum structure are enforced through the performance-based accreditation system.  It is the intent of the Legislature that every effort be made to protect the instructional time in the classroom and reduce the amount of paperwork which must be completed by teachers.  The State Department of Education shall take steps to insure that school districts properly use staff development time to work on the district's instructional management plans.

2.    The State Department of Education shall provide such instructional program and management guidelines which shall require for every public school district that:

a.    All Courses taught in Grades K-8 which contain skills which are tested through the Mississippi Basic Skills Assessment Program, all secondary school courses mandated for graduation, and all courses in the end-of-course testing program shall include the State Department of Education's written list of learning objectives.

b.   The local school board must adopt the objectives that will form the core curriculum which will be systematically delivered throughout the district.

c.   The set of objectives provided by the State Department of Education must be accompanied by suggested instructional practices and resources that would help teachers organize instruction so as to promote student learning of the objectives.  Objectives added by the school district must also be accompanied by suggested instructional practices and resources that would help teachers organize instruction.  The instructional practices and resources that are identified are to be used as suggestions and not as requirements that teachers must follow.  The goal of the program is to have students to achieve the desired objective and not to limit teachers in the way they teach.

d.   Standards for student performance must be established for each core objective in the local program and those standards establish the district's definition of mastery for each objective.

e.   There shall be an annual review of student performance in the instructional program against locally established standards.  When weaknesses exist in the local instructional program, the district shall take action to improve student performance.

3.    The State Board of Education and the board of trustees of each school district shall adopt policies to limit and reduce the number and length of written reports that classroom teachers are required to prepare.

4.    This section shall not be construed to limit teachers from using their own professional skills to help students master instructional objectives, nor shall it be construed as a call for more detailed or complex lesson plans or any increase in testing at the local school district level. 

' 37-3-49 (1998)

5.    Districts meeting Level 4 or 5 accreditation standards, as defined by the State Board of Education, shall be exempted from the provisions of subsection (2) of this section.  '37-3-49 (2006)

The Mississippi Public School Accountability Standards for this policy are Standards 27, 32, and 33.

 

LEGAL REF.: MS CODE as cited

                 Mississippi Public School Accountability Standards

ADOPTED:    07/13/1976

REVISED:    03/08/1988

                09/13/1988

                01/13/1998

                03/14/2006

                12/12/2006

                12/08/2009