Oceanside schools announce new goals

The Oceanside School District’s goals are grouped into different core beliefs.

Courtesy Oceanside Schools

The Oceanside Board of Education revealed its district goals for the 2015-16 school year at the July 7 meeting.

“We changed the format of the goals somewhat,” said Superintendent Phyllis Harrington. “Recognizing that some of the main objectives have been the same, year after year, after year. We converted those goals into what we’re calling core beliefs.”

The 15 goals, which range from an elementary technology initiative to expanding Project Extra for All to fifth graders to bilingual kindergarten instruction, are grouped under eight core beliefs: technology, professional learning, social emotional literacy, facilities and operations, meeting needs of all learners, community outreach, communication and curriculum. Harrington said that future goals will be listed under these categories.

“We also recognize there are a number of goals that quite honestly take longer than one year to fulfill,” said Harrington. “So we would like to move forward in addressing those as what we’re calling in-progress.”

Board president Bob Transom questioned the implementation of the Project Extra for All program in the fifth grade. This program, which was instituted in the fourth grade, brings science, math and technology activities to every student regardless if they are in the Project Extra program.

Chris Van Cott, assistant superintendent for business explained that in this program a Project Extra teacher would spend one semester with each grade — the fourth graders in the fall and the fifth graders in the spring. “We are working as well to insure that the work that’s done has relevance to the topics being learned and studied in fifth grade anyway,” he said, explaining that the program will be different for fifth graders who have previously experienced Project Extra for All.

Van Cott also said the program would go back to a five day cycle so students would not repeatedly miss special classes such as art.

Henry Luft asked if the goals would address students’ organization skills. Harrington said that it had not been identified as a specific goal but teachers and principals do examine those skills and there have been conservations about it.