News District Needs Assessment Survey Results

Pella Community School District Needs Assessment Survey

Each school district in Iowa conducts a district needs assessment survey every five years to help determine the direction of the school system. The Pella Community School District recently conducted an online assessment that had 823 respondents. These individuals represented high school students, K-12 parents, parents of preschool children, and the community at large. We appreciate the broad base of participation and the feedback that it has provided.

The results of the survey are graphed at this link. The graphs represent the responses from each of the categories of people taking the survey. A separate graph can be found for each question on the survey by clicking on the tabs at the bottom of the document. A summary presentation of the discussion held by the School Improvement Advisory Council may also be accessed by clicking on this presentation link.

The trends that we identified from the survey include the following:

• Nearly 100% of respondents said that Pella Schools are known for excellence
• Students felt safe and have friends they enjoy
• Many felt that students need greater development of speaking and listening skills
• Several people expressed that our students need increased global awareness
• A large majority of people stated that it was more important for students to apply information and solve problems that it was to memorize factual information

If you have questions about this data or would like additional information, feel free to contact Director of Instruction, Lowell Ernst at [email protected].