CODE: 6010
SECTION: INSTRUCTION
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
The mission of the West Milford Board of Education is to bring together all available resources of home, school, and community in a mutual effort to guide every pupil's growth towards becoming a self-respecting individual who can effectively function politically, economically, and socially in a democratic society.
The Board believes every pupil should:
A. Develop an understanding of his/her own worth, abilities, potentialities, and limitations;
B. Acquire basic skills in obtaining information, solving problems, thinking critically, and communicating effectively;
C. Acquire a stock of basic information concerning the principles of the physical, biological, and social issues;
D. Acquire an understanding of ethical principles and values and the ability to apply them to his/her own life;
E. Acquire the knowledge, skills, and understanding that permit him/her to play a satisfying and responsible role as both producer and consumer;
F. Become an effective and responsible contributor to the decision-making processes of the political and other institutions of the community, state, country, and world;
G. Acquire the ability and the desire to express himself/herself creatively and to appreciate the aesthetic expressions of other people;
H. Acquire entry-level job skills and, also, to acquire knowledge necessary for further education;
I. Acquire an understanding of and the ability to form responsible relations with a wide range of people, including but not limited to those with social and cultural characteristics different from his/her own;
J. Acquire the knowledge, habits, and attitudes that promote personal and public health, both physical and mental;
K. Acquire the capacities for playing satisfying and responsible roles in family life;
L. Learn to enjoy the process of learning and to acquire the skills necessary for a lifetime of continuous learning and adaptation to change.
In order to achieve these broad educational goals, the Board will endeavor to provide:
A. Instruction in study skills necessary to achieve mastery of subject matter;
B. Specialized and individualized kinds of educational experiences to meet the needs of each pupil;
C. Instruction which bears a meaningful relationship to the present and future needs and/or interests of pupils;
D. Teaching staff members of high quality;
E. Resources for education to be used with maximum efficiency;
F. Comprehensive guidance facilities and services for each pupil;
G. An environment in which any competition among pupils is positive;
H. Opportunities for teaching staff members and pupils to make recommendations concerning the operation of the schools;
I. Significant opportunities, suited to the age of the pupil, for helping the pupil to determine the nature of his/her educational experiences;
J. Diverse forms of constructive cooperation with parents/guardians and community groups.
The Board believes New Jersey state goals should be applicable for every child in the West Milford Township School District as follows:
1. All children should start school ready to learn.
2. Quality preschool opportunities shall be provided for all children, through
collaboration between public schools and community agencies.
3. Parent education programs shall be designed and implemented by the district to assist parents in providing readiness experiences for their preschool children.
The high school graduation rate shall be at least 90 percent.
1. The district shall provide least restrictive, alternative programs for pupils who cannot succeed in the regular high school environment, including those students with disabilities.
2. The district shall provide dropout prevention programs for pupils at risk.
Pupils shall leave grades four, eight and 11 having demonstrated competency in challenging subject matter including language arts/literacy, mathematics, science, social studies, health and physical education, visual and performing arts and world languages.
1. The district shall implement state-approved core curriculum content standards and appropriate assessments to enable pupils to succeed and to evaluate their performance.
2. The district shall provide staff development opportunities to ensure that teachers are adequately equipped to teach challenging and up-to-date subject matter and to implement effective teaching techniques.
Pupils shall learn to use their minds well, so that they may be prepared for responsible citizenship, further learning, and productive employment in our modern economy.
1. The district shall provide students with experiences in higher level thinking, information processing, the responsibilities of citizenship, and employability skills.
2. All pupils shall demonstrate competency in the skills identified in the cross-content workplace readiness standards.
3. All pupils shall demonstrate respect for racial, cultural, ethnic and religious diversity.
All pupils shall increase their achievement levels in science and mathematics to contribute to our country's ability to compete academically with all other countries of the world.
1. The district shall revise its curriculum offerings in science and mathematics according to state standards as they are developed.
2. The district shall provide staff training in the teaching of mathematics and science at grades K-12 to increase teachers' understanding of and ability to teach these subjects.
Every adult shall be literate and possess the knowledge and skills necessary to compete in a global economy and exercise the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.
1. Adult education programs shall be increased in conjunction with other local districts, community colleges and other educational agencies, to provide greater opportunities for adults to continue learning for work skills, leisure pursuits, intellectual and cultural growth and to assist their children in learning.
2. Business and industry shall be encouraged to collaborate with educational agencies to design and increase access to educational programs for adults, such as flex time, distance learning and interactive technology.
District schools shall be free of drugs and violence and offer a safe, disciplined environment conducive to learning.
1. The district shall develop partnerships with parents to establish the responsibilities of each to create and maintain safe and healthy educational environments for all pupils.
2. The district shall provide programs and staffing to deal with pupils at risk.
3. The school and community shall expand their cooperative efforts to create drug and violence-free environments.
4. All students shall develop a positive view of self and learn to use effective interpersonal skills.
The Board shall develop, in consultation with the Superintendent of Schools and teaching staff members, a written educational plan for the district. This plan shall be reviewed and adopted annually and shall include:
Written educational goals;
An assessment of pupil needs;
Specific annual objectives based on identified needs and action plans to implement them;
Standards for assessing and evaluating the achievement of objectives;
The establishment of reasonable pupil minimum proficiency levels in the areas addressed in the core curriculum content standards;
An educational program consistent with these goals, objectives, standards and needs;
An evaluation of pupil progress.
First Reading: December 12, 2000
Adopted: December 19, 2000