SAUGUS ― District Superintendent of Schools Erin McMahon has been asking a lot of questions and now, after months of inquiry, she’s got some answers.
The new superintendent says that the district’s problems are not due to the quality of staff and proposes to tackle poor student achievement through strategic planning, high quality instructional materials and deep engagement.
McMahon, who started her job on Jul. 1, based her findings about the district on community input and educators and parents surveys that were completed in June of this year. She also held more than 70 one-on-one meetings with staff members, School Committee members, town officials, and families, she said at the School Committee meeting on Dec. 9.
McMahon said that 2019 Next-Generation MCAS scores showed that Saugus currently performs lower than peers in grades three through eight, as well as grade 10 in ELA and math. She also looked at 2019 Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education (DESE) report and the Resource Allocation and District Allocation Reports (RADAR) which indicated an insufficient educator-evaluation system; inconsistency in the quality of instruction district wide; a feeling that there was insufficient training for staff and educators; and no sense of urgency in the district’s office as problematic areas in need of improvement.
McMahon suggested that Saugus could tackle the improvement by looking at districts with similar student demographics and similar economic status where students are performing better. Currently, one in four of Saugus students is a student of color, while the town’s population is 90 percent Caucasian, McMahon said. So she suggested taking a look at North Reading, Falmouth and Medfield.
“What is it that Falmoth is doing right that we can learn from?” McMahon said. “And what is it, for example, that North Redding or Medfield [is doing], how are they using their dollars to more effectively impact student achievement?”
She also further dug into parents and educators surveys.
“So we asked our parents and caregivers and teachers, what would you focus on?” said McMahon.
The majority of Saugus parents responded to the survey that they would recommend Saugus public schools to other families, said McMahon. However, McMahon found it troubling that a quarter of parents would not recommend SPS.
Parents indicated that they would like Saugus schools to focus on student achievement and social, emotional learning, said McMahon, while educators also named management and operation as areas for concern and improvement.
“Many people felt that they were currently being pulled in many directions to teach students at various levels and that it was hard,” said McMahon about teachers’ challenges.
Teachers complained that, especially in middle and high school, students were not completing work, not attending class regularly and often were uninterested in their subjects.
McMahon concluded that it was not the problem of quality or quantity of the staff, however. She said Saugus has enough staff and its classes have a small student-to-staff ratio at 20 children per class, which is similar to other towns in the area.
“It’s an issue of where and how we have placed our staff,” McMahon said.
She said Saugus schools are fully staffed with English-language learner teachers and have a relatively-experienced workforce.
“Only 5 percent of our teachers are considered inexperienced, which is less than the state average. So that means we have a highly-qualified ― in terms of certification ― teaching workforce,” said McMahon.
To address all these issues, McMahon said, she was planning to survey students in spring 2022 and prepare to lay out a strategic plan with one to three goals for the next five years, which will be presented to the School Committee in the fall. She also wants to find collaborations around preparing students for college and future careers as less than 25 percent of Saugus students sign up for Advanced Placement classes.
“And then last but not least doing a deep dive into our curriculum, making sure that we have high-quality instructional materials in every subject in every grade,” said McMahon as the government has provided a limited-time funding for instructional materials.
The district will also launch a new website between the holiday break in the beginning of the year to improve communication with parents, McMahon said.
At the end of her presentation, she shared her team’s vision to empower and prepare students to compete in a globalized society by providing them with grade-appropriate assignments, strong instruction, deep engagement, and teachers with high expectations.
