The Research & Evaluation Department’s goal is to provide credible research and evaluation to support school improvement and high quality program implementation. We support schools in reflecting on school quality assurance, school leadership teams and school-wide systems for student improvement and instruction, and we conduct evaluations to identify and replicate best practices.
- Independent Research. Granite School District supports quality educational research that is relevant to district needs and priorities. Those interested in conducting research in our district must complete our online application form and be approved by our research committee. This includes research being conducted by Granite employees in the pursuit of advanced degrees requiring the use of student, teacher, or school data (e.g., capstone project, thesis, dissertation). Research applications submitted by Granite District employees are given priority review status.
- Signatures of Excellence in Granite Schools. Good schools have intentional, not inherited, features. They share a set of agreements that create coherence around a few animating ideas. When we identify with a school and talk about what is great about it, certain things stand out. We call these things our school’s “signature”. This section explores the achievements, daily practices, learning experiences, events, and services that define the school experience, the things we do that exemplify, reinforce, and support who we are and who we want to become as a school community.
- Supporting School Improvement. We support the identification and integration of best practice in our school improvement efforts through the development of: (1) a comprehensive needs assessment to determine systemic issues associated with student learning, (2) an evaluative model for how we track our progress in adapting and implementing best practice, (3) a research model for identifying which best practices are associated with improved student learning, school culture and climate, and community involvement.
- Professional Learning Communities. We work best when we work together. We should strive to build a community of trust and meaningful collaboration with our colleagues, our students, and within our community. We provide guidance on how to organize and purpose our school teams.
- Accreditation. High Schools are required to be accredited every five years. Our department offers financial assistance to our schools to offset many of the costs associated with their accreditation review.