AWRSD Strategic Plan - Glossary and Helpful Links

Glossary (curated from links below):

MTSS: A Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) is a framework for how school districts can build the necessary systems to ensure that each and every student receives a high quality educational experience. It is designed to support schools with proactively identifying and addressing the strengths and needs of all students by optimizing data-driven decision-making, progress monitoring, and the use of evidence-based supports and strategies with increasing intensity to sustain student growth. 

MTSS is categorized by a three tiered system. Those tiers are defined below: 

Tier 1: Universal instructional practices.  Tier 1 defines the learning experience for all students.

Tier 2: Small group instruction.  This is to help support a group of students who may need intervention around a certain set of skills or content.

Tier 3: Individual support.  This is the highest level of intervention and is classified through individual instruction (although groups of two may sometimes be preferred).  

HQIM: High Quality Instructional Materials. Curricular materials are resources teachers use to facilitate sequences of learning experiences (e.g., lesson and unit plans, texts); also called adopted or written curriculum, or instructional materials.  A curriculum is a sequence of student learning experiences teachers facilitate using curricular materials as a foundation (not a script!); also called enacted or taught curriculum.  

HQIM is often tier 1 core high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) in mathematics, ELA, science and digital literacy. Intended to support evidence-based, culturally responsive, inclusive, and equitable implementation of high-quality materials and to amplify the power of those materials.

DCAP: Massachusetts General Laws requires the adoption and implementation of a District Curriculum Accommodation Plan (DCAP). This plan is intended to guide principals and teachers in ensuring that all possible efforts are made to meet student needs in general education classrooms.

PLC: Professional Learning Communities.  Groups of professionals that are formed to collaborate on a common goal. 

Achievement (English language arts, mathematics, and science): Students in grades 3 through 8 and 10 take the Next Generation MCAS assessments in ELA, mathematics, and science, and achievement on these assessments is reported separately for each subject using the average composite scaled score. The average composite scaled score ranges from 440 to 560, is reported at the district, school, and student group level, and is calculated by averaging the scaled scores for all students who participated in the Next Generation MCAS and MCAS-Alt assessments in that subject.   

Growth (English language arts and mathematics): All groups (districts, schools, and student groups) are expected to demonstrate annual growth in student performance. Massachusetts uses Student Growth Percentiles (SGP) to measure how a group of students’ achievement has grown or changed over time. SGPs are reported separately for ELA and mathematics at the district, school, and student group level.  

Mean SGP: The average Student Growth Percentile for the group. 

High Needs Students: A student is high needs if he or she is designated as either low income (prior to 2015, and from 2022 to present), economically disadvantaged (from 2015 to 2021), El/former El, or a student with disabilities. A former El student is a student not currently an El, but had been at some point in the four previous academic years. 

Casel 5 Core Competencies: Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Responsible Decision Making, Relationship Skills, Social Awareness.

Helpful links:

DESE MTSS Support Page: https://www.doe.mass.edu/sfss/mtss/

DESE HQIM Support Page: https://www.doe.mass.edu/instruction/impd/

DESE Accountability Help: https://www.doe.mass.edu/accountability/lists-tools/

DESE Definitions for understanding student types and data: https://profiles.doe.mass.edu/help/data.aspx?section=students

DESSA: https://www.apertureed.com/research/about-the-dessa

Casel Framework and Core Competencies: https://casel.org/fundamentals-of-sel/what-is-the-casel-framework/