Preliminary analyses (data tables) indicate that: 

• over 90% of respondents view the Blakeburn school community as fully meeting (47.7%) or exceeding (43.5%) expectations for social responsibility 
• parents have the most positive view of the school with close to 60% indicating that Blakeburn exceeds expectations for social responsibility  
• teachers have the least positive view; approximately half of the staff members who responded to the survey indicated that the school fully meets expectations; however, one-third viewed the school as meeting expectations at only a minimal level  
• less than one percent of respondents view the school as not yet within expectations for social responsibility

Results By Category 

• Overall, respondents viewed the school most favourably in terms of “contributes to the classroom and school community,” with over 53.4% designating the school as exceeding expectations, and a further 43.2% as fully meeting expectations. This was the most positively view category by each groups of respondents (students, parents, staff.) 
• Respondents assigned the most negative ratings to “solves problems in a peaceful way.” While most see the school as fully meeting expectations in this area, and nearly a third, as exceeding expectations, ratings by both students and parents are lower than those for the other categories. 
• Staff members assigned similar ratings to three categories: “solves problems peacefully,” “valuing diversity and defending human rights,” and “exercises democratic rights and responsibilities,” with close to 40% indicating that the school meet expectations at a minimal level, in each case.  

Has the Level of Social Responsibility Among Students Improved?

Classroom teachers have evaluated the social responsibility of individual students twice (October and April), and entered the results in the School Improvement Files, as well as using the information to provide feedback to students and parents. Teachers used the Quick Scales as a reference.

Table 2. Social Responsibility (All Categories Combined): Percent of Students Assigned to Each Level by Gender ( October and April)

Summary of The Results Across All Grades and Categories of The Scale.

The results shown in the data tables indicate that: 

• in both October and April, close to 90% of students were evaluated as meeting expectations at a minimal level, or fully meeting expectations; few students were designated as not yet within expectations 
• in October, a substantially higher proportion of female students girls were designated as fully meeting or exceeding expectations than their male counterparts; more male students received rating of not yet within expectations, and meeting expectations at a minimal level 
• overall ratings improved from October to April, with approximately 5% moving from not yet within to minimal; 10% moving from meeting expectations at a minimal to a full level; and approximately 3% moving from fully meeting to exceeding expectations 
• the ratings for male students show an overall pattern of improvement that is stronger than that of females; differences between the two groups are consistently smaller in April than October with 4% moving from not yet within expectations to minimal; approximately 15% moving from minimally meeting to fully meeting expectations; and 2% from fully meeting to exceeding expectations 

The more detailed results provided in the data tables provide some insight into differences across categories, grades, and gender: 

• ratings for both male and female students are somewhat lower for “solves problems in a peaceful way” than for the other categories; this difference is consistent from October to April 
• the differences between male and female students are greatest for “solves problems in a peaceful way;” further, this is the area in which female students showed the greatest gains between October and April 
• male students showed the greatest growth in “values diversity and defends human rights” and “exercises democratic rights and responsibilities” 
• by grade, ratings were lowest at grade 1; highest at grades 2, 4 and 5. Between October and April, kindergarten and grade 1 students showed the greatest growth 
• in most categories, gender differences were greatest at kindergarten, and grades 4 and 5; lowest at grades 1 and 3 where they favoured male students as often as female students (note: these results are based on small numbers of students)
• in March, the greatest differences by grade and gender appeared for:
  • “solving problems in a peaceful way” at grades 4 and 5, favouring female students in both cases; by April, the difference was diminished at grade 4, but increased at grade 5, although both groups improved 
  • “valuing diversity and defending human rights” at grade 5, favouring female students; the difference is consistent from October to April
  • “exercises democratic rights and responsibilities” at grades 4 and 5, favouring female students; between October and April, the difference diminishes substantially at grade 4, slightly at grade 5