Distance Learning Needs Assessment Grade Task Force Elsie Allen High School March 2021 By Richard Molloy “The goal of this Task Force is to bring the voices, concerns, experiences, and ideas of students, families, and staff together to look at what we can do differently with distance learning today, this week, and in the near and far future to support all of our students.” Grade Task Force Membership: Gabriel Albavera-Admin Andy Lieberman-Admin Casey Thornhill-Admin Sarah Cranke-Admin Erick Rodriguez-Counselor Ry Basham-Mintz-Counselor Brian Deller-Teacher Richard Molloy-Teacher Lizbeth Moreno-Family Engagement Facilitator Mayra Sosa-Family Engagement Facilitator Emily Thompson-Instructional Assistant Kathy Hayes-Admin Assistant Sally Gonzalez-Registrar Angie Ghadiri-Parent Ana Vazquez-Parent Jennifer Spain-Parent Emily Humphrey-Parent Chelsy Reyes Ramirez-Student Maisha Khakaba-Student 2 Executive Summary We have already seen a dramatic drop in letter grades since the start of distance learning. EAHS students received a total of 2,330 “F” grades for quarter one of the 2020/2021 school year. This is a 250% increase in failing grades from the same time the previous year. This year, 63.6% of the students received at least one “F.” This percentage was 72% for students of color, English language learners, SED, and UPC. Santa Rosa City Schools (SRCS) and specifically Elsie Allen High School created a Task Force to help determine actions that could raise our students' grades. At the first Task Force’s first meeting on Nov 3, 2020, the group agreed to look at the data using a performance analysis framework (a.k.a., needs assessment approach). This framework consists of a gap analysis, a root cause analysis (i.e., findings), and solutions (i.e., recommendations). This framework was selected as it fits the need of identifying targeted solutions to address the grade problem. The findings included recurring themes found across the four data sets. The following is a list of the top 15 recommendations from this analysis. The four items in bold were recurring themes from failing students (the targeted population). Also, the number in parentheses is how many times this was mentioned as a proposed solution in the data: 1. Teachers should be understanding of students' individual circumstances, and be supportive and encourage them to complete assignments. “Say positive things.” Implement actions to strengthen teacher’s relationships with students (e.g., conduct regular one-on-one check-ins). (31) 2. More availability and support from teachers (e.g., extra/additional Zoom tutoring sessions for students who need help). (28) 3. Use extra credit to help students raise their grades (26) 4. Give students more time to work on assignments. Allow students to submit late work and to redo work for credit. (24) 5. Assig ...

1. Distance Learning
Needs Assessment
Grade Task Force
Elsie Allen High School
March 2021
By Richard Molloy
“The goal of this Task Force is to bring the voices, concerns,
experiences, and ideas of
students, families, and staff together to look at what we can do
differently with distance
learning today, this week, and in the near and far future to
support all of our students.”
Grade Task Force Membership:
Gabriel Albavera-Admin
Andy Lieberman-Admin
Casey Thornhill-Admin
Sarah Cranke-Admin
Erick Rodriguez-Counselor
Ry Basham-Mintz-Counselor

2. Brian Deller-Teacher
Richard Molloy-Teacher
Lizbeth Moreno-Family Engagement Facilitator
Mayra Sosa-Family Engagement Facilitator
Emily Thompson-Instructional Assistant
Kathy Hayes-Admin Assistant
Sally Gonzalez-Registrar
Angie Ghadiri-Parent
Ana Vazquez-Parent
Jennifer Spain-Parent
Emily Humphrey-Parent
Chelsy Reyes Ramirez-Student
Maisha Khakaba-Student
2
Executive Summary
We have already seen a dramatic drop in letter grades since the
start of distance
learning. EAHS students received a total of 2,330 “F” grades
for quarter one of the

3. 2020/2021 school year. This is a 250% increase in faili ng
grades from the same time
the previous year. This year, 63.6% of the students received at
least one “F.” This
percentage was 72% for students of color, English language
learners, SED, and
UPC. Santa Rosa City Schools (SRCS) and specifically Elsie
Allen High School
created a Task Force to help determine actions that could raise
our students' grades.
At the first Task Force’s first meeting on Nov 3, 2020, the
group agreed to look at the
data using a performance analysis framework (a.k.a., needs
assessment approach).
This framework consists of a gap analysis, a root cause
analysis (i.e., findings), and
solutions (i.e., recommendations). This framework was selected
as it fits the need of
identifying targeted solutions to address the grade problem.
The findings included recurring themes found across the four
data sets. The following is
a list of the top 15 recommendations from this analysis. The
four items in bold were
recurring themes from failing students (the targeted
population). Also, the number in
parentheses is how many times this was mentioned as a
proposed solution in the data:
1. Teachers should be understanding of students' individual
circumstances,
and be supportive and encourage them to complete
assignments. “Say
positive things.” Implement actions to strengthen teacher’s
relationships

4. with students (e.g., conduct regular one-on-one check-ins). (31)
2. More availability and support from teachers (e.g.,
extra/additional Zoom
tutoring sessions for students who need help). (28)
3. Use extra credit to help students raise their grades (26)
4. Give students more time to work on assignments. Allow
students to submit late
work and to redo work for credit. (24)
5. Assign less work (e.g., no big essays), cut work into smaller
portions, or use
slower pace (e.g., “do a lesson on one of class Zoom days each
week and on the
next session turn in homework and talk about it”). (21)
6. Provide resources to help students organize themselves and
better
manage their time (e.g., resources to help with study skills,
note-taking
skills). Help students “set a routine” for themselves, avoid
procrastination,
and learn perseverance. (20)
7. Teachers should use meaningful, fun, entertaining,
interesting, interactive, and
engaging games and activities to help students stay motivated
to learn. (17)
8. Provide students with more detail on assignments (e.g.,
examples of completed
assignments, teachers notes of class session, study guides).
(16)

5. 9. Reward (e.g., gift cards, less work) students who meet
deadlines or participate in
class. (15)
10. Use fun, interesting, and interactive activities, lectures,
and assignments (e.g.,
3
creative projects, scavenger hunts, competitions). (12)
11. Provide easy to follow, clear, step-by-step procedures for
all assignments in
Google Classroom, strive for maximum clarity and
organization. Provide students
with guides or aids that help them do their homework. (11)
12. Ensure students are not receiving too much work on any
given day by having a
schedule/routine of possible days assignments are due for each
period (e.g.,
assignment due dates must be the same day as Zooms). Have
assignments that
can be completed during Zoom session. Limit due dates to
weekdays to ensure
students have time to be offline (i.e., no weekend school work).
(11)
13. Send out more regular grade updates and inform students
how they can improve
their grades. (9)
14. Use homework passes. (9)
15. Ensure students have good wifi and computers.

6. Background
Elsie Allen is one of the six high schools in the Santa Rosa
City School District. The
Santa Rosa City School District is large and diverse. Elsie
Allen High School,
located in the south-west part of Santa Rosa. This area is
heavily influenced by the
majority Mexican American population that reside near and
around the school. Many
EAHS students live in these neighborhoods between Sebastopol
Ave. and Todd Rd.
(north and south, respectively) and Santa Rosa Avenue to
Stoney Point Rd. (east
and west). A third of the student population are classified as
English Language
Learners, and 66% are eligible for the free or reduced lunch
program.
It is very likely that COVID-19 has exacerbated the inequities
that existed prior to the
pandemic. The move to distance learning has brought more
challenges and change
to our system of education than any other movement or event
for at least the past
125 years (Urban W. J. and Wagoner, J. L., 2009). Students
have been forced into
the world of online education, which is a way of learning that
requires much more
from the learner; they must be incredibly organized, motivated,
and proficient with
technology. They also must have access to the tools/resources
needed for this type
of learning (i.e., wifi, computer, headphones/speakers,
cameras, microphones) as
well as a suitable place to study. Teachers were also thrust

7. into this new mode of
teaching. Many were reluctantly forced to re-learn how to
teach in an online setting.
The results of this forced change were akin to building a plane
while flying it. The
achievement gaps that existed before COVID-19 have only
likely grown, and will be
an additional challenge for many schools and districts for many
years in the future
(García, E., & Weiss, E., 2020).
We have already seen a dramatic drop in letter grades since the
start of distance
learning. EAHS students received a total of 2,330 “F” grades
for quarter one of the
2020/2021 school year. This is a 250% increase in failing
grades from the same time
the previous year. This year, 63.6% of the students received at
least one “F.” This
percentage was 72% for students of color, English language
learners, SED, and
4
UPC. Santa Rosa City Schools (SRCS) and specifically Elsie
Allen High School
created a Task Force to help determine actions that could raise
our students' grades.
Purpose
In light of the grade problem, the SRCS Superintendent
Kitamura asked each principal
to set up a Grade Task Force to examine this problem and make
recommendations for

8. changes. The EAHS Task Force (from this point on referred to
herein as ‘the Task
Force’) was formed with diverse members, including
administrators, counselors,
teachers, key staff members, parents, and students.
Methodology
At the first Task Force’s first meeting on Nov 3, 2020, the
group agreed to look at the
data using a performance analysis framework (a.k.a., needs
assessment approach).
This framework consists of a gap analysis, a root cause
analysis (i.e., findings), and
solutions (i.e., recommendations). This framework has been
used extensively for
performance improvement by various organizations including
government agencies and
private businesses (Chevalier R. 2007 & Rossett, A. 1999).
This framework was
selected as it fits the need of identifying targeted solutions to
address the grade
problem.
Gap Analysis
EAHS students received a total of 2,330 “F” grades for quarter
one of the 2020/2021
school year. This is a 250% increase in failing grades from the
same time the previous
year. This year, 63.6% of the students received at least one
“F.” This percentage was
72% for students of color, English language learners, SED, and
UPC. See Appendix A,
“ 1st Quarter Grades Analysis Worksheet ” for details. More
recently, the third quarter
progress grades indicated that EAHS students were failing an
average of 2.5 courses

9. per student. These numbers represent the current state in this
gap analysis.
The desired state is of course that EAHS has no students failing
classes; however, a
reasonable goal is to reduce this current number by half by the
end of the school year.
Not only do we want no more than 1,165 “F,” but we also want
to reduce the percentage
of students with “F” grades by half in all demographic areas.
5
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1uj5mhU-
dOSLlCgk8lbUdVG7fqxQOoHBPjRoHtP6oeh0/edit
Cause Analysis
The performance analysis framework includes an adaption of
Thomas Gilbert’s
Behavior Engineering Model (BEM) which consists of
analyzing both Environmental and
Individual (i.e., student) causes of the grade performance gap
(Gilbert, T. 1996;
Chevalier, R. 2007). The Environmental categories examined
consisted of Information,
Resources, and Incentives. The Individual categories were
Skills and Knowledge and
Motivation. Whereas Capacity is typically a category of the
BEM, once data was
collected and being analyzed, Capacity did not seem relevant to
this analysis and for
this reason was omitted.
The cause analysis relied on qualitative data from four sources
(i.e., two surveys, one

10. staff meeting, and information collected from phone calls made
to failing students and
their parents or guardians. By using multiple sources of
qualitative data, a process
known as triangulation, greater validity was achieved by
focusing the analysis on
recurring findings in the data and basing the recommendations
off of these findings
(Russ-eft and Preskill, 2001; Merriam, 2009).
Findings & Recommendations
Too much homework was the main cause identified by students.
Twenty-seven students
concurred with this finding. Other responses indicated that the
following were causes:
1. Lack of timely feedback from teachers
2. Some teachers go over on zoom time
3. Not all teachers provide the flexibility needed for distance
learning
4. Some assignments are too difficult or complicated
5. Some teachers do not have consistent Zoom meeting
days/times
6. Students spend too much time in front of computers and feel
isolated and
fatigued
7. Students don’t have good wifi
8. Difficulties with technology and apps
9. Students feel like mandatory cameras is an invasion of their
privacy
10. Some teachers are too demanding and not empathetic
Please see Appendix I for more information on these findings.
Appendix H includes a table with recommended interventions

11. by category (e.g.,
Information, Resources, Incentives). The following is a list of
the top 15
recommendations from this analysis. The four items in bold
were recurring themes from
phone calls home to failing students. Also, the number in
parentheses is how many
times this was mentioned as a proposed solution in the data:
16. Teachers should be understanding of students' individual
circumstances,
6
and be supportive and encourage them to complete
assignments. “Say
positive things.” Implement actions to strengthen teacher’s
relationships
with students (e.g., conduct regular one-on-one check-ins). (31)
17. More availability and support from teachers (e.g.,
extra/additional Zoom
tutoring sessions for students who need help). (28)
18. Use extra credit to help students raise their grades (26)
19. Give students more time to work on assignments. Allow
students to submit late
work and to redo work for credit. (24)
20. Assign less work (e.g., no big essays), cut work into
smaller portions, or use
slower pace (e.g., “do a lesson on one of class Zoom days each
week and on the

12. next session turn in homework and talk about it”). (21)
21. Provide resources to help students organize themselves and
better
manage their time (e.g., resources to help with study skills,
note-taking
skills). Help students “set a routine” for themselves, avoid
procrastination,
and learn perseverance. (20)
22. Teachers should use meaningful, fun, entertaining,
interesting, interactive, and
engaging games and activities to help students stay motivated
to learn. (17)
23. Provide students with more detail on assignments (e.g.,
examples of completed
assignments, teachers notes of class session, study guides).
(16)
24. Reward (e.g., gift cards, less work) students who meet
deadlines or participate in
class. (15)
25. Use fun, interesting, and interactive activities, lectures,
and assignments (e.g.,
creative projects, scavenger hunts, competitions). (12)
26. Provide easy to follow, clear, step-by-step procedures for
all assignments in
Google Classroom, strive for maximum clarity and
organization. Provide students
with guides or aids that help them do their homework. (11)
27. Ensure students are not receiving too much work on any
given day by having a

13. schedule/routine of possible days assignments are due for each
period (e.g.,
assignment due dates must be the same day as Zooms). Have
assignments that
can be completed during Zoom session. Limit due dates to
weekdays to ensure
students have time to be offline (i.e., no weekend school work).
(11)
28. Send out more regular grade updates and inform students
how they can improve
their grades. (9)
29. Use homework passes. (9)
30. Ensure students have good wifi and computers.
7