For well over a decade, the Our School Survey has provided priceless information for the Western School Division (WSD).
WSD Superintendent Stephen Ross says the Division rolled out the Our School survey thirteen years ago as a mechanism to truly tell whether students felt they belonged in school.
If the students feel they belong at school, that they are welcome, and are safe there, that's the first step in making them comfortable so they can thrive and learn well, he said.
Ross said the thirteen years of surveys have provided an extensive collection of data for the Board and WSD staff.
Very impactful data was again collected this past spring, which the Board then went through in detail. Just recently, Ross said the Board had presentations from each of the schools regarding their overview and assessments of their own school data.
Ross stressed they take all feedback collected through the Our School survey seriously. "So it's a chance to provide feedback and some direction because all of those comments are looked at and they're considered. And we'll be doing that survey again in the spring."
During the pandemic, he said the survey showed there were higher rates of anxiety and lower sense of belonging among students.
"What we really saw this year and what we heard from all of the schools and their recent reports, is there's a significant increase in the sense of belonging for kids now over the last couple of years. Now they can get back engaged with their friends at school. They can take part in the clubs and the activities. They can do the hands-on learning in the class in a group that they really love, and that's really impactful for them. So that's been really great." He said the one thing the pandemic did for people when they weren't allowed to go places and to do things together, is it really made them appreciate the collaborative environment that schools are.
Overall, Ross said they do continue to see higher levels of anxiety in kids, something he noted has become a trend in society as a whole right now.
- With files from Robyn Wiebe -