Free ILTS Superintendent Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A letter is sent to the district administrator by a female employee of a school. She complains that the male principal of her school refers to her and other female staff as "dear", "honey," and other such terms. The letter's author views this as disrespectful. Following up, the superintendent learns that the complaint's main points are accurate, but she also learns that most of the other female staff members do not view the principal's address patterns as disrespectful. Which course of action would be best for the superintendent in response to the complaint?
- Telling the principal some staff are offended and the names do not set good examples for students (Correct answer)
- Calling a meeting of female school staff and principal to review laws on workplace sexual harassment
- Calling a meeting with the principal about disrespect and asking him to make a public apology to staff
- Telling the letter writer that other females on the school staff do not agree with her about the names
Correct answer: Telling the principal some staff are offended and the names do not set good examples for students
The fact that the majority of the female staff members find the principal's nicknames to be unoffensive may indicate that he does not purposefully use them to offend, and it also implies that the staff and principal have a good working relationship. Reprimanding the principal and demanding a public apology are therefore not the best course of action, especially in light of the fact that only one staff member had an issue. Her criticism must be taken seriously, though, and not discounted just because we disagree. A meeting to examine laws is also not the best course of action, as the principal's address might not constitute sexual harassment and the majority of staff members do not perceive it as such. The superintended should inform the principle of how some people view his practice and that it is therefore preferable for students not to learn it from him
Question 2: 75% of the students in one school district are White, 12% are Hispanic, 8% are African-American, 3% are Native Americans, and 2% are Asian or Pacific Islanders. The teaching staff at the same institution is 92% White, 4% Hispanic, 1.5% Native American, 1.5% Asian or Pacific Islander, and 1% African-American in terms of ethnicity. Which one of these should the superintendent be aware of when reading this report?
- The teaching staff in the district reflects an ethnic diversity similar to that of the students.
- The proportion of African-American students is overrepresented in the district teaching staff.
- The proportion of Asian and Pacific Islander students is not represented in the teaching staff.
- The ethnic diversity of the district student population is not matched in the teaching staff. (Correct answer)
Correct answer: The ethnic diversity of the district student population is not matched in the teaching staff.
75% of the district's students are White, and 92% of its teachers are as well. Therefore, compared to its percentage among students, the White race is overrepresented among teaching staff. Additionally, this indicates that the teaching staff's ethnic diversity is NOT comparable to that of the students. It cannot be argued that this ethnic group is not at all represented in the teaching staff because 1.5% of the teaching staff is Asian or Pacific Islander. African-American students make up 8% of the student body, but only 1% of the teaching staff. Therefore, rather than being overrepresented, African-American pupils are underrepresented in the teaching faculty.
Question 3: A superintendent of a school district recognizes the need for reading curriculum improvements across the district as she develops the district's strategy for the upcoming years. Which of these should the superintendent do first in order to communicate the need for these improvements to the principals and teachers in her district?
- She should have leaders at each school immediately implement a new reading program so students will demonstrate progress by the next time they must take state-required standardized assessments.
- She should have the reading coordinator collaborate with the financial officers to estimate current reading expenditures and estimate the projected costs for a variety of available curriculum packages.
- She should ask the district reading coordinator to collaborate with all schools to evaluate their needs and strengths in reading instruction and find strategies for enhancing student reading performance. (Correct answer)
- She should ask the district reading coordinator to sum up current district teaching practices and explore new, evidence-based reading instruction practices that are suitable for every age and grade level.
Correct answer: She should ask the district reading coordinator to collaborate with all schools to evaluate their needs and strengths in reading instruction and find strategies for enhancing student reading performance.
The first of the listed actions that the superintendent should take is to ask the teachers and the coordinator of reading instruction to evaluate their teaching methods to see which ones are working and which ones need to be improved. They should also determine which methods can help students perform better in reading.
Question 4: Dr. Pricilla, the superintendent, has analyzed the statistics for her district from the state. She can identify numerous triumphs; but, whatever area of district achievement requires extra improvement before celebrating it? She wants to help district teachers and other personnel feel valued by "celebrating small successes."
- The indicators reflect high student achievement for ninth-grade mathematics and sciences.
- The district has a low rate for identification of students requiring special education services. (Correct answer)
- Of the district’s students who failed subject assessments the year before, a significant number passed.
- Of the indicators shown for college readiness in high school students, most have increased.
Correct answer: The district has a low rate for identification of students requiring special education services.
Low identification rates may not necessarily mean that few students in Superintendent Harris's district require special education services, but rather that not enough students with special needs are being identified, assessed, and found to be eligible for services. Therefore, this rate needs to be raised. The district has improved these pupils' performance on this standardized assessment, which is cause for celebration if statistics reveal a significant percentage of students who previously failed the subject assessments passed it the following year. Another indication of educational success is whether the majority of indicators for high school students' preparedness for college have improved. Indicators of success and reasons to rejoice can also be found in statistics that show high levels of achievement in two subjects for the majority of pupils in a particular grade level.
Question 5: Which particular student objectives would best fulfill the stated mission?
- “All students will actively use diverse technologies for solving problems and communicating by graduation.” (Correct answer)
- “All students will know how to save, access, and manipulate quantitative data via using technology by graduation.”
- “All students will be proficient in using software resources and online databases for research by graduation.”
- “All students will be fluent in one or more programming languages often used in workplaces by graduation.”
Correct answer: “All students will actively use diverse technologies for solving problems and communicating by graduation.”
The ultimate goal of equipping students to pursue lifelong learning and successful employment performance is best met when all students actively use various technologies to support problem-solving and communication activities.
Question 6: Which of the following adjustments should be prioritized after creating a district-wide technology plan?
- Provide staff development for all district teachers to use current educational technology.
- Upgrade the district infrastructure to enable full networking and automation of libraries. (Correct answer)
- Have all district schools integrate full technology use in their Campus Improvement Plans.
- Obtain sufficient technology resources for all district schools and distribute these evenly.
Correct answer: Upgrade the district infrastructure to enable full networking and automation of libraries.
The district will need to upgrade the current infrastructure to allow the installation and operation of new devices before current instructional technology can be purchased and deployed. It is essential that instructors receive staff development in order to learn how to use the most recent educational technology, but this cannot happen until the teachers have access to it (or until the schools have, at the very least), to prevent teachers from forgetting what they have learned or from teaching outdated material. They need to build the infrastructure for its utilization before they can have the equipment. Once the TPC has informed district management of the precise type of the technology that each school will have, which again is when the schools can be ordered to fully utilize technology in their Campus Improvement Plans.
Question 7: Which of the following statements concerning the district policy about her ability to receive copies of documents connected to her complaint is true if Ms. Shenny takes her grievance to Level 4?
- Ms. Shenny may request copies of documents from Levels 3 and 2.
- Ms. Shenny may not request copies of documents by district policy.
- Ms. Shenny may request copies of all Level 3 records for her case.
- Ms. Shenny may request copies of records from all previous levels. (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Ms. Shenny may request copies of records from all previous levels.
According to the summary, Ms. Shenny has the right to request copies of all documents related to the earlier stages of her complaint in accordance with the policy of the school district. Not just Level 3 (A), nor just Levels 3 and 2, but also Levels 1 and 3 are included in this. It is untrue, as stated in the district policy statement, that Ms. Shenny cannot ask for copies of these records.
A letter is sent to the district administrator by a female employee of a school.
She complains that the male principal of her school refers to her and other female staff as "dear", "honey," and other such terms.
The letter's author views this as disrespectful.
Following up, the superintendent learns that the complaint's main points are accurate, but she also learns that most of the other female staff members do not view the principal's address patterns as disrespectful.
Which course of action would be best for the superintendent in response to the complaint?