Outline of the state of Guam
State
Guam
Encouraged

Category
Family Engagement Plans

Category
Family Engagement Plans

State law encourages districts to adopt plans, policies, or strategies to engage parents and families in the educational process.

17 Guam Code Annotated 3105 Collection of Data and Production of School Performance Reports by Superintendent; Criteria for Grading Schools.

(a) The Superintendent shall collect data and produce annual school performance reports containing information on student performance, student behavior and school characteristics. (b)

  • (1) In consultation with representatives of parents, teachers and school administrators, the Board shall adopt, by rule, criteria for grading schools. Such criteria shall take into account both overall performance and improvement in performance. A five (5) member evaluation team shall be appointed by the Board to assess every school. The Board shall appoint one (1) member from each of the four (4) school board election districts, and the fifth member shall be appointed from the Island-wide Parent Teacher Organization. The grades shall include classifications for exceptional performance, strong performance, satisfactory performance, low performance and unacceptable performance.
  • (2) The grades received by a school shall be included in the Annual State of Public Education Report.
  • (3) If a school is within the low performance or unacceptable performance classification in any category, the school shall file a school improvement plan with the Superintendent and with the Board.

(c) The Superintendent shall notify the public and the media, and post on the Department of Education's website, no later than thirty (30) days following the end of the fiscal year. The school performance reports shall be available at schools and the DOE' offices. The Superintendent shall also include notice that copies of school improvement plans can be obtained from the schools and the DOE.

Policy Type
Statute

17 Guam Code Annotated 4113 Curriculum, Testing, Pupil Records, Rights of Parents and Guardians.

(a)

  • (1) Since it is the responsibility of parents and guardians to provide for and insure the health, education and general well-being of their children, this Section affirms and defines the rights of parents or guardians to decide through their representative, what the pupils learn and how they are taught.
  • (2) The provisions of this Section are designed to define the roles and responsibilities of parents, guardians, teachers, school personnel and schools; to provide for better cooperation between parents and the school system; and to encourage mutual under standing and confidence in an effort to secure a better education for all children enrolled in the public schools of this Territory.
  • (3) A child may not be placed in an experimental or pilot program without the prior knowledge and written consent of the parent or guardian. All instructional materials, which will be used shall be made available to parents on request prior to the child's being placed in such program.
  • (4) Parents may view all instructional materials upon reasonable request.
  • (5) Employees of a school may not require proof of registration to vote or party affiliation as a prerequisite for obtaining a grade or enrollment in a class.

(b) Pupils may be tested only for proficiency n a basic skills and academic subject matter without the need of parental permission. Any testing pertaining to pupil attitudes, parent attitudes or personal information pertaining to the pupil and his family, or as concerns their habits or values, including personality inventories, value appraisals, psychological inventories (which include intelligence testing for academic changes), or individually-administered intelligence tests shall be given only after receiving written parental permission. Test results shall be made available to a parent or guardian upon request.

(c) A parent or legal guardian is entitled to inspect a student's entire accumulative folder by appointment. At the time of such inspection it shall be the responsibility of the guidance counselor to be present and to prevent misinterpretation of the records and to answer questions. Access to the permanent accumulative folder is limited to the student, his parents or legal guardian and appropriate school personnel except when the student, parent or legal guardian gives written permission to allow other persons access or when a court subpoenas such accumulative folder. The accumulative folder should be open to challenge by the student and/or parent or legal guardian, but this right of question does not of itself imply an obligation upon school personnel to make changes in the accumulative folder. Each student also has the right to respond to material in his folder and to have such response filed in said folder.

(d) It shall be standard practice to inform parents in instances when their child has been referred for counseling in areas of social, emotional, mental or personal problems. An exception shall be made when a student seeks out help on his own initiative or when the student requests confidentiality.

Policy Type
Statute