Our purpose is to effectively utilize community resources to provide students the maximum opportunity for life success. We are committed to the individual development of skill sets that enhance knowledge, optimize potential, and build character through personal accountability.
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Our Mission Statement
The Sioux City Community School District exists to educate students to believe in their talents and skills, achieve academic excellence, and succeed in reaching their potential.
Our Educational Philosophy
Preparing Students for Success
Standards, Expectations, and Achievement
Our goal is to challenge our students, empower our staff, and visibly communicate our progress. Our achievements are the results of high standards, clear expectations, and timely benchmarks.
Leading in a Changing World
Our vision is to develop citizens who are prepared to succeed in a changing world. We must learn from our history and positively embrace the challenges of the future.
Embracing our Diversity
Our commitment is to celebrate our diversity and leverage our cultural, social, and community resources while embracing changes to enhance student learning.
Parent Involvement and Community Confidence
Our responsibility is held within our stakeholders; our students, parents/guardians, educators, and the community as a whole. We must encourage participation, empower our educators, and openly celebrate our teaching opportunities and successes.
What Graduates Will Be Able To Do
All graduates of the Sioux City Community School District will demonstrate critical thinking and problem solving. They will demonstrate comprehensive communication skills with and without the use of current technology, including; reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Graduates of the Sioux City Community School District will also be self-sufficient and autonomous lifelong learners and citizens.
What Graduates Will Know
All graduates of the Sioux City Community School District will be prepared to compete in a global society with content knowledge focused on the Iowa Core Curriculum (Common Core and 21st Century Skills), and strive for growth that exceeds proficiency on state assessments.
Guidelines
The “Definition of the Well-Educated Student” was adopted by the Sioux City Community School District Board of Directors in 2015. The “Well-Educated Student Interpretation” document has been developed to accompany the “Definition of the Well-Educated Student” to ensure consistent interpretation and implementation of the definition across the District.
Students will be engaged in learning that causes the student, upon graduation, to be recognized as a Well-Educated Student. As curriculum, lessons, and learning opportunities are designed, the components of the definition of the Well-Educated Student shall be embedded to prepare students to successfully compete in a global society.
Many of the components within the definition of the Well-Educated Student can also be found within the “Universal Constructs: Essential for 21st Century Success” found within the Iowa Core. Please refer to the Iowa Department of Education website for additional information about the Universal Constructs.
Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
Students will be able to create solutions to complex problems through inquiry and investigations. Students will be able to access, analyze, and use key information as they develop solutions to complex problems. Critical thinking reflects:
Thoughtful questioning that challenges assumptions, promotes higher-order thinking, leads to new insights, and validates perceptions.
Processes that analyze, select, use, and evaluate various approaches to develop solutions.
Critical issues that develop innovative responses.
Analysis of multiple sources and points of information.
Intentional use of disciplinary frameworks to analyze complex issues and information.
Suspension of judgment while collecting evidence to make determinations.
A respectful exchange of ideas.
Communication Skills
Communication skills will be the successful sharing of information through multiple means that include visual, digital, verbal, and nonverbal interactions. Communication is purposeful, clear, and concise, and leads to an accurate exchange of information and ideas. Reading, writing, speaking, and listening will be incorporated into learning opportunities in all content areas and at all grade levels. Communication skills reflect:
Negotiation processes that generate mutually satisfactory solutions.
Managing and resolving conflicts.
Interacting effectively with people of different cultures.
Selection and integration of various communication processes.
Integration of appropriate forms of informative communication technology.
Understanding the interactions among modes of communication.
Meaningful and engaging interactions.
Focus, energy, and passion around the key message.
Navigation through nuances of effective communication.
Understanding and application of effective group processes to solve problems.
Productive group interactions.