Any school containing grades one (1) through five (5) must apply as an elementary school. The following standards for elementary school programs are to be used by principals of schools who are making application for Provisional, Accredited, or Accredited With Quality status for programs in their schools. The number of standards required to be answered affirmatively in order for the school to meet the 85% required by the Commission for Accredited status is given at the beginning of each section of standards.
Documents verifying compliance with the following standards must be provided to the consultant.
Schools that are operating under an approved Georgia Department of Education flexibility model (charter system or strategic waiver) have the opportunity to achieve the status of Accredited With Quality.
I. Organization
(For Accredited status, 7 affirmative answers are required, including standards 1 through 6)
- A school day consists of at least six hours, exclusive of lunch and recess periods. (A minimum of a school day of four‑and‑one‑half hours is acceptable for grades one through three. Schools may operate on shortened schedules up to one day for each grading period for teacher‑parent conferences.)
- In grades one through three, classes have a maximum of 25 students, or 33 students if the teacher has a full‑time aide. The system‑wide average class size in grades one through three is 21.5 or less, or 28.6 or less if teachers have full‑time aides. In grades four and five, classes have a maximum of 33 students. The school‑wide average class size in grades four and five is 28.6 or less. Remedial classes have a maximum of 18 students or 24 students if the teacher has a full‑time aide. (This standard is interpreted as meaning that an aide is required whenever the maximum class size for classes without an aide is exceeded. This means that in grades one through three an aide is required whenever there are 26 or more students in a class and that an aide is also required whenever there are 19 or more students in a remedial class). Mixed‑model classes have a maximum of 28 students, including no more than eight remedial students per class.
- Principals of schools with 7 through 13 teachers have at least one‑half time free from teaching responsibilities for administration and supervision. Principals of schools with 14 or more teachers have full time for administration and supervision.
- A combination school (that is, an elementary, middle/junior high school and high school under one administration) of 30 or more teachers must have an assistant principal. Either the principal or the assistant principal must have major responsibility in the elementary area.
- All inter‑school contests and school‑sponsored activities are under the direct and complete control of the school administration. Responsibilities related to school‑sponsored activities are not delegated to any person or persons other than school or school system employees.
- The Media Center has a minimum of 10 books per student or a minimum of 7 books per student and an annual expenditure of $2.00 or more per student for computer disks, video cassettes, video disks, film strips and other non-print media.
- The school provides each student a minimum of 30 minutes for lunch.
- The organization of the Media Center collection and the school schedule facilitate maximum use of the collection by pupils during all school hours.
- Each teacher has at least one 30-minute period per day or a total of 150 minutes per week during the class day for planning.
- Student activities include access to health and psychological counseling services.
- When offered by the school, the weekly meals provide one-third of the recommended weekly dietary allowance of nutrients and include meat or a meat alternate, bread, milk, and fruits and/or vegetables.
(For Accredited status all standards are required)
- A school with an enrollment of 750 or more students has a full‑time assistant principal or an additional qualified person designated as an assistant to the principal on a full‑time basis.
- All teachers employed on a full‑time or part-time basis as instructors in the school hold, as a minimum, a Georgia professional certificate or a bachelor’s degree with a minimum of 18 semester hours of professional education. An exception may be granted for those teachers issued permits by the Georgia Department of Education. This standard may also be met by teachers with bachelor’s degrees completing 6 semester hours per year of appropriate professional education until 18 semester hours of credit are obtained. Equivalent staff development units (PLU) may be substituted for semester hours. See Appendix A for PLU hour conversion chart.
- The superintendent or headmaster must hold a Georgia five‑year administrator’s certificate in order for any school in the system to be accredited. In non‑public schools the superintendent or headmaster may hold, as a minimum, a master’s degree with a minimum of 15 semester hours in school administration and supervision.
- Schools with seven through nine teachers have 1/4‑time secretarial service, 10 through 13 teachers have l/2‑time secretarial service, 14 through 16 teachers have ¾-time secretarial service, and with 17 or more teachers have full‑time secretarial service. An elementary school that is a part of a combination school has secretarial service allocated on the basis of the total number of teachers of the combination school.
- Schools with between 201 and 250 students have one person assigned at least one‑half time to media services.
III. Program of Studies
(For Accredited status, all 3 standards are required.)
- The elementary school curriculum includes objectives that facilitate the development of proficiency in:
a. listening,
b. expressing ideas effectively and creatively,
c. reading well,
d. writing legibly,
e. spelling accurately,
f. speaking clearly,
g. thinking critically,
h. figuring accurately,
i. observing carefully,
j. solving problems,
k. participating in groups,
l. keeping healthy,
m. enjoying aesthetic experiences, and
n. living in a pluralistic society.
2. The objectives of the curriculum facilitate the development of behavior based upon
a. values of honesty and integrity,
b. loyalty to democratic ideals and processes,
c. responsibility for one’s own actions,
d. appreciation and desire for the best in our culture, willingness to accept and detect desirable changes, and respect and concern for others
e. wise use of time, money, and natural resources, and understanding and accepting self.
(For Accredited status all standards are required)
A written plan is provided to address the provisions below. This plan may be excerpted from school improvement plans, strategic waiver plans, etc.
1 At least $6.00 per student enrolled is spent for library books, software subscriptions such as online encyclopedias and reference databases, and other library media, exclusive of equipment, each school year.
2 The school media center has a collection management policy. The school media specialist works with school administrators and teachers in order to develop a collection management policy. Such a policy statement is based upon the curriculum and particular needs and interest of the school community and must reflect the diversity of society outside the school and extends the school library function from providing for consumers of information to creators of information.
3 The media center has appropriate number of staff who are certified, licensed or have specialized training or experience.
4 The media center includes a wide range of materials, technologies, and other information services in support of the school’s curriculum.
5 The media center is available for students and staff before, during, and after school
6 The media center is responsive to students’ interests and needs in order to support independent learning
7 The media center includes a physical setting that encourages collaboration among students, opportunities for inquiry, and authentic learning.