Lead Learners Update 1.16.12

Lead Learners Update 

1.16 - 1.27, 2012

Freely chosen, discipline is absolute freedom.

Ron Serino

Calendar of Events
1.16     Administrative Learning (Peer coach walk through) Meet @ 1:30 to debrief
Board meeting
1.18     LST visit Crest    
1.19     Quarterly conversations
1.20     Quarterly conversations
1.23     Administrative peer walkthough @12:30 and debrief @1:30
1.24 New teacher workshop @PHS study hall

1.25     LETERS Training - Student Service
1.26     LETERS Training - Student Service 1.27     Elementary Cadre

1.30 SIAC @ 5:30
1.31     Book Study/Joyful Learning (4-7 PM Prairie Point) - Student Service

Data Update Form
To help you manage data collection, we created a page on the Oversight Committee website. The page is called School Improvement Data.  For mid-year data, due by 1/23, we will collect:

• AFL - Strategy 1, 2 and 3
• Unit design - Stage 1 and 3 (base line)

The yellow highlighted columns are the ones need to be completed by 1/30. (Click here for the spreadsheet). The other columns such as MAP growth or ITBS will be completed later in May.

New Teacher Learning, Mentor and Administrative Support
We have been collecting new teacher learning data for the past three years.  The data consistently show that new teachers are comfortable in planning with clear learning targets (above 80%), but not confident in planning or teaching “think aloud” on a regular basis (50-60% range).  We have also seen a wide range of implementation on CFUs in actual walkthroughs.  Therefore, we are changing our 3rd workshop format to increase the likelihood of ACTUAL IMPLEMENTATION.  Your job embedded support will be crucial to their success.  Here are some suggestions:

• Check to see if your new teachers uploaded think aloud lessons.
• Reinforce Karen’s e-mail message for mentors - e-mail or talk with mentors regarding think aloud and CFU’s implementation.
• When conducting pre and post conferences, ask new teachers to bring evidence of think aloud and CFU’s to you in their daily/weekly lesson plan. (These strategies should be planned and applied regularly.)
• If lack of evidence, ask what support they will need (observation, mentor, coaching, etc.) and help them set goals for implementation.

New Teacher Workshop
The final new teacher workshop will have the following components:

AM

• Review year long learning followed by self reflect/celebrate
• Demo by Kristi Colby followed by self reflect/celebrate
• Trio demo (New teacher demo to two other members) followed by self reflect/celebrate
• Foreshadow PM and the rest of the year – observe/complete survey/set goals
• Gift and closure

PM

• Principal lead/classroom observation/debriefing/planning
• Complete per-assessment and goal setting

Based on last new teacher workshop feedback, principals and new teachers both enjoyed the experience in observing classes and plan with mentors/principals.  Please complete the google page by 1.20.12. so that we can use your plan to complete our planning.  One change we made is that the new teachers will take the  “teacher implementation survey” at the end of the workshop day as a formative assessment.  This will help them set specific goals.  By April, we will send out the same survey again as the final survey.  Please help new teachers set focused goals and actions plans at the conclusion of the workshop day.

5-Point Plan (Student Service Update)
In the Jan/Feb issue of Teaching Exceptional Children an article highlights a 5-Point Plan to foster successful partnerships with families of students with disabilities.  Finding ways to successfully collaborate must continue to be the priority of educators throughout a student’s school experience the authors conclude.   The 5-Point Plan includes:

1  Be positive, proactive and solution oriented.
2  Respect families’ roles and cultural backgrounds in their children’s lives.
3  Communicate consistently, listen to families’ concerns and work together.
4  Consider simple, natural supports that meet individual needs of student.
5  Empower families with knowledge and opportunities for involvement in the context of students’      
    global needs.

Not surprisingly, the article reports that when teachers strive to build working partnerships with families of students with disabilities, home-school collaboration and student achievement increases.

Highlights of Principal Meetings on Chapter 103 (Student Service Update)

• An example of the text considered by the Iowa DOE as containing the information required to be provided to parents in an annual notice was provided and principals are to include the notice in building handbooks.

• All behavior focused special education classroom teachers and program paraeducators should complete the on-line training for Chapter 103.  A copy of the certificate of completion should be provided to Kim Simeons by the end of this school year. The training is to be completed every 5 years. Other staff members may be required to complete the training based on individual situations.  This decision will be determined by the building principal in consultation with the Director of Student Services.
• A Chapter 103 training PowerPoint and a one page handout, Top 10 Points about Chapter 103, were provided as resources when providing periodic updates for all employees. It was noted on #7 of the Top 10 points handout; the district guidance is every 15 minutes.
• Parents should be contacted on the day of an instance of restraint or confinement & detention.  A written copy of the documentation to parents (Safe/Time Out Room Use--Physical Restraint Reporting Sheet) must be postmarked within three days of the instance (parents may elect to receive documents by e-mail or fax).  One copy is sent to parents, one copy is put in the student’s file and another copy is sent to the Director of Student Services. The documentation should be completed by certified staff and the administrator must review and sign the form.
• No employee shall use prone restraint. (If used in an emergency, staff must take          immediate steps to end the prone restraint.)
• All safe rooms are being reviewed.  Mirrors and updated latch mechanisms are recommended to be installed.

Curriculum Matters by Bill Poock
I begin this week’s Curriculum Matters thoughts with a quote from Where Great Teaching Begins:  Planning for Student Thinking and Learning by Anne R. Reeves:  “...clearly written objectives contain within them the seeds of good assessment” (Reeves, 2011, p. 32).  I have often struggled in my attempts in working with teachers when they are in the crafting stage of writing clear objectives.  The struggle comes from trying to help teachers think about and write learning objectives that really MATTER for students.  Teachers often complain to me about the “nit-picky” part about paying attention to the verb...struggling to make sense of how context supports a learning objective.  I have come to the realization that writing clear learning objectives IS hard work.  Period.  Look at the following two examples of learning objectives and decide for yourself which one is at a higher level of cognitive thinking:

1.  Students will solve long-division problems.
2.  Students will explain the function of each step in solving long-division problems.

While both are clearly written, the second one is written at a higher cognitive level because in the first example, students must APPLY the steps of long division to math problems.  In the second example, students must not only apply the steps, but they must ANALYZE those steps for their particular function.  Both are well-written, but the second demands more THINKING on the part of the student.
That is an important point.  We must assist teachers in writing STUDENT-CENTERED or THINKING-CENTERED learning objectives, or learning TARGETS.  We must help them avoid writing learning targets that are really ACTIVITIES in disguise.  The teacher who can delineate between the two types of objectives is the teacher who will push his/her students to higher levels of thinking and increased rigor.
Why does this matter to our teachers?  That is the wrong question to ask ourselves.  The right question we must ask ourselves is:  Why does this matter to our STUDENTS?  In this rapidly changing 21st century guided by new ways of thinking and new ways of using technology, we must ask our teachers to recognize the need to write clear learning targets focused on rigorous work that our students must know and be able to do as a result of our effective teaching.  We only have one chance with our students--and we owe it to them to our best to push their thinking and to push our teaching to levels far beyond we once imagined.

Upcoming Meeting for Second Round of Power Standards (K-4):  

We will meet at the ESC boardroom on Thursday, January 19th from 4:00 - 6:00 PM to complete Round #2 of our Power Standards process.  K-4 representative teachers will deepen their understanding about rigor and relevance and then will use that understanding to evaluate possible identified power standards to wrestle with the responsibility to pare down the power standards to a reasonable number that makes sense for each grade level.  We will see how this process goes on Thursday--teachers will need to remain highly focused to complete the work in two hours--but I’m confident that they can do it.  Thanks to K-4 administrators for selecting knowledgeable teachers to participate in this very important process!

Kudos:  Kudos to all building leaders including your building cadre teams for your “beautiful work” that happened last week during our PL days.  I cannot tell you how impressed I am by the work that is happening in our district!  Congratulations and make sure you take the time to reflect upon the successes you’ve had individually.