This was a great article.
1. How do we begin the process of creating a mission statement that is short, sweet, to the point and most importantly, meaningful?
2.As a school site, have we addressed the following:
a. What do we want students to learn?
b. How will we know when each student has learned it?
c. How will we respond when a student doesn’t learn it?
3. Do we currently have a culture of collaboration at Ustach?
a. If "No" how do we start to create this culture?
I have to admit...this is the first time I have ever officially blogged...I hope I am doing this correctly!
ReplyDeleteWhen we created our mission statement at the start of this process it came from our leadership time making the decision that maximizing student learning was our focus and our only focus. That part of the process came very naturally for us as we as a school team wholeheartedly believe this and work incredibly hard to make that happen.
As PLC teams, we have addressed what to do when the students prove they have learned. This year the language arts department, as that is the department I can speak about as I teach language arts, has worked very hard to create common writing assessments and standards to push students in the area of writing different genres...we are very excited about next year. We have also worked on taking the vocabulary that students are learning from direct instruction and help the students use those words to create vivid language in their writing. This is something we really want to continue working through next year.
I know we still need to create more common assessments, especially at a smaller scale, and then the "now what" factor comes in. What do we do with the kids that "can't" versus "won't?"
I think we do have a culture of collaboration. This last year we may not have been doing formal PLCs, but we spend quite a bit of time learning from one another. The language arts department met often sharing ideas and assessments. Social studies teachers worked with language arts teachers on cross curricular assignments and we would love that to move into working with other core subjects as well. I know there has been a lot of collaboration going on in all of the departments, not just cooperation. I fear that our school has been labeled as "uncooperative" with the idea of having a collaborative nature and that is truly not the case. I think it is the opposite as most of us really rely on one another to improve our teaching and reaching as many children as we can in the short amount of time we have them. I am very excited to continue to move forward next year.
Hope I did this right and I hope I did not just ramble...if I did, it probably won't change too much as I can not help myself.
Melanie AKA Pollyanna (just for you Zambo)
From Nick Stever:
ReplyDeleteMelanie great commentary. This is a great forum for me to get familiar with the culture of Ustach. I have a question, you stated, “As PLC Teams, we have addressed what to do when the students prove they have learned.” My questions is have the PLCs discussed what to do if students don’t learn? Every school I have ever worked at (6 all together now) have all claimed that they collaborate but only one truly did. I am glad to hear that Ustach values collaboration and is currently practicing how to collaborate. I believe that true collaboration is a skill and just like any skill, it must be practiced to be mastered. Every skill has fundamentals. The fundamentals for collaboration are communication skills, structures for inquiring, decision making, compromising, problem solving, resolving differences, capacities for self assertion, and self control. Collaboration is a process that spans beyond conversations about ideas and assignments. When we can say we do all of the below, on a regular basis, then and only then are we truly collaborating.
1. Collaborate regularly to decide what content we will teach in our classrooms
2. Collaborate regularly to decide what assessments we will use in each of our classrooms
3. Collaborate regularly to decide what instructional strategies we will use in each of our classrooms
4. Collaborate regularly to analyze common student achievement data
5. Collaborate regularly to make decisions and to adjust instructional practices based on analysis of data
6. Collaborate regularly to build the necessary skills to analyze student achievement data in order to make instructional decisions
7. Collaborate regularly to build the skills to address controversial topics, such as differences in student learning across classrooms
Absolutely...I think the key is the term "regularly" with some set organization. I am so looking forward to this coming year...working to help the kids that have not yet learned it and balancing with the ones that have.
ReplyDeleteOkay, I am admitting that I, too, am a novice blogger. However, I will do my best to participate in the discussions. After reading this first article, I was impressed with the intervention program from Stevenson High School in Illinois. What struck me immediately was the dedication of the staff and the passion they had for educating the students. Participation in this program for struggling students was not an option; it was mandatory. And the staff members went the extra mile when necessary to help these students. I wonder if there is any way to incorporate some of these ideas at Ustach? I think it's worth looking into...
ReplyDeleteI also shared this article with Cohort 1 of our PLC Leadership team this past spring before Nick was officially here with us. Since that time, I think we have made positive steps as a school to move towards becoming a PLC. To answer Nick's initial questions regarding the creation of a mission statement, the three big questions/tenets of a PLC, and whether or not Ustach has a culture of collaboration, I will respond by saying, that we are making progress in those areas. I think/know that administration realizes that we just don't become a PLC overnight, in a PRESTO-CHANGE-O fashion. I think the Core Values activity that Nick had us do at the faculty work day is leading us towards creating a mission statement. It would make sense to me that our core values as a site, and as educators will contribute to what is important and our mission at Ustach. I think that over the course of the year we will be looking more deeply at answering the big 3 PLC questions. At the Common Formative Assessment training last week, we saw what it takes to prioritize and break down standards towards the creation of appropriate and rigorous assessment tools. As for whether or not Ustach has a culture of collaboration, strides are being made. I so appreciate that I am more involved in grade level/department meetings this year. 6th grade is doing an awesome job during their embedded PLC time/meetings. A cultural shift is occurring on Kodiak Drive, and I LIKE IT.
ReplyDeleteI am new to blogging as well. I am excited about the new path our district is taking. For many years we have been told "what to teach" but not given time to work with our teams to collaborate on "how we teach". I feel that power is now being restored to the teachers and we can make a big difference in our student's future here at Ustach. This have been a very challenging first month and there have been a few who are not happy about the new path we are on, but I hope they will see that it will create more positive discussions, collaboration, and hopefully good results. I look forward to the PLC learning process and I know this is going to be a journey that will take many years, but will be extremely rewarding. I believe that working as a team and creating common assessments will be beneficial for everyone. Lots of hard work ahead, but I am ready!
ReplyDelete1. A mission statement should be decided by a team who takes it to the staff members for agreement. It should mean something to everyone at the site.
ReplyDelete2. I don't think we are addressing these questions yet. We have asked them many times, but do not have a plan in place to use when kids "have not learned". I think that should be our goal this year so we can create interventions.
3. I do believe there is a culture of collaboration here at Ustach. I have been here for 16 years and have always felt that. Can it be better? Yes! I think the 6th grade team is ready and willing to work together to achieve common goals and create common assessments.
In creating a mission statement, it is very easy to come with a list of goals and values that we have but not very easy to put them into a clear and concise statement. In order for it to be meaningful we will have to keep working on it.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of knowing what to teach and how to teach it, I think we as a staff do a pretty good job. However we are stuck on the what to do when they don't get it, how can we create and maintain an effective intervention process.
Some of us do already truly collaborate and others only think they collaborate when they are just sharing worksheets. We have a ways to go to convince some staff that true collaboration is needed.
I agree with both Holly and Lisa that some of our staff members not only show a desire, but DO actually collaborate with their peers. We have a great many gifted teachers at our site and they are eager to share their ideas and work as a team. However, I think we can improve the school-wide climate to one that looks beyond our own little worlds into the whole galaxy of Ustach. I've not been at Ustach since the beginning, as many teachers have. However, when I came to the school it appeared to me that two factors were keeping the staff from unity: a track system, and the pod design of the school. The track system has now formed a traditional year, which I think has helped bring people together. However, I see many of us content to stay in the comfort zone of our own "pods" or buildings without ever mingling much with those outside of our school "home". I am to blame for my own lack of participation and hope to have lunch with more members of the staff this year....just to create that sense of family that I think we could use.
ReplyDeleteThis simple shift- from a focus on teaching to a focus on learning- seems like a "no brainer", but like any change it will take time. The plenary speaker on Friday did a great job of introducing the whole idea. Not allowing students to fail is a novel idea for my generation, and the logistics of providing intervention so that students can't fail is going to be the challenge.
ReplyDeleteOk.... This is the first time I have ever blogged (with the exception of a blog of my love for grilled cheese... ask me later), so I'm not quite sure that I am doing this correctly. Here goes.....
ReplyDelete1. The mission statement needs to be created by the people that who will be implementing it. Obviously, that is a lot of people, so short and sweet might not happen. don't shoot me.... but shouldn't the students be involved too? This school belongs to them too. Just a thought.
2. The teachers (with their data in hand ase well as conversations with the teachers of previous grades and the grades to come) need to get together in their PLC meetings to decide what the essential skills or information are. They also need to decide how these skills will be assessed. Do we need to create new assessments (short quiz) to check for learning (not teaching), or is something already available? My guess would be that we would need to create new assessments. Then we need to decide what to do when students don't master those essential skills. A shift from teaching to learning. I truly am so thankful that we have time built into the day to do this. 6th grade hasn't fully gotten into asking or answering these questions. Some of us are ready and excited to do so.
3. I think that we don't have a culture of collaboration at Ustach. I think some people think that we collaborate, but are mistaken about what collaboration is. Some people just aren't on board. Sad. What to do about it? I'm turly not sure. There is a story in agenda about two wolves that live inside of you.... one is good and one is bad. They are constantly fighting. A little boy asks his grandfather who wins. The grandfather says.... the one you feed. Feed the one you want to win. Don't listen to the negative talk. Be the positive person you want others to be, and maybe others will get on board. :)
I agree with Charlene... We have many gifted teachers at Ustach. There is a reason why our scores are so high. Imagine how much higher they would be if we all worked together! :)
ReplyDeleteJeannie, I think the idea of the simple shift in thought is how we need to promote PLC's. The focus on teaching puts all the pressure on me but the focus on learning distributes the pressure throughout our school. We can lean on one another and lean on the plans we put in place to help our students "learn" what we want them to learn.
ReplyDelete