Faculty Meeting March 8, 2011

1. Faculty MeetingMarch 8, 2011

2. If…then… • If we want to foster curiosity, then what will we see students doing in classrooms and then, what are the conditions the adults must provide for that to happen? • If we want to foster self-directed learning, then what will we see students doing in classrooms? • If we want to foster creative, critical thinking, then how do students practice that in all classrooms frequently? • If we want to foster social responsibility, then what do we see in the classrooms and in the halls, on the court/field/etc? • If we want students to be prepared for an ever-changing world, then what will we see in the classrooms?

3. Collective Commitments • We must have a commitment to something beyond maintaining the status quo. • What is the curriculum that will get us to ‘Mission Accomplished’? • What are the assessments that will show us we are making progress? How do we blend the short term curriculum goals with the long term mission goals? What feedback will help us? • What are the conditions we put in place to make all of this happen?

4. Goal #1 • North High students will be prepared for an ever-changing world and therefore will understand and respond to those challenges. They will: • communicate effectively using verbal, written, and technological means for various audiences and purposes • problem solve using creative and thoughtful methods • transfer their prior learning to new demands

5. Goal #2 • North High students will be capable, confident and self-directed learners. They will: • request opportunities to learn beyond what is required • transfer their learning to new situations in and out of school • pursue a personal direction based on an understanding of their talents and interests • persist as learners with confidence in their skills and abilities • perform proficiently on national, state and local assessments

6. Goal #3 • North High students will be curious, creative, critical thinkers. They will: • recognize patterns and connections in order to create thoughtful solutions • read, listen and respond as critical consumers of information and ideas • seek to understand multiple perspectives • discover and evaluate patterns and relationships in information, ideas and structures • reason inductively from a set of specific facts and deductively from general premises

7. Goal #4 • North High students will be socially responsible people. They will: • act upon their responsibility to others • act out of a strong sense of personal, social and civic responsibility • create a climate of non-violence, peace and social justice • make choices that support a healthy and responsible lifestyle • work skillfully with others to achieve common goals • seek to understand the views, values and cultures of others

8. Do we assess what we say we value? • Mark on your assessment where you have measured critical thinking, creativity, self-directed learning, social responsibility • How do you calculate the value (points) of the assessment? How did you decide that? • Do others in your department use the same assessment? And the same value? • Share the answers with a partner at your table

9. Feedback • How important is it to you that you understand how others in your department are grading student work? • How important is it to you that you understand what others in your department are using as assessments? • How important is it to you that you understand the grading practices of all teachers in our school?

10. Data Dialogue Protocol(looking at EOC data) Predictions—What do you think you will see? Observations—What did you see? Patterns? Trends? Gaps? Surprises? Inferences—Why do you think this has happened? What are your suggestions? What are your ideas? What additional questions do you have?

11. Thoughts about the importance of using high quality assessments… • To develop creativity, problem solving, critical thinking, self-directed learning, assessments must focus on these also. • Using assessments that focus on these things may cause us to re-think how we assign points. • When the learning principles are evident in our unit/lesson design, high quality assessment is more likely to take place.

12. Transfer Activity • Review the feedback from your partner • Consider upcoming assessments and either: • Include a reference to the standards and/or CLE’s on your upcoming assessments or on your answer key • Adjust questions on upcoming assessments to be a higher level DOK or more M & T than Acquisition.

13. How do we know what our students know? • If our goal is to assess what students are learning, then what does it tell us if the student does not do the work? • What systems and/or structures do we currently have that could be altered to help us work differently? How would this help us better know what students know? • Write at least one idea your group has for altering a current structure or system at North.

14. Questions to ponder as you review the plan… • What would you put as the priorities from goals 1, 2 and 3? Goals 4, 5 and 6? • How do you see yourself implementing the objectives, strategies and action steps from goals 1, 2 and 3? Goals 4, 5 and 6? • What would you add or change and why?

15. How will these goals guide our discussions about curriculum, data and assessments? • How will these goals guide our use of development time and our use of time not spent in instruction?

16. Reviewing Feedback • Progress toward Goal 1 objective 1-90% passing core classes (shared in North Notes) • Feedback from Students: Learning in the Classroom

17. Feedback from Learning Survey • Review the sheets of responses at your table. • Protocol: Here’s what. So What? Now what? • What patterns do you see? • What are students telling us about their learning as it relates to our Mission and Vision? • How do their responses correspond to the learning principles? What are they telling us about the conditions we are setting up in the classroom?

18. District Level Accountability Plan /Goals School Improvement Plan / Goals Given the individual needs of our building where do we as a building need to focus our time, energy and resources to help our district meet its goal? Department /Data Team Action Plan / Goals What do we need to do collaboratively to help our building meet its goals? Classroom Goals Student Goals What do I need to do with my kids to help my team meet its goal? Adapted from D. Reeves.

19. Final Thoughts… • We have talented staff members. • We have amazing thinkers. • We have lots of resources. • We do not grow by knowing all the answers, but rather by living with the questions. -Max DePree • If we are focused, intentional and collaborative, we can do this!

20. Recognition and Awards • Congratulations to Russ Barton- Parkway District Teacher of the Year • You Bowl Me Over • Staff Member of the Month • M-V-P Awards

21. M-V-P Awards • Kerri Hanis • Michelle Knight • Karen Lafever • Mark Linn • Jessie Michael