Steele Lane Elementary Santa Rosa, CA

1. Steele Lane ElementarySanta Rosa, CA A Learning Community

2. A LITTLE ABOUT US: Steele Lane is located in Santa Rosa Santa Rosa population – 250,000 Anglo-55% Latino – 45% Asian – 2% African-American – 8%

3. Steele Lane is a K-6 Elementary School Student population – 380 Hispanic – 65% White/Other – 35% SED – 85% Mobility Rate – 50%

4. Teachers: 18 FT Classroom Teachers 1 RSP Teacher W/ an aide 1 Title I Reading Teacher 1 Literacy Coach (Reading First) 1 PIT Teacher 1 PT Counselor 1 PT Psychologist

5. My assignment, should I choose to accept it… Superintendent Solie says… “Good Luck”

6. Did I make a mistake? Two prior principals before I arrived in 2004 - One worked for 1 year and 1 month and moved to DO - Next one finished out the year and was moved to another site The Coover Question

7. Attendance of students was at an all-time low (92.45) Behavior Students (92 suspensions = 140 lost school days, 4 expulsion hearings-drugs, weapons) Parents (2 parents w/ restraining orders by school personnel)

8. -Curriculum -HM Reading in K-3 (most teachers had some training-but little consistency of implementation within & across grade levels) 4-6 (no PD no HM) No pacing guides/calendar map - Math (texts published 1988 no consistent program within/across grade levels) No pacing guides/calendar map - Collaborative Time – weekly meetings on minimum days (no clear, consistent focus)

9. Overall School Climate Diverse, economically disadvantaged student population angry and frustrated Independent Contractor Mentality among teachers Minimal Parent Involvement (no PTA/PFO, ELAC in name only) Parents seemed “mad” at the school. Some positive cheerleaders, but all in all a Tough Assignment

10. Definition of Insanity Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results… Albert Einstein

11. Where to Start? Develop an Action Plan with “Early Adopters” (Tipping Point) with ELA & Math Goals Primary focus on systematic Curriculum Delivery Professional Development Track Progress Build trust & support with all stakeholders

12. Action Plan SLIM Team agreed on two goals - Increase the API scores in ELA and Math by focusing on the students in the BB and FBB bands. - Increase the students scoring Proficient by focusing on “330 club”

13. Systematic Curriculum Delivery Curriculum Map for ELA based on Grade Level Standards Next step - Pacing Guides I was to assure the fidelity to HM (HSWI)

14. “No one leader, institution or nation can control everything without help” A. Hargreaves

15. Professional Development Results – Mike Schmoker A Framework for Understanding Poverty – Ruby Payne Thinking Maps Release Days

16. Tracking Progress Reading First Grant Theme Assessments OARS

17. Building Trust 5 Dysfunctions of a Team (Lencioni) Trust Productive Conflict Commitment Accountability Attention to Results

18. Overcoming Lack of Trust Vulnerability-based Trust requires shared experiences over time, multiple instances of follow-through and credibility, and an in-depth understanding of the unique attributes of team members Patrick Lencioni

19. Successful! All of these efforts took enormous amounts of time and energy, but We got great results

20. API ’04 ’05 ’06 ‘07 School 629 680 695 728 White 688 745 NS NS Hispanic 590 649 668 711 SED 595 663 669 681 ELL 626 647 681

21. AYP % Proficient ELA ’04 ’05 ’06 ’07 School 21.1 26.5 28.7 37.6 White 31.5 42.4 51.2 53.2 Hisp. 12.3 18.9 20.0 30.6 SED 14.5 23.3 22.4 32.7 ELL 11.9 14.8 13.8 26.4 Sw/D 13.0 14.8 20.8 18.2

22. AYP % Proficient Math ’04 ’05 ’06 ’07 School 25.1 35.8 32.6 40.2 White 36.9 44.1 44.2 52.2 Hisp. 17.3 30.3 27.4 36.1 SED 20.4 32.7 27.7 36.6 ELL 16.5 26.1 24.1 32.5 Sw/D 13.0 18.5 20.8 22.7

23. What Happened in 2008? “Flat-lined” in ELA “Knocked the socks off” in Math Our quick take… 83/20 83 “new” students 20 of who were proficient

24. But We Really Took Off… RCAT+ Grant APS Professional Development RtI & The Pyramid Continuous Growth Greater Depth of Analysis Sustainability

25. Culture and Climateat Steele Lane The Culture and Climate at Steele Lane have gone through a dramatic transformation in the past two years as a result of the processes associated with becoming a Professional Learning Community.

26. Program and Process: The Difference Program refers to the specific strategies we employ to attain our goals. Programs and fads go hand in hand. They come and they go. Programs elicit compliance.

27. Program and Process: The Difference Process is the way we go about doing our business. It is the underlying philosophy and belief system we use to make decisions related to goal-setting and doing our jobs. Process is ongoing. Process inspires commitment.

28. SOME BASIC ASSUMPTIONS: Teachers Matter Teachers Care Schools Matter The Research is Clear

29. A Recent Marzano Study If you took an average kid based on CAT 6 what %ile would you expect him to score after one year with: - an avg. teacher in an avg. school? - a “poor” teacher in a “poor” school? - a great teacher in a great school?

30. A Fundamental Shift Marzano’s research and our own beliefs as a faculty coupled with the Professional Development we received through the RCAT+ Grant prompted a dramatic and fundamental shift and change in the way we do the business of education

31. The Shift is From …To Focus on Teaching Focus on Learning May/may not goal related SMART Goals Little tracking of progress Measure and track Hope for improvement Commitment to improvement Conversations around Conversations around Programs key questions

32. We chose to become a Professional Learning Community The most promising strategy for sustained substantive school improvement is building the capacity of school personnel to function as a professional learning community. The path to change in the classroom lies within and through professional learning communities. Milbrey McLaughlin

33. The Characteristics of a PLC - Shared mission, vision, values and goals - Collaborative teams FOCUSED ON LEARNING - Collective inquiry into “best practice” and “current reality” - Action orientation/experimentation - Commitment to continuous improvement - Results orientation

34. There are 3 Big Ideas that Drive Professional Learning Communities

35. Big Idea #1 We accept high levels of learning for all students as the fundamental purpose of our school and therefore are willing to examine all practices in light of their impact on learning.

36. Steele Lane Mission Statement “All kids can learn and we will establish high standards of learning that we expect all students to achieve”

37. At the Heart of Steele Lane’s Learning Community Is a constant, RELENTLESS drive to answer 3 questions:

38. To answer the first question:What is it we want kids to learn?We look at Standards Blueprints District Expectations Course Outlines Curriculum Maps SMART Goals

39. SMART Goals produce results Strategic and specific Measurable Attainable Results-Oriented Time-Bound

40. How do we know they have/have not learned it?Is best answered by Frequent Formative Assessments Tracking Assessment results (OARS) Create a Scoreboard Sharing Results Focus on Literacy & Math

41. What do we do when they have/have not learned it?ACTION IS REQUIRED!!! Brainstorm and Implement Strategies Employ Preventions/Interventions Develop a “Pyramid of Interventions” Share Research Based Strategies

42. Big Idea #2 We can achieve our fundamental purpose of high levels of learning for all students only if we work together. We cultivate a collaborative culture through the development of high performing teams.

43. Need for a Collaborative Culture Improving schools require collaborative culture....Without collaborative skills and relationships, it is not possible to learn and to continue to learn as much as you need to know to improve. Michael Fullan

44. The current reality in education is that we essentially ignore the research that supports collaboration around student achievement data as a framework for improving our schools and continue to operate as “independent kingdoms surrounded by a common parking lot.” Rick DuFour

45. Big Idea #3 We assess our effectiveness on the basis of results rather than intentions. Individuals, teams and schools seek relevant data and information and use that information to promote continuous improvement.

46. Non-Negotiables Defining essential learnings and using common assessments Participating on a team Demonstrating that student learning is a priority through the analysis of data and high impact instructional strategies Honoring collective commitments to the school and the team Showing evidence of student achievement improvement

47. PLC: A Process not a Program The professional learning community represents an ethos that infuses every single aspect of a school’s operation. When a school becomes a professional learning community everything in the school looks different than it did before. Andy Hargreaves

48. IF… The most promising strategy for sustained substantive school improvement is building the capacity of school personnel to function as a professional learning community. The path to change in the classroom lies within and through professional learning communities. Milbrey McLaughlin

49. “Why does knowledge of what needs to be done so frequently fail to result in action or behavior consistent with that knowledge?” Pfeffer & Sutton, The Knowing-Doing Gap

50. The Pygmalion & Galatea Effects Your expectations of people and their expectations of themselves are the key factors in how well people perform at work.

51. When people believe they can succeed and contribute, their performance rises to the level of their own expectations.

52. These concepts are effective for teachers/employees in the workplace as well as for students in the classroom.

53. The way managers treat their employees is subtly influenced by what they expect of them J. Sterling Livingston

54. “I shall always be a flower girl to Professor Higgins because he always treats me as a flower girl and always will; but I know I can be a lady to you because you always treat me as a lady and always will.” Eliza Doolittle, Pygmalion

55. If you think you can or can’t You’re RIGHT!!!

57. Sharing thoughts about Professional learning Communities

58. As a new person on staff, I appreciate the support and comraderie the PLC’s provide. Joyce Stohlmann

59. I no longer believe that an “Enneagram” is a magical/spiritual symbol to ward off demons, werewolves and witches. Sharon Garrison

60. I appreciated the effective Vocabulary instruction. I love the word for the day and so do my children. Mary Coover

61. I love PLC’s!! Louise Silk

62. There seems to be a new, fresh level of cooperation among our faculty. I’ve noticed we make more of an effort to listen to each other. Our classrooms aren’t quite as isolated as before because we’ve worked so hard to focus on what’s best for students. Susan Wood

63. The best part of being in a PLC is the comraderie, the sharing and knowing “we’re all in this together” and “no one of us is as smart as all of us” Nicole Mule`

64. PLC’s have really helped me stay focused with my intention to improve student learning. I like the process. To watch our whole staff, despite our differences, honor and work toward this goal is inspiring. Monica Thompson

65. Our Professional Learning Community provides a way of working together with heart and mind to give our children a better future. Our collective efforts are truly making a positive difference in the learning of our students. Howard Hardie

66. Special Education Revisited Howard Hardie