2007 Microsoft US Innovative Teachers Forum Application

1. 2007 Microsoft US Innovative Teachers Forum Application Columbus East High School 230 S. Marr Rd. Columbus, IN 47201 Smaller Learning Communities House D Team

2. Section I: 21st Century Learning Teams A tool for school learning teams to document effective teaming strategies and results

3. Part I: About the team Columbus East High School School name Columbus, Indiana Location 9th-12th (Our team is a 9th grade only team) Grades Autumne: Team Leader and World Civilizations TeacherRebecca: Language Arts TeacherHarriet: Keystone Teacher (Keystone in a study skills and technology class)Steve: Biology Teacher Team members and roles Our team was formed when Columbus East High School received a federal grant to implement Smaller Learning Communities. The grant is now in its third year. Our school applied to receive this grant because it was our belief that the 9th grade year was an important year for a high school student. Success during the 9th grade year can be critical for success during high school. Therefore, our school assigns every freshmen to a team, which is called a house. Each house has four teachers and approximately one hundred students. The houses focus on creating a sense of community and building relationships with students. This is the second year that our current teaching team has been together. Teams were formed by taking one teacher from the core classes that a freshmen usually takes and giving those teachers a block of time either in the morning or afternoon where the teachers could teach together. How and when team was formed

4. Part II: Goals and team time A. To establish supportive relationships with our students and each other so we can grow academically together and build a sense of community, concern and respect.B. To challenge each student at his or her level and encourage rigorous work through critical thinking skills and collaboration. Team goals Our team is held together by sharing the goals mentioned above, agreeing that we are stronger when we work together and we also believe strongly in project based learning. Our team believes that learning can occur in the most authentic way when students work collaboratively to solve problems, produce solutions, present ideas, and encourage each other to achieve and learn more. Our team also sees value in interdisciplinary and thematic instruction as a way to help students engage in the curriculum and make relevant connections to the “real world”. Common norms, agreements and learning beliefs To achieve our goals and maintain our agreements about learning beliefs, our team meets at least twice a week for 45 minutes. We usually meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays.Often, we meet more than twice a week so we can discuss student growth and strategies to help struggling learners. We also discuss curriculum ideas and use the team meeting times to analyze data. We are able to use this time to schedule conferences for parents, special education teachers, or other colleagues as we plan units and projects. Team meeting time, duration, and frequency Our team communicates by the scheduled team meetings. We also frequently email each other to check on the progress of students and learning activities. In addition, we teach together and are in contact in the classroom frequently. Our team plans together and communication is essential when planning interdisciplinary projects. To ensure that our time is properly used, our team meetings follow an agenda and we devote a certain amount of time to student concerns and a certain amount of time to curricular concerns. This strategy has proved successful so far. Our team, as well as the other Small Learning Communities Houses, participates in monthly training sessions where all freshmen teachers discuss strategies for student success and share ideas for project based activities. We ask our colleagues for feedback on unit design and use that feedback to make modifications. This has been a terrific use of our team planning time. Team communication tools and strategies

5. Part III: Teamwork in action (page 1 of 2) Student achievement is at the heart of our team. We work together to stay focused on student achievement by analyzing student work together and brainstorming ways we can make our teaching better to foster higher student achievement. Our team has been through training sessions on the use of protocols as a way to structure these discussions. We also strive to be reflective practitioners and ask for student feedback from various projects so we can improve on the work we do. We model this reflective practice for the students so they can also stay focused on their achievement. How does the team organize its work to stay focused on student achievement? Teamwork strategy 1: Teambuilding and goal setting How does the team use best-practice strategies to foster professional growth and student achievement? Our team is very intentional about developing team relationships and common goals. After receiving the federal grant to implement Small Learning Communities, our school provided several training sessions that team members participated in. These training sessions included a critical friends seminar where we learned how to use protocols, sessions with Daniel Baron from the National School Reform Council on project based learning, authentic assessment, collaborative learning groups, and many other topics. By participating in these semi-formal training sessions, our team became more cohesive as we shared a common goal and a common belief about how to provide a supportive, encouraging and challenging learning environment for our students. This is still a work in progress, but our team shares the vision of helping all students grow and achieve and using many tools to get there. The time that our school has given us to attend and participate in the training sessions has been invaluable as it has lead to much professional development, enhanced teamwork, and passion for improving student learning.

6. Teamwork strategy 2: Instructional planning Much of our team planning time is devoted to instructional planning. Since we have the opportunity for team interdisciplinary teaching, we start by mapping the scope and sequence for each core class and looking for natural connections. We use the state standards as well to see what connections we can make. Much of the summer we spend by designing projects that encourage critical thinking and collaborative work and we design assessments that match our learning goals. This is done as a team of four teachers so we are able to get feedback for one another. Then, at the end of the summer, all freshmen teams meet to present their units and projects and get feedback from the large group. This enables us to use a lot of collaboration when designing activities and assessments. This type of instructional planning is much more effective than a traditional high school planning session where one teacher is planning. We get the best thinking of our team and of all the freshmen teachers!

7. Part III: Teamwork in action (page 2 of 2) Teamwork strategy 3: Examining student work How does the team use best-practice strategies to foster professional growth and student achievement? Student work and student learning results are continuously examined by our team. Since we share the same students, we discuss in our team meetings how they are doing in all of their classes. We analyze student grade data every four weeks and implement strategies to try to help struggling learners. We also look for patterns to see if a student is performing strong in one class, but perhaps not strong in other classes. Then, we can discuss what is going on in the one class that the student is performing well in to see what can be adapted to the other classes. These conversations happen frequently. We also use assessment tools like rubrics and self-reflections to examine student learning. The rubrics are designed by the team and shared with the students. Student input is often sought in the creation of the assessment tools as well. Teamwork strategy 4: Co-teaching and sharing new instructional strategies The team engages in a lot of team or co-teaching. Our schedule is set up so that we have approximately three hours and fifteen minutes together as a team. We have the flexibility in our schedule to use that time as we see fit. Therefore, we have plenty of opportunities for teaming. We also have a large partitioned room that can fit up to fifty students. We use this room for team teaching. Often, English and World Civilizations teach thematic units or project based lessons together. Keystone is structured so that it can fit into a lot of different units as well. Students in Keystone class have computers available and often use that class time to research and work on projects. New instructional strategies are shared by discussing what is working well in the classroom. As we meet, we discuss what is going on in the classroom and what the students are responding positively to. Also, since we have our monthly meetings, this provides an avenue to share new ideas and interdisciplinary units. We are fortunate in that we can use all the freshmen teachers to get ideas and to brainstorm new instructional practices. Many of our ideas come directly from the training sessions by Daniel Baron.

8. Teamwork strategy 5: Developing student support strategies

9. Part IV: Team success (page 1 of 3) We feel like our team has contributed to improved student achievement. However, since Smaller Learning Communities is still a new program, we don’t have any long-term data to analyze. Our team has been successful in establishing solid student relationships and we feel like this helps student achievement. Since we discuss our students’ performance often, as a team we are able to support students and provide diverse ways for students to be successful. Students comment about how comfortable they feel in the teams and we feel like this helps the students make the transition to high school. Students do achieve and learn more when they are in a welcoming environment and feel supported. Our team allows students several opportunities to work on collaborative projects and typically students achieve more when they are working together. In addition, since students are together as a team, they are able to learn from one another and form good student to student relationships and we feel like this improves student achievement as well. How has the team directly contributed to improved student achievement? What has been the most significant team learning thus far? The most significant team learning this far has been the paradigm shift from a traditional high school model to a collaborative high school model. Our team has learned so much from working together and we have grown tremendously. We have learned the benefit of collaboration. At first, many thought that the time it would take to collaborate would not be worth the perceived benefit. However, now that we have been working together and see the benefit translated in terms of higher student achievement, we can’t believe that there was ever any hesitation to collaborate. We have learned that feedback from others helps us become better teachers and have higher student achievement. We have learned to open our classroom doors so we can learn from each other. Our students see us working together as well and this adds to the sense of community that we are building. As our team is in transition from a traditional mindset to a collaborative one, we have learned that teaching is much more powerful and rewarding when you are not in it alone!

10. How has the team impacted the school structure and culture? What are other indicators of team success?

11. Part IV: Team success (page 2 of 3) When our team first taught together, it was a challenge to figure out how to schedule students and how to use our time in a flexible manner. We met with other teachers who had been involved in interdisciplinary teaching who could help us learn how to best use alternative schedules. Another pressing challenge is being able to meet the needs of all of our students. Even though we try many different strategies to help students, we still feel like there are some students we are not meeting. The is a challenge for which we are still searching for a solution. Teaming challenges & solutions 1: Core subjects Our team is made up of four teachers who demonstrate the following core subjects: English, Biological/Life Sciences, World Civilizations/History, and Keystone (Technology/Study Skills). Our team co-teaches a lot so each teacher contributes to the core subjects, even if it is not his or her primary core subject. The project our team is submitting for consideration focuses on English and World Civilizations/History. How does the team demonstrate 21st Century Skills? 2: 21st Century content Our team employs the 21st century content skills whenever we can! When our team designs thematic or interdisciplinary units, we focus on global awareness, financial, economic, business and entrepreneurial literacy, civic literacy, and health and wellness awareness. Our team feels that our students need these skills in order to be active and informed citizens in their community. The 21st century content skills are skills that our students can apply to any given situation. We feel this is more powerful learning for the students since many times it is more relevant than a core subject lesson. The project we are submitting, “Save the Roman Empire”, demonstrates these skills. (More information later in slideshow). 3: Learning and thinking skills Much like the 21st century content skills, our team believes in the relevancy of the the learning and thinking skills. Our students work collaboratively a lot, much like we do as a team. Many of the projects they develop focus on developing critical thinking and problem solving skills, communication skills and utilizing creativity as well as technology. Again, our team values this because these skills are transferable.

12. Part IV: Team success (page 3 of 3) 4: Information and communications technology literacy How does the team demonstrate 21st Century Skills? Our team exercises information and communications technology by having a class (Keystone) that focuses on developing these skills for the students. In that class, students are introduced to many technological skills, from basic computer use to webpage design and creating a film and digital editing. Many times, the projects that are designed in the other core classes utilize Keystone to help with the technology component of the project, whether it is PowerPoint design, Publisher work or even editing footage from a classroom activity. Our team strongly believes that our students need to be comfortable using a wide range of technology to be successful in today’s world. 5: Life skills Our team models life skills by being aware of the skills and incorporating them into assessments for the students. In addition, our team has taken students on service learning trips where students plan the activities and therefore have to take a leadership role to do so. Embedded in those types of trips are lessons in social responsibility, people skills, ethics, and accountability. When our students have volunteered in the community, they often feel proud of their accomplishment and we, as their teachers, feel like they are learning valuable life skills. Our team is fairly new to working together, but we can already seem tremendous benefit in doing so. Working collaboratively, we are able to design better activities, projects, and assessments for the students and can do so by team teaching also! We are excited to be considered to attend the Microsoft Forum because we would be able to meet other teaching teams and gain ideas and knowledge that would help us become better educators for our students. Anything else your team would like to share?

13. A tool for learning teams to document effective student project designs and results Section II: 21st Century Projects

14. Part I: Project overview “Save the Roman Empire” Project title 9th gradeLanguage Arts and World Civilizations Grade & subject(s) School & location Columbus East High School230 S. Marr Rd.Columbus, Indiana 47201 Team Members’ Names & roles and project duration Autumne Streeval: Team Leader, World Civilizations Teacher, Project DesignerRebecca Guest-Scott: English Teacher, Project DesignerHarriet Armstrong: Keystone Teacher, Project HelperSteve Hambling: Biology Teacher, Project Helper Completing the project took approximately two weeks. Students worked for one week on research and the second week for presentation of work. Overview This project, “Save the Roman Empire”, focused on having students work collaboratively as a group of Roman Senators who were formulating solutions to the complex problems facing the crumbling Roman Empire. As Senators, they had to create solutions for problems that even many modern countries face today and so it was extremely relevant for the students. Once students had a set of solutions, they presented them to the class, which acted like the Roman Senate. The Senate questioned each group extensively about their solutions and the implications of implementing any given set of solutions. The Senate sessions were full of lively debate! Students presented their solutions using a PowerPoint and had to create solutions for many of Rome’s problems. These problems and the project description as well as all of the student activities for the project are attached.

15. Part II: Project development (page 1 of 3) The main idea for this project originated from world civilizations class. In that class, students were studying ancient Greece and Rome. While teaching about the reasons why ancient Rome was in a state of distress, students drew many comparisons to other modern countries. Discussions centered on the problem of a large empire, collection of taxes, large unclean cities, military control, etc. These issues are important for many countries today. Therefore, the world civilizations teacher modified an assignment that asked students individually to create a solution for each problem and sought input from the English teacher. Together, we created a collaborative project taking the idea of problem solving and making it an engaging project for the students. In English class, the teacher focused on persuasive speech making for when students would be presenting to the Roman Senate. From there, the project idea took hold and we developed the activities and assessments. Idea source & design steps The concepts and themes for this project included: collaborative work, applying problem solving skills to a very complex issue, understanding and simulating civic responsibility by actively participating in a decision making body of government (Roman Senate), communication skills by effectively presenting solution, and understanding the importance of leadership and ethics in government. Concepts/themes Essential questions The essential question for the entire unit on ancient Greece and Rome was: What is my responsibility to society? Using this as a guide, we focused on the social responsibility of education, philosophy, government, and social class. We studied how these things were implemented in ancient times and how they are implemented today. The “Save the Roman Empire” project particularly focused on the question of: How do citizens make change in their society and address problems within the society? By trying to solve the problems facing ancient Rome, students were exercising social responsibility. Core subject area integration This project mainly focused on English and World Civilizations/History. In English, the focus was on communication and how to effectively persuade an audience of one’s ideas. In World Civilizations, the focus was on the historical content of ancient Rome and the problems facing the Roman Empire. Keystone was also incorporated into the project for technology support during research and presentations.

16. Part II: Project development (page 2 of 3) Indiana focuses on Indiana State Standards. So, when designing this project, the following are some of the important standards that were met:* Analyze the numerous reasons that led to the complex decline of an ancient civilization (IN standard WH.3.8, WH.3.12)*Work collaboratively with a group of peers to propose solutions to the most pressing problems facing ancient Rome (IN standard WH3.12)*Write and deliver a persuasive presentation detailing the specifics of the proposed solutions using expanded vocabulary and specific rhetorical devices to support assertions and sway the audience (IN standard LA 9.5.4, 9.5.7, 9.7.18)*Note: WH= World History, LA= Language ArtsA full list of the standards that were met in this project are attached in the project description and activities. In addition to the learning objectives/standards that are listed, the way that each standard was assessed is also listed. Standards 21st Century content In this project, students were very engaged in civic literacy. Students found this to be a rigorous project due to all the problem solving involved. If students thought that the problem of controlling the military was solved, they soon realized that the proposed solution might actually create more problems. Therefore, it was a challenging activity. Students also got to see what it was like to be an active participant in government and to take social action. We, as the teachers, wanted students to get this experience so they will hopefully be active citizens in their community and be able to identify and go through the process of civic action and duty. In addition, students also gained experience in global awareness. Many of the problems facing ancient Rome are the same issues facing modern countries. Through many class discussions, we were able to compare what happened in Rome to what is currently going on worldwide. This allowed students to be more aware of the world around them. Also, students had to propose solutions to economic issues, which were really at the heart of the Roman Empire. How to ensure taxes were fairly issued and collected? How to address the social divide and social inequality? Many of these issues are economic and gave students exposure to the complexities of a society’s economy. Lastly, students also had to address issues that were focused on health awareness. Many of the Roman cities were unsanitary and those conditions needed attention. Students had to think of solutions that would address that concern and be agreeable to the majority of the Roman Senate. Our team felt that many of the problems that the students had to solve touched on the 21st century content skills. Some of the skills, like civic literacy and global awareness, were covered in detail.

17. Part II: Project development (page 3 of 3) This project really exemplified the learning and thinking skills. The heart of the project was developing critical thinking and problem solving skills. The students were presented with a comprehensive list of problems that they had to solve and really think through so that the solutions would be realistic. Students also had to communicate within their group to reach a consensus and also persuasively communicate with the whole class to explain the solutions that they designed. Since the problems were so complex and interwoven, students had to be creative and innovative when designing the solutions. Many of the students commented that this project was difficult for them because they had to be creative in designing the solutions. A simple minded solution would quickly be devoured by the Roman Senate. In addition, students clearly needed to collaborate on this project. The students were working in heterogeneously mixed groups to design the solutions. Assigning various tasks out to each student was delegated by the groups. Students also used technology to research their proposed solutions and to organize and present their work. This learning was very contextual and relevant to the students because they can apply the process they went through when trying to solve their own problems, or the pressing problems of society. Learning & thinking skills This project also helped students practice and develop life skills. Students had to take a leadership role in designing and presenting solutions. By being leaders, they also had to defend the solutions that they created. Related to the leadership they assumed, students also had to be sure that the solutions they were proposing were ethical. Since the solutions were being presented and analyzed by the Roman Senate, students knew that the solutions had to be ethical in nature, otherwise, the solutions would not pass the Senate vote. Students also had to be accountable to each other. By working collaboratively, students relied on each other to get the project done. Since there was going to be a public display of their learning in the form of the Roman Senate, it was imperative that the work get done. This also meant that students had to be personally productive and responsible, or the group would suffer. Even though students were working collaboratively, they still needed some self-direction to get their assigned tasks completed. Students also had to demonstrate people skills in working in a diverse group to create their solutions. They had to adapt their own style some to be able to take the strengths of all the students to make an effective group. Overall, the whole project focused on social responsibility. The social responsibility to a society when it is in distress, the social responsibility of leaders to design comprehensive solutions, the social responsibility to address inequalities in a society, and the social responsibility to be an agent of change in your own community. Life Skills

18. Part III: Project implementation (page 1 of 2) Student project teams were created by the teachers. We wanted the groups to be heterogeneous and have in each group a good mix of technology skills, academic skills, speaking skills, etc. To ensure this, we put the students in groups based on their different learning styles. This way we knew we would have a mix of strengths in the groups. Students knew that they were being grouped by learning styles. To support the groups, the teachers guided the students through the research and the early phase of formulating solutions. The English and the World Civilizations teachers were in the room together to help the students. We also had special education support as well. At the end of the project, students completed a self-evaluation and a group evaluation. The group evaluation allowed students to assess their peers and let the teachers know as well. If there were any collaboration issues, we made sure that the students approached us and we could help guide them. Student teaming strategies The resources needed to implement the project included both the English and the World Civilizations teachers as the primary project teachers, the Keystone teacher as the technology support, and the Special Education teachers as support. Other materials needed included internet ready computers and printers, history textbooks, English materials including videos to demonstrate persuasive speech making, a LCD projector and screen for presentations, student handouts and materials related to the project such as rubrics, and large classroom space for the presentations. Large post-it note paper and markers were also used during a brainstorming session. Required resources (human & material) Information and communication technology To implement the project, the following technological resources were needed: desktop and laptop computers for research, PowerPoint software for the presentation, Word software for compiling research and information, a LCD projector for displaying the presentations, and the Internet for research purposes.

19. Part III: Project implementation (page 2 of 2) *Note: The entire project set-up and sequence is attached. However, here are the basic steps to implement the “Save the Roman Empire” project.1. Discuss the problems facing the ancient Roman Empire. Highlight comparisons between ancient Rome and modern times.2. Introduce the project using a letter to the Senators urging action and an emergency meeting. Project Q& A, Assign groups (choose and record group roles), Reflect upon the essential question: What is my responsibility to society? How does it relate to this project?3. Early Senate Committee Work: prioritize the problems, design researchable questions related to the problems, mind-map activity combining the best thinking of all groups based on the researchable questions, begin discussion towards solutions.4. Begin researching/creation of PowerPoint (in Keystone class)5.Outline persuasive speech6. Continue to research and revise (teachers look at the work of all groups)7. Make needed revisions to speech and PowerPoint, create note cards if needed, rehearse for presentation8.Final check by teachers9. Presentations Implementation steps One thing that our team learned after reflecting on this project was to be sure to give students enough time. We did not have enough time to get in all the presentations effectively. Students were asking really great questions to each other and the presentations took longer than we had anticipated. We figured that since all the students had thought in detail about all the problems, the questions were really probing and complex. Next time, we will give more time allowances for the presentations and the questions that come after the presentations. All students presented, but after the first few days, we had to put a time limit on each presentation.Also, for this project to work well, it is imperative that the students have a good foundation of historical knowledge about the problems facing ancient Rome as well as good practice at delivering a persuasive speech. Implementation tips

20. Part IV: Project results Informal and formal assessment strategies were used to measure student growth through this project. Informal assessment came through teacher observation when students were working in their groups/committees. Formal assessment came through the self-evaluation, peer evaluation, and through the presentation rubric. All of these documents are attached. The formal assessments allowed us to measure how well students were working collaboratively, the critical thinking demonstrated by the proposed solutions, the communication skills in the persuasive speech, the technology use through the research and the PowerPoint presentation, the people skills through the group work and through participating in the Roman Senate by asking questions to the groups of Senators, and the creativity used in proposing the solutions. At the end of the project, students reflected on the essential question of: What is my responsibility to society? This allowed them to further define their role in civic literacy and duty after participating in this experience. Assessment strategies Student products/ performances The primary student performance for this project was the persuasive presentation to the Roman Senate. This presentation demonstrated their problem solving and critical thinking skills as they explained the solutions they developed. Through student reflections and comments, the most significant learning that resulted from this project was the understanding of a person’s responsibility to his or her community. Many students commented that they felt empowered to accept social responsibility to try to make changes in a society. In addition, students also learned a lot about complex social problems and the impossibility of a one time fix for an issue. Students learned how interwoven many social problems are and why it is necessary to look for comprehensive solutions for the good of the whole instead of pursuing personal agendas. Also, students further developed their collaborative skills by working in a group as well as their communication skills and research skills. Students’ most significant learning

21. Part V: Project artifacts Note: One of our artifacts is a DVD showing the “Save the Roman Empire” project in action. Part of this DVD shows our students working on this project and designing solutions. Our team was filmed by PBS out of Bloomington, IN along with the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future (NCTAF). This footage will be part of a national airing on smaller learning communities this fall. This DVD was mailed to Cynthia Roberts with the Microsoft U.S. Innovative Teachers Team. Student work samples Project descriptors & rubrics Other key project files, links, etc.