Unison Elementary School

1. Unison Elementary School Presented by: The Leadership Team

2. Mission Statement Blue Chip Elementary School is committed to creating a shared culture of respect and responsibility where teachers help all children feel confident in themselves and in taking educational risks in the classroom.

3. Background of Unison Elementary School 2006-2007 Student Population ~General Education: 90.6% ~Students with Disabilities: 8.3% ~Limited English Proficient: 1.1 % ~White: 90.9% ~Black: 3.3% ~Asian: 1.2% ~Pacific Islander: 2.5% ~American Indian: 0% ~Hispanic: 2.1 % ~Other: 0% ~Migrant: 0% ~Economically Disadvantaged: 2%

4. Action Plan • The next few slides exhibit our goals to improve Unison School over the next three years. • We are confident that these goals and improvements will align with our mission of the school and provide all of our students with the best education.

5. Focus Area #1 The Curricular/Instructional Programs at Unison Elementary School

6. Curricular/Instructional Programs • The members of this team recognize that it is the school district’s policy to improve instructional programs. As a result of our analysis of Unison Elementary School’s curricular programs, we have determined that there is a cause for concern regarding the instructional programs. Since this objective is a priority in our school district, we have identified this topic as one of our areas of focus. • According to the profile, we noticed no structured curriculum among the district’s elementary schools. Each individual school is allowed to choose curriculum materials and instructional programs (methods) to meet the core objectives. • We also observed no integration of manipulatives into the mathematics curriculum. For instance, manipulatives still remain in the original packaging and are stored in a closet in the teachers’ lounge. We noticed little differentiation of instruction among the elementary schools’ classrooms. Student learning activities are based out of workbooks and on ditto sheets. In order to address these concerns, we suggest the following strategies:

7. Solution #1 • Engage teachers in the collaborative planning of a structured curriculum • Share current curricula among the elementary school teachers • Gather ideas as to where the current curriculum requires improvement • Create target areas of improvement based on the teachers’ feedbacks • Assemble volunteers to work with a leadership team member in creating curriculum maps for each grade level • Share drafted curriculum maps at grade level meetings to make modifications • Discuss, implement, and evaluate new curriculum

8. Solution #2 • Encourage teachers to integrate the use of manipulatives into their instructional programs • Provide teachers with professional development sessions in order to discuss the use of manipulatives in their instructional programs • Teachers – both experienced and beginning – could share and model various ways to incorporate the use of manipulatives into different mathematics lesson plans (such as base ten blocks, fraction strips, connecting cubes, spinners, and dice). • These professional development sessions could be half days (rather than asking teachers to spend time after school) to build consistency in their instructional methods. • Lesson plans will be expected to include manipulative use.

9. Solution #3 • Encourage teachers to differentiate their methods of instruction in the classroom • Have teachers identify and provide examples of differentiated instruction. • Form breakout sessions during a faculty meeting. • Staff members will choose the area of differentiated instruction in which they feel the most comfortable. • Each group will generate ideas of how to differentiate within that area. • At the following staff meeting, have a jigsaw so that staff members can teach other staff members their area of differentiation. • Each year, staff members will be expected to differentiate one more content area than they had the previous. This is evaluated through each teacher’s lesson plans and observations.

10. Focus Area #2 School Culture

11. School Culture • The sacred nature of cohesion is a firm conviction of this team. A unified faculty and staff create a learning environment for all stakeholders that is embracing and progressive. As our team continues to evolve with a conglomeration of educational experience and background, we are embracing the vision of strengthening the interpersonal nature of our school.

12. Solution #1 • Create three committees that will foster a revitalizing look at our interpersonal roles in our school • The first committee will focus on the school climate in regards to the perceived strengths and weaknesses that exist between teachers and administration. • The second will focus on collegial relationships amongst teachers and ways to foster positive relationships among faculty and staff. • The third committee will evaluate student interpersonal relations and ways of implementing programs and activities that foster student belongingness and healthy relationship building.

13. Solution #1 (cont’d.) • These three committees will hold session in lieu of two scheduled faculty meetings in the fall and two in the spring. It is our earnest ambition that these breakout sessions will be favorably viewed and welcomed by staff. In this way they will have an opportunity to express their opinions, yet collaborate on issues in need of change. • We have budgeted for a School Culture account in the amount of $3000.00. We feel that divided equally and dispersed through planned events throughout the year, this money will add a sense of power to each committee so that they can allocate funds as they see fit. We will meet with each group after their discussions and take whatever ideas are generated. It will be the responsibility of each group to brainstorm activities, in-services, and social events that will focus on school community. Of course some teachers will resist the notion of extra time and work, however, we believe that many faculty members, including several new teachers will embrace this opportunity as an invitation to integrate ambition with schooling. • Over the course of the next three years, we will take this fledgling school community initiative and develop it into a shared cultural tradition.

14. Solution #2 • Applied and granted acceptance to take part in the DESACS program for Emotional Intelligence in Schools • This will be an incrementally instated character education program for students and faculty alike • We have scheduled Robert Emmerling Psy.D., a nationally renowned expert in the assessment of emotional intelligence in the work place, for a series of workshops that will span the next three years • Mr. Emmerling will act as a secondary facilitator to buttress training that will be received as a component of the DESACS training. He will guide teachers in the implementation of the Responsive Classroom by working with them in several workshops scheduled throughout the next three years

15. Solution #3 • We will also offer double professional development hours for individuals who are willing to facilitate turn-key training as well as utilize the sentiments gathered from our culture committees about revamping the manner by which individuals are granted professional development opportunities. As we have become increasingly aware, our funding for professional development has been under-utilized over the past ten years. Through the development of school culture committees and employment of turn-key training, we will make great strides.

16. Focus Area #3 Standardized Testing

17. Standardized Testing • The members of this team recognize that it is the district’s priority to improve the student achievement on standardized tests. Due to the federal government’s creation of the No Child Left Behind Act, all school districts are expected to meet state requirements for adequate yearly progress. • Progress is measured by standardized assessments. In our school, the test is administered to students in grades three and four. If the state requirements are not met, the school district could face loss of funding. • Therefore, we decided to analyze the NJASK 3 and 4 test scores from last year (2006-2007). As a result of our analysis, we have determined that there is cause for concern regarding the achievement of students on the standardized tests. Since this achievement is a priority within our district, we have identified this as one of our areas of focus.

18. Standardized Testing (cont’d) • Third grade students’ language arts scores: • 9% of students achieved partially proficient, 9% achieved advanced proficient, and 82% achieved proficient • Fourth grade students’ language arts scores: • 15% achieved partially proficient, 1% achieved advanced proficient, and 84% achieved proficient • 100% of Limited English Proficient Proficient scored partially proficient • Third grade students’ math scores: • 6% of the third grade students achieved partially proficient, 38% achieved advanced proficient, and 46% achieved proficient • Fourth grade students’ math scores: • 13% achieved partially proficient, 49% achieved advanced proficient, and 38% achieved proficient. • Of the Limited English Proficient students, 66% scored partially proficient • Although most of the students are scoring proficient on the test, there is a disproportionate amount of students scoring advanced proficient in math as compared to language arts. We feel that more students should be achieving advanced proficient in language arts.

19. Solution #1 to Standardized Testing • Engage teachers in the collaborative planning of how to improve NJASK scores • Share test score data with teachers during staff meeting • Gather ideas as to where the faculty feels improvements are necessary • Create targets areas of improvement based upon data and faculty’s input • Assemble volunteers to create committees for identified target areas • Committees meet each month to discuss, implement, and evaluate new ideas (one leadership member will attend meeting) • Report on information discussed at committee meeting to whole staff during monthly staff meetings; gather their feedback on implementation

20. Solution #2 to Standardized Testing • Adopt school wide writing program • Create staff writing program research team to investigate different writing programs • Team members visit classrooms in different schools that have effective writing programs • Showcase these writing programs at staff meetings • Staff members assist in determining which program should be implemented • Hire presenters who are skilled in the chosen writing program to present basic components of the program • Ongoing professional development days that demonstrate the writing program within the classroom (coach will come periodically over a span of two years) • School wide assessment will be created to assess the effectiveness of the writing program

21. Solution # 3 to Standardized Testing • Improve instruction and participation of Limited English Proficient (LEP) students • Meet with ESL teachers to develop a plan on how to improve the instruction and participation of LEP students • Share plan and ideas with general education teachers of LEP students • Monitor progress and improvements of LEP students • Debrief with ESL and general education teachers as to ideas that worked and areas where improvement still need to be made • Provide professional development to general education teachers of LEP students and ESL teachers in the beginning of the following year • Analyze NJASK scores of LEP students over the next three years