Continue Strong
by Curtis Cunningham, SPS Professional Learning Specialist

May marks the culmination of months of planning and work.  We all want to finish strong. While this is a very common colloquialism, I wonder what might happen if we entertain a different perspective for the month of May-- What if we decide to continue strong?

Continue Focus:
It might be we have addressed all of the elements of our curriculum guide and are considering how to deepen or extend our students’ learning.  It might be we are prioritizing the most important “big rocks” to hone in on during this time.  Consider the following questions. What might be a topic that would be important to review?  What might be crucial understandings students will need to be successful in the next grade or next level of your content area?  What might be some topics you would like to cover based on student interest or learning profile?  While the bulletin boards might come down at the end of the month and the books might be inventoried, there are still opportunities between now and then to communicate to our students that learning can continue through the summer and serve as a spring board to the next school year.

Continue Impact:
We have heard it said, “Once a teacher, always a teacher” and many of us have realized that in our personal lives. That is why we want to redirect children we encounter at Walmart or work so intently with children in our families. Our role as a teacher never really stops.  To illustrate this point, try to remember the name of a favorite teacher.  Perhaps you have regular communication with this individual, if not, imagine a conversation with him or her.  How would you refer to them?  What might be your default?  I recently had the opportunity to interact with my Kindergarten teacher.  I was surprised by my immediate reaction.  “Hello, Mrs. Potts.”  Even though it has been decades since I was in Kindergarten, I still refer to her by her surname.  She will forever hold a special place in my life, as will all of my teachers.  Our role of teacher will never stop.  It might be that we no longer have daily interaction with this particular group of students.  It might be that we will no longer provide feedback on their progress, but we can be assured that we will always hold a place of teacher in their lives. We continue learning, we continue our role as teachers, we continue our impact. 

Greg Anderson, founder of Cancer Recovery Foundation International, encourages all of us to “Focus on the journey, not the destination.  Joy is found not in finishing an activity, but in doing it.”  As teachers in the month of May we have a choice.  We can focus on the finish line or we can continue to enjoy the journey with our students know that learning and teaching never really end.

An old Chinese proverb states “If you are planning for a year, sow rice; if you are planning for a decade, plant trees; if you are planning for a lifetime, educate people.”  Congratulations on the successful completion of another academic year.  Even more, congratulations for planning for a lifetime and hundreds of lifetimes over the course of the past nine months.  As we head into summer-- rest well, enjoy family and friends and continue strong.

Another Year in the Books
by Martha Doennig, SPS Professional Learning Specialist

Might these be familiar titles?

How to Survive and Thrive in the First Three Weeks of School by Elaine K. McEwan
The First Days of School by Harry Wong
Day One and Beyond by Rick Wormeli

Countless titles explore just what we might do to kick off a school year filled with stellar elements.  So where might one find the following book titles?

How to Survive and Thrive the Final Weeks
The Final Days of School
Day 175 and Beyond
or even
Assessment Window Closed, Now What?  

After scouring educational writings, my hunch is these books have not been penned for a simple reason: demand, or lack thereof.  Teachers have had a strong commitment to the principles of classroom management from day one, and are reaping the benefits in the final days and weeks of school. As the year has marched along, components of effective classroom management have been at the forefront of classrooms throughout Springfield.  

While I recently walked through a building, evidence of strong classroom management wafted through the halls. Energetic teacher voices and the hum of student conversation around concepts filled classrooms.   The intensity of work was exemplified by the substance of the content.  Expectations for procedures were clear; simple looks or quick directives moved entire classes.   Movement, contagious energy, and novelty engaged learning.   Strong relationships were apparent as students and teachers embraced what the other had to offer.  It was better than textbook and evident class after class, hallway after hallway.  

So as you count down the final days until this year goes in the books and continue to enjoy your well managed classroom, I invite you to revisit the Classroom Management Instructional Configuration.  Look at it with reflecting eyes; rate yourself and consider the following:   What have you done well to make things go so well?   What new learning might you have from this year?   How might that new learning transfer to your 2014-2015 classroom?

 

Purposeful Student Input
by Debbie Yonke, Coordinator Quality Assurance in Learning

When we think of teaching with a purpose and for a purpose, many times we reflect on how to make our day to day classroom interactions more powerful.  One way we can accomplish this is through the use of student input or feedback.  In Visible Learning: A Synthesis of Over 800 Meta-Analyses Relating to Achievement, John Hattie stated:

“I realized that the most powerful single influence enhancing achievement is feedback. This lead me on a long journey to better understand this notion of feedback.  After researching and reviewing feedback from a student's perspective (e.g., help-seeking behaviors) and from a teacher to student perspective (e.g., better comments on tests, increasing the amount of feedback in class), it dawned on me that the most important feature was the creation of situations in classrooms for teachers to receive more feedback about their teaching--and then the ripple effect back to the student was high (Hattie & Timperley, 2007)" p. 12. 

The following video clip from Glass Classroom focuses on gaining student input and feedback regarding recent learning.  As you view this clip of Central High School teacher, Susanne Feldman, consider how you might incorporate one or more of these ideas into your classroom.

Susanne Feldman: Quick Input https://springfieldpublicschools.instructure.com/courses/174521/wiki/student-input

Source:  Hattie, John A.C. (2009) Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement. New York, NY: Routledge

Why Professional Learning Matters

by Debbie Yonke, Coordinator, Quality Assurance in Learning

 

Learning Forward is an international association of learning educators who are committed to professional learning to improve schools and student learning.  In one of their 2010 publications entitled "Why Professional Development Matters" Distinguished Senior Fellow at Learning Forward, Hayes Mizell, discusses the importance of professional learning to any field, but specifically how professional learning can impact student achievement.

 

Professional development refers to many types of educational experiences related to an individual's work. Doctors, lawyers, educators, accountants, engineers, and people in a wide variety of professions and businesses participate in professional development to learn and apply new knowledge and skills that will improve their performance on the job.

 

Many fields require members to participate in ongoing learning approved by the profession, sometimes as a requirement for keeping their jobs.  Professionals often also voluntarily seek new learning.

 

In education, research has shown that teaching quality and school leadership are the most important factors in raising student achievement. For teachers and school and district leaders to be as effective as possible, they continually expand their knowledge and skills to implement the best educational practices. Educators learn to help students learn at the highest levels. 

 

In Springfield Public Schools we strive to offer high quality professional learning to meet the needs of both staff and students.  Our core focus is Site Professional Learning Systems (SPLS) where key learning is embedded at the site level. In addition to this, we are happy to announce the expansion of our summer learning opportunities to provide additional choices for you to deepen your learning in areas that are of interest to you and which have a positive impact on student achievement. We encourage you to review this summer's offerings using the link below and consider attending with another teacher or team from your site to expand your impact. Summer Professional Learning Opportunities

Best Practices for Using Educational Data
by Debbie Pitts, Coordinator, Quality Improvement and Accountability

Much of life is based on numbers—the score on a test for a license to drive, an ACT number high enough for entrance into a college or university, and a balance in a bank account.  Schools prepare students to reach their full potential and strive to meet community needs against a backdrop of human circumstances and demographic realities. In the field of education, numbers provide tremendous value when trying to individualize student instruction, identify trends, and evaluate teaching methods. But what can numbers tell us about students, teaching methods, and our school district?

Medical treatment would not be considered adequate if it relied only on feelings or hunches without numbers (blood pressure, lab test results, etc.). In his preface to Visible Learning for Teachers: Maximizing Impact on Learning, John Hattie highlights the treatment regime for a child, Elliot, who survived leukemia:

He has been part of a community of doctors, nurses, teachers, friends, and family—so many were involved. The impact of the dosage and treatment was constantly monitored to ensure that it was leading to the criteria of success. Decisions were made in light of the monitoring; teams worked to understand the consequences of treatments; an evidence was the key to adaptive professional decision making—all aiming to maximize the impact not only on the medical, but also the social and family, aspects.

Certainly, when educational treatment is prescribed, progress must be monitored and treatment adjusted as needed. Teams must work together to achieve results, and data must be used consistently and wisely, in a positive way, to support best outcomes for student learning.

Use Multiple Measures

Always use multiple measures to analyze student learning and school performance. One data point is not conclusive evidence on which to create plans or achieve continuous improvement.

Dr. Victoria L. Bernhardt, Executive Director of the Education for the Future Initiative, and Professor in the College of Communication and Education at California State University, Chico, stresses the importance of using multiple measures of data in her research. She advocates incorporating information from the categories of demographics, perceptions, and school processes, in addition to student learning data, to provide a complete picture and move forward with continuous improvement. (See: http://eff.csuchico.edu/downloads/TestScores.pdf).

Following are a few considerations to keep in mind to ensure use of data is effective.

Beware of Averages

Keep in mind when looking at averages it is important to look at the components that make up the average. For example, a building or district may be moving ahead, but are students at all levels doing well? It is also important to understand that percentages are built on individual pieces of information (e.g., scores, survey feedback, etc.). That being the case, percentages cannot be averaged together to determine an accurate overall percentage unless there are the exact same number of scores/incidents making up the percentages being averaged. For example, let’s say we want to know an average score for students in two buildings—Building A with an enrollment of 250 students and Building B with 500 students. If we averaged the two building averages, the answer would be giving equal weight to both buildings. What we really want is an average for the 750 students who attend the two buildings.

Percent Change

Change shows an increase or decrease over time, whereas percent change adds perspective to the amount of change. For example, the Springfield School District grew in enrollment from

23,960 in 2009‐2010 to 24,928 in 2013‐2014. The population change represented an increase of

968 students in five years; the percent enrollment change was a 4.0 percent increase. To calculate percent change, take the amount of change (968) divided by the starting point number (23,960). As another example, if what is being measured dropped from 200 to 175, the formula for percent change would be: ‐25/200 = 12.5 percent decrease.

However, percent change can be misleading unless the total number representing the change is known. Remember the old adage that you can make numbers say anything? For example, if only one student performs above grade level at the beginning of the year in a class of 25 students, but two perform above grade level at the end of the year, it is a true statement to say: “This class had an increase of 100 percent reading on grade level this year.” The statement is true, but misleading.

Data Not Always Numbers on Paper

Finally, never forget gathering data to take action is a broader endeavor than just compiling formal assessment results, attendance figures, and other numbers. Teachers collect information to inform instruction by using quick checks, discussion, and a variety of student activities to measure depth of student understanding and to guide instruction.

“When you have mastered numbers, you will in fact no longer be reading numbers any more than you read words when reading books. You will be reading meanings.”

                                                                                            ‐ W. E. B. Du Bois

 

 

 



Some “Re-Store”ation Will Do You Good
by Sarah Logan, SPS Professional Learning Specialist

  If you’ve ever driven down South Scenic Avenue, you may have noticed a large blue warehouse near the Horton Smith golf course and wondered what exactly is that place? The answer is that it’s a Habitat for Humanity Re-Store, a nonprofit home improvement store and donation center. Proceeds from their sale of donated items are invested in supporting the organization’s mission of building homes and improving lives.

  So now you’re probably wondering what this has to do with you. As educators, we share a common goal with this organization. We too are interested in building community and improving lives. Though the specific work they do is different from ours, we benefit from reflecting on connections that can be made.

1. Restock, re-shelve, and replace your inventory.

  From time to time it’s important to take stock of the resources you have on hand. This may include both physical aspects of your classroom, such as pencils and textbooks, as well as non-physical ones such as instructional strategies or person-centered relationships.
  How does what you have support you in building community and improving the lives of learners in your classroom? Identify what you need to keep, what you may need to eliminate, and what you may need to obtain in order to fulfill this mission.

2. Encourage innovation.

  Many of the items purchased at Habitat’s Re-Store are not actually used for their original purposes. A doorknob might become part of an art décor project, or a set of kitchen cabinets may be transformed into a window seat storage area. A creative mind sees what is and wonders what it may become.
  What might that look like in your role? Perhaps you can readily identify how you could repurpose resources you have on hand. Solicit input from members of your classroom community to envision creative possibilities that will be meaningful.

3. Remember your influence.

  The Habitat Re-Store is non-profit. All proceeds from their sales are invested back into the organization’s ultimate goal of helping people gain access to affordable housing. A sale is not just a sale. It’s helping someone get one step closer to realizing a dream.
  How does that resonate with you as you consider what happens in your classroom on a daily basis? Recognize that there is a much bigger picture than what is readily seen. You’re not just building community and improving lives in this moment. You’re impacting many moments in a lifetime.

On Purpose
by Alicia Moore, SPS Professional Learning Specialist

I know why you come to work every day. To reach kids. To see that spark of understanding after days of explanation, modeling, and review. To insure that the kids of Springfield have the mental tools to construct happy and useful lives for themselves. To know that there are people out there who picked up some morsel of wisdom in your very own classroom, and that they’re using that wisdom to make our society a little better.

Day after day, year after year, teachers tough out the not-so-glamorous aspects of the job because we have a purpose. Our purpose is to help young people discover their own. It’s a long journey for most students, and seeing it happen is a little like watching an acorn turn into an oak. Educational consultant Tony Wagner (2012) believes that children progress through three stages in this journey. They begin by exploring the world through play, then discover something that ignites a deeper passion, and finally gain the experience and knowledge to turn that passion into purpose. He also notes that almost every young innovator he has studied arrived at their purpose with the help of a mentor.

Teachers, it turns out, are naturally well-suited to serve in this mentor role, and not just because of the hours we log with kids each day. Our real advantage is the nature of the goals we tend to set for ourselves. Daniel Pink, author of the bestselling book Drive (2009), names purpose as one of three forces that motivate modern people. He describes one study that surveyed new college graduates about their life goals. The students’ aspirations were divided into two groups: those focused on helping others or improving the world were labeled “purpose goals,” and those concerned with status or money were labeled “profit goals.” Follow-up interviews with the graduates revealed an interesting contrast. The participants who felt they were attaining purpose goals were happier and less anxious than they had been as college students. However, those who felt they were attaining their profit goals were no happier—in fact, they showed higher levels of anxiety and depression than they had in college. As Pink puts it, “…satisfaction depends not merely on having goals, but on having the right goals” (p. 142).

So congratulations!  You chose a career that is very focused in the purpose department!  I wish you well in your role as a mentor to your students. In the playful moments and passionate discussions, you have an opportunity to steer them toward a deeper purpose in life. Enjoy the knowledge that you are creating meaning not only for yourself, but for all of your students as well.

 

Pink, Daniel H. (2009). Drive. New York, NY: Riverhead Books.

Wagner, Tony. (2012). Creating innovators. New York, NY: Scribner.