Visiting the WINSS data site reminded me of a staff meeting where we discussed the very same data to see where we needed to improve and how we might do that. That meeting occurred at the beginning of last year. Part of our solution to bring scores up includes re-writing all of the academic courses along with new courses designed for the lower scoring students. After this year, about 1/2 of the plan will have been acted upon, but the other half will probably not be completed until the end of the 2011/2012 school year and maybe a little beyond. Of course, preliminary results should begin to accumulate.
What's interesting about visiting the WINSS site, reading the Gabriel text, and working through this course of study, is that I see my administrative leaders doing many of the same activities we are studying. I'm not necessarily surprised; this is what I would expect. But it's nice to see several of the leadership methods used in my school, such as the use of data.
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Our school is now in the beginning stages of a similar approach when it comes to our courses. We are just starting to map our curriculum and compare what each teacher is teaching. Next we will create a comprehensive course map for each course that all teachers will follow. I would be interested to see how your scores (and ours) turn out in the coming years.
ReplyDeleteLenn, our school staff is presented a summary of assessment data at our beginning of year district as well as middle school in-services. We are mostly talked at. We have an at risk program in place to aid in assisting a small population of students (16 per grade level) but I wonder if it wouldn't be more beneficial to rewrite some of our courses as well to aid our low-achieving students. We do have a plethora of students with accommodation plans--modified assignments and/or tests, extended time to take tests, study guides, testing out of the classroom, tests read orally, etc. Sometimes these accommodations feel like a band-aid rather than a fix that meets students' needs. We have pre-algebra for our high math kids, but nothing for the low. Differentiated lessons are to meet the needs of all our students but that doesn't seem to cut is for a certain population of our kids. I'm excited by your school writing courses to aid in student success!
ReplyDeleteI agree that the material we're studying piggy-backs what some of my administrators do and why, but it's also shown me clearly why some of their choices, decisions, interactions with staff, etc. aggravate me as I see what is missing as far as leadership qualities. It's reassuring to know that I'm not imagining things or being overly sensitive.
Lenn, the MEIT Program continues to give me Eureka moments as I relate what we cover to past and current situations. When you mentioned re-writing all the lessons and 1/2 were done it made me wonder if any performance data for this year will steer the remaining rewrites. Does it make sense to evaluate the curriculum changes after all have been made or mid-stream? I was curious because I didn't how you were approaching that.
ReplyDeleteThe Gabriel book has me reflecting on the different leadership exemplars, good and bad, from past jobs. I find myself flashing back to these places in time and reflecting on their leadership performance. I see the things that they could have done better as well as my own shortcomings. It's heavy stuff but worth the look back in the Rear View Mirror of Life. I think the reflection will help me make the best of the journey ahead.
My school's learning team reviews a lot of data and now I am learning where some of it comes from and how to access it. I know this where change takes place and I feel good about learning how to look at the data to guide us through that process. I have to admit it is not my favorite thing to do, but I am becoming more comfortable.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what we will tackle next.
My school is using data as well to make decisions on where to focus and document effort as they strive to meet AYP. It has affected not only core classes but all allied courses as we unite to address our gaps. We will see if this pays off. I would certainly hope so.
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