STANDARD TWO - INSTRUCTIONAL
The school leader is knowledgeable of best practices and ensures that processes focused on learning, teaching curriculum, and data-driven assessment allow for continual improvement of instruction. Please click on the black button to view the referenced artifact.
Standard IIa - Focus on Learning and Teaching, Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment
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Engaging in the "Day in the Life" shadowing experience helped me to focus on the learning and teaching practices occurring within our building. This opportunity coupled with my weekly learning walks and monthly evaluations provided me with initial steps towards discovering my Problem of Practice, which centered on improving instruction within our building.
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During the first quarter of the school year, the Area Superintendent met with our administrative team to discuss our holistic needs. Typically this meeting would be a data analysis of the prior school year; however, we turned it into a data analysis for the students entering our building. I designed a website to overview our school and to help us begin having discussions around our instructional needs.
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During my Problem of Practice, I collaborated frequently with the Instructional Facilitator to design our "Instructional Floor." When the Education Elements consultants participated in walk-throughs at our school, they helped confirm that we did not have any baseline expectations for instruction within our building. In order to begin providing effective coaching for our teachers, we needed to set the "floor" as we work towards raising the bar at our school.
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Standard IIb - Focus on Instructional Time
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In April prior to our school year, I collaborated with the administrative team to design a bell schedule that provides students with the opportunity to experience their classes at different times of the day. Because of this, our courses will run in a different order each quarter. This provides equitable access to all students. In addition to that, students are provided with an intervention/remediation block daily.
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In completing a Holistic Needs Assessment of Alston Ridge Middle School, a portion of my analysis focused on our use of academic time within the building. Some feedback that we have received through survey results and through leadership meetings show that elective teachers would like to have more discussions around our master bell schedule and how to provide them with more equitable planning. Right now, elective teachers only receive one planning period and they also have double-tracked classes, which is challenging for some to manage.
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The administrative team has been collaborating with the leadership team and with elective teachers to improve the master schedule for the next school year. We provided elective teachers with a chance to be problem solvers and share their previous experiences and ideas with our team. Our meetings center around making changes that are in the best interest of both students and teachers.
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