“If schools want to enhance their organizational capacity to boost student learning ,

1. Double the Learning, Double the Fun!Job-embedded Professional DevelopmentSusan Breitling, Campus Instructional TeacherSuzie McNeese, PrincipalNorthwest ISD

2. “If schools want to enhance their organizational capacity to boost student learning, they should work on building a professional community that is characterized by shared purpose, collaborative activity, and collective responsibility among staff.” (Newmann & Wehlege, 1995, pg. 37)

3. Objectives for Today • Double the professional learning of your teachers. • Embed time for professional learning communities to meet, learn, and work. • Align weekly professional development with the work of PLCs. • Use your resources wisely.

4. Challenge • Open a new elementary school in NISD without adding any additional time for staff development. • 2/3 of staff was new to teaching or new to district • Approx 1/3 of teaching staff had been in NISD for 3 years or less Take funnel, add knowledge and pour into brain?

5. District Curriculum Initiatives • Professional Learning Communities • Instructional Coaching • Working on the Work Framework • Thinking Maps • Writer’s Workshop • Reader’s Workshop • Johnny Can Spell • Guided Reading • 6 Traits Writing • Write from the Beginning • Math Investigations • Structures of Knowledge – Math & Science • Science Notebooking • Fred Jones • Focused Walk Throughs • Targeted Planning Process • Quarterly Curriculum Reviews

6. Sendera Ranch SMART Goal 2009-2010 Results Goal Should identify what is desired in terms of performance, after or as a result of, putting new processes in place or improving existing processes. Indicator Standards and objectives (weak areas for students) Measures Tools we’ll use to determine where students are now and whether they are improving. Targets The attainable performance level we would like to see. On the 2010 Writing TAKS: 94% of students in Fourth Grade will receive a passing score of 80% or higher. • Objective 1: The student will, within a given context, produce an effective composition for a specific purpose: • Weak or illogical organization • Weak development of ideas • Little or no control of conventions Fourth Graders will take writing composition benchmarks scored with Norma Jackson rubric in September. December and February benchmarks will be scored with a TAKS rubric. On September benchmark, 90% of all 4th Graders will write at Stage 7/ TAKS 2 or higher. On December benchmark, 90% of all 4th Graders will write at Stage 8/ TAKS 2 or higher. Objective 2: Recognize appropriate organization of ideas in written text. 4.18B Write in complete sentences, varying the types such as compound and complex to match meanings and purposes 4.18D Use adjectives (comparative and superlative forms) and adverbs appropriately to make writing vivid or precise (4-8) 4.18G Write with increasing accuracy when using apostrophes in contractions such as its and possessives such as Jans (4-8) March 2009 Released TAKS Questions 4, 8, 12, 22, 23 On February benchmark, 90% of all 4th Graders will write at Stage 9/ TAKS 3 or higher. Gr. 4 students will increase mastery of Obj. 2 by 15% on released TAKS and weekly checks. Bi-Weekly Checks: CPS, TAKS Guides, TAKS Blueprints, and writing conferences 90% of AA students will receive a passing score of 80% 93% of H students will receive a passing score of 80%. 94% of ECD students will receive a passing score of 80%.

7. Traditional Approach • Extensive large group Staff Development after school • Using teachers’ planning period • Extended summer staff development • Hire subs to cover classroom teachers for staff development • Ask teams to meet before or after school How could we add more time for teachers to learn with and through each other and not cost any additional money? Could we make it happen during the school day when teachers are at their prime???

8. What We Know About Scheduling “Our value for a particular subject or activity is manifested on the schedule.” “Research supports our belief that teachers need to collaborate with their colleagues for sustained periods of time within the context of their teaching environment.” (Canady & Rettig, 2008)

9. We looked at ways to maximize our time spent during the school day. Our schedule would be driven by our mission. We looked at our master schedule to facilitate teacher collaboration – for planning and for instruction. Most teachers currently had 50 minutes of conference/planning time daily. They are required to have 45 minutes daily. If we reduced conference time by 5 minutes for each grade level, we would accumulate an additional 35 minutes per day. If we rearranged some time and taught bell to bell, we would add another 10 minutes. We could then have an additional 45 minute block to our day.

10. Old Schedule • 7 periods of 50 minutes • 30 minute lunch for AMP • 10 minutes extra at end of day • 15 minutes extra between lunch and kinder rotation • Provide 5 minute passing period/break for AMP teachers. (15 min) • 420 minutes daily

11. New Schedule • 8 periods of 45 minutes • 30 minutes lunch • 5 minutes extra at end of day • Provide 5 minute passing period/break for AMP teachers. • PLC time occurs at 8:35 am. • Teachers are fresh. • Consistent time • Teachers/Administrators have had time to focus of start of day routines • 420 minutes

12. Week at a Glance with PLC Meetings • Special Education teachers chose a grade level and attend PLC times with that grade level. • GT teacher can meet with Literacy team or a specific grade level.

13. Curriculum- AMPAMP supplements their curriculum during PLC time • Art Appreciation • Health Lessons • Music Extension

14. Taking It Deeper Aligning whole school professional development and the work of professional learning communities

15. Mapping Our Course

16. Mapping Our Course

17. #1 Influence on Student Learning The TEACHER!

18. How Else Can We Support Professional Learning Every Day? Instructional Coach(es) Align the work of the instructional coaches with the campus SMART Goal, Professional Development, and DATA.

19. How Else Can We Support Professional Learning Every Day? • Instructional Coach • PLC Facilitators • Instructional Facilitators • Mentors • Peer Assistants

20. How Else Can We Support Professional Learning Every Day? • Instructional Coach • PLC Facilitators • Instructional Facilitators • Mentors • Peer Assistants • Focused Walk Throughs

21. Focused Walk Through • A team of 2-3 teachers and one administrator • Lesson Framework, Principles of Teaching and Learning, or Student Engagement • Learning opportunity for the team and classroom teacher Substitutes

22. Focused Walk Through Schedule

23. How Else Can We Support Professional Learning Every Day? • Instructional Coach • PLC Facilitators • Instructional Facilitators • Mentors • Peer Assistants • Focused Walk Throughs • “Ranch” Research • Book Studies • Posters in frequented areas

24. What has Intentional Planning Done for Our Students? • Our campus celebrated one year of service as an Exemplary Campus. • 93% of our students passed the Reading, Math, and Science TAKS tests. • Retained 95% of our teachers (without special circumstances).

25. What has Intentional Planning Done for Our Teachers? • Our teachers celebrated being an Exemplary Campus. • Retained 95% of our teachers (without special circumstances). • Instructional Facilitators from SRE grew from 1 to 4. • District Leadership Course participants from SRE grew from 0 to 4. • Created a thirst for more knowledge – book studies and action research.

26. Comments from Teachers • “I love that we have the every other week PLC. It is nice that our professional development, PLC and Ranch Research are aligned.” • “The school’s PLC is a model for our team’s weekly PLC time.” • “It’s so nice to have time to spend on professional development during our school day. We don’t have to make extra plans for a sub and we know our kids needs are being met.” • “I can’t imagine how I would have learned everything I needed to know this past year without our PLC time. I felt comfortable in the small group sharing my strengths and weaknesses.”

27. Comments from Teachers • “As a first year teacher, I don’t know of any other way to learn everything I needed to know. Our district has so much to offer.” • “I am glad that teachers from all grade levels and content areas are included in PLC time.”

28. Comments from Adminstrators • “I have had the opportunity to know our teachers on an instructional level that was not available to me before. It has helped me to identify the instructional needs of our teachers and students.” • “Our PLC time has helped guide my role as an Instructional Coach to know where to focus my efforts.” • “It has become a powerful part of our school day. We put first things first. PLC time is at the first part of our day because it important to us.”

29. Our Next Steps • Moving planning times before scheduled PLC time to have 1 ½ hours to meet • Vertical teams in PLC schedule • Specialized teams in PLC schedule

30. Challenges for Today • Double the professional development of your teachers. • Embed time for professional learning communities to meet and learn. • Align weekly professional development with the work of PLCs. • Use your resources wisely.

31. East, West, North, South E- What Excites you about the ideas heard today? W-What do you find Worrisome about these ideas? N- What else do you Need to know? What additional information would be helpful? S-What is your next Step- tomorrow, this week, this month, and this school year?

32. Contact Us Suzie McNeese Susan Breitling Smcneese@nisdtx.orgSbreitling@nisdtx.org Sendera Ranch Elementary 1216 Diamond Back Lane Haslet, Texas 76052 817-698-3500 www.nisdtx.org/sendera

33. Resources • Revisiting Professional Learning Communities at Work (DuFour, DuFour, & Eaker, 2008).Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree. • Elementary School Scheduling (Canady & Reittig). Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education