Professional Learning Communities and the POWER of Collaboration!

When we met last week on November 20th we discussed the power of talking with each other. We discussed briefly the power of collaboration and working together. Unfortunately as Mike Schmoker notes, "Authentic PLCs are exceedingly rare in schools; unsupervised isolation is the norm." The leaders in professional learning community implementation and research are the DuFours and Robert Eaker. They define Professional Learning Communities as "Collaborative teams whose members work interdependently to achieve common goals linked to the purpose of learning for all (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker, et al, 2006). They go on to say, "The very essence of a learning community is a focus on and a commitment to the learning of each student....if the organization is to become more effective in helping all students learn, the adults in the organization must be continually learning (DuFour, Eaker, et al, 2006).

Park Ridge High School in New Jersey, under the leadership of Mike Parent, Principal, has formed a PLC culture from the bottom up. Teachers created this PLC culture from the ground. Collaborative teams, as defined by Mike Parent, work to develop a shared vision, mission, values and goals. They collaborate within the team to deepen the knowledge base of all professionals to support student needs and utilize inquiry and reflection to solve the tough problems. 

In all essence, PLCs are already in existence at many of your sites. You have great professional relationships with your colleagues and you help each other out with curriculum development and in mentoring each other in various ways including technology and in classroom management. Do you also develop formative assessments together?

If we choose to go down this route, where should we start? Let's continue to do what we do, but do it better! Let's continue to talk with each other about school and students. Let's talk more! If you choose, participate by filling out the PLC document that I'll share with you each week. Would you like to share with the entire group? Specific other colleagues? Your call. Your call to participate at all. After we get that ball rollin' we can take further steps.

Videos to check out!:

I do, we do, you do--clip

Ummmmm....one heck of a catch (1 min)

Foxhole Friends...story of friendship (23 min)

Talking about Teaching...Reinforcing Effort (Theme of the Month) (14 min)

Articles you might want to check out:

30 Techniques to quiet a noisy class

The six secrets of a happy classroom

Reinforcing Effort and Providing Recognition

Tools to check for plagiarism

Changes in teacher prep programs

Calendar of Events:

Feb 13--Alice Nine @ Harney ESD--register with J. Caldwell 541-573-4834
Feb 26-27 K and Early Literacy Summit
March 9-11 CCSS Regional Trainings
April 10--Harney County Tech Conference 2015 @ BHS
April 30-May 1--Kevin Feldman Learning Walk and Training info to come soon

Practice or an opportunity?

Let’s call it “practice” or an “opportunity” to showcase learning!

Homework is a hot topic with many different philosophical beliefs.  Learning is becoming 

a 24/7 endeavor for students, especially with respect to technology that is readily at their 

hands.  So, is homework necessary?  I do believe there is a place for strategic “practice” 

outside the school day.  When I was teaching, I would ask students to finish their 

“opportunity” at home.  It was their “opportunity” to showcase their learning for the day!  

The word “homework” tends to have a negative connotation, whereas “opportunity” or 

“practice” can empower learning and learners.  I understand that it is just a word; however, 

it is a powerful word, and changing our mindset can transform traditional homework 

assignments into empowered practice. 

Watch this inspirational Youtube video via Rick Wormeli:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMJ-vEl4WB8&sns=em

-              We call it practice in our classroom.

-              Homework has emotional baggage… between parent and child or child and 

teacher.

-              Give different practice for different levels of readiness.

-              Homework is formative in nature

What percentage of a student's grade should homework be counted toward? 

Should I give the same homework assignment to each student in the class? 

And if a student demonstrates mastery, yet doesn't turn in homework, is it accurate to give

them a lower grade for the course? Rick Wormeli (Fair Isn't Always Equal) offers his take 

on the burning issue of homework.

As a staff, we watched Rick Wormeli’s video and organized dialogue with respect to our 

homework beliefs and expectations.  We asked the questions: 

·         How do we give feedback on homework?

·         What do our parents think about homework?

·         What do our students think about homework?

·         What do teachers think about homework?

·         What is the roll of homework?

These questions, along with academic research and watching videos like the one above, 

truly shape our conversations about after-school learning.  We want students to be 

motivated and empowered to learn outside the school day.  Throughout the year we will 

continue to analyze our philosophical beliefs and discuss methods to enhance our current 

procedures. Continuing to find ways to make after-school learning more relevant and 

differentiated for learners of diverse readiness levels is vital.  We plan to utilize the 

attached chart as a guide to generate conversation in our never-ending quest to improve 

student engagement.  Alternatives to Traditional Homework

Homework conversations are not just isolated to my career as a building principal.  I am 

experiencing these conversations as a parent of two school-aged children.  They both 

receive appropriate practice that is congruent with their developmental level; however, 

my son doesn’t enjoy homework.  Can you believe it?  The son of a principal doesn’t enjoy

 homework!  It definitely can be a challenge for him, particularly reading and writing 

assignments.  He becomes very frustrated, not because he is unable to do the work, because

he thinks it is boring.  We try to make it a game and provide some incentives from time to

time.  We always “talk it up,” showing excitement when he brings it home, giving 

accolades for his efforts and breaking assignments into chunks so it isn’t as overwhelming. 

His homework is appropriate (needed practice), focused on skill building, and the 

assignments seem to connect to student interests and ability level. 

My son’s teacher has also implemented an interesting Team Approach to completing 

homework assignments.   The process is differentiation with student choice being at the 

forefront of many practice assignments.  My son is even excited about receiving points. 

I imagine that his teacher is modeling enthusiasm surrounding this approach and it is 

catching on with her students.  My son is also enjoying the choices involved within the 

spelling practice.  It is giving him ownership over the practice, where he is assuming 

responsibility for his own learning.  The extra effort seems very empowering and I applaud 

the teacher!  My only suggestion would be to change the word "homework" to "practice," 

but it is a difficult thing to do when the word is so embedded into our culture.  All in all,

my son seems to be off to a nice start in 2nd grade in regard to nightly homework... 

I mean... practice

- See more at: http://principalhowell.blogspot.com/2014/09/lets-call-it-practice-or-opportunity-to.html#sthash.ADMd7o5O.dpuf

The debate will carry on and homework will continue to be given to students.  Children need to be assigned practice and activities to build skills; such as memorizing facts, spelling, word study, etc.  My suggestion to all educators and parents is to provide targeted and differentiated practice, allowing for choice and empowering students to assume responsibility of their own learning.

Remember to embark on all homework decisions with a basic question:  Is it good for children?

Have a great week!

Repost from- See more at: http://principalhowell.blogspot.com/2014/09/lets-call-it-practice-or-opportunity-to.html#sthash.ADMd7o5O.dpuf

Statewide ELA Assessments and IEP Team Decision Making

Statewide ELA Assessments and IEP Team Decision Making

In an effort to parallel the changes brought about by the Common Core standards and new Smarter Balanced assessments, the new Extended Assessment has combined reading and writing into ELA (English/Language Arts). Further, the new IEP under development at ODE will reflect these changes as well and ODE will be disseminating guidance with the new IEP around how teams should select either the Smarter Balanced ELA or Extended Assessment ELA. Until this detailed guidance is developed and disseminated, ODE recommends that IEP teams consider the following guidance when making decisions related to this issue: If a student’s reading (vs writing) skills are stronger, then all things being equal the IEP team should lean towards having the student participate in the Smarter ELA assessment. However, if the student’s writing (vs reading) skills are stronger, then 

all things being equal the IEP team should lean towards having the student participate in the Extended Assessment for ELA. 

For additional information, please contact Brad Lenhardt at brad.lenhardt@state.or.us.

Kindergarten Assessment Review Window

The Kindergarten Assessment Review Window is open from Tuesday, November 18 to Friday, November 28. During the review window, districts have the opportunity to view and correct identified audit items, checked against 1st Period ADM, that include: Missing assessment records, gender, race/ethnicity, date of birth, merged SSIDs, students in 1st Period ADM with no records in KA collections/submissions, and students with records in the Kindergarten Assessment collections but are not in 1st Period ADM. 

The Audit Manual for the Kindergarten assessment collections can be found here.

As a reminder, preliminary school and district rosters and aggregate reports will be sent to District Test Coordinators on December 8. Districts will have from December 9-19 to review these reports and notify ODE of any discrepancies. Final school and district aggregate reports will be released to the public on January 13, 2015.

Contact Kara Williams at kara.williams@state.or.us with questions.

Videos to check out!:

Rural PLC (12 min)

Rural Ed...strengths and challenges (4 min)

Thanksgiving Parody (2 min)

Articles you might want to check out:

An educators guide to COPPA

15 Tools to inspire Middle Level Writers

Lesson about Privlege

Bring back the arts?

Calendar of Events:

Feb 26-27 K and Early Literacy Summit

April 10--Harney County Tech Conference 2015 @ BHS

Everyone doing Everything

How many of your students follow a direction you give in your classroom? 50 percent? 75 percent? Is that OK with you? Why not 100 percent every time?There’s on one suitable percentage of students following a direction given in your classroom: 100 Percent. If you are not achieving this, you make your teaching authority subject to interpretation, situation, and motivation. Students may have cause to ask themselves: “Did she mean that? For everyone? Do I feel like going along with her today?”

Let's look at a situation. Anita walks into her classroom and raises her hand which is the signal for getting quiet. About 75 percent of the class quiets down. Should Anita proceed? 

I hope you answered "NO." The expectation is that all students do what you say everytime.

With that said, ALL STUDENTS should also answer ALL QUESTIONS or in other words EVERYONE DOES EVERYTHING! When you ask Little Johnny what the answer is....how do you also know that Suzy in the back got that answer too. Did you check? Shouldn't they all answer? Situation..."Johnny what was the answer to #3?" Johnny says, "74." Suzy,
"What was the answer?" Suzy says, "74." "Class, the answer to #3 was what?" Class responds..."74!" Everyone did the answer and we know that everyone knows. 

Check out this teacher who gets all students answering: http://vimeopro.com/inghamisd/teachers-learning-together/video/72430237

Videos to check out!:

Truly Amazing Teacher (10 min)

100% Technique (2 min)

Total Physical Response (4 min)

Articles you might want to check out:

50 ways to teach with Current Events

5-ways to become comfortable with technology in the classroom

Classroom Theme? Classroom doors

Close Reading Struggle over the Struggle

My profession no longer exists...

Calendar of Events:

Nov 20: Rural PLC

Nov 21: CPI @ Slater--Have you sent in your funds? Remember--Potluck
Feb 26-27 K and Early Literacy Summit
April 10--Harney County Tech Conference 2015 @ BHS

MMM=Repost from the Colorful Principal

What came first the Chicken or the Egg?

I'm throwing a wrinkle at the age old question.  Here's my version -  

What comes first healthy school culture or strong test scores?

The obvious statement is, do you have to choose?  

I view myself as a life long learner and much of my learning comes from reading, listening and personal experience.  A couple of books I've gained a lot from are:

7 Simple Secrets: What the best teachers know and do by Todd Whitaker and Annette Breaux

and 

What great teachers do differently by Todd Whitaker

"Good people know that high stakes testing has limited value and they keep operating anyway.  They don't let testing get in the way of doing the good work they want to do to get kids prepared for life." 

-Todd Whitaker

Todd's exactly right!  Most schools are working as hard as possible and it is imperative to focus on helping kids be prepared for life.

I interact with many educators on a regular basis and I hear three things that come up over and over. 

1) Data Driven

2) Budget 

3) Test Scores

Recently I heard these topics come up and I simply stated, "That's a shame. Shouldn't we be focusing on students?  

A few days ago I had a debate on social media about data and culture.  I found myself frustrated. During my educational career I've watched the pendulum shift multiple times.  I see times where the focus is squarely on numbers and then I've also witnessed times when relationships take center stage. What I'm about to share may be viewed as a weakness, but I stand by my beliefs.

At the heart of a successful school/classroom/district is putting relationships first.  My philosophy is this:  An atmosphere that puts students first, focuses on relationship building and establishes an environment where students love to learn is one where the data will take care of itself.

I'm not a Data Hater, but I've come to learn that data can be manipulated and often doesn't tell the whole story.  Have you ever had a parent approach you and tell you they want their child in a certain school because they have strong test scores?  

I have.  

My response is often one that creates dialogue.  I share our philosophy, our programs and our passion for kids.  I don't share scores or data.  It simply isn't my focus.  

When I hear parents bring up test scores I sometimes feel disconnected.  I'm a parent.  My child's test scores are not a big priority.  When I think of a school for my kids I think of these things:

1)  A school that is safe

2)  Educators that are passionate 

3)  A school that is welcoming to families and student-centered

4)  Opportunities & Programs for students

5)  A school that my child enjoys

As I share all of that I feel the need to also share a story about data.  A while back I was sitting at my classroom desk.  I was looking at my class list and I was checking my notes. What I was doing was simply going down the line and trying to gauge or predict how my students would do on an upcoming social studies test.  As I finished looking at my list I confidently believed that my class average would be between 87% and 92%.  My test was not a piece of cake, it was twenty-six questions long and had a mixture of Bloom's Taxonomy.  

Before I handed out the test I sat on the corer of a desk and I looked at my class.  I told them that I was very confident that they would do well.  I told them I really didn't think I needed to give the test. At this point one of my students said, "It's okay, Mr. Gilpin, we're ready!"

That night I took the tests home and graded them.  My class average was 89%.  As I looked at the data I discovered two questions tripped my students up.  I was confident that my wording was the issue, not the students' knowledge.

To me this was valuable data.  Not a standardized test score.  

This Week's Big Questions:  Where do you stand?  Is data at the center of your decision making or is it about relationships?

source: http://colorfulprincipal.blogspot.com/
Videos to check out!:

TUPAC on Education

http://swf.tubechop.com/tubechop.swf?vurl=2XZkd3h15gc&start=47&end=289&cid=3920830
(8 min)

 Amazing, right? 

Here’s what’s even MORE amazing:  That interview was shot in 1988.

ALMOST THIRTY YEARS AGO.

So what’s changed in our classrooms and schools since then?  

Pretty much nothing.

We are STILL teaching algebra and German and volleyball to every kid as if they are essential to surviving in today’s world.  We are STILL ignoring more powerful topics like racism and police brutality and political doublespeak even though our students are driven to participate and passionate about changing the world around them.  And our students are STILL completely disconnected, convinced that our schools are pointless places that they are forced to go to while we are at work.

Post from Bill Ferriter @ The Tempered Radical

Are you talking to much? (1 min)

Articles you might want to check out:

Preparing for real life and real world?

How-teachers-can-motivate-students-of-any-age

6 tricks of highly productive, self disciplined people

Calendar of Events:

Nov 20: Rural PLC--Have you RSVP'd?
Nov 21: CPI @ Slater--Have you sent in your funds? Remember--Potluck
Feb 26-27 K and Early Literacy Summit
April 10--Harney County Tech Conference 2015 @ BHS

Dual post with IT blog and School Improvement Blog

This month we focus on sentence starters and verbal responses using those. On our Harney ESD IT blog you can find several resources from Pinterest. 
Pinterest has a host of resources for every walk of life including teachers. Using online “pinboards” teachers can save everything from photos to blog posts in one easily accessible and usable place. From inspiration to lessons and from signage for your classroom to professional resources you can score some great stuff on Pinterest. Check it out today. You wont regret it. 



Videos to check out!:

Get to know your students (1 min)

What 60 schools can tell us.... (16 min)

High Tech High  (2 min)

Articles you might want to check out:

Are you killing the love of reading?

Fewer SPED?

Short explanation of daylight savings time

9 Things students should be able to do with Google Drive

Calendar of Events:

Nov 4-Nov 6-- ODE-facilitated WebEx sessions 
Nov 6-Early Learning Summit
Nov 20: Rural PLC--Have you RSVP'd?
Nov 21: CPI @ Slater--Have you sent in your funds?
Feb 26-27 K and Early Literacy Summit
April 10--Harney County Tech Conference 2015 @ BHS