BLT Bits
CRCSD School Improvement
TOP 10 Ways Our BLTs Support School Improvement:
1. Have a mindset that students can and will learn at high levels- BLT teams embrace high levels of learning for ALL students.
2. Know they can make an impact- Teams work together to monitor their goals, identify and monitor improvement cycles, and plan professional learning. BLTs believe they can make a difference and the work matters.
3. Have high expectations for students and themselves- What we believe and expect is likely what happens. The most effective teams have high expectations for one another and hold each other accountable.
4. Believe and engage in continuous improvement- The most effective teams make time for reflection, celebrate what is going well, and improve areas that need work.
5. Share a vision- This creates energy and will to make change happen.
6. Data analysis is ongoing- Everyone on the BLT is involved in data analysis- administrators, IDS, and teachers. The process of analysis leads from insight to action. BLT's do something with it- they celebreate success and keep relentlessly focused on improvement.
7. Determine need and direction for professional learning- Teams gather feedback from surveys and other sources to take actions and build PL to meet the needs of student learning.
8. Learn together- Our BLT teacher leaders are actively pursuing learning because they want to know more. Many teams are reading and learning together during BLT meetings and enthusiastically participating in staff wide PL.
9. Communicate- Teachers as leaders help set and communicate the direction of the building, often serving as a conduit between grade levels, departments, and teams.
10. Impact a positive climate- Teacher leaders understand their words and actions contribute positively (or negatively) to morale.
Strategies for meetings, PL, and the classroom!
Do you facilitate conversations in meetings, professional learning, and/or in the classroom?
If you do, you know the planning required to support focus, efficiency, and psychological safety for participation.
The link below offers many strategies to provide structure to conversations. This cite offers ideas for information processing, bonding, making decisions, brainstorming, problem solving, and more.
Mid-Year SIP: So, how's it going so far?
For the past few years, all schools have been brought together for the purpose of a Mid- Year SIP Review, which also served as professional learning to support our BLT teacher leaders. Again this year each BLT is participating in an after school, 2 hour session to support our commitment to continuous improvement and build the capacity of our BLT teams.
As always, each BLT is taking time to reflect using a BLT self-assessment of group functions and review their SIP, analyze midyear data, and consider future next steps. However, this year each school determined when and what the focus of the 2 hours would be.
The first option was a typical Mid-Year SIP Review (facilitated by Kathleen Ziegler or your PL facilitator). If schools had already done a Mid-Year review in the process of ongoing work, teams selected an alternate session to attend. When selecting a session, please decide as a BLT group collectively.
Here are the session descriptions:
Traditional SIP Mid-Year
- Differentiated Accountability (Elementary Only)- This session centers around using winter FAST data using the Assessment and Universal Instruction Protocols.
- Marzano Overview (Schools just beginning to learn about Marzano): The introductory session will provide an overview of design questions and framework, find connections to current SIP work, and include work time for future planning. This session will be held at the ELSC on Tuesday, March 21 and Tuesday, March 28 and facilitated by Connie Starr and Kathleen Ziegler.
Professional Learning Design and Differentiation: This session will focus on the questions: How can we best plan and design PL for our teachers? How might we think about how to meet the differing needs of students by meeting the differing needs of teachers? During this session, teams will practice a model for designing PL and brainstorm possibilities for differentiation. This session will be held at the ELSC on March 27 and March 30 and facilitated by Stephen Probert and Kathleen Ziegler.
School Designed Session: Schools design session-- outcomes determined by school need. Session designed collaboratively with PL facilitator.