Principal's Update
November 10, 2014
Life in the Middle...
From a recent article in NASSP (National Association of Secondary School Principals)...
"The problem is not that our teachers are resistant to adopting new standards, or to advancing their own knowledge and skill sets for that matter. On the contrary, recent data shows that educators are all too eager to work together to look critically at literacy teaching and learning practices and pilot approaches that enrich student learning. The core issue, it turns out, is quality time.
Shockingly few teachers are actually given the time or support required to execute against a vision of reform. Moreover, too few schools provide the opportunities for collaboration that are essential ingredients for advancing education outcomes. A recent survey by The National Center for Literacy Education (NCLE) shows just how big a problem this is."
Sounds all too familiar, right? I know as a teacher, I always felt like I did not have enough time to talk and plan with my colleagues. Mr. Davis and Ms. Knight returned from a Professional Learning Communities (PLC) conference last week energized and ready to help us discover new ways to work together to improve outcomes with our students. Very soon, we will all be asked to rate ourselves on where we believe are currently as a professional learning community. Then, we will begin to learn the language of a PLC and see how it fits into what we are already doing with IB and instruction. I am looking forward to seeing how they lead us in this effort and even more excited about discovering ways we can capture and use the time we do have to meet our collective goals with our students. We have a lot to look forward to in the days and months ahead!
By the numbers...
Two of our school improvement plan goals are related directly to content and have targets for us to meet by spring as measured by MAPs data. One of the goals is for reading improvement through our school literacy plan and the other is for math improvement by developing PLCs to look at common assessments. Since MAPs data is available from the fall MAPs testing, I wanted to let you know where we stand in both areas. You will hear more from grade level administrators and counselors in your grade level meetings next week...
Goal by Spring 15 ******Where students performed on Fall MAPs assessment
Math- 37.8% of students **33% of students scored at or above the 66thpercentile
will score at or above the
66th percentile in mathematics
Reading- 33.2% of students **22.6% of students scored at or above the 66th percentile
will score at or above the 66th
percentile in reading
As you can see, we have work to do in both areas. However, math seems to be our biggest area of challenge. You will receive detailed %s for your grade level at your meetings.
Energy star award!
I was notified yesterday that our school has earned the coveted Energy Star award due to our conservation of energy over the past several years. You all should be very proud of the measures you have taken to save energy! Here is a link to tell you a little about the energy star award... More to come later!
Instructional Update
Late Start
Upcoming School Events
Tuesday, November 11- Department Meetings after school
6:15 PM- Parent meeting for winter sports in the gym
2:30-7:00 PM- City zoning meeting in media center