Professional Development
Syracuse City School District - February 2021
Announcing Learning Walks 21: March 8 - 26, 2021
How can we collaborate around best practices for personalizing in-person, hybrid & virtual learning? What practices, strategies & tools are successfully engaging our students in learning this year?
Watch the video below to learn more from four 2020 Learning Walk participants:
Juanita Dyer, Grant Middle School
Timieka Evans, Porter Elementary School
Sunny Li, Porter Elementary School
Chris Schroth, Grant Middle School
February 2021 Professional Development & Support
The PL Team is committed to coordinating efforts to provide daily opportunities for training and support for our SCSD Staff that would help them to maintain continuity in communication and learning for our SCSD Students & Families during the Covid19 Pandemic & beyond. The following is a summary report of that work for the past calendar month.
February PD Session Topics
The following professional learning offerings were available to staff in February:
- Weekly Demo Lessons by Content/Grade Level (204)
- AVID Strategies (4)
- Social Emotional Learning Integration (6)
- Trauma Informed Instruction (3)
- Zearn Math (1)
- SCORE: Student-Led PD (6)
- Self-Paced PL Playlist (3)
- PL-LC 101: Learner Champion (4)
- PL-LC 102: Flexible Learning Environments (4)
- The Person You Mean To Be Book Study (24)
- Learning Walk Information Session (12)
- SCSD PL Coach Office Hours
Overall Rating: 1 (Poor) to 5 (Excellent) Stars - 4.57+
Opportunity for equal sharing of resources and strategies remains the most powerful use of our time possible.
Equity conversations reflecting on race and ethnicity were both informative and transformative.
Nearpods that could be used for small group work (differentiated levels of material) as well as fluency practice are always appreciated.
We worked in breakout rooms, also had a 1 on 1 with our Supervisor about our walkthrough which is super valuable.
Breaking into content specific rooms was incredibly helpful. I enjoyed the open discussion of developing differentiation with notation. it was especially helpful to hear from other teachers and include their insight into my classroom.
The PD applied directly to what happens each day in the classroom. It gave me ideas for trying new ways to elicit participation and engage with students.
I like that this was independently paced. I could stop video and reflect.
I was able to dive into the hub to help reach out to families and give them resources to help get their child logged onto TEAMS, SeeSaw, Imagine Learning and Zearn.
Time for staff to meet in break out rooms to discuss a slide with specific strategies and then share out in whole group was very beneficial for reinforcement.
The students did an incredible job! We need much more of that type of PD. This was better than all the PD we sit through daily all put together.
Collaboration time with teammates is so needed! Thank you for encouraging this.
Such great resources available through the playlist. Was able to figure out and navigate teams to create breakout rooms for more personalized learning in my classes.
VERY EMPOWERING
Constructive Feedback Quotes - February 2021
- I feel that the sessions are too long for the given time period. And then be expected to complete additional independent work.
- Great conversation but I am struggling to make sense of the resources.
The science WCNY lessons seem like they do not match up with any of the 1st grade science standards on the report cards.
I have a hard time following without visuals.
This PD was very common sense and it felt insulting to have to do this.
I am finding that the expectations of the departments are really difficult to meet with the amount of time we have with students. It is leaving very little time for small group… instruction.
Concerned about pace.
We were in break out rooms and no warning cut off.
Break out rooms were not really guided, also did not have much content that was similar to others in breakout room, so conversation was very vague.
Now that we are joining the common TEAMS link and then selecting content specific videos/lessons to view independently, it is difficult to attend to the videos/lessons with people continuing to talk in the main channel.
These are not necessary to be having each week. I would like to use this time to read through a PowerPoint of the information provided and then have time to meet with my students on Teams. We are not using our time wisely on Wednesdays.
Many side conversations by facilitators, not practiced before hand.
Weekly Demonstration Lesson Sessions
Teacher Highlights
Amy Warner, K-5 Social Studies Demo Teacher
Alana Hirt, Geometry Demo Teacher
Mathematics Teacher, Henninger High School
"I’m the Geometry demo teacher for SCSD but I also teach (Algebra 2B & Geometry) at Henninger HS. As a demo teacher I create resources (videos, activities, assignments, etc.) that align with the SCSD Geometry curriculum for all teachers to use in their hybrid/virtual classrooms.
The best part of the job is having the opportunity to work with my fellow Geometry teachers from across the district on a weekly basis! Team work truly does make the dream work. I also enjoy sharing my love of Geometry with students across Syracuse.
The biggest challenge of the job is making the resources accessible to ALL learners.
The highlight of this work is sharing my love of Geometry with students from all over Syracuse! I also enjoy collaborating with other Geometry teachers across the district, I hope to continue this collaboration long after the pandemic is over."
Weekly Choice Sessions
Breakdown by the Core 4 Elements of Personalized Learning
Self-Paced Action Research Playlist
SCSD Personalized Learning Office Hours
SyraFuse Fellowship Highlights
Fuse Syracuse (SyraFuse) strives to implement and scale personalized and blended learning across the Syracuse City School District by creating and training teacher leaders as change agents. The Fuse Syracuse initiative recruits a group of educators called Fuse Fellows for a 1-year fellowship. Fellows will be trained on personalized learning models and best practices, blended learning tools and strategies, coached on classroom implementation, and supported to establish their own “Lighthouse Classroom” to serve as a model of personalized and blended instruction in their building and district.
Fuse Fellows are passionate, curious innovators in their schools who model a growth mindset, and are open to trying new things and taking their practice to the next level. They are natural change agents for their schools, and welcome the opportunity to advance the field through their own leadership and instructional innovation. We are now working with cohort 5 of the fellowship!
Tessa Seymour, Dr. Weeks Elementary School
"Being a SyraFuse Fellow has given me the support and tools that I need to grow in my practice as an educator. I have always prided myself in being an educator who is constantly looking for new opportunities to grow and better my practice for my students. So, when I heard about SyraFuse from some of my colleagues, I knew this would be a great opportunity to meet and learn from some of the great educators in the SCSD.
I love being able to try new strategies and techniques in my classroom with the support of the PL Coaches and my peers. Their feedback is so valuable. Through SyraFuse I have had so many opportunities to receive feedback, reflect on what I am doing in my classroom and make changes that will help to support my students and their learning in a more meaningful way. Through conversation with my coach I am given the support I need to implement new teaching strategies and the confidence to try new things. Also, knowing I will always be supported, even when it doesn’t turn out quite the way I planned.
I have gained a deeper understanding of what it really means to personalize students learning. When you use personalized learning in your classroom you are thinking about how each student learns best, the strategies, and tools and supports that work best for each of them. My students have been working on creating meaningful goals. Through student choice, students are given opportunities to choose the activities and supports they need to be successful. This new learning has forever changed the way I teach and approach my students and their learning needs."
Grant Gilbreath, Clary Middle School
ELA Teacher & SyraFuse Cohort 5 Fellow
"Hi! My name is Grant Gilbreath, and I am an 8th Grade ELA Teacher from Clary Middle School. Previously, I taught in Texas for two years before moving to Syracuse. This will be my second-year teaching in SCSD. Also, I am a proud member of SyraFuse Cohort 5. I applied to be a Fuse Fellow because I wanted to learn and collaborate with other educators across the district. The amount of support and knowledge that I've gained this year has been tremendously rewarding.
At first, engagement with hybrid and online classes were tricky. However, I think I've cracked the code! I have been doing a combination of Personalized Stations, Playlists, and Interactive Nearpods. With personalized stations, I was able to learn how my students learn best. Each student was given unique tasks throughout the week that best supports them. For example, I could have one student working on an independent Nearpod, while another student is leading discussion board. In my Canvas course, I have created Playlists and Data walls so students can determine how they want to learn throughout the week. Students can also reflect from their data walls throughout the week and set goals! Who knew you could read a novel virtually? Well, with Nearpod I was able to give opportunities for students to engage with the text. My students have loved Nearpod!
My goal for Fuse is to not only learn new practices, but to also spread that information around my building!" #SyraFuse
Student & Family Support provided by SCSD School Librarians
Prekindergarten – Grade 12 Library Media Specialists in the SCSD provide helpdesk support to students and families in the SCSD. They are available between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM Monday – Friday each week. Families are able to sign up for virtual help directly on the Syracuse City Schools Website.
Elementary Support Calendar & Stats
Elementary LMS Highlight
Jing Xu, Franklin Elementary School
As always, I am very proud to be part of an extraordinary group of librarians who have worked hard to support our staff, students and families. We will continue to work together to serve our learning community better. I am looking forward to the next level of engaging ways to mature our students to become life-long learners."
Secondary Support Calendar & Stats
Secondary LMS Highlight
Emily Zieno, Nottingham High School
"My mother worked in a high school library for 39 years. She absolutely loved her job, and she impressed upon me what a special place a school library truly is. I grew up an avid reader (and continue to be), and loved all of the interesting adventures I was able to experience through reading. I have always been a curious person by nature and appreciated the information accessible through a library. It makes sense that, years later, as I was determining my future, I turned to libraries. Libraries have always been a unique and special place for me. Not just the physical space, but the people that helped make it so special. I wanted to be a part of that.
This is my 11th year as a Library Media Specialist in the Syracuse City School District. I worked at Clary Middle School for 7 years and have spent the last 4 years at Nottingham High School. I describe being a librarian to people as my ‘dream job’ because honestly, it is. Not only is it an incredibly rewarding career, it is also an extremely important one. Being a librarian means taking on several roles, including a teacher of essential information literacy skills, a literature enthusiast, a designer of a welcoming and safe environment for all, a technology specialist/trainer, an academic tutor, an activity coordinator, a resource aggregator, a supportive coach, among many others!
This year has been really different. My typical roles have shifted, as I have been providing more tech support than ever before. The SCSD librarians have truly worked as a team to provide opportunities for tech support to students, families and staff. It is so rewarding to help people find solutions to issues they are experiencing and to help them navigate the world of hybrid/remote learning. The high school librarians have also worked together to create a virtual book club for students this year, which has been a lot of fun!"
Manami Tezuka
Syracuse City School District
Email: mtezuka@scsd.us
Website: http://www.syracusecityschools.com/districtpage.cfm?pageid=585
Location: 1005 West Fayette Street, Syracuse, New York 13204, USA
Phone: (315) 435-6358
Twitter: @SCSDPL