Carter Chronicle
The week of February 22-26
Carter Mantra
"Every Scholar, Every Day, NO EXCUSES!"
Carter Coalition Mission
Carter Coaliton Leverage Points
STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
Increase Student Academic Achievement Through the Use of Data Driven Instruction in all Feeder Schools
Key Action 1QUALITY OF INSTRUCTION
Improve the Quality of Instruction Through a Focus on Effective Feedback and Support Systems in all Feeder Schools
Key Action 2CAMPUS CULTURE
Provide Safe, Positive and Supportive Campus Climates in all Feeder Schools
Key Action 3TEI
Be sure to read the TEI NEWS emails that come from DISDNEWS each week.
March
1st- Reminder to verify years of service in Oracle
Schedule your DTR Observations
ED/Principals target is 4 DTR observations
- Assistant Principals target is 6 DTR observations
- Content Specialists target is 10 DTR observations
DAVID W. CARTER COLLEGIATE PREPARATORY
Carter coalition,
I am pleased to announce that Carter high school will be opening its very own Collegiate Preparatory Academy in August. David W. Carter Collegiate Preparatory will follow the school-within-a-school model consisting of 100-125 9th grade scholars. The planning stages are in full bloom fast and furious.
The purpose of Carter Collegiate Preparatory is to not only prepare students for college, but to have them earn an Associate’s degree in applied science at the same time they earn their high school diploma. This program will change not only our scholars' future, but will impact the community. It truly is a cutting-edge approach to education, and we are proud and honored to be leading this charge.
This effort and innovation requires much work to get off of the ground, and the Carter High School team has boldly taken on this challenge to truly provide the best education possible to our Carter Feeder Students. The Road to College begins now!
THIS WEEK AT A GLANCE
Monday, February 22, 2016
- Carter High School Campus Walk w/Cordero@ 7:15-8:00-(Ms. Torres)
- 'No Excuses University' Training 8:30-12:00 Buckner Building Rm. # 738-Principal and Principal designee MUST ATTEND!
- Ronald McNair/Mark Twain Turnaround meeting-12:00 @ Buckner
- Haskell Office Time (Ms. Torres)
- GoToWebinar-Campus Turnaround School @3:00-(Ms. Torres)
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
- Birdie Alexander Campus Visit- Calibration walk
- Adelle Turner Campus Visit-Spot Observations
- Atwell Law Academy- Campus Visit-Spot Observations
- TEI Expert Meeting @ 4:45 Henderson Elementary
Wednesday, February 24 2016
- D.A. Hulcy STEAM Campus Visit-Spot Observations
- David W. Carter Collegiate Preparatory Leadership Meeting @ 10:00
- David W. Carter Campus Visit-Spot Observation
Thursday February 25, 2016
- Carter Feeder Meeting @ John Patton Academic Center @ 9:00-12:45
- Barbara Manns Educational Center Campus Visit-Spot Observations
- Master Schedule Roundtable Meeting @ Haskell 3rd floor-3:00-5:00- (Ms. Torres)
Friday, February 26, 2016
- School Leadership Meeting 8:15-10:30 @ Haskell (Ms. Torres)
- Turnaround Plan for IR Meeting @ 10:30-(Ms. Torres)
- Collegiate Academy Meeting @ 11:00-(Ms. Torres)
- Check in Meeting w/Mr. Cordero (Ms. Torres) @ 11:30
- AASI Mtg. w/School Leadership (Ms. Torres/Mr. Luna) 1:00-2:00
- ED/AF Coaching Meeting 2nd floor Conference Room @ 2:00
- Haskell office visit ( Ms. Torres) @ 3:00
- Feeder Benchmark Data Report due to E.D. and A.F.s by 5:00 p.m.
- Data Wall updated with feeder benchmark data by 5:00 p.m.
3-5 Cadre Training Topics for Cohort II (Elementary Principals ONLY)
Dates for Cohort II Training Sessions
- Wednesday. March 9 @ Nolan Estes
- Wednesday, April 13 @ Nolan Estes
- Wednesday, May 18 @ Nolan Estes
- Wednesday, June 1 @ Nolan Estes
*All Training Sessions will be from 2:00-5:00PM- Send Literacy Coach and 2 strong teachers who can deliver the PD to your staff successfully*
AASI: CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE TEACHING AND LEARNING PD
Session 4: Mar 8, 2016 1000002918
African American Success Initiative is gearing up to implement the THRIVE internship program! Carter High Schools students along with Wilmer-Hutchins High School students will have the opportunity to engage various types of careers and companies throughout the summer months. More importantly, we are excited to secure a partnership that will enhance student achievement inside and outside the classroom. Students will begin applying for the internship opportunity during the first week in March. We are thrilled to be able to provide these types of experiences to all Dallas ISD students! If you have additional questions, please feel free to contact a member of the AASI team.
HB 1842 Rollout- 2016 Timeline Update
Please take note of the following 2016 dates for the required development of a Turnaround Plan for Improvement Required 2,3,4,5 campuses:
March 28, 2016: Webinar, Tentative topics- Q&A
April 15, 2016: DISD Turnaround Plans submitted to Dr. Chernosky for May Board Agenda Item.
May 2, 2016: Submission deadline of Turnaround Plan to TEA.
June 1, 2016: Board Approval of Turnaround Plans no later than June 1.
June 15, 2016: Commissioner Approval of School Turnaround Plans.
PRINCIPAL ACTION ITEMS
MARCH
10-Master Schedule Roundtable Sessions- (Atwell and Carter)
11- Last day for student transfers to be completed online by parents to be considered as a Hard Ship Transfer on your campuses
28--Master Schedule Roundtable Sessions- (Patton and Barbara Manns)
NEWS YOU CAN USE.................
TEA Launches Texas Gateway-
Commissioner of Education Mike Morath announced the launch of the Texas Gateway www.texasgateway.org , a free online resource library for educators and parents provided by the Texas Education Agency.
February:
27th- AP Mentor Training @ Nolan Estes Plaza 8:00-12:00PM
MARCH:
7th- Community Meeting at David W. Carter @6:00PM Career Pathways with Trustee Freeman
10th-Master Schedule Round Table presentations for Atwell and Carter
14th-18th- Spring Break
APRIL:
15TH- DISD Turnaround Plans submitted to Dr. Chernosky for May Board Agenda Item
22nd- Nominations for School Counselor of the Year
28th-Master Schedule Round Table presentations for Barbara Manns and Patton
T. G. Terry celebrates African-American History Month with Bulletin Board displays and student projects
CARTER KUDOS
David W. Carter Jazz Band
Carter Cowboy Boys Varsity Team
A MESSAGE FROM OUR ACADEMIC FACILITATORS
Feb. 26 is the data deadline – please fill out the Benchmark Assessment Report and return to myself, Marelenise Phillips-Roberts, and Ms. Torres
Feb. 26 is also the day our data walls should be updated.
We will use our feeder cut scores for our data walls and reports – 0-59 PINK (no pass) – 60-74 YELLOW (pass) – 75-89 GREEN (pass) – 90-100 BLUE (Level III Advanced)
A MESSAGE FROM YOUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.........
Carter Coalition,
As you are all aware, we just completed our first comprehensive Carter Feeder Benchmark. As we gather our results from our feeder testing the questions become:
- What does the data tell you?
- What adjustments will you make to ensure there is academic change evidenced on the next interim assessment?
- Will there be any staff moves?
- What different types of interventions will you ensure your teachers put in place that were different from what were previously done?
Remember it is NOT what the data states that is important but what YOU do with the data you receive from the Benchmark testing that is the important thing to remember. ACTION is key! Let's ensure that NO Scholar is left behind.
Have an INSPIRED Week!
Ms. Torres
Six Suggestions for Effective Instruction of English Language Learners
In this article in Educational Leadership, Jane Hill (McREL International) offers these suggestions for engaging and challenging beginning-level ELLs:
• Consider each student’s stage of language acquisition. This allows educators to set realistic expectations for what each student should be able to do. These are the levels and the kinds of questions appropriate to each one:
-Pre-production (often called “the silent period”) – Show me… Circle the… Where is…? Who has…?
-Early Production (single words or two-word phrases, yes-or-no responses, and repeating familiar patterns) – Yes-or-no; either-or; Who, What, How many?
-Speech Emergence (short sentences) – Why…? How…? Explain… Questions requiring short sentences.
-Intermediate Fluency (sentences of increasing length and complexity) – What would happen if…? Why do you think…? Questions requiring more than one sentence.
-Advanced Fluency (near-native fluency) – Decide if… Retell…
Although ELLs need to be held to the same standards as native English speakers on what they know and understand,” says Hill, “how they get there and how they demonstrate that knowledge will look different, depending on their level of English skill.”
• Use tiered questions. Teachers should ask students questions appropriate to their level, but when they approach the upper end of a level, it’s effective to start asking questions from the next level up. For example, students at the Early Production stage get yes-or-no questions and then, as they become more proficient, Why? How? and Explain… questions.
• Don’t expect the same product from all students. “When every student receives the same homework assignment, ELLs may struggle because they haven’t learned the skills they’re supposed to practice through that task,” says Hill. “They may even practice incorrectly.” Better to tier homework and in-class assignments, tailoring the language demands to students’ levels.
• Engage Pre-production students at the same level of thinking as other students. Don’t water down the curriculum for ELLs at early stages of English acquisition, says Hill. The five levels of English do not correspond to Bloom’s taxonomy of learning, she says: “How well a student can speak a second language has nothing to do with her or his ability to think abstractly.” A question can be at a low level of English usage but a high level of conceptual understanding. For example, a Pre-production student studying ecosystems might demonstrate analysis by categorizing types of plants found in desert and alpine tundra biomes using pictures and labels.
• Don’t assess language when you want to assess content knowledge. In a science lesson on how the eyeball allows humans to see, it would be a mistake to ask ELLs to write a comparison of nearsightedness and farsightedness. Instead, the teacher might ask those students to use the results of an experiment to construct models of eyeball shapes that would result in near- or farsightedness.
• Be aware of one’s own language use. Teachers should slow their rate of speech, speak in complete sentences, and make full use manipulatives, miniature objects, photos, pictures, drawings, gestures, body movement, pantomime, and facial expressions. Hill also advises that teachers not overuse idioms and pronouns, opting instead for nouns, which convey more meaning to ELLs.
“Engaging Your Beginners” by Jane Hill in Educational Leadership, February 2016 (Vol. 73, #5, p. 18-23), http://bit.ly/1RGb5Cs; Hill can be reached at jhill@mcrel.org.
CARTER COALITION SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
- David W. Carter High School: Principal, Fred Davis III
- John L. Patton Academic Center: Principal, Leslie Swann
- STEAM Hulcy Middle School: Principal, Jonica Crowder-Lockwood
- William H. Atwell Law Academy: Principal, Selena Deboskie
- Barbara Manns Education Center: Principal, LeTrice Portley
- Ronald McNair Elementary: Principal, Ariss Rider
- T. G. Terry Elementary: Principal, Alicia Bradley
- Birdie Alexander Elementary: Principal, Valarie Kendrick
- Mark Twain Vanguard: Principal, Derrick Ross
- Adelle Turner Elementary: Principal, Michael Nickson
- Martin Weiss Elementary: Principal, Shundra Brown
David W. Carter High School
John L. Patton Academic Center
Hulcy STEAM Middle School
W. H Atwell Law Academy MS
Barbara Manns Education Center
Ronald McNair Elementary School
T.G. Terry Elementary School
Birdie Alexander Elementary School
Mark Twain Elementary Vanguard
Adelle Turner Elementary School
Martin Weiss Elementary School
DISD CORE BELIEFS:
Our main purpose is to improve student academic achievement.
Effective instruction makes the most difference in student academic achievement.
There is no excuse for poor quality instruction.
At risk students will achieve at the same rate as non-at-risk students.
Staff members must have a commitment to children and a commitment to the pursuit of excellence.