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District Professional Development
Team To aid the district in continuing its mission, “to reach excellence through continuous improvement,” an ambitious three-year project began during the summer of the 2004-2005 school year. In June of 2004, our district formed a professional development team, which presently includes at least one principal and teacher from every school building, special education, gifted and preschool representatives, the superintendent, curriculum supervisor, and the federal programs coordinator. The team’s goals and objectives were formed at a conference, sponsored by Battelle for Kids in Columbus. After some revision, the following reflects a three-year action plan that is compatible with our district’s Continuous Improvement Plan: Objective: To create district and building-level learning communities trained in standards, assessments and instructional methods responsive to the needs of students, teachers and parents. Goals: 1. To organize a district level team to be trained in standards-based instruction/assessment 2. To organize building-level teams to improve instructional practices through data analysis and collegial discussions 3. To provide all certified staff with necessary information and assistance to transition from a teacher-centered classroom to a student-learning classroom The DPDT meets quarterly for two hours to plan district in-services, to coordinate staff development and to deliver instructional information to individual buildings. In addition, the teacher-leaders in each building are available for one hour each week after the school day to provide assistance with either building staff development or coaching individual teachers. 2009-2010 Team The team includes the following members:
Some of the projects under the umbrella of the DPDT relate to completion of curriculum maps for the core subjects in PreK-12 grades, selection of Power Standards (essential skills all students must learn at each grade level), and development of district short-cycle assessments. Specifically, we have planned several major in-services, created a team monitoring rubric, and organized several book studies at the building level. Curriculum maps have been completed. Curriculum maps and short cycle assessments will be adjusted periodically. 2006-2007 Team The team includes the following members:
In-services - 2004-2005 August 23, 2004 – Jim Mahoney, Director of Battelle for Kids, was the keynote speaker. He spoke about recognizing that children learn at different rates. Our job is to meet students at their learning level and move them along the educational continuum. September 24, 2004 – The second in-service training day focused on curriculum mapping and instruction in calibrating the assessment of writing prompts. The guest facilitator for language arts teachers, Grades 4-12, was Jean McLear from Ohio Writing Project of Miami University. November 30, 2004 – The first staff development waiver day was devoted to determining the essential skills all students must learn. (If you hear the term “Power Standards or Indicators,” it is a reference to the essential skills.) Peg Portscheller, from the Center for Performance Assessment, discussed the importance of prioritizing the essential knowledge students must learn in each grade level. She also assisted math teachers in determining the critical concepts students need to know. March 23, 2005 - During the final Waiver Day, Dr. Eleanor Rodriguez, author of What Is It About Me That You Can’t Teach?, facilitated the morning session, discussing strategies to use with reluctant learners. She also met with smaller groups in the afternoon to answer specific curriculum questions. During the afternoon session, principals and teachers completed the revision of the Power Standards/Indicators Our plan is to continue providing quality in-services in 2005-06 with additional waiver days with the Board’s approval. In-services - 2005-2006 Jim Mahoney from Battelle for Kids gave an inspirational talk about Standard Based Education. Teachers participated in a hands-on activity called Bridging the Gap. This activity promoted discussion about standards based education and how our schools must change to adapt to a changing economy a well as other changes in society. September 23, 2005 Cathy Hamilton from the Hamilton County ESC was the keynote speaker. Ms. Hamilton presented concepts from the book, A Framework for Understanding Poverty by Ruby K. Payne, PHD. Ms. Hamilton shared her personal experiences with overcoming poverty as well. Local community agencies were invited to attend the session, which was the first of a three-day sequence of training sessions. November 29, 2005 Cathy Hamilton was the keynote speaker for the second session regarding poverty. Ms. Hamilton discussed the effects of poverty in relation to ways teachers could support students of poverty. The three main teacher-level factors discussed were instructional strategies, classroom management and classroom curriculum design. April 18, 2006 Don Washburn was the keynote speaker for the third in-service of the year. Mr. Washburn spoke about Adequate Yearly Progress and issues related to the school report card. In-service and professional development 2006-2007 On August 21, 2006 district teachers were treated to a session with Dr. Jep Hostetler, who spoke about the Joy Factor in the school setting and life in general. Dr. Hostetler was well received by staff members. On August 10 & 11 teachers from the DPDT team attended Differentiated Instruction Training for teacher leaders. During the 2006-07 school-year each building has offered one or more book studies regarding Differentiated Instruction. Early dismissal dates have been scheduled through-out the 2006-07 school-year for the purpose of teachers and administrators working on short cycle assessment tasks and other miscellaneous professional development activities. These early dismissal dates are: October 17, January 9, March 8 (cancelled due to excessive weather related absences), and May 17. On January 16, 2007 Dr. Cathy Hamilton spoke to staff members at our district in-service. Dr. Hamilton spoke about the impact of poverty of education as well as best practices for teachers to use with all students, including students of poverty. She discussed differentiating the curriculum, focusing on Content-What students will learn, Process-How they will learn it, Product-How they will apply it, Environment-The atmosphere, attitudes and expectations to motivate and encourage. The district Value-Added team also gave a brief update on what to expect in regards to the Value-Added component of the report card. Questions/Answers How were the members of the team chosen? Each principal selected the teacher-leader from his/her building staff. Three central office administrators were appointed – superintendent, federal programs coordinator and curriculum consultant. The special education coordinator selected an elementary and high school teacher to be added. How is information from the team relayed to each building? Each building has a DPDT bulletin board devoted only to news from the team. Individual professional development opportunities, meeting dates, in-service schedules, and FYI notes are posted regularly. The team has an e-mail list serve for immediate communication. If a teacher has a specific concern or question, the teacher-leader or principal will contact the entire team for clarification or information. Responses are posted on the bulletin board. What can I ask my teacher-leader to provide? Each DPDT member has a notebook of information. The notebook includes a list of available tapes and resources for whole group instruction. The principal and teacher-leader would work together to prepare a brief building workshop when appropriate. The team member acts as a resource for individual teachers who have specific instructional concerns. Frequently, the teacher-leader will survey staff members to determine needs and to transmit concerns to the team at its regular meetings. Each month, the DPDT will post an agenda for the meeting and a brief synopsis of the meeting topics. Please address questions for DPDT Q/A to Mrs. Dee Ann Davis.
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