Shifting the Conversation to Learning

Temperature checks, masks, seating charts, who is out, who is covering, COVID....these are all typical daily conversations and planning that understandably have to happen while teaching and leading during a pandemic. The definition of school as provided by Webster states; an organization that provides instruction and the process of teaching and learning especially at a school. And so while I can think of a million reasons why each of you reading this feels worn down, my hope is that you can rely on the core function of school and find energy and passion in daily conversations and planning with others around teaching and learning. Collaboration and sharing in our district is at an all time high. I can see it, hear it, feel it. 

Thank you for holding to our shared beliefs about effective instructional approaches. 

Thank you for keeping your SAIL goals at the forefront of your work.

Thank you for ensuring high levels of rigor and success for ALL students.

Thank you for making formative assessment an effective assessment strategy.

Thank you for monitoring and tracking our most at risk students.

Thank you for giving daily feedback to your students and parents.

You are appreciated!

HOODIES AND MASKS, REALLY?

The start of this school year has been one of the most unique starts in education history.  

Students as well as teachers have returned with many different school supplies compared to non pandemic years.  We are seeing face masks, face shields, microphones, latex gloves and hand sanitizer by the gallons.  The return of our students and families comes after the mandated school closing that began March 16, 2020 so for many of our students, their last day of school in a building could have potentially been March 13, 2020.  

Under these very trying times, showing empathy and gaining a better understanding of what our students are experiencing should be a top priority for those teachers who are instructing face to face.  Creating and establishing a safe and welcoming classroom environment is vital to light the fire again in many students who have been missing a structured learning environment. 

With a continued emphasis on student achievement and high expectations for all students, there may have been some drastic changes for our returning students.   Embracing students and welcoming them back to your classrooms and schools are actions that can be both seen and felt.  Sending students to the office or writing an Office Discipline Referral for a student who has a hood up should be the least of our worries at this time. Keeping students in class should be the number one priority while providing them with the best educational experience possible.  

As Dr. Hollie mentioned in one of our Summer Institute sessions, "What battles do we really want to fight with hoodies, hats, headbands and scarves?"  How can we address these issues without denying students of the education they deserve?  How are we building relationships with students to gain a deeper understanding of why they are behaving a certain way?  You have the POWER to make it happen and you are the CATALYST for change.  It’s time to GRIND!  

“Education leads to enlightenment.  Enlightenment leads to empathy.  

Empathy foreshadows reform.”   

Derrick Bell

Equitable Multi-Level Systems of Support- District Team Update

I published this on June 9 but we only had 175 readers, so with an EMLSS meeting this week to re-familiarize everyone with our progress, we thought it would be worth communicating around this important work heading into year two with the Wisconsin RTI (Response to Intervention) Center.

We have an urgency around the following student outcome priority statement:

There are universal achievement concerns in the area of literacy at the elementary and middle school. This is evidenced by the Forward and MAP scores that show performance is stagnant at the elementary with a drop in proficiency at the middle school level.
In addition, teacher practice, as measured by our ESAIL literacy indicators, has not demonstrated the upward trend in meeting and impacting that was expected. Without deliberate improvement in instructional practice resulting in student impact, universal student performance in literacy will remain stagnant.

Our top three root causes were that led us to commit to this action statement were: 

(1) There is inconsistent district-wide implementation; 

(2) There is not a clear system of assessment including universal screener, benchmark and common assessment; 

(3) Teachers do not have the depth of knowledge needed around grade level standards.

Our EMLSS vision states:
Data-based processes will ensure equitable access to universal instruction and additional levels of support to positively impact learner outcomes in academics and social-emotional development.
We commit to: 
* Continuously building trust and collaboration between students, families and educators
* Using valid and reliable sources of data in a well-defined process of inquiry about student outcomes and experiences
* Ensuring a system where highly-trained educators utilize evidence-based resources, materials, and supports
*Planning with a proactive approach, acknowledging that variability is universal and anticipated

Looking ahead to our October meeting, we are working on smaller goal-oriented projects that teams can work on in order to help reach our larger system goals. We know this work takes time, and we also know it is important work to impact our strong universal level by providing high quality instruction for ALL in our district!