I know they don’t show it but our teachers have been working extra-hard this year. There’s a lot of stuff going on behind the scenes that have been uniquely stressful.
We created a time in each school where teams of teachers have almost 90 minutes each week to collaborate and plan together. It’s most noticeable at the high school where they do it every Wednesday, causing a 2 hour late start for high school kids. In the elementary and middle schools we’ve managed to create that time within the school day, so it’s not obvious to the general public when it happens.
During this time, which we refer to as PLC time (Professional Learning Communities), all the teachers for one grade level or all those who teach the same subject, plan and confer on the best strategies for teaching your children. Much of this time has been spent in the development of curriculum, or teaching units, that are aligned with the state and national standards. We also require these units be developed to represent the best teaching practices from Learning Focused Strategies. Some schools even pay teachers for extra time after school to do this.
We also use the PLC time to analyze student performance results on bench mark tests and on the new state test known as DCAS.
DCAS is the second contributor to stress on our teachers. It is all new. It is administered on-line. It still has some bugs and kinks to work out. The tests at each grade level have been assigned cut scores that are much higher than the old test, causing the experts to predict that more of the children in Delaware will fail to reach proficiency. It’s like changing the score needed to pass an exam from 70 to 85. Whoever normally scores between 70 and 85 will now fail.
The good thing is, because the test is administered on-line, we can do it a couple of times and get results immediately. So, our teachers have reviewed student performance on DCAS and made adjustments in their teaching. They will give the DCAS again in January and then again in May.
Finally, the state will be redesigning the teacher evaluation to include student performance measures in each teacher’s evaluation. Next year, if students don’t gain a year academically as measured by DCAS and other tests, the teacher cannot be rated exemplary.
So, is it any wonder that our teachers may be feeling a little stressed? The holiday break is welcome this year - perhaps more than usual.
On behalf of Lake Forest School District we wish all of our families, those of our children and those of our employees, a very restful, family-filled holiday season and a happy, successful New Year.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Principal - The hardest part of the job
Tuesday, December 14 is Principal Recognition Day. I’m not sure why this date was selected, but I understand there may be declarations signed by major government officials. WhooooHooooo!
It’s not likely something for which they make numerous greeting cards. There is no need to purchase a gift for your favorite school principal. It’s just a special day to remind you that good schools don’t become good schools without good principals leading them.
At times I have written about the principal’s job being the best job in any school district –especially the elementary principal. But there is one aspect of the principal’s job that is the most critical to student success. It is complicated, challenging and can be emotionally draining. That is teacher evaluation.
It is the job of the principal (and assistant principal, too) to evaluate the performance of each teacher. The evaluation should be viewed as a way to help teachers become better teachers, but the tool must also be used to remove teachers. Poor teachers do not stay in the classroom because of tenure laws as many people think. Poor teachers stay in the classroom when they are not being evaluated properly.
Years ago, teachers were evaluated (hopefully each year) by the principal, who would drop in on a class or two, make some notes and fill out a form or check list giving the teacher a score in each identified area. The principal would go over his/her observations with the teacher and that would be that.
Today it is a little more complicated. The teacher evaluation process in Delaware is called DPAS II. It has a number of required parts.
1. The teacher completes a goal form, establish targets for the year.
2. Teacher and principal meet to go over goals.
3. Before the teacher’s teaching can be formally observed the teacher must complete a pre-observation form.
4. Teacher and principal meet to discuss what the principal will be seeing.
5. Principal observes the lesson.
6. Teacher and principal meet to discuss the lesson.
7. Principal completes a formative evaluation.
8. Near the end of the year the principal and teacher review the goals and discuss whether or not they were reached and why.
9. Teachers in their first three years must then receive a final evaluation.
10. Teachers with continuing contracts may go through this cycle every two years.
This must be done for every teacher. It is very time consuming and seems to require more conferencing than observing.
Most teachers are good teachers who take their work seriously. They work hard and want to do better every year. But, we’ve all known a few stinkers. Maybe you had one in school or maybe your children have had one. They smell up the school until a principal has the courage to tell them they stink.
It’s hard telling someone who has invested a college education in this career that they maybe don’t belong in education. It’s even harder sometimes to convince them that it is true and to prove it with evidence collected from the process above.
That’s why the principal is so critical to school success. That’s why they deserve special recognition.
It’s not likely something for which they make numerous greeting cards. There is no need to purchase a gift for your favorite school principal. It’s just a special day to remind you that good schools don’t become good schools without good principals leading them.
At times I have written about the principal’s job being the best job in any school district –especially the elementary principal. But there is one aspect of the principal’s job that is the most critical to student success. It is complicated, challenging and can be emotionally draining. That is teacher evaluation.
It is the job of the principal (and assistant principal, too) to evaluate the performance of each teacher. The evaluation should be viewed as a way to help teachers become better teachers, but the tool must also be used to remove teachers. Poor teachers do not stay in the classroom because of tenure laws as many people think. Poor teachers stay in the classroom when they are not being evaluated properly.
Years ago, teachers were evaluated (hopefully each year) by the principal, who would drop in on a class or two, make some notes and fill out a form or check list giving the teacher a score in each identified area. The principal would go over his/her observations with the teacher and that would be that.
Today it is a little more complicated. The teacher evaluation process in Delaware is called DPAS II. It has a number of required parts.
1. The teacher completes a goal form, establish targets for the year.
2. Teacher and principal meet to go over goals.
3. Before the teacher’s teaching can be formally observed the teacher must complete a pre-observation form.
4. Teacher and principal meet to discuss what the principal will be seeing.
5. Principal observes the lesson.
6. Teacher and principal meet to discuss the lesson.
7. Principal completes a formative evaluation.
8. Near the end of the year the principal and teacher review the goals and discuss whether or not they were reached and why.
9. Teachers in their first three years must then receive a final evaluation.
10. Teachers with continuing contracts may go through this cycle every two years.
This must be done for every teacher. It is very time consuming and seems to require more conferencing than observing.
Most teachers are good teachers who take their work seriously. They work hard and want to do better every year. But, we’ve all known a few stinkers. Maybe you had one in school or maybe your children have had one. They smell up the school until a principal has the courage to tell them they stink.
It’s hard telling someone who has invested a college education in this career that they maybe don’t belong in education. It’s even harder sometimes to convince them that it is true and to prove it with evidence collected from the process above.
That’s why the principal is so critical to school success. That’s why they deserve special recognition.
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