CARE and Reflection

Concerns – Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in action research, and list at least three concerns that you have identified from these experiences – a concern may be any matter that engages your attention or interest.

1.      The gap between students in sub populations is increasing (or staying the same) each year

2.      The test scores for our AP students is not increasing.  They are passing, obviously, but their scores are not showing improvement.

3.      Changing PLC’s….We need to focus on PLN’s Professional Learning Networks

Affirmations - Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in action research, and affirm or identify at least 3 actions that must be sustained and supported to achieve the District/Campus improvement initiatives.

1.      Focusing on the sub populations that need the help in order to close the gap between the groups of students.

2.      Increasing the rigor of the AP level courses to reflect the abilities of the students and increase scores on standardized tests.

3.      Encourage and model use of technology for teachers and identify networking opportunities for teachers.

Recommendations - Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in action research and describe at least 3 recommendations you would make regarding the District/Campus Improvement plans or action research plans.

1.      I would ask that the scores from each subpopulation be reviewed for the past several years in order to gain a better understanding of where we need to focus.

2.      I would take a closer look at our grading policy for AP classes.  Treating it more like a college class would grade may help in the focus of the students when it comes to testing.

3.      Have a technology networking university, utilizing things such as twitter, Diigo, and facebook.

Evaluate - Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in action research and identify at least 3 strategies for evaluating the improvement plans or recommendations.

1.      Using the data from current and previous years will aide in knowing the efficientcy of the strategies we are using for the different subpopulations.

2.      Allowing the students access to their test scores and them being able to track and chart them may open their eyes that they are not improving as they should.  Some are even dropping in scores.

3.      Set a standard of technology use and networking expectations for the staff in the school and district.  This will encourage the hesitant teachers to try and branch out.

Week Three Assignment, Part 2 – Part C of the Comprehensive Final Report

Describing Recommendations and District/Campus Improvement Initiative/Action Research Lessons Learned

Review the above analysis, and write at least one page thoroughly describing recommendations and lessons learned from experiences with the improvement initiatives or action research plans.

Blog Follow-Up: Be sure to post your above reflection on your Recommendations and Lessons Learned to your blog, and read and comment on at least two other students’ assessment reflections.

    

     The experiences that I have gained in this program, when it comes to improvement initiatives, have been tremendous.  I sat in on SBDM teams, CIP meetings, and District Leadership Team meetings.  Actually taking an action research plan and working it from the start has been a great incite into how the entire things works as well. 

     The main thing that I have taken away from these experiences is to have goals.  Whether it is the SBDM, CIP team, or the district leadership team, you must have goals.  These goals must be measurable as well.  Using the data from previous experiences and current ones is key to knowing if you are improving.  The SBDM team is focused on making the campuses better.  Making sure you have a variety of representation on these teams is crucial to the campus.  They must feel that they have a voice.  Not to mention that if closing the gap between subpopulations is a focus point, you would want input from all areas.  The campus improvement plan must have an action plan with it.  What you want to improve and how you plan to do that must go hand in hand.  Have each department write their own plan narrow down the goals they want will help in increasing achievement.  The DLT looks at the improvements the district wants to make.  They must take into account all of the campuses, have them working on their own goals to reach the ultimate goals of the district. 

     Having a clear vision for the district and setting clear expectations will allow everyone to be on the same page.  If everyone is on the same page, then it is way more likely that student success will follow and improvement will be made.  The goals of your campus and district are equally important and must be aligned.