HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-02-10-LHS-min
Lexington High School
251 Waltham Street Lexington, Massachusetts 02421
Laura J. Lasa
781- 861-2320, ext. 1002
Principal
email: lasa@sch.ci.lexington.ma.us
fax: 781-861-2440
To: Lexington High School Council Minutes
From: Laura J Lasa
Re:February 10, 2014
LHS School Site Council met on February 10, 2014, from 6:15-7:45 PM in the
LHS Guidance Conference Room, 154.
Attendance:Laura Lasa, Kim Effron, Ann Redmon, Bob Ruxin, Eileen Jay,
Suzanne Lau, Paul Breitenfield, Kristin Tissera, Jessica Zhu, Nancy Shepard,
Dave Wininger, Katherine Murphy, Elizabeth Curtin, Nanying Bian. Jill
Smilow, Walter Richardson
I. January 13 minutes approved
Announcement
II. s from Council members
a.Movement of School Council Meeting from April 14, 2014 to April 7, 2014.
b.Chinese-American Association of Lexington (CAL) is holding an evening for
Lexington parents on how to get involved in site councils, PTA, etc. on
Wednesday, February 26, 2014.
Old Business
A. Mid-Year Update on School Improvement Plan
Clarification on Goal 2: ÅPromote wellness activities for students and
facultyÆ
- Extended homeroom, meditation over PA, stress free days, etc.
Clarification on Goal 2: How do we ensure sufficient time for students to
complete the student survey?
- This is different than the Youth Risk Survey.
- Goal is that students could complete at home, not using class time.
- Not yet sure whether all students will be asked to participate.
Homework Value & Scope
What is the purpose of our discussion? To work to address a problem? To inform
Laura?
a.Identify intended outcomes of HW (value)
1.Practice skills taught in class
2.Self-teaching concepts not taught or understood in class
3.Introducing new concepts as preview or preparation to a class
activity or discussion
4.Enabling students to use technological resources not available in
school
5.Develop independent writing, thinking, reading skills in a low-
risk setting
6.Differentiate to stretch or to support students with different
student needs
7.Create opportunities for more effective instruction or class time
8.Self-assessment to preview or review class content or skills
Unintended outcomes of HW
9.Student stress due to overload of homework
10.Volume of homework
11.Balance between value of homework and quantity of homework
12.Affects all course levels
13.Differentiate homework for students with different skills or
content knowledge
14.Miss skills that students may need to build
15.Homework checked for completion but not for understanding
16.Homework that is discussed and reviewed in class has more value
than homework that is simply checked for
completion
17.How do you meet needs of all students, those who consistently
and inconsistently complete homework?
18.Teach time management skills
Horizontal Alignment
19.There is a system in place for large projects or tests
20.Stated policy on website states that assigned homework should
not exceed the length of class.
21.Keep websites up to date with a Åweek at a glanceÆ
22.Lack of consistency of volume of homework within a course.
23.Students improve communication with teachers when there is an
overload of homework, projects, or tests
24.Some students feel like it may not be worth communicating with
teachers about volume of work because then they
will fall behind after the take test at a later date.
25.Assign minutes to homework, rather than length.
New Business
IV.
Timely and meaningful feedback on assessments
Frustration that you may be given two assessments before the get
feedback on the first assessment
Lack of feedback on long-term projects
Questions generated:
Is there a school guideline on timeliness of feedback?
-No.
Whose responsibility is it to monitor?
- Feedback is one of the biggest indicators of student success.
- Definitely an area in need of improvement.
Do teachers communicate feedback to the class as a whole?
In exchange for timely feedback, does the quality of feedback suffer?
What does feedback look like?
What role do rubrics play as feedback?
Are teachers clear about what the teacher is assessing on a given
assignment or section of an assignment?
Peer grading/assessment as an option for timely feedback?
What does feedback look like? Individualized versus class wide feedback?
Best way for students to proceed if teacher is non-responsive?
Is the student question about the grade or the concept?
-Students could frame their question to the teacher about how they did
regarding a concept, rather than their grade.
-Concern that not all students will self-advocate.