HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-05-18-DIAMOND-min Diamond School Council Meeting Minutes
May 18, 2023
Members in attendance: Marlon Davis, Katina Lawdis, Christy Prasad, Joyce Dvorak, Chhandomay Mandal, Remy
Coombs, Liz Sharp (Note-taker; non-voting member)
A. Welcome
B. Approval of Minutes March 16, 2023
C. Updates
Principal
• Teacherease will be the new SBG system. We will be having more conversations around metrics,
rubrics, use of system before we can get it up and running.
• Decisions on any changes to coding will be worked out next school year and decided for the
2024-2025 year. Discussions about homework, class work, participation, retakes,
assessments, use of formative assessments, etc.
• Teachers need time to learn new system and work with it before any changes.
• Parents will not have access to an open gradebook to start the year. We may open the
gradebook for a period of time.
• Department heads are working to norm in their departments now.
• MSLT will continue to discuss rubrics for learning habits.
• How do we impart the importance of completing homework, staying organized, meeting
deadlines, etc.?
• What is the impact of missing these skills over demonstrating they have mastered the content?
• How are we preparing students for the real world in middle school?
• Discussion around homework consistency in middle school. Review, preview, or correcting. Should
homework be graded?
Parents
• Using the term "grade" reminds everyone of the traditional grading system (A, B, C .....). If we could
use different language, it would help make it easier to understand the difference.
• Any insights from the survey? (Not yet)
• Would like to understand the difference between learning content and learning effort.
• Important for students to understand that their effort matters, as well as their content
knowledge.
• Recognizing the developmental levels between grade levels.
• Homework: Different experiences for different students. Some times it feels like there is too much
work expected outside of school. Other times, there is not enough or finished at school.
• Could there be specific days and specific time expectations?
• What is the purpose of grading homework?
• WIN blocks allow more time for students to work on homework, allowing for additional support from
teachers on these assignments.
Staff
• Conversations in departments need to be normed first before trying to norm across all departments
and grades. Need more time for thorough discussion. Similarly, power standards differ for each
content area.
• Retake policies seem to differ for content areas. Some standards get assessed across the year, and
not for specific one-time assessments.
• Continued discussions around how to measure growth and differences for each trimester that have
the same standards.
• So many different directives on homework over the past few years. Should we be offering out of class
work that can be supported in school? What can be finished at home and who finishes at school?
D. Open Discussion
a. Notes incorporated above.
E. Meeting Adjourned:
F. Next Meeting: TBD