HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-11-14-ESTABROOK-min
Estabrook School Council Meeting
Wednesday, November14, 2018
MINUTES
Members Present: Steve Chang, Joyce Dvorak, Amy Klotz, Chhandomay Mandal, and Rick
Rogers
Approval of October 10, 2018 Minutes: On a motion by Joyce Dvorak, seconded by Amy
Klotz, the minutes of October 10, 2018 were unanimously approved.
General Updates
Professional Development Day: Rick referred council members to the Principal’s
Corner in the November 12 edition of the Estabrook Buzz, describing the district-
wide Professional Development Day on November 6. He noted that 15 members
of the Estabrook staff were involved in a facilitating a workshop session.
Principal Search Timeline: Superintendent Julie Hackett will send out
communication about the upcoming search for a permanent principal for
Estabrook. Rick noted he expects the position will be posted in December with a
goal of completing the process by the end of February.
School Improvement Plan
Rick will provide an update each month on a portion of the School Improvement Plan. For
this meeting, he provided an update on four of the action steps listed for Goal One -
Academic.
Literacy: Rick described the successful transition to using a new reading
assessment called the Benchmark Assessment System (BAS) that provides more
information about “teaching points” for teachers to use in their work with
students. He commended the Literacy Specialists for their excellent work
providing training and follow-up coaching in using the BAS, as well as the
classroom teachers for their positive attitude about making this shift. Amy added
a few comments from the perspective of a classroom teacher.
Mathematics: Rick noted that work in mathematics is focused on the use of
math workshop in grades 3-5 in order to provide more effective differentiation.
While no formal professional development is scheduled, the math specialists are
working with grade level teams and in individual classrooms to support this
work.
Co-Teaching: Rick cited this work as an area of particular strength in the school
and praised the work of ETS Jenn Beaulac, Literacy Specialist Tom Grasso and
Math Specialist Amy Burk in supporting the 4 classroom teachers and 3 special
educators involved in his initiative. He has asked them to present this work to
an upcoming LPS Administrative Council meeting being held at Estabrook.
Response to Intervention: Rick commended Assistant Principal Christina Gavin
for her work to strengthen the Child Study Team process by having standing
membership and utilizing a structured protocol. The purpose of CST is to:
o Assist classroom teacher with problem-solving around an individual student.
o Develop strategies to address an individual student’s needs
o Determine if any new targeted interventions may be appropriate.
o Determine If a referral to special education may be appropriate
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Rick then described adjustments made to the school’s Data Team process.
The purpose of Data Teams is to:
o Analyze data from benchmark assessments.
o Identify strategies and continued Tier 1 interventions.
o Determine need for Tier 2 interventions.
o Develop individual Student Intervention Plans.
o Determine trends or patterns of need across a grade level.
Focus Topic: Homework Survey Results (Year 2)
The remainder of the meeting was devoted to beginning to look at the results from surveys
done last year on the second year of Estabrook’s pilot Homework Policy. The final report is
still being written and will be presented to the Lexington School Committee at a future
meeting, but the Council was given the data to review.
The data is organized around the following questions:
Question 1: What are the self-reported impacts on family and student life outside of school?
Question 2: What are the self-reported and observed impacts on students’ social and
emotional well-being?
Question 3: What do academic outcomes look like for Estabrook students over the course of
the pilot? How do these outcomes compare with other LPS elementary schools?
Question 4: What are the self-reported impact on students’ reading behaviors and interest
in reading?
Question 5: How might this approach to elementary homework impact student preparation
for middle school homework demands?
Additional finding: Homework perceived as a tool for developing work habits
Additional finding: Use of targeted, short term intervention
Additional finding: Communication with families
The council divided into two groups to begin to review the data. The meeting ended
without any time for discussion.
Next Meeting: Wednesday December 12 – 3:30
Council members are asked to review the Homework Survey results and come to the next
meeting prepared to discuss the findings.
Upcoming Meeting Schedule – Wednesdays 3:30-4:30 (monthly)
December 12 April 10
January 16 May 15
February 6 June 5
March 6
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