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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-12-12-ESTABROOK-min Estabrook School Council Meeting Minutes 12/12/19 Attending: Lisa Riendeau, Christina Gavin, Amy Burk, Sharon Cantone, Chadomay Mandal 1. Review minutes: Motion to approve was made and seconded. All members approved. 2. Math Data Meetings • Five of the six grade levels have already met. Grade 2 has been rescheduled for December 18th due to the delayed start on December 2nd. • Discussions focused on specific content skills, performance tasks, the types of errors being made and student outcomes. • AB: The meeting format is a change from past practice. The focus has been narrowed and participants mostly enjoyed the limited focus. Teachers enjoyed sharing their instructional experiences and brainstorming activities, resources and strategies to support students. • LR: It is important to have a safe space to sit back and openly reflect, especially for areas where results might not meet expectations. • CM asked about the organization of the meetings. • Coaches and teachers work together to decide on key learning objectives and the data that will be discussed at the meeting. • Teachers reflected on the performance of their students and named the types of errors that are most frequently. • Strategies, resources, supports and activities to support students are discussed. • The group considers interventions, lab site learning and student-centered coaching cycles. 3. Student-Centered Coaching Cycles Coaching has evolved over time in education. At its inception, it had a keen focus on relationship building as teachers became comfortable having another adult in the classroom. Coaching has impacted the consistency and fidelity of instruction and certain can be used to support teachers in a number of ways. We are shifting practice to include student-centered coaching cycles as part of our practice. This approach has teachers and coaches working together with a specific student learning objective in mind. Amy shared her experience as a coach using the Student-Centered Coaching Cycles document as a reference point. She stressed the ongoing importance of building relationships with teachers and noted that each professional responds to coaching differently. Coaching in general is shifting from "can you provide materials to support my students?" to " can we work on this together' CM: Is intention to move from most practices now in middle to most in right of chart? LR: We are expanding our coaching work to involve all three columns/types of coaching. We will also be sharing our work with Linda Menkis, Math Department Chair, so that we can learn and grow together. Amy shared some specific examples of discussions and outcomes from recent data meetings and the cyclical nature of the meetings. This process allows us the opportunity to address learning gaps in real time and on an ongoing basis rather than waiting for MCAS results to arrive after the fact. The team discussed the goal of continuing to modify and refine the math data meeting process while also inviting the literacy team to consider how the process might need to be adapted for that content area. For the time being, the literacy team is engaging in conversations about teaching and learning with teacher teams at PLCs or other times. The model that is being developed for math is very different than what has been the district practice, and the goal is to have a more direct impact on student outcomes. Amy discussed the plan for lab site learning that developed as a result of the data meeting. Grades four and five will each participate in a half-day learning lab site that will focus on fractions including but not limited to number talks. The group discusses and plan and then the lesson is modeled in the classroom. Everyone sees the same thing and then debriefs. It is beneficial for everyone to get the same message at the same time. It is more productive than doing things teacher by teacher. The School Council then engaged in a discussion of MCAS data showing performance comparison between Estabrook and the State. The group discussed trends for specific cohorts and content areas as well as well as the overall high performance of Estabrook as compared with the state. There was discussion about how the overall high performance of our students makes it important to acknowledge that students who are working on grade level are proficient. The group also discussed the need for ongoing efforts to differentiate while also ensuring that instruction and content is developmentally appropriate. Chhandomay shared his experiences with math club and acknowledged the complexity of the work. The meeting concluded with a brief discussion about the redistricting initiative and the POC for Estabrook. Plan C puts Estabrook under capacity for the next school year, but does not factor in new housing or the uncertainty of where students who are grandfathered will ultimately decide to attend school.