Cultural Relevance Inspiration Alysia Bluford Creativity, Culture, and Global Contexts in Education Decision Making Dr. Gladys Evans Edu 692

The Ron Clark Academy   The Ron Clark Academy is a highly acclaimed nonprofit middle school. They Academy has received national and international recognition for its success in education students with academic rigor, passion, and creativity balanced by a strict code of discipline.

Location and Demographics  Southeast Atlanta, Georgia  113 Students enrolled  Grades 5 th -8 th  22 Staff  Class size Average 27  40% of students live within a 10 mile radius of the Academy  Students reside primarily in Fulton, Fayette, Clayton, Dekalb, and Cobb Counties  Campus is 44,000 square foot facility with 14 classrooms, media center, 2 story slide, indoor trampoline and gymnasium

Innovative and/or Unique  Ron Clark Academy vision is to be the best school in the world by demonstrating transformative methods and techniques that are embraced and replicated everywhere.  Over 3,000 educators visit Ron Clark Academy a year to learn our philosophies and observe classrooms at Ron Clark Academy.  Ron Clark Academy Motto is “No Fear”

Learning Experiences The STEM program The Ron Clark Academy - Problems Up Math Song Math Rocks... "Geometry is Killa-Hot" - The Ron Clark Academy

Creativity in the classroom  Ron Clark Academy mission is to deliver the highest quality educational experience where global citizens are born through advanced rigor, engaging teaching methods, and a passionate climate and culture.

21st Century Skills  ActivExpression, ActivClassroom, ActiVotes  Podcasts  Digital text  Digitial learning  Tablets Promethean ActivTable at the Ron Clark Academy The Ron Clark Academy ActivClassroom - Top Ten Ways

A.L. Stanback Middle School  A.L. Stanback Vision engages and inspires diverse students with a quality education to cultivate thinkers who will become successful leaders and contributing, productive global citizens.  school/about-als school/about-als

Location and Demographics  Hillsborough, North Carolina  Serves grades 6 th -8 th  Teachers:47 Ratio 12:1  Average students 602  Public School in Orange County  52% Males and 47% Females  Whites  Hispanic 16.39%  African American %  Asian 2%  Native Americans.34%

Innovative and/or Unique  The school mission is that all students, Achieving, Leading, and Succeeding.

Learning Experiences  Study Island  Accelerated Reader  Accelerated Math  CPS (Classroom Performance System) from e-instruction  HeartBeeps, a 3rd grade math, reading, and writing assessment program  ClassScapes, used by teachers to create bench mark assessments  STAR Reading

21st Century Skills  SmartLessons  PowerSchool

Dana Elementary School  where every day is leadership day.  Title 1 Program  cschoolsnc.org/dan/

Location and Demographics  Hendersonville, NC  a rural area located in the eastern section of Henderson County.  It stretches seven miles along the “Ridge,” as the Eastern Continental Divide is locally known.  The Dana area is a thriving community of prosperous farms and vegetable-producing businesses.  46% Minority  44% Hispanic  33% LEP  80% Free or Reduced Lunch recipients

21st Century Skills  Dana Elementary has placed a priority on integrating technology into the daily instruction of all students. In addition to immersing students in technology, teachers utilize new technologies to better service and evaluate the school.  PowerSchool  Instagram  Typing Agent  Computer labs  MacBook sets for third, fourth and fifth grade classes  Mobile iPad3 lab and iPads for every teacher  Mobile IBM laptop lab  SmartTables  Flip Cameras & Digital Cameras  Apps for at-home device for student practice

Learning Experiences Crayola® Arts-Infused Education: Building Creative Capacity School- Wide  Art Integration  The Curricula used include:  Jr. Great Books  Stephanie Harvey’s Comprehension Toolkit  Fountas & Pinnell Phonics  Investiagations Math  Leader in Me- 7 Habits  Dana Elementary strives for a comprehensive approach to education. They implement various curricula throughout the school that provide cohesion and unity, both within grade levels and vertically as students progress and age at Dana.  Dana Elementary place an emphasis on delivering these programs and concepts with fidelity to reinforce and expand student’s knowledge and educational comfort, while also tailoring them to meet the standard objectives for each grade.

Innovative and/or Unique  The Leader in Me is a school-wide model, based on The 7 Habits of Happy Kids, that promotes a school culture built on leadership and community.  The goal is to create a learning environment focused on the whole individual and their place in the classroom and larger community.  Dana Elementary has used the 7 Habits as a foundation for creating a school culture and uses the Leader In Me Process.

Creativity in the classroom  Dana Elementary have a tradition of beginning each day with a positive song to get it started on a good note. The school thinks it helpful in building a sense of community and a comfortable learning environment when they can start the day with a fun group song and dance.  Inquiry based learning  Student-centered academic discourse  Daily non-fiction & fiction reading  Writing across all content areas  Project based learning in the 21st century  Leadership models  Problem Solving/Engineering Tasks