1. “Don’t try to fix the students, fix ourselves first. The good teacher makes the poor student good and the good student superior.” ~ Marva Collins “Don’t try to fix the students, fix ourselves first. The good teacher makes the poor student good and the good student superior.” ~ Marva Collins

2. Demystifying Teaching and Learning through intentional Professional Learning Communities

4.  Professional Learning Communities.  Teacher-lead, topic-driven and results- focused training.  Designed to target areas of improvement.  Identify student problem areas and focus on implementing both personal and school-wide solutions.  Share disaggregated testing data, interpret it, then learn from and approve upon it.

5.  Broken down by day to focus and to link to similar fields of learning: Monday: Targeted Focus Tuesday: Data Studies Wednesday: Rounds and Content Thursday: Reading Apprenticeship Friday: Lesson Planning, SPED Planning  PLC days remain fluid and flexible to accommodate visiting presenters and for extenuating need.

6. GWCHS Data Room: Data wall

7.  Reflection and Feedback Surveys: influence topics based on the identified needs.  PLCs are often initiated when State, District, and School scores are released.  A teacher who is skilled and knowledgeable in the targeted area will create the PLC.  School Cadre Teachers allow the Content Teachers to meet for the PLC Training sessions.

8. GWCHS Data Room: Disaggregated ISTEP+ Data PLCs are based on:  Scrimmage Data  ECA  ISTEP+  Teacher Feedback  Teacher Observation  Student Need  Technology Improvements  “Bubble” Student Needs  The Changing School Culture

9. GWCHS: Reading Apprenticeship Lab

10. Observable School Improvement  From the 2009-10 and 2010-11 School Year Data*  Overall ELA improvement: Benchmark 1: +21 Benchmark 2: +17  Overall Math improvement: Benchmark 1: +3 Benchmark 2: +65  Overall Social Studies improvement: Benchmark 1: +10 Benchmark 2: +8 *Data based on: Benchmark Comparison of GWCHS from 2009-2011

11.  Teachers are sharing their knowledge and expertise, strengthening their fellow teacher’s abilities.  They are able to create a unified teaching front and collaborate in their effort to teach, connecting each subject in the minds of students and to improve their learning.  Struggling students can be easily identified, allowing all teachers to focus on providing aid.

12. “We now accept the fact that learning is a lifelong process of keeping abreast of change. And the most pressing task is to teach people how to learn.” ~Peter Drucker