Culture

Loogootee Community Schools is a rural school district that has been developing in many ways. The district serves 740  students in kindergarten through twelfth grades. The leadership in the district has worked tirelessly to develop a strategic plan for improvement. Much of this improvement hinged on the need to engage students in STEM education, as a response to an article written by the Martin County Alliance for Economic Growth. Loogootee School Corporation resides in Marin County which ranks 4th highest in the nation with regards to STEM related jobs. Administrative personnel and responsibilities have been changed as the school board seeks to create a team of professionals whom are focused on increasing student success and creating a school that prepares the leaders of tomorrow.

Five years ago,  LCSC developed as strategic plan. At the center of the strategic plan was the instructional core which was being supported by intentional alignment of resources, stakeholders, systems, and processes. The instructional core consisted of interactions between students, content, and teachers. The district’s leadership was committed to making decisions that support the instructional core and the goals therein.

There were three goals for the strategic plan each of which will be realized through two strategies. The district leadership knew that the Ready Schools Planning Grant would be a valuable transition into making the changes needed to move the instructional core into higher levels of success. While not without growing pains, the process has resulted in a developed implementation plan that comes alongside the district’s strategic plan. Two teams were created for the planning grant. The Leadership Team is composed of teachers at all levels, administration, the superintendent, and district readiness coordinators. The other team was the Education and Workforce Advisory Team (EWAT) that included community leaders, industry leaders, and school board members. During a recent staff meeting, the district readiness coordinator asked the staff to stand if they had participated in the process by one or more of the following: interviews, school visits, surveys, or planning sessions. All members of the staff were standing except for two. This level of involvement is evidence of the district’s commitment to improvement.

The strategic plan resulted in LCSC being the smallest district in Indiana to implement Project Lead the Way (PLTW) from kindergarten to twelfth grade as well as implement multiple STEM pathways and a cross curricular WorkPlace Simulation (WPS) Project in partnership with Indiana University and community partners.  

1.1 Decision-Making

The Leadership Team, developed as part of the Ready School Design Process, met twice a month after school throughout the last 18 months. The Team also had two off-site retreats throughout the school year. The team interviewed students, staff, parents, and community and industry leaders to develop an understanding of their perspective of Loogootee Community School Corporation (LCSC) and its work. During the planning process, members of the leadership team and other school staff visited various models to determine which would be the best response to the identified needs. The team visited schools based on innovative models, hands on learning initiatives, specific programs, and university involvement. The team met frequently to discuss the most powerful components of each model and how they may fit together in Loogootee.

LCSC staff members met as a whole corporation to brainstorm ideas and provide input to help drive our plan of future STEM endeavors for LCSC.  The data from these meetings showed that our staff felt a need for internships, PBL's, soft skills, career exploration, and STEM exposure.  We are dedicated to making sure our students are equipped for the 21st century workforce.

Annually, a Community Survey is sent out to stakeholders in our community, including teachers, students, parents / guardians, community partners, etc to evaluate the changing  needs of our community and what they would like us to do to prepare our students for life outside of the classroom.

At the end of the 2022-23 school year, plans are being made to do another session of formal interviews and surveys to re-evaluate our progress and get a direction for future endeavors that help our students to be prepared to meet our community's changing needs.

LCSC Leadership Team Members:

LMS STEM Team Members:

EWAT (Educational Workforce Advisory Team) / Community Members:

Our plan is to make sure that every student has the opportunity to receive exposure to STEM related curriculum and pathways that will prepare them for their future.  

9/23/19 Design Team Agenda

1.2 Learning Modalities

All of our teachers have been trained in PBL. Project based learning is used by required by the district and is used by every teacher in our corporation through teacher-developed lessons. Teachers continue to go to other districts to observe STEM learning for inspiration and guidance. Four different modules from PLTW Launch is used each grade level during the school year. During PBL lessons and PLTW classes, students are put into groups of four and are given different roles. These roles include "Leader," "Material Manager," "Researcher," and "Time Keeper."

Student Roles

The five E's to discovery education are engage, explore, explain, elaborate, and evaluate. When students learn by discovering through real world activities, they are more likely to see the importance of their work while using create thinking skills and collaborating with their peers. The collaboration and essential learning are necessary for students to obtain a love of learning. At LCSC, we believe that students will be more well-versed once they leave our classroom walls and enter the workforce when they can use their critical thinking skills and interact with others to solve problems. An integral part of this is learning to work in groups. Rarely in the workforce to individuals work alone. LMS teachers use groups daily in their teaching strategies to prepare our students for thier future.

At LCSC we believe that while collaboration is essential in the learning environment, individual learning is also needed. Time to work independently is an opportunity to apply and transfer what has been taught. It allows for both academic and social and emotional growth. Individual work is also used daily to help students learn content and the soft skills they will need to prosper in the future.

Project Evaluation Rubrics

With the closures that occurred in the Spring of 2020 due to COVID, teachers at LMS had to re-evaluate their preparedness to deal with not being able to interact with students in-person. Over the course of the remainder of the school year, throughout this school year, and now, all teachers in the corporation have held practice remote sessions with students to ensure they are able to use their Chromebooks to assess classroom lessons. PLTW has added remote learning aspects to their modules to allow for a continued use of PLTW learning when at home. The corporation uses Zoom sessions to meet with students when they are quarantined so they don't miss any valuable information while away from the classroom. LCSC has been in person full time since the fall of 2020, but with students out for activities and sicknesses, we offer students a way to learn and interact with their peers while they are away.

Our corporation has taken great strides at implementing various forms of learning in virtual, blended, and in-person settings since the COVID pandemic began in Spring 2020. We have trained teachers on ways to teach students through virtual learning (which also helps during snow days) and in blended environments when students are not able to attend class with their peers. Students and students have learned how to use Zoom and Google Meet to meet each student's individual needs in any learning environment that may be required. Administrators use Little SIS to be able to obtain links to jump into classrooms when everyone is away from school and document what occurs in each classroom on days when virtual learning must occur.

1.3 Common Work Time

Teachers in each grade level have common daily planning time to collaborate on instruction, instructional tools, curriclum mapping, PLTW curriculum, STEM activities, career pathways, and to learn and work with their colleagues that are STEM Fellows. The fifth and sixth grade teachers have the same planning time each day from 12:15-1:10 daily. Due to only having 4 "core" teachers for grades 7 / 8 who also teach high school classes and not enough classes for our students to take, there is not a way for these teachers to have the same prep time in their schedules. These teachers - Heather Hawkins (ELA), Ashton Kahle (math), Dave Smith (SS), Brandy Tippery (science) - have decided to eat working lunches daily to cover school initiatives so they do not have to stay after school. During PLC meetings / working lunches, ALL teachers (general and special education) from that grade level are in attendance.

In addition, LCSC has early release times on the first, third and fifth Wednesdays of each month dedicated to professional development. The entire LCSC staff met three times to learn about the proposed model and provide structured feedback. During the 2020-21 school year, LCSC devoted one of the early release times to work with a Magnify Learning PBL Coach and works on other early release time to collaborate on inquiry-based instruction across grade levels. During the 2020-21 school year, LCSC devoted one of the early release times each month to collaboration on STEM education and  instruction  across the corporation. Corporation administration designated Title II, ESSER III, and ROI Grant money toward professional development in which subs are hired for half or full days to allow teachers to collaborate on curriculum and attend needed trainings. 

1.4 Sustainability Plan

Our curriculum funding comes from several resources including:

Our corporation is committed to furthering our STEM curriculum in the future and will help contribute to the sustainability.  When the 2020-21 LEA Contracts were discussed, Robotics Coaches were added to the ECA budget to support our mission to increase quality STEM education in our corporation.

1.5 Measurement of Student Attitudes/Interests

Students in all grade levels are given a career interest survey.  LMS students take the Holland Code (RIASEC) Test. RIASEC stands for 6 characteristics: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. The RIASEC test asks students questions about their aspirations, activities, skills, and interests in different jobs to help them discover careers and fields of study that are likely to satisfy them. Data is used to assess student strengths, and pinpoint what classes would be the best fit for a student and for direct career exploration by students. Students are also required to chose 3 careers based on their own interests for which they are interested in gaining more knowledge. Their Holland Code also seves as a map and is directional on which graduation pathway students should follow based on their strengths. LMS students work individually or in group settings with Stephanie Gilbert, the corporation graduation and career coach.

Naviance software is also used to explore student interests for all students in the 8th grade. Seventh grade students use 220 Leadership software in their Pathways class to plan for their futures.

Results from yearly community surveys help drive our STEM instruction and topics throughout the year. 

See bottom two images on  right

As part of our Ready School Design Process, students were asked questions to determine their understanding of Career and Post-Secondary opportunities, dreams for the school, satisfactions, frustrations. These interviews were synthesized by the entire Design Team. Once the interview notes were reviewed, the students comments were placed into the categories noted below.

Students like that there are STEM projects in the middle school. Even high school students are aware of the STEM learning that occurs in the middle and elementary school.

Students would like opportunities to learn about the career opportunities available in the region.

At the end of each school year, students, parents, and communtiy member are given a survey which is evaluated to determine the changing needs of our students, parents, and community and to determine the best route to meet these changes..

1.6 STEM Program Engagement

Technology is used many ways to communicate internally and externally about STEM activities and initiatives.  All staff members are required to have a school Twitter account and tweet STEM activities and projects occurring in their classrooms.  We have been interviewed by WTHI TV Channel 10 out of Terre Haute, and the IU television station about the exciting initiatives occurring in our schools.  Our publicity class also produces its own infomercials each month called “The 5” which is a series of five exciting initiatives at Loogootee. The publicity class has taken over a local cable channel and shows the information 24 hours a day to promote Loogootee activities and initiatives. We send mass emails, text messages, and phone calls through SendIt and Skyward to notify parents of parent meetings and community events highlighting the changes in our curriculum and initiatives.  Internally, LCSC uses Google Docs to collaborate on grants, brochures, and curriculum. LCSC uses Canvas, google classroom, and the PLTW platform for assignments and student communication. LCSC uses Google Forms to assess teacher, student, and parent perceptions regarding eLearning and STEM initiatives. 

Students in LMS's Lion Manufacturing class (working collaboratively with the LHS Lion Manufacturing class), create "Products of the Week" for purchase and updates as new custom products are created for customers.

Teachers and administrators at LMS use Twitter, Remind, Instagram, and Facebook to communicate about STEM education and happenings at Loogootee Community Schools.  LMS Principal, Dana Campbell, sends out weekly updates on Facebook and sends direct messages to groups of parents through our communication application, SendIt.

Twitter Feeds:

Facebook Feed:

Instagram Feed:

Loogootee School Corporation has a yearly STEM Open House to showcase student work. Students educate the public on coding, flying drones, our student-run business, and show off projects like our tiny home that was created in the 2021-22 school year. See add at the bottom on the right.

Our community was surveyed and is surveyed yearly for feedback on our STEM programming. Evidence of this is found below.

1.7 STEM Instructional Feedback

LCSC administration is visible and provides frequent walkthroughs and observations. Professional development is provided based on the corporation’s STEM initiative. Administrators are part of the STEM leadership team and attend all trainings and site visits to become knowledgeable in STEM education. Administrators look for active classroom participation, informal questioning techniques, and informal checks for understanding. During observations, the interaction is scribed and the evaluator does not use subjective observations for the evaluation. LCSC evaluation tool has been approved by the state and includes indicators: 

Teachers and administrators us New Tech Network's 6 A's Project Idea Rubric as a guide to develop and implement their PBL units.

LCSC has served as a PLTW Showcase School Corporation and has had three groups visit our facilities to see how we were implementing STEM curriculum in our district.

All of the teachers in the corporation worked with a PBL Certified Trainer once monthly during the 2020-21 school year to discuss implementation plans, to learn more about best practices of this learning strategy, and to get feedback from a Magnify Learning PBL Coach.

1.8 Ongoing Support

Teachers experience these forms on instructional support, related to STEM instruction, on a quarterly basis:

Evidence:

1.9 Access and Opportunity to STEM Courses and Programs

EVERY STUDENT  - 100% of student body - in grades 5-8 are involved in PBL and PLTW coursework.

The master schedule has PLTW practical arts classes for ALL 5-6 students. 

These are protected times that ALL students are in the general ed classroom.  Students are not pulled out for resource or remediation during this time. These are protected times that ALL students are in the general ed classroom.  Students are not pulled out for resource or remediation during this time. 

All teachers in the corporation must implement at least one project based learning (PBL) lesson in each of their classes yearly. Teachers turn in documentation of their PBL lessons (required on their yearly teaching evaluation). The LCSC PBL library has been created from these artifacts. During PBL time, students are engaged in a STEM project or activity and are working directly with community partners.  Teachers are also incorporating other STEM and PBL activities throughout the year in their own classroom based upon their curriculum needs. 

Teachers also each science topics throughout their general education classes, such as reading and writing, to expose students to STEM curriculum.

We have a diverse robotics club comprised of equal numbers of boys and girls and have a team made of only females. Our Math Bowl team was comprised of 8 boys and 6 girls last year. Math Bowl and Robotics teams are both coached by female teachers. 

LCSC has also developed Pathway Guiding Documents to be used from grades K-12 with activities and experiences that all students are given. Along with this, our school corporation has created an Instructional Exemplar document that shows experiences that each student in the corporation has at each grade level.