Teacher Induction Program

Update #16 - April 11, 2023

Upcoming Dates of Interest

Information for All Non-Tenured Teachers

Summer Enrollment - Applications to NDMU

If you are looking to enroll in the Accelerated Teaching Certificate Program with NDMU to start in the summer, their offices have requested that applications and associated materials be submitted by April 30, 2023, to ensure that you will be able to register for summer classes. If you have questions, the new advisor for the program is James Mayo and he can be reached at jmayo@ndm.edu or 410-532-5530. 

Instructional Strategy - Cut and Pastes

In a recent discussion with a group of teachers and Dr. Smith, Catherine Sutton, from Leonardtwon High School shared a recent success that she had engaging her students using a strategy from Total Participation Techniques that traditionally used more often in elementary classrooms, but she found effective in her high school classroom. She shared:

I have started to use several strategies from Total Participation Techniques, but there is one that I have found particularly engaging for my students: "cut-and-pastes". With this hands-on activity, students categorize and analyze concepts collaboratively. I ran short on time with an essay I planned for students to write in preparation for their county assessment. As an alternative to writing the essay, I used "cut and paste" by completing the graphic organizer myself and cutting it into pieces. Students had to work together to sort the concepts on the graphic organizer into one fluid essay. I even had a coded puzzle for them to know when they sorted it correctly. Afterward, students chose one paragraph from the graphic organizer and wrote it in preparation for the essay. I pieced their paragraphs together to form a “class essay,” in which they competed with other classes to decide who had the strongest essay with the best transitions.


The initial "cut and paste" sorting activity allowed them to have a discussion about essay structure while seeing a model graphic organizer. I found it to be engaging and am hopeful they will transfer this knowledge to their essay writing. I plan to use this along with other TPT strategies in my regular lesson planning.

Thank you, Catherine, for sharing your activity!

If you are interested in sharing a successful activity in your classroom, email Heather Husk at hlhusk@smcps.org to add it to the next TIP!

Swivl Devices Available for Teachers

The Maryland Leads Grant provides more than the classroom supplies that you received earlier this year! The Department of Strategic Initiatives (DSI) also purchased several Swivl kits to assist with recording classroom instruction for reflection and review. Many of the devices are being used by teachers working to earn National Board Certification. 

However, if you and your mentor have struggled to find the coverage necessary for instructional walkthroughs, the Swivl is beneficial in providing the opportunity to record a lesson and watch it together to discuss and reflect.

Reservations for Swivls from DSI can be done through this FORM and can be reserved for one week at a time.

To view the available weeks, view this CALENDAR.

For more about Swivls, see this USERS GUIDE and YouTube Tutorial.

Graduate Program Offerings - Towson University

Towson University is forming new cohorts for Graduate Programs starting in Fall 2023.  They are hosting webinars in April and May that can be accessed HERE.

They are also forming a Summer 2023 cohort for Gifted and Creative Education Masters. 

Masters Programs include Arts Integration, Early Childhood & Gifted & Creative Education, Elementary Education, Instructional Leadership & Professional Development, Instructional Technology & School Library Medis, Mathematics Education, Professional Spanish, Reading Education, and Special Education & Autism. Details about these programs can be found HERE.

For additional information, contact Alyssa Zumpano at azumpano@towson.edu. 

Articles of Interest

Volunteers: Managing Classroom Volunteers in Your Elementary Classroom by Thomas Courtney, Edutopia

Instruction: The Best Virtual Field Trips by Ray Benedict and Diana Restifo, Tech&Learning (Great for after testing!)

Instructional Strategies (Secondary): 10 Powerful Ways to End Your Lessons by Andrew Boryga, Edutopia

Assessment: Test-Taking Strategies for Students by WeAreTeachers 

Topics for April Mentor Meetings

Elementary Classrooms

Critical Thinking

Assessment

Transitions

If you are providing recommendations for placement into a program or middle school,  do you have the data required? Are the procedures clear to you?


Completing the School Year

Are you clear about your role with end-of-the-year responsibilities?

SLO/Final Evaluation


Lesson Planning

Secondary Classrooms

Critical Thinking

Assessment

Student Failures and End-of-Course Expectations

Transitions

If you are providing recommendations for placement into a program, accelerated courses, or high school,  do you have the data required? Are the procedures clear to you?


Completing the School Year

Are you clear about your role with end-of-the-year responsibilities?

SLO/Final Evaluation


Lesson Planning

Community Activity - 5K Run & Walk

The Jack and Jill of America, Inc. is hosting a 5K Run/Walk at Great Mills High School on Saturday, April 22, 2023.

The event begins at 9:00 AM and includes a Health Fair. 

There is a fee to participate ($35 in-person, $25 virtual).

Registration is open from March 4-April 20, 2023.

Use the QR Code for registration and additional details.

Content Supervisor Updates and Newsletters

Focus on First Year Hires

Induction Seminar Updates

April Induction Seminar Asynchronous Activities

The first week of April is during Spring Break!! Therefore, there will not be an in-person Induction Seminar on April 5, 2023. 

Instead of the in-person meeting, Induction Seminar participants will complete two activities from a choice of seven provided at the March Seminar (green sheet). The activities include:

Each activity has a reflection component to be completed in the Induction Schoology Course. The reflections are due by April 28, 2023.

*There is a change in the reflection submission expectations. The certificate requires a fee, so do not pay! Instead, screenshot the final assessment completion screen and copy that into the reflection document.

**The Virtual Professional Development Sessions include Backward Planning to the End of the School Year on April 19, 2023 at 4:00 PM and Making Mentoring Meaningful for Veteran Teachers on April 26, 2023 at 4:00 PM. If there is an additional topic that you would like, please contact Heather Husk.

2023-04 Induction Seminar Asynchronous Activities

Monthly Induction Seminars

Induction Seminars for first-year new hires will take place on the first Wednesday of each month. The next seminar is on Wednesday, May 3, 2023, at the Dr. James A. Forrest Center beginning at 5:00 PM. The agenda, details, and links will be published through the Induction Seminar page on the SMCPS Induction Site. The information regarding the available sessions and dinner options will be updated no later than the Monday before the seminar. 

The Conditional Induction Seminar will take place on Wednesday, April 12, 2023, at 5:00 PM.

FYI - The April 2023 seminar date is inaccurate. There will not be a seminar during the first week of April due to Spring Break. An alternative activity was shared at the March 1, 2023, Induction Seminar.

Google Calendar invitations were sent to secure the dates in your school calendar. If you did not receive an invitation, please contact Heather Husk at hlhusk@smcps.org. 

FAQ: Will in-person seminars also be available to attend virtually? No, the in-person seminars are not available for participants to log in remotely. 

Induction Program Schoology Course

In addition to the SMCPS Induction Site, the Induction Program Schoology Course is available to access resources throughout the school year. To assist participants with tracking their participation, the "grade book" will indicate the completed required elements of the induction program. 

Each month, Induction Seminars will be followed up with a discussion within Schoology. Participation in the discussion is expected each month.

General Resource Information

The information below is repeated information from prior TIP Updates and they have been included for easy access as needed.

Conditional Teachers Information - Higher Education Partner (MDLeads)

As teachers with conditional certification continue to take classes through our partners at Notre Dame University and the University of Maryland Global Campus, you may be nearing the end of your tuition reimbursement. If you are using the Maryland Leads funding, please use the direction on this SHEET to access these benefits. Your tuition reimbursement resets on July 1, 2023.

iPad Information

As you are familiarizing yourself with your newly issued SMCPS device, please access the thorough SMCPS Staff iPad Information Site.

It includes information about:

If you have questions about your iPad, email ipadteam@smcps.org for assistance.

Acronyms Resource

During our discussions at school sites with Dr. Smith, the struggle to learn all of the acronyms associated with education and St. Mary's County Public Schools can be a bit overwhelming. To assist with that, we have compiled a list of the most common acronyms used in the system and their meanings. In some cases, there are links for additional information. If you come across a new acronym that is not on this list, let us know and we will add it!

SMCPS Acronyms

TPAS Rubrics and Forms

As you are preparing for your next observation, be sure to take a look at the TPAS documents available on the SMCPS Evaluation: Teacher Performance Assessment System site HERE. The TPAS rubrics begin on page 28 of THIS DOCUMENT. Your observers will use portions of this rubric in their feedback on your lesson.

Updated Observation/Lesson Planning Resource

In the last TIP, a document was shared that included the preobservation agenda and lesson plan templates recommended by the content supervisors in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. Some of the links were broken, so they revisited the document and updated the links. I am including the document again for easy access.

TPAS Pre Obs Conference Agenda with Links to Content Planning Resources

Observations and Perform Expectations

Based on feedback from the first round of observations, there are a couple of reminders to share about teacher expectations within the Perform platform before and after the observation.

SLO Resources from DCI

To provide guidance as you work through your SLO and data gathering, the Department of Curriculum and Instruction has worked to create access to general resources and content-specific suggestions for your SLO. Please access the information in the document linked HERE.

Induction Program Participant Expectations

There have been some questions about the expectations of participants each year of their participation in the Induction Program. The basic expectations are listed below and the specifics from the negotiated agreement and the stipend/allocation can be found HERE.

First-Year Non-Tenured Teachers - Participate in August Orientation, monthly Induction Seminars along with participation in a Schoology discussion, and site-based mentoring.

Mid-Year Non-Tenured Teachers - In the first school year with SMCPS, participate in monthly seminars and site-based mentoring. In the second school year, participate in school-based mentoring and are invited to attend orientation and monthly Induction Seminars until the anniversary of their start date for compensation.

Second-Year Non-Tenured Teachers - Participate in site-based mentoring.

Third-Year Non-Tenured Teachers - Participate in site-based mentoring.

Mentors - Facilitate one-on-one and team mentor meetings and submit weekly logs.

Site-Based Mentoring - Includes weekly one-on-one meetings between mentors and mentees and monthly mentor team meetings. The average mentoring time is 40 minutes a week outside of the duty day. In addition, quarterly walkthrough experiences of approximately 15-20 minutes of targeted observation occur four times throughout the school year. The walkthroughs include pre/post meetings that occur during regularly scheduled mentor meetings. 

Human Resources General Information Site

When working with your mentee, they may have questions about their professional responsibilities and other non-instructional aspects of their teaching position. The Department of Human Resources created a website for Certificated Benefits and Resources that is applicable to all SMCPS employees. You find something that you did not know as well!

The site was introduced to new hires at Orientation last month and a link can be found on the Home Page of the SMCPS Induction Site. The site includes information about calendars, HR contacts, EAC and email, EASMC, the negotiated agreement, insurance, retirement, leave, benefits, and FAQ. If you are not able to locate information that you believe should be included on the site, contact Human Resources at hrd@smcps.org.

Click on the icon above to access the Human Resources Certificated Benefits and Resources Site.