Standard 15

Standard 15: School/program engages in a continuous improvement process for STEM.

Since we began our school’s STEAM initiative, we have worked to continuously improve STEAM across the curriculum. Our teachers have numerous opportunities to participate in STEAM professional development. Each month teachers are able to come together within grade levels to participate in data meetings to evaluate student progress and consider next steps for learning. Teachers continue to improve their STEAM implementation abilities by engaging in one-on-one support through monthly STEAM meetings, Professional Learning Committee meetings with the instructional partner, and coaching by the Dynamic Learning Project coach. Teachers complete surveys or use rubrics to reflect on their development as STEAM professionals.

CES started its journey with the Dynamic Learning Project in 2018 when the principal took a trip to Google Headquarters in California to attend the National Educator Coaching Program. The Dynamic Learning Project, supported by Digital Promise, EdTechTeam, and Google is designed to use coaching to address the issue of technology use, equity, and career readiness. Their mission is to "improve educational equity by empowering teachers to leverage technology in powerful ways."

The DLP coach uses a research-based coaching model to help guide teachers in identifying innovative, tech-based strategies to address their challenges and take risks to provide students with the best educational experiences to prepare them for their future. The DLP and the principal select four to six colleagues each nine weeks to engage within a coaching cycle. During the cycle, teachers do a lot of self-evaluating and reflecting as they consider the effectiveness of their own STEAM teaching practices and how it aligns with the STEAM initiatives of the school. The DLP and teachers then select a challenge to overcome, set goals, and decide on specific tools and strategies to reach the goals. It is a constant cycle of trying something out, evaluating, and trying something different until success is found and progress is seen. The DLP assists with STEAM implementation in the classroom when needed.

The DLP is also involved in monthly STEAM meetings. Teachers meet once a month to plan STEAM activities in their classrooms that relate to the content they are teaching and plan PBLs (Problem-Based Learning) that incorporate STEAM learning opportunities. They also create rubrics and analyze rubrics and student work to gauge the impact STEAM implementation has on student learning. Leaders at our school periodically send surveys to the teachers to determine wants or needs they might have in the area of STEAM and provides training on digital tools as needed.

All teachers at Childersburg Elementary have ongoing, job-embedded, and differentiated professional learning with the Instructional Partner (IP) through monthly grade level Data Meetings, Problem Solving Team Meetings, and through professional development sessions. These collaborative planning sessions are data-driven and focus on growth and achievement for all students in reading and math. Teachers and leaders at Childersburg Elementary demonstrate their commitment to improving learning experiences and pedagogical best practices by working collaboratively and engaging in an inquiry-based cycle to address the following critical questions:

1. What do we want students to learn in reading and math? What should each

student know and be able to do as a result of each unit of study, course, and grade level?

2. How will we know if they have achieved the learning outcomes? Are

we monitoring each student’s learning on a timely basis?

3. What will we do if they don’t learn? What systematic process is in place to provide

additional time and support for students who are experiencing difficulty?

4. What will we do if they already know the skills being taught?

5. How can we use technology to enhance student learning?

This cycle of inquiry involves identifying learning outcomes as well as establishing a plan of action, developing common assessments, looking at student work, analyzing results, and leveraging technology to provide acceleration, remediation, organization, and time management. An analysis of student work and assessment results not only allows us to evaluate the effectiveness of specific initiatives and learning activities but also informs leaders and the Instructional Partner of coaching topics and actions most relevant to the learning needs of individual teachers and students. This information, walk-through data, and collaboration with the principal also provides information for the Instructional Partner during coaching cycles with individual teachers. Through coaching cycles, the IP models research-based instructional practices that fit students’ needs and interests and guides teachers in their implementation of such practices. The IP also works collaboratively with teachers to plan, demonstrate, implement, co-teach, and reflect on lessons as well as provide formative feedback. Teachers have opportunities to learn and refine instructional practices, reflect on their own teaching and the teaching of others, and incorporate new practices into their teaching routine.

Monthly Data Meetings, PST Meetings, and Professional Development sessions as well as Data-informed coaching cycles enrich teacher knowledge and their capacity to prepare and deliver instruction that is more closely aligned with student learning needs. These processes also engage teachers in data-informed planning of evidence-based practices to ensure continuous student learning improvements during the current school year and across the years to come.

Strengths

We are proud to have teachers that work hard to continuously implement and improve STEAM across the curriculum. Our Dynamic Learning Project Coach, Instructional Partner, and other leaders provide our teachers with strong support to evaluate data, learn new tools, and plan implementation of learning experiences.

Sustainability

Teachers have increased their implementation of STEAM activities in the classroom. We will continue to offer professional development in the area of STEAM in order to strengthen our classroom teachers’ skills in this area. CES is committed to DLP coaching to provide support for our teachers as well as continued education for our DLP coach.

Opportunities for Improvement

It would be valuable to expand the frequency of our teacher surveys in order to better monitor whether or not our outcomes are aligned with our goals. This will also help us ensure the quality and effectiveness of our improvement process.

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