“Two roads diverged in the woods, and we took the Road to Awesome!”

Visionary Leadership

 DASD School Board  Comprehensive Planning Committee  Dr. Dyer, DASD Superintendent  Dr. Doll, DASD Assistant Superintendent

DASD Comprehensive Planning:

 Implement a STEAM initiative beginning in the 4 th grade  Develop course offerings at the high school level that allow for flexibility through a combination of cyber and building based courses  Expand secondary course offerings  Establish a secondary campus restructuring effort with emphasis on sharing of staff, appropriate transitioning of students, and consolidation of resources  Review and enhance the traits district’s many successful programs to promote community service, employability career skills, and workplace success

Our Goal

 2020 Goal:  Over the course of 6 years we will explore and develop the strategic design to guide and redesign the high school program.

 2014-2015 Action Steps: Plan, prepare, and determine feasibility of the implementation of a new schedule for the 2015-2016 or 2016-2017 school year

The Process:

High School Redesign Committee

Sub-Committees:  Scheduling Structures  School Counseling Services  Student Academic/Behavioral Support  School Culture and Climate  Course and Program Offerings  STEAM  Corporate and Educational Partnerships  Personalized Learning Environments

Committees in Action:

 Research on best practice and high school reform  Site visits to high-achieving schools  Ongoing DAHS needs analysis by stakeholders  Goal setting and action planning based on data  Action throughout a multi-year process  Assessment of results and focus on continuous improvement

Actions Grounded in Research:



Breaking Ranks II

, NASSP, 2007 

Inevitable

, Schwahn & McGarvey, 2012 

Mindset

, Dweck, 2006 

Curriculum 21

, Hayes Jacobs, 2010 

What Works in School

, Marzano, 2003 

Art and Science of Teaching

, Marzano, 2007 

Professional Learning Communities that Work

, DuFour, DuFour, and Eaker, 2008

Actions Grounded in Evidence-Based Best Practices:

Corporate and Educational Partnerships Committee  Souderton HS, Souderton, PA    Lower Merion HS, Ardmore, PA International Business and Workforce Expo, York, PA Wellspan Health, York, PA Course and Program Offerings Committee  River Bluff HS, Lexington, SC  Lower Merion HS, Ardmore, PA Personalized Learning Environment (Hybrid Learning Opportunities) Committee  Lower Merion HS, Ardmore, PA  Lindsay Unified Schools, Lindsay, CA (Virtual Tour & Interview) Scheduling Structures Committee  Lower Merion HS, Ardmore, PA

Actions Grounded in Evidence-Based Best Practices:

School Counseling Services Committee  Council Rock North HS, Newtown, PA  Radnor HS, Radnor, PA   Lower Merion HS, Ardmore, PA River Bluff HS, Lexington, SC School Culture and Climate Committee  Lower Merion HS, Ardmore, PA   Lindsay Unified Schools, Lindsay, CA (Virtual Tour & Interview) Cocalico HS, Denver, PA STEAM Committee  Livingston HS, Livingston, NJ  Downingtown STEM, Downingtown, PA Student Academic/Behavioral Support Committee  Patterson HS, Baltimore, MD   Souderton HS, Souderton, PA Lower Merion HS, Ardmore, PA

Findings from Research that will Guide our Redesign:

 Implement schedules flexible enough to accommodate teaching strategies consistent with the ways students learn (NASSP, 2007; Marzano, 2003; Marzano, 2007; Schwahn & McGarvey, 2012).

 Institute structural leadership that allows for meaningful involvement of all stakeholders (NASSP, 2007).

 Align school-wide comprehensive professional development with essential learnings and effective instructional practices (NASSP, 2007; Marzano, 2003).

Findings from Research that will Guide our Redesign (continued):

 Establish essential learnings (NASSP, 2007; Hayes Jacobs, 2010).

 Increase the quantity and quality of interactions between students and teachers (NASSP, 2007).

 Comprehensive advisory program that allows students to self-assess growth toward clear goals (NASSP, 2007; Schwahn & McGarvey, 2012).

 Ensure quality instructional practices and assessments to personalize learning (Dweck, 2006; NASSP, 2007; Schwahn & McGarvey, 2012).

Findings from Site Visits that will Guide our Redesign:

 Personalized Learning Environment  Students don ’t serve time; instead, time serves students  Shift from teaching to learning  Belief that all learners can learn  Changing role of the educator from

teacher

to

learning facilitator

 Learning is fostered by frequent formative feedback

Findings from Site Visits that will Guide our Redesign (continued):

 Learning is future-focused  Systems/Structures are in place to meet the needs of all learners  Teaching is based on current research on learning and cognition  Technology is utilized as a tool for learning  Abundant opportunities are offered for individual learning and personal responsibility

Findings from Site Visits that will Guide our Redesign (continued):

 Comprehensive school counseling services are provided, including student to counselor ratios of approximately 250:1 with full-time psychologist and social worker support  Comprehensive Science, Technology, and Engineering programs  Significant AP offerings in a variety of areas  Culture of excellence and focus on improvement  Corporate and educational partnerships that are mutually beneficial  Students and educators are goal oriented  Career Pathway/Academy approach

High School Schedule Redesign:

Current Schedule Facts: Students

 Eight-periods per day  Forty-two minute periods   Simultaneous transitions for 1850 students 5 th period lunch schedule (split classes)  Two, three, and five day-per-week courses  Students responsible for as many as ten classes a week  Limited access to academic core teachers  Extensions courses are not maximized for student success

Current Schedule Facts: Teachers

        Limited Collaboration time for staff Inefficient use of teacher resources 5 th Period creates disjointed learning opportunities Professional staff monitoring 206 study halls per semester Teacher to Student ratio far exceeds recommended 90:1 ratio Limited access to students beyond regularly scheduled classes 42 minute time periods do not support effective learning in all classes Limited opportunities to support students’ social, academic, and emotional needs

New Schedule

Course Times:

30 ILT SLT Support Classes 45 Intro Courses World Languages Upper Level Math 60 Keystone Courses Upper Level Electives PE Technology/ Engineering 75 Honors and AP Lab Sciences

Course Lengths:

 45 day, 90 day, and 180 day courses.  Lengths are determined based on needs of the course.

New Schedule Facts: Students

    Increased focus on specific subject areas that require increased cognitive demand and varied instructional practices Students have electives that are 45 days or 90 days. (Two- and three-day per week electives are removed to support learning.) Period lengths are increased in AP courses, Keystone courses, upper level electives, technology & engineering courses, and physical education courses.

Students will transition at different times based on their course tracks, resulting in fewer students in the hall at one time (Improved student safety).

New Schedule Facts: Students (cont.)

 Opportunities for a true advisory program that supports the needs of our students and teaches what it means to be a Wildcat  Students will be responsible for no more than seven courses per marking period, as compared to as many as ten courses in current schedule.

 Students will have access to daily academic and counseling support through ILT and SLT.

Proposed Schedule Facts: Teachers

 Increased efficiency in staff utilization  Staff sharing opportunities at the MS in technology education  Study halls will be a thing of the past  Teachers will have the opportunity for collaboration through the use of ILT and SLT centers.

The 2015 Schedule Proposal

30 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 Time

7:35-7:45 7:50-8:05 8:05-8:20 8:20-8:35 8:35-8:50 8:50-9:05 9:05-9:20 9:20-9:35 9:35-9:50 9:50-10:05 10:05-10:20 10:20-10:35 10:35-10:50 10:50-11:05 11:05-11:20 11:20-11:35 11:35-11:50 11:50-12:05 12:05-12:20 12:20-12:35 12:35-12:50 12:50-1:05 1:05-1:20 1:20-1:35 1:35-1:50 1:50-2:05 2:05-2:20 2:20-2:35 2:35-2:50 7:35-8:05 8:05-8:35 8:35-9:05 9:05-9:35 9:35-10:05 10:05-10:35 Lunch/Flexible Block 11:50-12:20 12:20-12:50 12:50-1:20 1:20-1:50 1:50-2:20 2:20-2:50

45

7:35 8:20 8:20 9:05 9:05 9:50 9:50 10:35 11:50 12:35 12:35 1:20 1:20 2:05 2:05 2:50

60

7:35 8:35 8:35 9:35 9:35 -10:35 11:50 12:50 12:50 1:50 1:50 2:50

75

9:50 11:05 LFB 11:35 12:50

2014-2015: Next Steps

Phase 1   Communicate with parents and students. Pilot the new schedule in eSchool to determine feasibility of new schedule implementation (i.e. 2015-2016 or 2016-2017 school year).

Phase 2  Develop a comprehensive communication plan.

   Plan professional development.

Coordinate curricular adjustments/needs. Adjust procedural and policy related items such as credit structure, leveling, GPA, etc.

Works Cited

DuFour, Richard, DuFour, Rebecca, & Eaker, Robert (2008).

Revisiting professional learning communities at work: New insights for improving schools

. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree.

Dweck, Carol S., Ph.D. (2006).

Mindset: The new psychology of success.

Books.

USA: Ballantine Hayes Jacobs, Heidi (Ed.). (2010).

Curriculum 21: Essential education for a changing world.

Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Marzano, Robert. (2007).

The art and science of teaching: A comprehensive framework for effective instruction

. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Marzano, Robert. (2003.)

What works in schools: Translating research into action

. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Marzano, Robert, Waters, Timothy, & McNulty, Brian A. (2005).

School leadership that works: From leadership to results

. Aurora, CO: Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning.

National Association of Secondary Principals (Eds.). (2004).

Breaking ranks: Strategies for leading high school reform

. Reston, VA: National Association of Secondary Principals.

Schwahn, Charles & McGarvey, Beatrice. (2012).

Inevitable: Mass customized learning.

Charles Schwahn & Beatrice McGarvey.

(2012).