Spring 2012
THE EXCELLENCE INITIATIVE: FROM CURRICULUM TO PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENTCOMMUNITIES The Center for Catholic Education, in partnership with the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Catholic School Office, recently hosted the seventh deanery-wide professional development day since launching the Excellence Initiative in fall 2008. On March 9, 2012, approximately 450 educators gathered at the Presidential Banquet Center in Kettering to hear and to participate with Tom Many, Ed.D. as he engaged them in a process that can lead to the development and utilization of a coherent system of assessment based on a viable curriculum, enhance their skills in data analysis, and allow them to realize the effectiveness of professional learning communities.
learning, but Dr. Many spoke of the common formative assessment as a high quality measure that promotes improved student achievement. This type of assessment, created through the collaboration of all teachers of a subject or grade, ensure that students who experience difficulty receive additional time and support as well as additional opportunities to demonstrate their learning. In creating common formative assessments, teachers are required to reflect upon and examine their own practice.
It is not just whether a school administers assessments but what it does with assessment results that make a differIn order to set ence. As an assessment the framework for the system becomes accepted, day, Dr. Many spoke of educators are encouraged the need for a guaranteed to enhance their skills in and viable curriculum to data analysis. Working in raise the level of student teams, teachers are enachievement in our couraged to collect and schools. A guaranteed chart data, identify profiand viable curriculum is ciency levels, and analyze one that identifies constrengths and obstacles to Dr. Tom Many converses with a teacher during cepts and skills embedded student learning. Effective one of several group discussion opportunities in academic standards that data analysis leads to tarare essential for all students to have. No matter geted instruction, established goals, selected inwho teaches a given course or grade, these tarstructional strategies, and ultimately to improved geted topics should be adequately addressed. A student achievement. limited number of learning targets should be identiDr. Many provided numerous useful tips fied so that teachers have time available to teach and organizational outlines for teachers to take them within the school year. away at the end of the day. He provided ample Key to promoting a guaranteed and viable curriculum is having teachers work together to identify concepts and skills embedded in each standard, to look inward to identify what is actually taught in the classroom, and to reconcile differences between these two areas. It is critical that teachers also collaborate to create common assessments that will measure student progress in learning the target concepts as agreed upon by the team. There are many ways to assess student
opportunity for discussion among colleagues throughout his presentation so teachers and principals could discuss key points and formulate a plan for how they could better serve their students through the implementation of protocols for professional learning communities and/or faculty meetings. Dr. Many works with teachers, administrators, school boards, parents, and other education stakeholders on implementation and change. Continued on p.4
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Urban Childhood Resource 2 Center In Gratitude
2
Unexpected Blessing
3
An Opportunity to be
3
Inspired
PLC for Art
3
Teachers News and
4
Notes The Excellence
4
Initiative (continued)
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