Team Work Boosts Student Learning and Professional Community
SRI Affiliate, Thomas Van Soelen, writes about his experience working with a group of Kindergarten teachers as they focus on developing a shared understanding of student writing. The article, published on the Phi Delta Kappan Common Core website, shares the process these teachers went through to dig deep into their students’ work as a process for unpacking and understanding how best to teach writing while building their professional learning community. Check it out!
ASCD Conference on Teaching Excellence – New Orleans, July 8-10
Will you be at the ASCD Conference on Teaching Excellence? Kari Thierer & Board Member Donna Reid will be representing SRI during the conference, and offering a session on Sunday, July 10th. If you will be there, email Kari (kari@schoolreforminitiative.org) and we can try to connect!
Network Improvement Community Dedicated to Pre-Service Education Launches
June 27 & 28, nine SRI affiliates gathered at Eagle Rock School & Professional Development Center to kick off the first Network Improvement Community dedicated to supporting pre-service educators working to incorporate SRI principles and practices into their licensure programs. With skillful guidance from the Eagle Rock Staff (also SRI affiliates), the participants learned about improvement science, and worked through their own context to define the problems, analyze root causes, develop measurable outcomes, map the system, and adopt a change idea.
Two working groups developed, focusing on two specific elements of pre-service teacher preparation: one group focusing on strengthening the connection between what candidates learn in their seminars and how they apply it in their practice; the second group focusing on helping school leaders hosting candidates to better understand the specific collaborative and reflective practice work embedded in the licensure programs.
Over the next six months, these groups will continue to meet and implement their change idea, collect data, and work together to continue improving their practice. The Network Improvement Community work is closely aligned with SRI principles and practices as it asks participants to be in community while implementing a change process, learning together and sharing their work over time. They will continue to meet virtually, and will come together in person again at Winter Meeting in Denver to share their data, and plan their next steps.
Special thanks to Michael Soguero, Dan Condon, and Anastacia Galloway from Eagle Rock for their introduction to the NIC process, and their ongoing support for this work within the SRI community. Be on the lookout for updates as these affiliates continue their work together.
Do you have news to share? Interesting things happening in your area? Please let us know so we can share with our community! Email Chris, chris@schoolreforminitiative.org.
Thank you,
Kari Thierer, Heidi Vosekas, and Chris Jones
on behalf of School Reform Initiative
