Dear GESD Team Members,
It was recently
brought to my attention that some questions have arisen about the statements I made
during our District-wide professional development session at Landmark. I would like to take this opportunity to clarify
my comments and explain my vision for our District.
When I
addressed the Glendale Elementary School District Team at our annual Welcome
Back Celebration in August of 2014, I asked all members of the team to be “All
In” as it relates to student learning. I
spoke about the work we have done over the last several years to create a
culture of respect, support, and inclusiveness that is welcoming for everyone
associated with the District. “Everyone”
includes students, parents, teachers, support staff, administrators and members
of our community. I also spoke about the
importance of having student learning and instructional excellence a central part
of our culture.
When it
comes to student achievement, we must be clear and explicit about what we
expect from one another, our students, and other members of the District. We must establish shared agreements and a
common vocabulary which clearly define who we are and who we are not; but more
importantly, we must consistently engage in behaviors and practices to ensure
student learning and academic excellence, because, after all, this is the
reason why we are here.
District-wide
agreements will make it possible to articulate clear expectations, and also to
establish support and accountability for meeting these expectations. When we
are clear about our shared agreements, this will directly and positively affect
our students. We will know what we expect students to learn, and we will know
the practices to engage in to ensure they are learning. When common agreements
and clarity exist, students will move seamlessly from one grade level to the
next, or from one school to another within the District.
Establishing
and maintaining standards does not strip you of autonomy. There is still room
to empower each of you to use your expertise and judgment in determining how
you will meet these standards.
What does all this mean? It means, as a District, we will be clear
about:
- What
we teach (Essential Standards);
- When
we teach it (Pacing);
- Which
materials we will use;
- Which
assessments we will use to measure students progress; and
- Which interventions we will provide to students who
need additional support.
This also
means we will be able to act on some of the areas of concern we previously have
talked about, but have not yet addressed.
As the challenges of our profession have continued to increase, more and
more has been added to our plates, without anything being taken off. The clarity I speak of will allow us to be
more selective in determining the items we have on our plates, based upon what
fits within our structure and what does not.
The
Educational Services Division, principals, and achievement advisors are
currently engaging in conversations to identify our shared agreements and to define
Glendale Elementary School District’s instructional expectations. Before any final decisions are made, we will
gather feedback from teacher focus groups about the framework we develop. The final product will be referred to as the
GESD Learning Structure.
We
anticipate sharing more specific information as details evolve this spring, and
plan to begin the 2015-2016 school year with everyone fully aware of the
expectations outlined within the GESD Learning Structure. The District will
begin to provide you with the support needed to meet the expectations outlined
in the Structure as soon as it has been finalized.
In the end, the alignment created by
these efforts will elevate our performance and the academic performance of our
students.
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