National Middle School Association37th Annual Conference

Baltimore November 5, 2010

Janet AngelisKristen Wilcox

Know Your Schools~for NY Kids

Collaborative ConversationEssential for Middle-Level Success

Trust = 1 key to collaboration

The single most important thing I would say is to build trust with your faculty. . . .

You have to do a lot of listening. How many conversations do you have to listen to?

… A lot.

You have to make the person you are listening to more important than yourself. That’s huge.

- Holland principal

• Share evidence of collaboration in middle schools with consistently higher-performing students

• Structural and cultural support

• Highlights from case study schools

• Introduction to online resources

• Opportunities to reflect on these practices in participants’ own settings.

Collaborative ConversationEssential for Middle-Level Success

For each pair of statements (1-11),

circle the one that better describes your own

situation.

We can do this together.

- JFK Middle School

Fire up the collaboration. Get department people to work across the curriculum. Pull out the data and

use it as a magnifying glass to clarify what we are doing in the classroom. . . . Be reflective.

- A.L. Leonard principal

What we do well is the relationship between teachers and students and from teacher to teacher. . . . The whole school is one big family team. Kids see the team spirit and

know that we have that kind of relationship with them also.

- West educators

/collaboration

www.albany.edu/aire/kids

Findings Consistent with Other Research, Recommendations

• Anfara

• Bryk and Schneider

• Fullan

• Hargreaves

• Lieberman

• Dufours

• This We Believe

Background

2nd and 4th in a series of 5 studies • Elementary schools (2005)• Middle schools (2007)• High schools (2008)• Middle school science (2009)• Critical Needs (2011)

Sample selection relies on achievement data (state assessments) over time

Study Samples• 10 consistently higher-performing (HP) schools with 6 similar but consistently average-performing (AP) schools, based on state assessment data (Grade 8 Math & ELA). (MS Sci: 7 HP, 3 AP)

• Favor poverty (F/RL)

• Urban, rural, suburban

• Open admissions

• State average per pupil expenditures

Sample HP Middle Schools

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

urban rural surburban

high needs

average needs

n = 17

• 2-day site visits• Semi-structured interview protocols with teachers and administrators

• For science study, classroom observations

• Documentary evidence collection• Analyzed and wrote case studies for each site

• Cross-case analysis to develop best practice frameworks and reports

The data

Methodology

www.albany.edu/aire/kids

Collaboration: 3 Essential Components

• A climate of respect and trust

• Structures to support it

• An expectation of collaboration

Everyone is responsible for teaching all children.

- Jefferson principal

A self-reinforcing, positive cycle = getting to the sweet spotCollaboration, Trust, and Respect

trust

collaboration

more trust

morecollaboration

formal/informal

Collaboration, Trust, and RespectIt was a struggle. . . .

At that point, I just asked myself, “Am I on an island here, or do I have somebody to

help me that I believe in?” So that’s how we develop most everything. . . . We didn’t

just change [things] for certain kids; we changed them across the board. Because if I was too wordy for her kids, guess what? I was too wordy for a third of my kids, too.

- Oliver Winch science and special ed co-teaching team

I can work with any faculty member in this school, which is a credit to the administration

for picking the right people.- J.T. Finley teacher

It’s hard to work in our structure if you want to work independently; you have to be

collaborative.- Geneseo principal

Trusting and Sharing: A Way to Work

The collegiality amongst the five of us [subject area team], you can’t ask for much more. You really can’t. “I need

this.” Cut, paste, bang, take. Take. Take. You change what you need to change. “Mr.

X, I’m taking your name off this.” “I don’t really care.” Seriously: take, use,

help, ask questions, come in, clarify.- Oliver Winch science teacher

Collaboration and Respect: Looking for and Building on

Strengths

• Acknowledge what teachers and students do well

• Look for strengths and build on them to fill gaps – including in state assessments

• State assessments measure program > students• (Contrast deficit models)

We communicate from one grade to the next. We respect teachers in the grades below.

V-V-S teacher

We believe that every child has a special gift. Our vision is to get that gift to

come out.- Port Chester teacher

Showing them they can do it no matter what. Don’t stress the disability.

- West teacher

Collaborative Structures: Who Meets?• Teams, Departments, Grades• Specialists – teachers (coteaching consulting)

• SBDM/SDM, other school-community bodies• SSGs, SSSTs (teachers, specialists, families)• Committees: strategic planning, hiring, text selection, professional development

• Leadership Teams

Now we meet every other day for 42 minutes. . . . Before that we didn’t notice the kids as much – didn’t focus on them. The

team time has allowed the school to focus on students.- Holland teacher

Collaborative Structures: Schedules

Typical meetings and schedules:

• Teams/Clusters: several times/week; daily or more

• Grade-level: several times/month (student focus)

• Department: twice/month (curriculum focus)• Special ed – regular ed: daily• Daily opportunities for students to get help (AIS, tutorials, labs, etc.)

Collaborative Structures: Teams

• Responsible for instruction• First line of intervention• Bring in social services, parents, et al. as needed

• Usually include special educators

• More than core subject teams: PD, special projects, etc. Sharing information about a

shared group of 120 students, we are never alone.

- West teacher

Blue 7 H 1 2 3 L 5 6 7

Math TP 7 7+ 7 High

7 AIS 7 bl

SS TP 7+ 7+ 7 7 Prep

ELA TP 7+ 7 7 7 Prep

Science TP 7 7 7+ 7+ Prep

Plus TP RR7 red

Math 7+

Prep MSS Rdg 7

Plus TP 7+ Prep MSS RR6 or

AIS Rdg

Plus TP 7+ SS 7+ Sci 7+

Sci 7+

Duty

SC Prep Rdg 6-8

ELA 6-8

SS 6-8

Sci SSR 7 blue

Sample Team Schedule, Port Chester MS

http://www.albany.edu/aire/pdf/Staff-C-NY-PortChesterMS.pdf

Collaborative Structures, Schedules

I meet once a week with my department, every day with the teams; we’re scheduled for it. The team meets

daily.- Finley special educator

Three out of five days, we have a scheduled period where the whole grade team meets. Special ed is included in

that. We talk about all the kids who need help, across the curriculum, about the curriculum. . . . We

can meet all five days if we want to.- Greene science teacher

Each team has a team leader. Each department has a department head. . . .

They teach. They have one less duty a day so they can . . . collaborate with

teams and departments. Teachers meet informally at many times during the

day, and many departments meet daily first thing in the morning.

Departments meet at least once a month formally and teachers also meet on half

days. - J.F. Kennedy principal

Committees (school, community members)

e.g., Hiring, Text Selection, Professional Development

Team Members, Prof. Development Plan, Utica

Teachers – 5 Parent - 1 Higher Ed – 1 UTA Pres – 1 TC Director – 1 Administrators – 5 Teaching Assist. – 1

http://www.albany.edu/aire/pdf/Staff-D-NY-Utica1.pdf

Collaborating with the Community

• SDM not “Some Day Maybe”• Curriculum Councils • Strategic planning teams• Hiring committees

The schools don’t stand separate and apart from the community.

- Huntington administrator

Community

We can’t do it alone. . . . Parents are involved here. The faculty makes decisions collectively and the PTA is very involved.

They want what is best for all the students, not just theirs.

- Westbury principal

Collaborative Opportunities for Students

• Collaborative classrooms• Multiple opportunities to connect• Multiple opportunities for special attention – lunch, after school, tutorials

• Opportunities to affect school policy• Recognition for more than academics and athletics

I love to learn new things with students!- Port Chester teacher

Students – Structures to Help Them Connect

• Clubs and sports• Dedicated activity period• Identify the interest(s) of those most at risk

• Recess for all• Keep up with changing demographic• Guide rooms

We want to create enough niches to connect with students and parents in many difference ways.

- V-V-S administrator

Students -- Recognition

• Lunch with the principal• Awards

Focus on the high-achieving students. Call their names [on the PA], not the detention

students.- Westbury teacher

Collaborative Structures: Other Examples

• Room assignments• Looping (“vertical teams”)• Instructional leaders

We put classrooms and department offices in the same wings to increase communication.

- J.F. Kennedy principal

Our faculty meetings have turned into professional development; it’s very

interesting.- Oliver Winch science teacher

Collaboration Expectations:What Do They Talk About?

• Student performance/needs – individually and collectively

• Curriculum, Assessment, Instruction• School policy• Professional learning

The center of the conversation is always how can we help kids do better. . . . Keep that focus all the

time and it really helps direct where we need to go. - Johnson City principal

Collaboration about Curriculum

• Departments do own mapping – not handed down – and revisit it continually

• Teams plan and do interdisciplinary units – all core subjects, some, with “encore,” etc.

• Include special educators• May cross school levels – V-V-S Congruency meetingsWe’re always tweaking things [re the

science curriculum]. - Armstrong (Wayne) science teacher

Collaboration about Assessment

• Daily, formative assessment by teachers• Some departmental assessments by district• Analyze state data; address program needs

I’m constantly refining the unit as student needs appear; I do a lot of monitoring as students are working. Then I’ll meet with

the group to talk about what I saw.- Niagara teacher

When I think of our science program and how well they do, I do believe it’s because we

have Core Groups. . . . We’re always looking at what each other is doing so that we make sure we’re covering the

curriculum, we’re covering it in the right places, people are revisiting it, and the

kids are getting everything

they need so that they can be successful

on those assessments. - Johnson City administrator

Collaboration about Instruction

• Literacy across the curriculum – with support

• “Procedure/operations” terms• Know others’ standards but responsible for own

We are all teachers of reading, so we always embed reading instruction in our

science instruction.- Winch science teacher

Collaboration about School Policy

• Homework • Discipline• Hiring• Programs and texts

We have a shared discipline philosophy. We share the way we do everything. Every

one of my colleagues helps. Everyone knows the expectations for behavior [as

well as] academics.- West teacher

Collaboration = Professional Learning

• Team time• Teacher Study Groups • Teachers Sharing New Skills - workshops

Our teams are so small that they are always together and always talking. A big part of professional development comes from common

planning time and common team time.- Holland teacher

Collaboration: Expectations of Leaders

From the Queensbury Administrator Interview Questionnaire:

• Describe a time when you had strong convictions about a course of action but were then convinced to try another approach. How did it work out?

• Describe your experience working as a team member – what makes you an effective team player?

• How do you collaborate with colleagues? Please give examples.

Even if we don’t all agree, what we are arguing over is what the best thing for

kids is.- West teacher

I have to say that the reason for those high scores is because we work collaboratively,

professionally from 6th to 8th grade.- Oliver Winch science teacher

Collaboration: A Case in Point

Port Chester Middle School Classroom

We are superstars at collaboration.

Teacher

Every teacher is a teacher of literacy.

Principal

Port Chester Middle School

Eligible for Free Lunch 43% 37%

Eligible for Reduced Lunch 9% 8%

Limited English Proficient 14% NA

Student Ethnic/Racial Distribution

African-American 11% 20%

Hispanic/Latino 68% 20%

White 21% 53%

Other 1% 7%

Meeting/Exceeding Standards, Gr. 8 ELA

66% 49%

Meeting/Exceeding Standards, Gr. 8 Math

73% 54%

Total Enrollment: 790, gr. 6-8 2005-6 PC MS state cf. 2009

6%

2%

4%

1%

12%

78%

8%

75%

79%

45%

15%

11%

8%

73%

17%

1%

75%

89%

Grade 8 ELA results, 2006

You need to work as a

team; there’s

nothing a teacher can accomplish

alone. Teacher

We are all ELA

teachers. TeachersJ. Marino, 2007, Port Chester MS: Best Practices Case Study

Rebuilding the Wheel

You have to have staff involved in decision making. We have 8 or 9 new teachers coming in next year. We need to go back and rebuild the wheel to keep the wave going. . . . We need to constantly overhaul and do tune-ups.

- Port Chester MS Assistant Principal

Continuous Improvement

Once you’re successful, getting that extra 5 or 10% is very, very difficult. But we’re not happy at 90%; we’re not happy at 95%.

We’re not even going to be happy if we reach 100%. We’re always seeing ways that

we can . . . improve.- Armstrong (Wayne) teacher

Collaboration

• Catch as catch can• Expectation not

articulated or clear• Intermittent discussions• Less decision making• Each teacher responsible

for own subject area• Teachers left to own

devices• Teachers handed a

curriculum• New teachers “wait their

turn”

• Scheduled time• Expected• Ongoing discussion of

C,I, A, and student performance

• Decision-making ability• Teachers reinforce skills

across subjects• Coaching, PD, support

provided• Teachers build living

curriculum• New teachers expected to

play active role

AP HP

So how many conversations do you have to listen to?

http://www.albany.edu/aire/kids/http://knowyourschoolsny.org

• Case studies of the HP middle, MS Science, high, elementary schools

• Cross-site reports for all• Best Practice Frameworks, with details and samples of evidence

• On-line surveys• Key word collections• Presentations• School Improvement Tools and Services• Find Your School (NY, NJ, MA)

/collaboration

www.albany.edu/aire/kids

jangelis@uamail.albany.edukwilcox1@uamail.albany.edu

CEU Code: XU7

• Book from TC Press. Wilcox and Angelis, Best Practices from High-Performing Middle Schools. In NMSA bookstore here.

• Journal articles, e.g., Wilcox, K. C. “The Importance of Civic Responsibility in Higher Performing

Middle Schools: An Empirical Study,” Education and Urban Society 20(10), pp. 1-16, 2010.