January 22, 2014 NEW THIS WEEK ● READY Regional Principals Meetings ● 2014 Spring Regional Professional Development Secondary Mathematics ● NCDPI Science Content Session: 4 RESA Presentations Remain IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ● ● ● ● ● ● Exploring the 4 Cs of 21st Century Learning on the Web Reminder: Teacher Evaluation Dashboards Released Assessment for Learning and Development in K-3 Professional Development for TALAS Schools Leadership Academy Cohorts Share Good News What’s Coming in Schoolnet in 2014 NEW THIS WEEK READY Regional Principals Meetings The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction is pleased to announce Part 2 of READY Principals, a new initiative to support principals with their use of the NC Educator Evaluation System. The spring READY Principal meetings will include: · · · NC Professional Teacher Standards 1 and 5 Coaching Conversations for Teacher Growth Educator Evaluation Data Analysis The Educator Effectiveness Division is excited to share the evidences we collected from principals across the state for NC Professional Teacher Standards 2, 3 and 4, during the fall Principal READY meetings. We will be collecting additional evidences this spring for Standards 1 and 5. You can find your region’s meeting time and location and register here. We hope that you will be able to attend the session in your region, but we also understand that scheduling situations may prevent this from happening. In that case, please register for a session that is convenient for you. In addition, it is important that if you have to cancel or have a change of plans, please contact Sid Baker (sid.baker@dpi.nc.gov) as soon as possible, as we are responsible for lunch and break expenses. MORE INFO: Kim Simmons, Educator Effectiveness, Kimberly.Simmons@dpi.nc.gov 2014 Spring Regional Professional Development Secondary Mathematics The Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) for Every Learner - Each student arrives to class with his or her own strengths and challenges, which is why designing and implementing lessons in such a way that all students have access to the intended mathematics content is essential. During the 2014 Spring RESA, secondary mathematics participants will focus on differentiating instruction using strategies that support the teaching and learning of the CCSSM for all. Following are the dates and locations. Region Date Place Region 1 Tuesday, Feb. 25 Kermit White Center, ECSU 1704 Weeksville Road, Elizabeth City Region 2 Thursday, Feb. 27 River Landing Clubhouse Paddle Wheel Dr., Wallace Region 3 Tuesday, Feb. 11 McKimmon Center at NCSU 1101 Gorman St., Raleigh Region 4 Thursday, March 6 UNC Pembroke - Comtech Center 115 Livermore Dr., Pembroke Region 5 Thursday, March 20 Greensboro Coliseum 1921 West Lee St. Greensboro Region 6 Tuesday, March 18 UNC-Charlotte Campus 9201 University City Blvd. Charlotte Region 7 Thursday, March 13 Holiday Inn Express North Wilkesboro 1700 Winkler Ave., North Wilkesboro Region 8 Tuesday, March 11 WRESA A-B Tech College -Enka Campus 1459 Sand Hill Road, Candler The times for these sessions may vary slightly by region, but generally will be held from 8:30 am to 4 pm, with registration from 8:30-9 am. MORE INFO: To register, please contact your local RESA. For general information about these sessions, please contact Susan Hart, K-12 Mathematics, susan.hart@dpi.nc.gov NCDPI Science Content Session: 4 RESA Presentations Remain Four RESA Sessions remain for NCDPI Science Content Sessions. Science consultants will host Summer Institutes C&I Leads in delving deeper into the North Carolina Essential Standards for Science. Participants will also receive strategies and resources for teaching the standards. All new participants to NCDPI Content Sessions should review previous training materials posted at http://www.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/ before attending this session. Use this link to register: http://www.ccresa.net/, and click on events. Following are the remaining sessions, dates, times and locations: ● Region 5: Wednesday., Jan. 29, 9am –Thursday, Jan. 30, 4pm, Greensboro Coliseum ● Region 7: Wednesday, Feb. 5, 9am – Thursday, Feb. 6, 4pm, Holiday Inn Express, North Wilkesboro ● Region 4: Wednesday, Feb. 12, 9am – Thursday, Feb. 13, 4pm, Richmond Community College - Cole Auditorium, Hamlet ● Region 1: Wednesday, Feb.19, 9am – Thursday, Feb. 20, 4pm, Vernon James Center, Plymouth MORE INFO: Beverly Vance, K-12 Science, Beverly.Vance@dpi.nc.gov IN CASE YOU MISSED IT Exploring the 4 Cs of 21st Century Learning on the Web Exploring the 4 Cs of Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking and Creativity on the web will provide educators with the opportunity to maximize the interactivity of the internet to enhance teaching and learning. The next 4 Cs webinar will be held on Friday, Jan. 24 from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm. Each 4 Cs webinar examines a variety of resources with potential for fostering relevant learning skills in students by focusing on a specific category. Participants will collaboratively explore resources and be given the opportunity to share experiences and additional activities related to the 4 Cs. Target audience for this webinar is classroom teachers K-12. The registration web link is https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/692544889 MORE INFO: Donna Albaugh, Professional Development Consultant, donna.albaugh@dpi.nc.gov. Reminder: Teacher Evaluation Dashboards Released The NCDPI and SAS Institute have released teacher evaluation dashboards from the 2012-13 school year. These dashboards provide teachers with access to their ratings on Standards 1 through 6, all integrated into one report. Teachers can access their teacher evaluation dashboards by logging in to EVAAS. More resources about how to access and interpret the dashboard can be found here. MORE INFO: For questions, please email educatoreffectiveness@dpi.nc.gov Assessment for Learning and Development in K-3 In response to a mandate by the North Carolina State Legislature and the requirements of the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge Grant, NC Superintendent June Atkinson convened the K-3 Assessment Think Tank last year. It included NC school teachers, parents, scholars representing seven NC universities and additional stakeholders. The group was charged with proposing a plan to improve early elementary school learning and instruction through more efficient and effective use of student-centered assessments. Over a nine-month period, the Think Tank reviewed scientific findings and best practices and solicited input from a wide array of stakeholders, including a survey of more than 2,500 NC teachers and consultation from more than 60 state and national scholars and education leaders. This report summarizes the Think Tank's findings, its proposal for an innovative process to improve learning and its recommendations for next steps. The report can be accessed at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/earlylearning/k3-assessment.pdf. MORE INFO: Erika Beattie, Office of Early Learning, erika.beattie@dpi.nc.gov Professional Development for TALAS Schools The District and School Transformation Division will provide Professional Development to approximately 300 leaders of TALAS schools and SIG schools on Wednesday, Feb. 12. This session, 14th in the on-going series of Professional Development for school leaders, will focus on understanding the needs of diverse learners, including the following: children of poverty, English Language Learners, African-American males, and Exceptional Children. The PD is scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Hilton North Raleigh/Midtown on Wake Forest Road in Raleigh. Detailed registration information is available on the NCDPI DST wiki site, http://dst.ncdpi.wikispaces.net. MORE INFO: Donna Miller, District and School Transformation, donna.miller@dpi.nc.gov Leadership Academy Cohorts Share Good News State Superintendent June Atkinson recognized Wiley Elementary School in Guilford County Schools at the State Board of Education’s January board meeting. Piedmont Triad Leadership Academy Cohort 2 graduate Chelsea Smith is the assistant principal at the school, which was recently named a 2013-14 Title I Distinguished School. Smith and her principal Tavy Fields were recognized, and they presented highlights of their school’s successes. Cohort 1 graduate Shadonna Gunn, principal of Grove Park Elementary School in Alamance-Burlington Schools, was be a guest panelist for the Governor Jim Holshouser Legislators Retreat in Greensboro on Jan. 14. She spoke to legislators about her role in education. Gunn was one of only a handful of principals who provided legislators “with first- hand accounts of the successes and challenges of new educator effectiveness initiatives and student assessments.” MORE INFO: Freda Lee, Teacher and Leader Preparation, freda.lee@dpi.nc.gov What’s Coming in Schoolnet in 2014 There are many things to look forward to in the new year, and Schoolnet’s increasing resources are among them. The NCDPI is continually seeking and vetting great resources and assessment items and expanding the set of tools available to teachers in the platform. We are especially excited about the potential Schoolnet offers in gathering and sharing great work from and among North Carolina’s teachers. Excellent lesson plans, units and assessments all are coming forth from teachers across the state, and Schoolnet offers educators an opportunity to highlight and share that great work. You can find a chart outlining what’s to come this year, at http://goo.gl/MWbszP. MORE INFO: Mike Martin, Policy and Planning, mike.martin@dpi.nc.gov. RACE TO THE TOP WEEKLY UPDATE INFO If you know someone who would like to be on this list, please send their email address(es) to Michael.Yarbrough@dpi.nc.gov. ***LINKS: PC users might need to press the CTRL button when clicking on a hyperlink in this document. Archived Race to the Top Weekly Updates are available online at: http://www.ncpublicschools.org/rttt/reports/weekly