MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN THE MIDDLE
TRANSFORMING AND REBOOTING CULTURE!
PURPOSEFULLY DESIGNING A COLLABORATIVE CULTURE
OBSESSED WITH LEARNING FOR STUDENTS AND ADULTS
Based on the research of :
Rick DuFour, Anthony Muhammad, and Kent Peterson and Terrance Deal
AND THE AMAZING EDUCATION PROFESSIONALS AT OLIVE PEIRCE
MIDDLE SCHOOL!!
Prepared For Schools To Watch CONFERENCE
June 20-23, 2012
Olive Peirce Middle School
A Professional Learning Community and A School To Watch
Linda Solis
Principal
Missy Cobian
Library/Tech/Media Specialist
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SHAPING POSITIVE AND TRANSFORMING
TOXIC SCHOOL CULTURES
---Deal and Peterson, Shaping School Culture
• STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN
• CELEBRATE
• WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS
• WIND BENEATH MY WINGS
• WE ARE FAMILY
• THE HERO IS IN YOU
• LEAN ON ME
• AIN’T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH
ENOUGH
• ANTICIPATION
• YESTERDAY
• TEQUILA SUNRISE
• I DID IT MY WAY
•LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE
•I CAN’T GET NO SATISFACTION
•WHO LET THE DOGS OUT?
• BAD TO THE BONE
• THE LONG AND WINDING Road
• I WILL SURVIVE
• SHE WORKS HARD FOR THE
MONEY
• YOU CAN’T ALWAYS GET WHAT
YOU WANT
• 16 TONS
• TAKE THIS JOB AND SHOVE IT
• HELP!
• 8 DAYS A WEEK
• HARD DAY’S NIGHT
• RESPECT
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IT’S ALL ABOUT THE
CULTURE!
 Culture is defined as our beliefs, practices,
behaviors, and norms of our organization.
 This is where many school leaders and reformers
fear to tread…BUT…it IS the place that holds the
biggest keys to unlocking the potential of all our
schools.
 Building, nurturing, and sustaining a positive,
collaborative culture…focused on LEARNING for
ALL members of the school community…is THE
most important job for LEADERS in any school.
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CULTURE…
IT IS A POWERFUL FORCE!
Culture…NO WHERE ELSE
will impact significant
change!
4
If the fish in your aquarium are not as
healthy as they should be . . .
Don’t blame the fish!
Instead, consider changing the water.
---Kent Peterson
CULTURE!
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HALLMARKS OF A TOXIC SCHOOL CULTURE
Staff does NOT believe in the ability of ALL students to learn and succeed.
They articulate the belief in overt ways that student success is based on the students’
level of concern, attentiveness, prior knowledge, and willingness to COMPLY!
HALLMARKS OF A POSITIVE SCHOOL CULTURE
The staff REALLY DOES BELIEVE that ALL children can learn because of what the staff does.
The staff creates policies and procedures and adopt practices that support their belief in the ability of
every student. For example:
ZAP
PYRAMID OF INTERVENTIONS DURING THE SCHOOL DAY
RE-TAKES AND RE-DO’S
BYOT
GRADES THAT REFLECT LEARNING
ACE REWARDS CARDS/4.0
CELEBRATING SUCCESSES
There is a set of values that supports professional development, a sense of responsibility for student
learning, and a positive, caring atmosphere.
---Peterson, Is Your School Culture Toxic or Positive? 2002
GUIDING THE CULTURE OF THE
SCHOOL….
•….is one of the most important things that a
principal has to do.
•Unfortunately, it's also the most difficult.
Many principals are stuck by the question,
'How do I get from where I am to where I
want the school to be?'
IN THE BEGINNING…
THE ONLY THING WE HAD IN COMMON WAS OUR
STAFF PARKING LOT AND THE TEXTBOOKS WE USED.
OUR CULTURE WAS BASED ON THE
BELIEF THAT THESE ARE MY KIDS, THIS
IS MY CLASSROOM, AND I AM THE
RULER OF MY KINGDOM!
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SO, WE ASKED OURSELVES THIS
QUESTION:
WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES OF
TEACHER ISOLATION IN OUR
SCHOOL?
Just leave me alone
and let me teach!
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THE BEGINNING OF CHANGE FOR OPMS
…WE STARTED READING…TOGETHER!
We made a
commitment to reading
professional literature
every SUMMER… and
Teams led discussions
and professional learning
activities throughout the
next year.
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SUMMER PROFESSIONAL READING FOR
2012-2013
THE OPMS TURNING POINT…
WE NEEDED TO CHANGE OUR MENTAL MODEL OF THE
PURPOSE OF “SCHOOL”
WE PURPOSEFULLY
TRANSFORMED AND
RE-BOOTED
OUR CULTURE AROUND THE PLC
SCHOOL MODEL!
It took TIME…15 Years to be EXACT!
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In a PLC adult
learning…team learning…
is just as important as
student learning.
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Welcome To Our PLC!
•OPT is live 180 days
•Grant-Funded Television Studio
•Teachers are Guest Anchors
•We retain only 10% of what we hear
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STRUCTURE!
wins every time….
… ALWAYS!
When you change the “water”
(environment) AND the
structure, you change the
people.
---B. Fuller (with slight adaptation by Linda Solis)
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STRUCTURAL AND CULTURAL CHANGES WE’VE MADE…
SUPPORTED BY COLLECTIVE COMMITMENTS
 A COLLECTIVE BELIEF:
ALL STUDENTS CAN AND WILL LEARN AT HIGH LEVELS WITH OUR SUPPORT AND HELP. WE WILL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES!
 A CULTURE OF RELATIONAL LEARNING
 A CULTURE OF COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS
 VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL TEAMS:
Interdisciplinary and Academic Content Cohorts
 ACADEMIC CORE DATA TEAMS:
Directly focused on student achievement
Meet Monthly with Principal and Assistant Principal
Use of student DATA is constant
Examining student work is a common practice
Focus on improving pedagogy /instructional strategies/common assessments—both FORMATIVE and SUMMATIVE
Develops the “teaching capacity” of the entire school by sharing the strengths and mitigating the weaknesses of each
teacher
 COMMON PREPS:
Academic Core Teams
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 Classroom Proximity:
By Teams
 Rotating Block Schedule:
Extends Learning and Collaboration Time
Monday: 1-7, Tuesday: 2-4-6, Wednesday: 3-5-7, Thursday: 2-6-4, Friday: 3-7-5
 ACE- ACademic Enhancement:
Focus on Building Relationships, Developing SMART Goals,
Analyzing Learning Growth
 SSR:
School-wide Literacy Block after OPT
 Student Game Plans:
Developed as a Team and emailed to all teammates by 3:30
Friday afternoon
 Commitment To:
GRR Instructional Model
Continuous Professional Learning
Daily Broadcast, OPT!
•4.0 Nation!
•Heterogeneous Classes
•Adolescent Brain Research
•21st Century Learning Environment
•Technology used to engage and support learning
•RTI2 / Pyramid of Interventions DURING THE
SCHOOL DAY!
•Tables, not desks!
•Teacher modeling and Brain Camp
Teamwork is the ultimate competitive
advantage and it is powerful but rare. If you
could get all the people in an organization
rowing in the same direction, you could
dominate any industry, in any market, against
any competitor, at any time.
---Patrick Lencioni
http://youtu.be/mR0_SK1K8xY
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OUR COLLABORATION STRUCTURE:
VERTICAL TEAMS:
Grade Level Academic Core Content
 P.E. and Elective Teachers
HORIZONTAL TEAMS:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
ACADEMIC CORE CONTENT TEAMS
COMMON PREP
COMMON LESSONS
COMMON ASSESSMENTS
COMMON INSTRUCTION
COMMON GRADING PRACTICES
COMMON RESULTS
Collaborative Data Analysis
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Strategies to Create Time for
Collaboration
SCHEDULE COMMON PREP TIME-Casino Style
 Identify Essential Learning Targets, Design
Instructional Plans, email to ALL Teammates,
Common Assessments, Analysis, RTi2.
NO SUPERVISION DUTIES
 Keep the “runway” free of obstacles…clear learning
path to success…IF LEARNING IS THE TARGET!
 Assemblies- Teachers escort students to PAC and
then return to collaborate. Life Guard Team
supervises all assemblies
BLOCK SCHEDULE
 Time should serve students’ learning---NOT a longstanding Master Schedule Tradition!
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MONTHLY S.T.A.R.S. COLLABORATIONS
School Teams Achieving Results for Students
FOCUS ON OUR CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL LEARNING:
The premise of PLCs is that “adult learning precedes student learning.” Teachers and other
staff members learn together so that we can assist students in their learning. Teaching quality is
increased by continuous professional learning---the heart, soul, and rationale for the creation and
maintenance of the PLC.
---R. DuFour
(Table toppers and norms!)
MONTHLY VERTICAL TEAM COLLABORATIONS
FOCUS ON OUR STUDENTS CONTINUED GROWTH AND LEARNING
 THE HOPE FOR THE FUTURE: THE INCREDIBLE POWER OF A WONDERFUL TEACHER
 If students are under-resourced, does that doom them for life? Not if they’re lucky to have a couple
of good teachers.
CLMS SUMMER INSTITUTE, JULY 22-24. 2012
Rancho Mirage
Kate Kinsella, Ruby Payne, Rita Pierson
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TEAM SMART GOAL
2011-2012
Team______________________
_________ Quarter
Percentage of students scoring AT proficiency or higher in____________________
_______________________will INCREASE from ______% to _____% by the end
of_________________________________ as measured by______________________
administered on______________________.
REDUCE the percentage of students scoring B/BB/FBB by_______% on the
_________________________________________________Common Assessment
administered on___________.
Committed To By:______________________________________________________
Teammates’ Signatures
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QUARTERLY TEAM SMART
GOAL PRESENTATIONS
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EXPECTATIONS AT THE GREATEST MIDDLE SCHOOL IN
THE INNER PLANETARY GALACTIC SOLAR SYSTEM
TEACHER RESPONSIBILITY
Focus Lesson
I do it
Guided Instruction
We do it
Collaborative
Independent
You do it together
You do it alone
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITY
Gradual Release of Responsibility
A Model for Success for All Students
Fisher, D., & Frey, N. (2008). Better learning through structured teaching: A framework for the gradual release of responsibility.
Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
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The PURPOSE Today Is….
The Purpose Today Is…
GOOD SEEDS GROW IN STRONG
CULTURES
http://youtu.be/tzY7qQFij_M
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OPMS WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN
RECOGNIZED AS A SCHOOL TO
WATCH THIS YEAR, IF WE HAD
NOT…
If We Don’t Build The Schools With
The Cultures We Dream Of…
They Won’t Be There For Them…
ALL Of Them!
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GO FORTH AND BUILD!!!
KIDS ARE COUNTING ON US!
Thank You!
 Linda Solis lsolis@ramonausd.net
 Missy Cobian mcobian@ramonausd.net
 OPMS Schools to Watch Prezi:
 http://prezi.com/q9h1fj54uatb/opms-our-house/