Elementary Trimesters Presentation to the Board of Directors Emily Gainor - 2nd Grade Teacher Amy McKelvey - Instrumental Music Teacher Christy Sauers - Kindergarten Teacher Stephanie Welak - 5th Grade Teacher
Quarters vs. Trimesters Quarters Trimesters 4 Times Per Year 3 Times Per Year Report Cards 10/29, 1/17, 3/26, 6/4 11/19, 3/4, 6/4 Number of Trimester 1 = 61 Days Each Quarter = 46 Days Instructional Days Trimester 2 & 3 = 62 Days 2 Times Per Year 2 Times Per Year Parent/Teacher 11/6 & 11/7 (after Q 1) 11/25 & 11/26 (after T 1) Conferences 1/27 & 1/28 (after Q 2) 3/11 & 3/12 (after T 2)
Why Trimesters? Teachers requested trimesters. ● ● Provides more opportunities to build relationships and rapport with students before formal grade reporting. ● Gives teachers a longer window of time to provide instruction, collect and analyze data, monitor growth, and allow for reteaching and enrichment prior to formal grade reporting. Provides students with the time they need to reach the required levels of ● mastery of PA Core and Academic Standards prior to formal grade reporting. ● Shifts the focuses to the quality of student work. ● Greater focus on student learning rather than testing. There is a conference in the first and second half of the year. ●
Review Process Superintendent’s Advisory Committee ● Proposed Trimester Calendar was ● posted on the Website August 2018 Trimesters Committee Formed ● Visit to Derry Township School District ● Elementary Principals’ Meeting ● Special Education Director Input ● Faculty Meetings ● Parent Advisory Committee (PAC) ● PTA Meetings ● Teacher Survey ● Parent Survey ●
Teacher Survey Analysis ● 352 out of 423 Elementary Professional Staff Responded (83%) ● Teacher view on moving to trimesters: ○ 79.83% Like or Extremely Like ○ 4.54% Dislike or Extremely Dislike
Teacher Survey Analysis ● Science & Social St., Specials, K & 1st Grade grades: (352 Responses) ● Second conference moved from January to March: (352 Responses) ○ 63.92% Like ○ 13.64% Dislike ● Those with prior experience (child’s school, former teaching experience, etc). Only 60 of the 352 Responses had prior experience. ○ 88.33% of the 60 Liked trimesters ○ 11.67% of the 60 Disliked trimesters
Teacher Survey Analysis ● Advantages of Trimesters: (293 Responses) ○ More time... ■ between reports & IPRs to help students be successful; to see student growth ■ before 1st conference to get to know students (learning habits/abilities/etc.), establish classroom norms, and provide instruction ■ to implement interventions ■ to gather information/collect evidence of student learning & gauge student needs ■ between conferences ■ for students to set goals, master content, and improve grades ○ More information to provide parents at conferences ○ Less report card work but measuring the same amount of time - able to show more progress between report cards ○ Less focus on grades, more focus on growth, learning and mastering standards ○ Conferences in fall & spring; Conferences in March ○ Puts CDSD on par with surrounding districts including, but not limited to, Cumberland Valley, Derry Township, Lower Dauphin, and Palmyra
Teacher Survey Analysis ● Disadvantages of Trimesters: (276 Responses) ○ Change - teacher/parent understanding & adjustment; dealing with push back ■ This PowerPoint available on the District Website ○ Conference concerns - week of Thanksgiving; March is close to PSSAs/late in the year; affected by snow days; more time between teacher/parent face-to-face meeting ○ Grades: ■ More time between report cards & IPRs - less feedback ● Teachers are expected to continue to communicate regularly with parents ■ How grades are reported for Science/Social Studies/Specials/K/1st Grade ● All feedback will be considered when making this determination ■ May prevent identification of struggling students with fewer reported grades ● All schools are following the MTSS/RtII framework which includes ongoing review of student progress.
Teacher Survey Analysis ● Disadvantages of Trimesters: (276 Responses) ○ Scheduling: ■ Elementary grade reporting being different from secondary grade reporting ● There will be an adjustment period ■ More challenges for students transitioning from 5th to 6th grade ● We will look at how to best prepare the students ● Discussion with other districts - see no issues with student transition ○ Minor changes to the LA and Math curriculums to adjust to the schedule change ■ No foreseen changes to these curricular areas ○ IEPs that state progress reports are issued quarterly ■ Can still issue progress reports quarterly that are based on IEP goals
Teacher Survey Analysis ● Questions/Concerns - not previously addressed: (132 Responses) ○ How will the report card change to reflect trimesters (competencies)? ■ The competencies that teachers complete will be realigned to trimesters ○ Will personal leave the week of Thanksgiving be approved due to conferences? ■ The teacher contract will be followed ○ Would benchmarking be adjusted? ■ No - This will actually align better with benchmarking ○ Specials: teachers want input for grading decisions; move to O, S, N for grading; competencies only for trimesters 1 & 2 with a final grade for trimester 3. ■ Specials teachers will have an opportunity to give input ○ Only grade using competencies (no letter grade) ■ Standards-based report cards will be looked at in the future
Parent Survey Analysis ● 576 Parent Responses ● Parent view on moving to trimesters: ○ 60.94% Like or Extremely Like ○ 16.67% Dislike or Extremely Dislike
Parent Survey Analysis ● Science & Social St., Specials, K & 1st Grade grades: (576 Responses) ● Second conference moved from January to March: (576 Responses) ○ 46.70% Like ○ 34.55% Dislike
Parent Survey Analysis ● Advantages of Trimesters: (425 Responses) ○ More time... ■ between reports & IPRs to help students be successful ■ to get to know students (learning habits/abilities/etc.) before grades & conferences; for students to readjust after summer break; more information to provide to parents at November conferences ■ to provide instruction, reteach and evaluate student comprehension ■ to group students by levels, make accommodations, know student abilities ■ between conferences ■ for students to master content, improve grades, and show what they learned ○ Report cards and conferences spread evenly throughout the year; More efficient grading for teacher; More naturally divides up the school year ○ Better communication; Conferences in March; Conferences near Thanksgiving; Having conferences in both halves of the year ○ Able to show more progress between report cards ○ More focus on mastering skills ○ Better knowledge of my child’s academics
Parent Survey Analysis ● Disadvantages of Trimesters: (408 Responses) ○ Change - teacher/parent understanding & adjustment; less familiarity with schedule; confusion for parents who have children in both elementary and secondary schools ■ We will make this PowerPoint available on the District Website ○ Conferences/Communication: ■ Parent/teachers first meeting is later; longer time between major feedback; week of Thanksgiving ■ Lack of communication; Teachers must keep in contact with parents; Cannot wait until conference time for first contact ■ Teachers are expected to continue to communicate regularly with parents ○ Consistency with middle school calendar ■ We will look at how to best prepare the students ■ Discussion with other districts - see no issues with student transition ○ This is not teaching proper time management - will not help them in the future ■ We can still teach time management with a trimesters schedule
Parent Survey Analysis ● Disadvantages of Trimesters: (408 Responses) ○ Grades: ■ More time between report cards - less feedback ● Students will still be receiving regular feedback from their teachers ● A strong focus will continue on home/school communication ● Grades are available on HAC for 3rd - 5th grade ■ Students and parents not checking grades ● The district will continue to encourage parents and students to regularly check HAC ■ Limited time in 3rd trimester due to testing ● This actually alleviates the 4th marking period time issues caused by testing ■ Each trimester grade will hold more value ■ May take longer to notice a student is having difficulties and address needs ● All schools are following the MTSS/RtII framework which includes ongoing review of student progress.
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