2017-2018 Roundup: New Answers and More Questions

The 2017-2018 school year has been a tremendous success!  The stats below begin to tell the story of the work we've done this year:

But just as students’ work leads them to more complex questions in a PBL project, our own aims to have each student experience two high quality projects per year have led to inquiries that are more difficult to answer.  They focus on the art of teaching, the methods, and systems we can use to ensure deeper learning for our students.
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So to round out our year, we’ll share initial answers to this driving question: How can a school district transform the teaching and learning of over 9000 students across 9 schools, grades TK-12? We'll also share some of the new questions that will drive our learning in 2018-2019.

Press on an answer below to read more about that concept, or scroll through!

Answer #1: Creating culture begins with inclusion

​Answer #2:
​Making our thinking and work process visible shifts us to a culture of learning.

Answer #3:
​PBL is a strong method for student learning.

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Answer #1

In order to for us to find success, we needed everyone to be part of this journey.  That meant we needed to find a way to provide all stakeholders with a doorway into Project Based Learning.  We trained all of our teachers, but quickly learned that we needed to begin customizing and expanding our training about PBL to more groups.  We created customized PBL 101 and sustained support 201  workshops based on grade level and subject area, and are developing specialized 1-day trainings for PE teachers and teachers of mild-moderate and moderate-severe special education classes.  We've conducted workshops for principals throughout the course of the year focused on organization, instruction and management of schools, and have worked with parent facilitators to teach them about Project Based Learning so that they can support families at their school sites.  Not all will be teaching Project Based Learning in a classroom, but all need to know about its core concepts and strategies, and how they can support it through the work they do.  

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Answer #2

​We talked earlier in the first blog post about sharing our ideas with others as a means of improving them.  Over and over again we noticed a pattern emerging.  Principals were pleasantly surprised by the effective teaching practices being used in classrooms, only because they have very few opportunities to walk through classrooms.  The same occurred with teachers, who had opportunities to visit each other's classrooms this year.  

By seeing each other in action, we remove the assumptions and stories we develop, and find actual evidence of success.  We deepen our knowledge of the subject we're learning, helping us see the value in continued professional learning, and just as important, helps strengthen our personal culture as well.  The vulnerability we exhibit when sharing our practice helps make connections, develop authentic relationships and excitement, and creates investment. Sharing our practice has strengthened us as an organization, and has validated that we are all on this journey together.  In addition to teachers and principals, the families of SLUSD love seeing the work that is happening in classrooms.  We can hear the value of true engagement and participation from the family members of a student in Melissa Valdivia's classroom at Roosevelt Elementary school.

NEW QUESTIONS:
How can we bring the public into and through our projects?

How do we make our learning visible, from students to teachers to administrators?

How do we harness the assets of our stakeholder groups at each school site?​

Some schools found that school-wide projects and experiences that were highly visible created anticipation and excitement for investing more deeply in the work.  For example, when Monroe Elementary 4th grade teacher Michelle Henry-Ellis invited the whole school to participate in her project centered on the school garden, more teachers wanted to get involved and develop their own school garden projects.   At the same school, Principal Jeannette McNeil invited the community to a schoolwide PBL exhibition to provide feedback on student work for projects that were still in motion.  Families, students and teachers loved seeing and supporting the work of the other classrooms.

 

Answer #3

Teachers look for particular indicators to assess whether students have mastered content.  They want to see that students have internalized the purpose for learning, the path they took, successes and challenges, and are able to transfer their learning to other areas.  We're noticing that a well designed project acts as the vehicle for this type of deep learning.  Teacher Cindy Jimenez and her students from Wilson Elementary School illustrate these attributes in 

their reflections about a project that centered on designing dog sleds in connection with Akiak, a fictional tale about an injured dog in the Iditarod.    The students not only show knowledge about the anchor text and the science content, but also illustrate awareness about how they solve problems, how to speak effectively, and how to reflect.  Ms. Jimenez also scaffolds this thinking through her probing questions in the whole class reflection.  PBL provides opportunities for achieving skills and concepts outlined in standards, and also for developing 21st century success skills.

NEW QUESTIONS:
What are the indicators for student learning we can use to assess mastery?

How do we integrate PBL in and throughout our new ELA/ELD Programs?
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How can principals help support the planning and design of high quality PBL projects?

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San Leandro Unified School District is proud of the work we've done this year, and thanks all of the teachers, principals, families, and students for their hard work!  We look forward to 2018-2019, to finding new answers and new questions!