April+2012+Newsletter



Welcome the second Teaching and Learning Coaches newsletter for 2012**. **We would like to share with you some of the work that the coaches have undertaken in the following areas of focus and present our plans for Term 2. •Work with staff individually and in small groups on improving their instructional practice. • Maintain the approach that coaching sessions are teacher-centred, focusing on their identified professional learning goals. In this way, coaching cycles are individualised professional development programs. • Support staff to engage with literacy and numeracy data that enables them to plan more effectively to meet the learning needs of their students. • Support staff to engage effectively with the 1:1 notebook program • Participate in the school review.

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Many teachers continue to access the coaches for individualised professional development. Some are engaged in a time-bound coaching cycle, generally for 8 weeks. In the first session, they have articulated their professional learning goal. From there, the teacher and coach have identified what data they will need to collect to establish if this goal has been met. Often, this means collecting baseline data, e.g. through tests, surveys or observations, then gathering data in the same way later in the cycle. Following this, the teacher and coach collaborate on strategies the teacher can use to achieve this goal. Throughout the 8 week cycle, specific steps are identified to support progress to achieve the teacher’s goal. =====

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Other approaches to coaching sessions are more fluid. For example, some teachers work with a coach for a longer period of time, with specific goals being identified along the way. Sometimes, these goals are rearticulated as the teacher’s insights into their practice develop. Similarly, data is collected and analysed along the way. =====

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Some teachers are working with coaches to support their engagement with whole school initiatives, such as eLearning or the professional learning team pilot program. Others have more personally defined goals that fit with the specific stage in their progression as a teacher. The key idea that links all these is that they have identified their goals, and they are looking at strategies to embed changes in their practice that enhance students’ learning. =====

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 * M **** aintain the approach that coaching sessions are teacher-centred, focusing on their identified professional learning goals. In this way, coaching cycles are individualised professional development programs. **=====

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Coaching sessions are teacher-centred, focusing on an individual’s identified professional learning goals. Each year in the Performance and Development plan teachers identify three goals; a Teaching and Learning goal, an ICT goal and Personal Professional Growth goal. Professional Development to support the achievement of these goals can be accessed through external P.D. providers and by the Professional Development program that is offered internally at Eltham High school. At an individual level coaching can provide conversations that assist to elicit goals and targets, plan professional learning, provide professional resources and support the individual’s individual professional development program. =====

In Term 1 coaches worked with teachers to set goals in the following areas:

 * =====How to build a collaborative culture =====
 * =====Instructional strategies =====
 * =====Assessment as a learning tool =====
 * =====Data analysis =====
 * =====Differentiation of instruction to meet student needs =====

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Throughout Term 1, 2012, the TLC team has worked with a number staff in different ways to support engagement with and use of data collected over previous years as a planning tool. All staff were supported to view and discuss the data presented on SPA in Teams, and evaluate this data in light of their own teacher judgments. =====

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Many staff have also worked with members of the TLC team to look at the data gathered from ODT, NAPLAN and also VCAA and Carmel Richardson in greater depth and explored teaching strategies in response to this analysis. =====

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Staff will continue to be supported by the TLC team to engage with the data available for their students in order to assist them to plan more effectively to meet the learning needs of their students. =====

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All Junior School and Middle School students who have completed their paperwork correctly have now been allocated a notebook. There are 212 year 7s, 218 year 8s and 454 middle school students. The coaches are planning to increase the ICT PD that is offered to complement the increase in student access to notebooks. =====

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We would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and congratulate the IT department on their professional and hardworking approach to the deployment of nearly 900 notebooks to our students. The notebooks will be a key tool in enriching the learning of our students. =====

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In term 2 the eLearning Team will be focusing on Cyber Safety and the safe use of technology for all students, parents and teachers. We have a performance of Phunktional by the Nillumbik Council on the 11th May for our year 8 students. A parent forum is being organised during the term where there will be opportunities for parents to discuss strategies they use in the home for supporting the safe use of technology. We also have some guest speakers. Dates will be confirmed in a future newsletter. There is professional development being offered within school to teachers by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) called Connect.Ed. Visit their website www.cybersmart.gov.au and watch their International award winning short film Tagged. =====

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Have you ever wished you could have students work together on one document while on different machines? Have you ever been working with a colleague but having the time to meet has been a factor? Have you ever wanted to collect lots of information such as health and safety records, work experience details or a survey of students? Have you ever wanted to set a quiz that can grade itself and offer feedback to students? =====

** Google Docs ** is a free easy to use suite of software that can be used across all subject areas with students of all ages.

 * Students can: **

Collaborate with each other on group projects or assignments

 * Teachers can: **

** Comic Life ** enables students to present work in comic book format. Comics can help students analyze, synthesize and absorb content that may be more difficult when presented in only one way.

 * Students can: **

Illustrate dialogue in real life, historical or fictional scenarios

 * Teachers can: **

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 * OneNote ** is a note taking and information management program that allows individuals or teams to capture ideas and information in electronic form. It is the electronic version of the three-ring binder with lots of tabs! =====
 * Students can: **

As part of a jigsaw activity, teams of students can investigate and gather specific information to complete a task, then collate it as a whole class or group

 * Teachers can: **

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There are 5 ipads that are in the library and are available for class use. They will only be lent out together, not individually. Apps can be downloaded onto the ipads. Please see John Gioskos with your app requests as the ipads are synced through a particular MacBook and can be loaded automatically on each ipads at the same time. =====

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There are 2 links on this site under “additional teacher resources”. The first is a pdf file and from about page 12, showcases a number of DEECD selected apps for a range of learning areas. The second is a link to a webpage that showcases a collection of apps for education. Have a look under the tabs across the top of the page for areas of interest. =====