Wacky Wednesday plan revealed
PEORIA -- In Peoria, less apparently is more.
Peoria School District's plan to cut the time primary pupils spend in school every Wednesday by 90 minutes to allow more time for teacher planning apparently has been approved by the Illinois State Board of Education. At least that's what school officials said at the July 7 School Board meeting.
The Peoria Regional Superintendent's office on July 8 released the plan, which is reproduced below. It makes the argument that more teacher planning will result in better academic achievement, then cites as proof the Edison Schools where children attend school for a longer time, and Roosevelt where the time will not be cut back.
It also states that the two high schools and three middle schools now "in restructuring status" which is educational jargon for failing academic test scores, "would also benefit from an early release"
Less is more.
The one wise idea in the plan is to change the six School Improvement Plan days to Wednesday, so at least the little darlings won't have two short days a week.
Here's the plan:
Proposed Schedule Change for 2008-09 Peoria Public Schools District 150
Background Information:
In an effort to increase student achievement and to help schools to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AY?), .it was determined that intensive, on-going professional development and teacher collaboration was necessary. Job embedded professional development and collaboration is well supported through research. Marzano and Associates, DuFour, DuFour and Eakcr, and Elmore, to name just a few, all have evidentiary support for the need to provide time for teachers to do professional work and the benefits students receive as a result,
In our own district, we have five (5) school sites with embedded professional time and all of these schools have made AYP. The extra time has provided invaluable reflective and coaching time through intentional design. At this time, our newly restructured high school has job embedded professional development time in order to meet the achievement crisis at this school. With changes in the law and challenges of the new knowledge era, education has become increasingly more complex. It is only appropriate that we take the time to reflect and improve upon our practice to improve student achievement.
Originally, the Board of Education approved a plan that provided a daily thirty (30) minute later start time and fifteen (15) minute early release time for twelve (12) primary schools, excluding Northmoor Edison, Franklin Edison, Roosevelt, and Valeska Hinton Early Childhood Center, all of which already have embedded time for professional development and collaboration, The original plan was a cost savings plan due to the financial deficit of the district. There was a hope that this time would be used for professional development and collaboration, but there was no guarantee this would happen daily due lo the language of the teacher contract. Due to parental concerns raised regarding the later start time, cost for additional child care and shortening of the instructional day, the Superintendent met with various parent groups and researched the economic pmspect (SIC) of the local area,
As a result of discussions with parents and the financial impact the original plan would have on families, the Superintendent changed the recommendation to the Board of Education to an early release of ninety (90) minutes for those twelve (12) primary schools every Wednesday. Since this would not interfere with the contractual preparation periods provided in the teacher contract, this would be used solely for professional development and collaboration. The Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday schedule would remain unchanged. The plan was to "bank" time for the early release as allowed in the School Code for school improvement purposes. The plan is to pilot the early release schedule with the primary schools during the 2008-0.9 school year with ongoing evaluation and expansion, of il(SIC) district-wide in the future.
Additionally, we have three (3) middle schools and two (2) high schools in restructuring status. The middle schools are requesting time for collaboration as well. They would also benefit from an early release.
It would be proposed that our current six (6) School Improvement Plan (SIP) days be changed to Wednesdays instead of Fridays in the upcoming school year in order to avoid having two (2) shortened schedule days in a week for primary schools, yet have scheduled SIP days for the other
schools.
Current School Schedules
Primary Schools 8:45 AM - 3:15 M
Middle Schools 7:55 AM- 2;25 PM
High Schools 7:25 AM - 2:25 PM
Roosevelt Magnet 8:30 Am - 3:30 PM
VHECEC 8:45 AM - 3:15 PM
Edison Schools 7:45 AM- 3:00 PM
Proposed School Schedules:
Primary Schools 8:45 A M - 3:15 PM (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday)
Primary Schools 8:45 AM - 1:45 PM (Wednesday)
Middle Schools 7:55 AM - 2:25 PM
High Schools 7:25 AM-2:25 PM
Roosevelt Magnet 8:30 Am. 3:30PM.
VHHCRC 8:45 AM - 3:15 PM
Edison Schools 7:45 AM 3 ;00 PM
Proposed Plan for Early Release on Wednesdays:
In an effort to provide time for professional development and teacher collaboration to improve the instructional practice of teachers, there would be an early release for twelve (12) primary schools of 90 minutes every Wednesday. This time would provide teachers with time to do the following:
•
analyze both formal and informal student assessment data
•
participate in professional development activities
related to District and School
Improvement Plans to increase student achievement
•
collaborate with other teachers at both the same grade
level (horizontal articulation) and
different
grade levels (vertical articulation)
•
develop and reflect upon lessons/assessments related to
the Illinois Learning Standards
that
have both relevance and rigor
•
problem solve (or both low and high performing students
who need interventions
•
develop interventions/strategies for increasing student
achievement as well as for
challenging
students who are gifted/talented both of whom may he in Tier IT and Tier III
•
plan and reflect upon implementation strategies for
Response to Intervention. (Rtl)
•
monitor student progress using benchmark assessment data
as well as iSAT, DIBELS, NWEA, etc, data
•
conduct notion research
• learn and use tools/new technology
Specific training would be done with administrators and teacher leaders from each school in the teaming/collaboration process. Ongoing evaluation of professional development activities and artifacts would occur to assure the time was being used properly and that district and school improvement activities were being addressed. The anticipated, benefits of the plan are teachers working together and sharing their knowledge and instructional practices; planning together; reflecting upon their instructional practices; and developing a shared mission and vision for their school, and students with, the end result of increasing student achievement.
Note -- This document may have been scanned before it reached me, as there are a couple of unreadable words in it. I added '(SIC)' by those words, to show they are in the original document.
I have requested the legal opinion from the ISBE, and hope to have that soon.
The District 150 Board meeting was a mess. If you want to watch it on YouTube click here.) The sound didn't work on the TV transmission, disappointing many home viewers. But when it finally came on, those who stuck around or taped it for later viewing saw Martha Ross, who lost a bid for board president, blast the apparent racist rumor mongering of another board member, allegedly Jim Stowell, who reportedly told people he wouldn't vote for her for various reasons that appear to be code for racism.
Ross, a black women who holds a Master's degree in psychology, has served on the board more than anyone else, and was reelected recently without opposition. She lost the board presidency 4-3, to Dr. David Gorenz, a physician and board chairman who has presided over the Wacky Wednesday and the Title I audit debacle. (See posts under Peoria School District 150 for stories on these issues.)
Supt. Ken Hinton interrupted Stowell's denials with his usual "it's all about the children" speech -- the children he will send to roam the streets every Wednesday afternoon -- and the meeting was quickly adjourned.
See a transcript of this exchange on the Peoria Chronicle site.
Ross would have had a better claim to the presidency if she had voted against Wacky Wednesdays. She voted for the plan.
She also could have played hard ball politics and traded her vote to Stowell for his vote for president, but apparently did not. Stowell voted against Wacky Wednesdays on June 16, but it passed 4-3.
-- Elaine Hopkins
UPDATE: Here's the legal opinion from the ISBE:
Illinois State Board of Education
100 Randolph Street, Suite 14-300.
Chicago, 60601-3268-3169
July 7,2008
Via Facsimile Transmission 672-6820
Peoria Public Schools District 150
3202 N.
Wisconsin Avenue
Peoria, Illinois 60613
Dear Mr. Hinton:
Initially, I would like to thank you for your prompt
response to the information I requested regarding the proposed schedule change
for Peoria Public School District 150 ("District 150") for the
2008-2009 school year. ISBE staff, including myself, has reviewed this
information (which I have attached to this letter), as well as information you
provided during our telephone conversation last week. Based on such
information, District 150's proposed school calendar for 2008-2009 is compliant
with the requirements of Section 18-8.05 of the Illinois School Code.
As with any proposal, compliance may be affected if
implementation diverges
from the proposal; however, again, based on our
discussions and the materials you submitted, this is a proposal that allows for
sufficient time in attendance units across the district such that the requisite
instructional minutes can be completed, subtracting lunch, recess, and passing
periods, while still allowing for banking of the necessary minutes to cover
early dismissal on Wednesday.
Please note, though, that in order to move forward with this plan, you will need to amend your current school calendar, which was approved by the Peoria County Regional Office of Education. The current approved calendar does not fully reflect the written proposal. Specifically, the calendar code Half-Day School Improvement Day (XHS) must be reflected for each day where early release time is used for School Improvement. To ensure that sufficient instruction time is being banked, please verify the Instructional Day Length reported on the calendar is an accurate reflection of the schools that are involved with the School Improvement activities stated in the proposal. Should you require any assistance in development of this updated district calendar, please feel free to contact Marj Beck, in our Funding and Disbursements Division. Ms. Beck can be reached at (217) 782-5256. The updated calendar should then be submitted to the Peoria County Regional Office of Education for approval.
I trust that this resolves the proposed school calendar inquiry presented by District 150 and the Peoria County Regional
Office of Education. Due to the time-sensitive nature of this matter, and given
the scheduled local school hoard meeting taking place this evening, I am
responding directly to the school district and will copy the Honorable Gerald
Brookhart, Regional Superintendent of Education for Peoria County, who, along
with Assistant Superintendent Jeffrey Nelson, has provided my office with
extremely helpful information and assistance relevant to this matter. Should
you have any further inquiries regarding the ISBE’s position on this matter,
please feel free to contact me at (312) 814-2223.
Very truly yours,
Darren Reisberg
General Counsel
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