Strategic Planning Committee

2nd February, 2004

 

 

Richard Bonnell                                    Kirby Olson

Dabs Hollimon                          Edie Gross

David Gibbs                                         Ricki Brady

Kay Magness                                       Martha Rouse

Fritz Norman                                        Dick Wilson

Deb Pannabecker                                 Roger Ruder

Bruce Cannon                                      Ron Bolin

Rita Polen

 

Recorders:        Fritz Norman (computer)

                        Dabs Hollimon (written)

Facilitator:        Dick Wilson

 

1. Shared Integrated Performance Task Presentations ES, MS, HS

 

ES:  Mrs. Heinz and Mrs. Gross:  Integrated Literature with Weather (lasts all school- year):  Gather data, graph, and solve problems.  Daily activities include clothing appropriate to weather conditions.  Use charts and graphs to accumulate data on the cloudy, rainy, sunny, hot, cold days in each month.  Compare weather across time (months).  Write their findings in Journal.  This performance task integrates Science, Language Arts, and Mathematics.

 

MS:  Mrs. Dianne Hogan:  Integrates LA, Math, Science, Social Studies, Reading, with help from Ms. Callsen, Ms. Zinn, and Ms. Magness via the Challenger Center at Brooks AFB-City Base.  1300 space missions in three years!  Actual flight instructors are involved in cooperation with teachers.  The Challenger Center includes a simulated space mission control.  Students learn to take and give orders, and to read memos. LA is thus involved in the communications.  Science does physiology.  Math does graphs and charts from data.  Students are assigned to stations including navigation, probe, communication officer, data officer.  Probe searches for a comet, builds a probe, and sends it to the tail of the comet from which it is to send back information.  This involves research and data analysis.  The Challenger Center employs the theory of Learning through Involvement. Social Studies, includes Latitude and Longitude, also internet research on NASA.  Teachers are trained.  This occurs yearly.  A rubric is used including such questions as what did you do?  What was your task?  How does this apply to your academic areas?

 

HS:  Ms. Magnon: This performance task includes most of the 9th grade students.  Ms. Magnon brought a binder with examples of APC and rubric.  The topic is all about the Wetlands (and integrates LA, SS, Math, & Sci).  A checklist is used in Biology and in SS.  Biology and Geography students collected data in class.  Data on water from Biology went into Algebra class for patterns, graphing, and interpretations.  Predictions were then made and passed back into the Biology, Geography, and English classes.  Proposal for a public service campaign is made to satisfy economics and ecology for use of wetlands.  Public service campaign is to inspire otherwise apathetic citizens.  This integrated performance task was found to have covered more content and TEKS in less time, with greater involvement of students between classes, than would otherwise have been the case.  Wetlands clean polluted water. Harbor millions of birds.  The students learned more and interacted more between classes and were more motivated as well.

 

2.         Update by Research Skills Subcommittee: 

 

Roger Ruder stated the goal is to develop a product rubric that all/most HS students/classes can use.  Process alignment will be MLA and the Big Six so that all research papers will be written much the same way, with assessment rubrics essentially the same.  A rubric was provided by Kay Magness, to be adapted for grade levels and content areas.  HS and MS teachers from content areas are involved.

 

3.  Update on the Curriculum Criteria Subcommittee:

 

Kay Magness stated that the subcommittee is searching for a general rubric/continuum that teachers can use to determine whether their Integrated Performance Task is effective with separate applications for AP courses.  A seven-step continuum has been drafted.  The goal is to write a continuum this year, and to present it to the faculty/administration next year.

 

4. Update on the Graduate Survey Subcommittee:

 

The Graduate Exit Survey, done by Life Track, was presented by Rita Polen.  The no opinion option is to be removed.  Page 14 is to change because the responses to rate your educational experience at RFISD are inappropriate.  The attempt is to get responses from people that graduated in the past, realizing that their responses would be more effective.  Cost is $7 per person.  We could do the survey on our website and save money.  This could be done after Spring Break.  Goal is to do this with seniors, and then follow up over the next several years with our alumni.  Ron Bolin agreed that this can be done with a web page, and can serve as a focus for Alumni.  The goal is to set it up to be done electronically, thus eliminating paperwork and cost, while saving money and time.  The SPC agreed to not use Life Track this year, to have Mr. Ron Bolin set it up to score automatically, and for this year (as a backup in case it is not ready for use before we administer the GES), Mr. Roger Ruder has agreed to serve as the backup, to score the GES manually, if needed.

 

The next meeting will be held on the 4th of May, and should consist of additional IPT reports, and subcommittee results.  We also will discuss where we will go with the curriculum development next year.