Interview Questions and Responses

Position of person interviewed: Assistant Superintendent of Schools

Size of School District:  6 elementary, 2 middle and 1 high school(s)

Number of years in district (in this position): 1 (was Asst. Principal 11/2 yrs and was Vice Principal 3 yrs in District prior to entering this position)

Professional Development: (Achieving Vision)

So many teachers regard Professional Development as a ≥one shot deal≈. Do you have suggestions to embed Professional Development into the daily lives of teachers?

-must be a year focus

-need to practice through in-service days and dept meetings with input from sup 

-have own turn key people trained to insititute it

-find out needs of staff through surveys and have presentations given by fellow staff members

-give credit on salary guide for attendance

-have teacher facilitator as resource person in school who trains teachers in classrooms to help in integration of topic  

Authentic Curriculum Connections (Real Life)

It seems many students find education disengaging. How can we increase student involvement in the curriculum process?

-authenticate the materials (use manipulatives like real coins, buy/sell stocks)

-aim to reflect relevant, useful and applicable to real life situations

-assist stdents to learn by doing in order to retain information

The New 3RsÓResearch, Reflect and Retain: (Meaningful Evaluation)

Many regard standardized testing as an ineffective measure of assessment. How can we change current assessment practices to better evaluate all student learning?

-Performance based assessment

-Trenton has models of PA and may institute this (conducted a pilot program of assessment strategies so test is not solely pencil/paper

-Districts were asked to pilot this new form of assessment and were given a small monetary sum.

-HSPA writing prompts

Community Connections across Contents: (Seamless connections)

We often hear the criticism that students are not making connections across the curriculum. How can we restructure curriculum to prevent subject matter isolation?

-curriculum mapping and distribute to each department for chance to see what is taught in different areas and where connections can be made.

-Example: Professions in Spanish class with resume writing and cover letter writing skills in Business course.

-English novels with Historical periods, art, music, etc

Teamwork: A Personal Commitment: (Teacher Teamwork)

Teachers often feel isolated in their classrooms. How can we foster a more collegial atmosphere/environment?

-common planning time

-teachers of same courses team plan

-inservices kept to similar teaching topics for teachers of same areas

Building Citizenship Through Discipline: Positive Approaches to Traditional Procedures: (Building Citizenship)

Often district disciplinary policies promote the exclusion of students who break rules. How can we make our disciplinary policies more inclusive?

-conflict resolution/ anger management

-write behavior plan / contract with students to give them opportunities to succeed

-Assign detention on personal time (Mon 3-6pm, Saturday, 9am - noon)

-In detention, discuss anger management strategies and conflict resolution. Students are responsible for producing something at end of detention time and a contract / behavior plan is agreed to.