About District 225 > District Initiatives
Curriculum and Instruction
Goal: Raise the level of student academic engagement.
Initiative 1: Collect measures of student engagement through classroom observations.
On December 5, teachers and administrators trained in Instructional Practices Inventory (IPI) will conduct classroom walkthroughs of those who elected to participate in the study. While not a tool for personnel evaluation, IPI focuses on student academic engagement. The data collected from this activity will be shared with staff in an effort to continuously improve the levels of student academic engagement and learning.
Initiative 2: Analyze results from 2012 High School Survey of Student Engagement (HSSSE) to identify general trends.
A subcommittee has begun comparing results of the 2012 survey to that of the 2010 version. They have identified questions from that survey that target student academic engagement. The data from the IPI walkthroughs (mentioned above) will be used in conjunction with the HSSSE information to reach conclusions on levels of student academic engagement.
Initiative 3: Survey teaching staff on student engagement.
The district is still exploring possible sources for a staff survey addressing student engagement.
Initiative 4: Conduct a study of homework.
A group of four teachers, two from both GBN and GBS, have volunteered to serve on a homework committee for the purpose of comparing our homework methods to best practices. The district will review current secondary research on the topic of homework and again utilize HSSSE survey data, which includes information on students’ experiences with homework. The team is also considering conducting focus groups with students and staff from GBN and GBS.
GBN is hosting a Flipped Classroom workshop on Saturday, December 1, which relates to the topic of homework. This will be hosted in partnership with the Illinois Computing Educators (ICE) and open to 150 teachers/administrators across the state.
Initiative 5: Conduct a pilot study of electronic learning.
The district will investigate how electronic learning and the prospect of digital textbooks impact the classroom experience for students and staff. During the 3rd quarter students will try both Chromebooks and Nexus 7 tablets. The district will use feedback from students and staff to determine how electronic learning will be implemented at the Glenbrooks.