Interview
with a STAR Tech Champion
Champion:
Harriet Copel
Position: Assistant Superintendent for Operations and Technology
District: Oyster Bay-East Norwich Central School District, Long
Island, NY
Context: District-wide Implementation 2002-2003
- What
were your major responsibilities as the champion?
- How
did you support principals?
- How
did you support facilitators?
- In
what ways did STAR Tech help meet the goal of collaboration?
- What
factors contributed to the success of this effort?
- What
challenges did you encounter along the way? How did you overcome them?
- What
did you learn about professional development and teacher change?
- What
did you learn about implementing a comprehensive professional development
program across a district?
- What
advice would you give other champions?
- Do
you have any concluding remarks?
1. What
were your major responsibilities as the champion?
I followed the
basic steps of implementation outlined in the guidelines. We have
a small district, which means I can easily connect with the superintendent
and the assistant superintendent for curriculum. They were the first
ones I contacted to begin the exploration and planning process in
the late winter. They saw the value of this program, connecting it
with the larger district goal to “make a good school district
great” through teacher collaboration.
To introduce the STAR Tech program to principals, district curriculum
supervisors, and selected teachers, we held an awareness session in
the spring. Once again the response was positive. Knowing that we
were going ahead, we had to decide about the scope: One or more schools?
One or more departments? The whole district? The decision, with input
from all, was to implement STAR Tech district-wide. That meant that
all the teachers were expected to participate. Working with other
administrators, I was able to arrange the next year’s schedule.
Two required afternoon meetings each month would be devoted to the
STAR Cycle for holding team meetings. During the summer I solicited
facilitators through a district-wide mailing. I also worked closely
with each principal to select the facilitators for his or her school.
For start-up, I arranged to have a kick-off meeting with facilitators.
They participated in a day of training on the LASW process, followed
by coaching for their first team meeting.
During the ensuing implementation phase, I met regularly with facilitators
to debrief. We discussed what was working, what needed to be strengthened,
what supports they needed, etc. If needed, I would offer to come to
a team meeting to help make modifications to the process. One team
took me up on this. I also wanted to deepen the conversation among
facilitators and teams to focus on scientifically-based strategies.
We would discuss these strategies at our facilitator meetings and
find ways that facilitators could bring the ideas back to their teams.
I also wanted to make sure that the other district leaders stayed
informed. Therefore, periodically at our administrative council meetings,
I provided updated summaries of the progress of the teams. We encouraged
feedback from administrators and teachers and listened to their suggestions
for improving the program. The explicit support from the superintendent
encouraged everyone to want to make sure the program was a success.
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2. How
did you support principals?
We wanted this
project to be a logical extension of our principals’ work related
to professional development, which included regularly conducting grade-level
meetings and facilitating ongoing conversations among staff about
instruction, teaching, and learning. I worked with all the principals
to connect the project with all areas of curriculum and instruction.
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3. How
did you support facilitators?
The debriefing
meetings for facilitators were held during after-school hours. Our
budget for the project covered paying the facilitators for their time
at contractual rates. As the momentum within teams grew, there were
requests, as expected, for low-, mid-, and high-tech tools. We made
every effort to address these requests. I also provided ongoing encouragement
and support through my relationships with facilitators. I made myself
available to meet with the facilitators to listen to their concerns
and collaborate on solving problems.
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4. In
what ways did STAR Tech help meet the goal of collaboration?
Teachers came
to the team meetings prepared and ready to collaborate. With guidance
from the facilitators, they followed the protocol. This meant that
their time together was extremely productive. As a result, facilitators
and teachers reported that the team meetings became a venue for learning
about instructional practices, how to integrate technology, and how
to assess students. Over time, teachers became more comfortable with
one another, deepened their respect for each other, and grew in their
own self-esteem as professionals. Even outside of the team meetings,
they sought out a wider group of colleagues from different grade levels
and subject areas, asking for suggestions and sharing their practices.
We were very impressed with the results at the secondary level. Not
only did subject area teachers have an opportunity to discuss their
students’ work with everyone in their department from grades
7-12, but they also had access to special education teachers who worked
with students in their classes. As a result of this new collaborative
structure, teachers explored specific strategies to improve student
achievement and improve results on exams required for high school
graduation.
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5. What
factors contributed to the success of this effort?
Let me list the
key factors:
- We set the stage
for the program during the previous June, so there were few surprises.
- We mandated participation
in the program and found regular time for meetings during the workday.
- When school started
this year, everyone received a calendar of scheduled meetings. This
made the plan explicit from the start.
- We paid the facilitators,
acknowledging that this was an important role.
- From the outset,
we told teachers and facilitators that this program would be sustained
over time.
- As part of our
formative evaluation, we asked facilitators to suggest how to make
the program work better in order to help teachers improve student
achievement.
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6. What
challenges did you encounter along the way? How did you overcome them?
One of our challenges
had to do with scheduling. We formed separate teams for the Art, Music,
and Physical Education & Health Departments. Each team included
teachers from kindergarten through grade 12. The challenge was in
scheduling meetings because the teachers came from different schools
and their days ended at different times. We have not solved this one
yet. But I do want to report that attendance at team meetings is excellent
because our teachers find the collaboration so valuable.
Another challenge we will address is principals sitting in on team
meetings. Because we wanted to give teachers ownership over the collaborative
team meetings, we suggested that principals not attend the meetings,
unless invited. However, principals were interested in the program
and wanted to see the process in person. We need good strategies for
balancing teachers’ needs with principals’ desire to be
involved.
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7. What
did you learn about professional development and teacher change?
I am learning
about informal ways to document teacher change. My ongoing debriefing
sessions with facilitators, informal check-ins with teachers, requests
for technology tools, and evidence of change in student work, all
indicate that teachers are using the meetings purposefully, deepening
their knowledge, and implementing new strategies.
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8.
What did you learn about implementing a comprehensive professional
development program across a district?
That you can do
it! Absolutely! It requires resources and the support of the superintendent,
board of education, and teachers. The factor that really makes a difference
is building the program into the teachers’ school day. Just as
important, you need to be flexible and address changing conditions
as they occur.
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9. What
advice would you give other champions?
Here are two tips.
First, make sure that teams do not veer away from the protocol during
team meetings. No matter what teachers are talking about in meetings,
they should follow the protocol. For example, if they are discussing
a professional article, they can adhere to the protocol so that everyone
has several opportunities to participate. Second, make sure that the
expectation is clear that teachers will translate ideas into practice.
The team meeting is the springboard for classroom change.
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10. Do
you have any concluding remarks?
Many of my teachers
have said that this was the most effective professional development
program they have ever participated in. The program provided ongoing
support, collaborative relationships with peers, techniques for integrating
technology, and guidance on implementing scientifically-based strategies.
We are planning to deepen the work next year by focusing even more
on student outcomes. I know others will find this model powerful too.
Good luck!!!
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