professional development plan 9/27/2013

Week 5 Assignment 1, Part 3: Draft Professional Development Plan (20 points)
Due Week 5

Directions:

1. Complete a Draft Three-year Professional Development Plan. Feel free to utilize as much space as needed.  Refer to page 133 of your School Leader Internship text (3^rd edition) for  guidance.  (page123 in the 2^nd edition.)
2. Include specific information under each of the three to five goals/objectives of your plan, (you may not have all the specifics now) about who will serve as mentor, books to read, training sessions to attend, committees to serve on, as well as a focus on a skill or knowledge area while at work.  Include the dates, or estimated timelines, you plan to work on each goal and anticipated completion date.  Also include an evaluative statement that will signal completion of goal.  For example, one goal could be to learn how to develop a master schedule.  Your evaluative statement would be that I have developed a workable master schedule.
3. Upload the Draft Professional Development Plan into the course.
4. Upload the Draft Professional Development Plan to Tk20

Future Professional Development Plan---

I currently have a loose outline of a professional development plan. I have reviewed the Educational Leadership Policy Standards: ISLLC 2008.

These standards represent the broad, high-priority themes that education leaders must address in order to promote the success of every student.

These six standards call for:

1. Setting a widely shared vision for learning;

2. Developing a school culture and instructional program conducive to student learning and staff professional growth;

3. Ensuring effective management of the organization, operation, and resources for a safe, efficient, and effective learning environment;

4. Collaborating with faculty and community members, responding to diverse community interests and needs, and mobilizing community resources;

5. Acting with integrity, fairness, and in an ethical manner; and

6. Understanding, responding to, and influencing the political, social, legal, and cultural contexts.

My current mentor, who I work with on a daily basis, is Mr. Lupton, Assistant Principal of Memorial High School. I also have a second mentor Dr. Mitchell, Head Principal of Memorial High School. I work with Dr. Mitchell when I have questions that Mr. Lupton cannot answer.

I have completed 150 hours of internship time recorded in Summary Log but I still have not completed all 38 standards. I have several to complete. Two of my priority goals were to complete my Research Inquiry project and paper. I have completed this task and written my report as of this September 2013. I have turned in the Research Inquiry Paper with my resources and titles of the scholarly works I used to collect my data. Some of the works are listed below:

2010 Census Summary File 1—Bridge City city[machine-readable data files]/prepared by the U.S. Census Bureau,                  2011. Retrieved from: http://www.census.gov/2010census/data/

Dana, N.F. (2009). Leading with Passion and Knowledge: The Principal as Action Researcher.

Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Eagle, Eva. (1989) Socioeconomic status, family structure, and parental involvement: The

                correlates of achievement. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American

Educational Research Association (San Francisco, CA, March 27-31, 1989).

Epstein, J.L. (1987) Parent involvement: What research says to administrators. Education and

                Urban Society, 19(2), 119-137).

Henderson, A. T., & Berla, N. (Eds.). (1994). A new generation of evidence: The family is  

critical to student achievement (A report from the National Committee for citizens in

education). Washington, DC: Center for Law and Education.

National Coalition for Parent Involvement for Education/Public Education Network. (n.d.) NCLB  

action briefs: Adequate yearly progress (AYP). Washington, DC: Public Education

Network. Retrieved January 22, 2009, from:

http://www.publiceducation.org/portals/nclb/ayp/index.asp.No Child Left Behind - ED.gov - U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from: http://www2.ed.gov/policy/policy-               by-program.html

Payne, Ruby. (2001). A framework for understanding poverty. Highlands, Texas: aha!

Process, Inc.

Peña, Delores C. (2000). Parent involvement: Influencing factors and implications. The journal

of educational research. [Vol. 94(No.1)]

Tileston, Donna W., & Sandra K. Darling. (2008). Why culture counts: teaching children of

 poverty. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press, ISBN: 9781934009246

Whitaker, Todd. (2004) What great teachers do differently: 14 things that matter most. Eye on

                Education, Inc. Larchmont, NY.

Some of my weaknesses getting to this point were my familiarity with APA style. I still am still not as proficient as I would like to be. My Research Inquiry started in December 2012 and I completed all my Parent meetings and Parent sessions including the smaller intimate parent meetings by May 2013. I recorded my results and was able to write my Research Inquiry with the help and guidance during Internship for Supervisor class 5397. With this project I was able to practice all 6 skills listed under the Educational Leadership Policy Standards: ISLLC 2008.

Currently I still have 5 classes left thru Lamar University to earn my Master of Educational Leadership degree. I believe that I will use my new campus, Memorial High School, as a starting point to practice these skills on a smaller level. The future committee I would like to be part of is the School Improvement Plan. I would like to become part of a Committee that can change and shape school culture and create ties with the community and school. I plan to be part of the Committee for the upcoming school year 2014-2015.  I was able to attend the summer in-service covering the Needs Assessment report from the previous year. Teachers here evaluated the Report and discussed adopting a new mission statements and school vision.

scholary journal Eagle, Eva (part of my reserach and data collection)

Eva Eagle conducted a study with five parts over the background of students and home life. One of the five parts involved looking at parent and student involvement. The following was part of her findings.  

Eagle, Eva. Socioeconomic Status, Family Structure, and Parental

Involvement: The Correlates of Achievement. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (San Francisco, CA, March 27-31, 1989).

“Parental involvement in students' education was especially related to educational attainment. Students whose parents read to them frequently during childhood had higher levels of attainment by 1986: 21% among those with daily reading experiences compared to 14%among those with rare reading experiences.13Similarly, students who reported having a special place to study during high school were more likely to have enrolled in postsecondary education and to have completed four-year degrees. Most consistently related to educational attainment was parental involvement during high school. Figure 2 compares the educational attainment of students who experienced various levels of parental involvement during high school. Fully 80% of those whose parents were highly involved had enrolled in some form of postsecondary education by 1986, and 27% had received four-year degrees. In contrast, 57%of those with low involvement parents had enrolled and only eight percent had received degrees.”

what effective action research needs... (Dana, 2009)

Providing background information – This will state why I did the project what led me to the question and why it is important.

Sharing the Design of the Inquiry (Prodecdures, Data Collection, and Data Analysis) to show that I conducted the research in a systematic, intentional way.

Stating the Learning and Supporting the Statements with Data- The audieance becomes ready to understand my findings over my question. I build an argument to support my findings by providing data to support my findings. Dana claims that it is important to share the negative over your research inquiry questions so that we do not paint a picture that is unrealistic. (2009)

Providing Concluding Thoughs- will give the reader the answer to the intitial question. Often the concluding thoughts generate additional questions and further areas for inquiry.

half way thru

Other time spent tranlating letters, fylers home, and school information.

4 hours tranlsating and creating Spanish school supply lists for grade prek, k, 1st, and 2nd.
1 hour creating a Distict session title in Spanish

Recent hours spent on Action Research:

Febuaruy 11, 2013 Attended and hosted a session a the District Parent Fair for the Hispanic Parents who needed help translating or general school infomation in Spanish. 3 hours. (created survey, evaluated surveys, presented, and evaluated outcomes.)

March 5 2013 I spent 2 hours preparing for parents to arrive. I helped them fill out summer school sign up sheets and gave them general  infomartion over school events and student progress.

action plan reserach rough draft....a work in progress!

Action Research Project

Process overview

All of the following steps correspond to the Harris st al. text, but also address aspects of the Dana text as noted.

Examining the work: Setting the Foundation – Bridge City ISD is a small district with a growing population of LEP students. We currently have established a bilingual program with an ESL pullout. Most of the LEP students are Hispanic and are economically disadvantaged. I am a presently a bilingual kindergarten teacher with 18 LEP’s. Many of my parents do not feel comfortable participating in school events and are confused about the school environment, parent and student expectation, and the Bridge City ISD culture. There is no district translator and the only campus personnel who speak Spanish are also full time classroom teachers. The language barrier and lack of Spanish translated material only exaggerates the problem. I would like to have more involvement and assess the benefits of the involvement by reviewing sign in sheets and surveys returned.  If we research these areas and can find accurate answers we will see that involving the parent of a bilingual student will allow the bilingual student more room for growth academically and socially. The student will receive reinforcement at home and support. LEPS are also those students that the state has labeled at risk. LEPS are also part of the low economically disadvantaged groups. We usually see lower state test scores and a higher dropout rate. Involving parents and educating them in the importance of an education and their child’s future will help these students be more successful in the school environment.

Analyzing data – According to the Dana text School culture/community is one of the nine wonderings of school leaders. Inquiry concerning school climate or what Dana calls “School culture” is an important aspect of a school administrators job. The school culture shapes teachers staff and students. It affects the community and the daily routines of all involved. The principal must understand the school culture to better evaluate the need to shape or reinforce it. Valuable aspects of school culture can be reinforced or revitalized. (Dana 46) The school culture is experiencing change due to the growing numbers of LEP students. The school/district needs to find a way to incorporate them into the school culture.

I have asked the parents of LEP students to tell me what can be done to remedy some of the discomfort and help them understand the expectations and culture to help their child at home and in general with the everyday school environment. I have created a power point presentation and presented my findings and rational to my superintendent why an afterschool meeting with the LEP parents would be beneficial for the LEP student and parents. Parent involvement is very important for the economically disadvantaged student and even more so because they are also LEP students. Data shows that LEP students and economically disadvantaged students will have higher rates of failure and dropout. Providing needed services and making a comfortable environment for the parents will improve overall success of the student.

Engaging in Self-Reflection – It is important to reach the Hispanic community and LEP parents to form a positive community culture. I have blogged about the themes we have learned and applied much of what I have learned to begin and complete an action research question. According to the Dana text research inquiry is the preferred method of educational research. While the other two methods are antiquated and allow for an outsider to come in, research inquiry allows the administrator to take matters into their own hands. Being hands on will allow me to assess the problem from the inside and hopefully be the catalyst for change. Using this method I will be able to connect with the parents of LEP’s and pass on their needs and assessments of the school environment to administration. I will then be able to form some kind of agenda to present them with the information that will allow for better communication between the school environment and home. Judging the success of my project can be very difficult. It is left up to the parent to attend and as a school administrator you can only do so much to get them involved. I am in the process of creating a survey and look forward to meeting with Hispanic parents at the February 11th Parent Fair my district is holding. I really think research inquiry is going to help me find a way to reach the Hispanic parents which in turn will have positive effects on my Hispanic students. 

I learned that action research is not just a research paper as it once was thought to be. Instead it is a new method where you can dig deeper and ask questions that may have never been asked before. It allows for evaluation and ongoing changes to occur. I learned that it is very easy for an action researcher to lose sight of their actual question because so much information and or research can come up posing even more action research questions. You must stay focused and approach one question at a time. 

The program has taught me my weaknesses and strengths. I have had to look with in my own experiences and thoughts to develop an action research question that I was interested in and felt that I could be successful in. Parent involvement is a big piece of the administrators puzzle. It is an ongoing daily struggle to educate our parents on the school environment.

Exploring Programmatic Patterns – LEP numbers are on the rise across the state. Many of the smaller districts do not have the bilingual personnel to help create a welcoming environment.

Social justice is an ongoing area that must be evaluated by an administrator. Reaching out the economically disadvantaged parent will help the student according to ongoing research found in Ruby Pains work and other scholars. Darling, S., & Tileston, D.W. “Why Culture Counts: Teaching children of poverty.” Discusses the importance of reaching parents and claims that there is a positive trend in the economically disadvantaged student when parent involvement is reached.

Determining direction – My question is how to receive more parent involvement from parents of LEP students?

a.    The skills and resources needed are all present and able to be acquired. Meeting their demands or needs will still have to be assessed as soon as we survey parents and assess our resources to meet the demands. Helping them feel comfortable and providing needed services may in turn grow the parent involvement number of the parent trying to be reached. 

b.    I have established a working relationship with the Superintendent and my site supervisor. The District supports more parent involvement having myself as a bilingual presenter for the Hispanic parents is advancement in reaching the Hispanic non English speaking parents.

c.    My research action project is a very ripe and is in the beginning stages. I believe that I have set a firm foundation. Parent involvement is an ongoing goal of most school districts. It is cannot measured as successful because you will never have 100 percent. Offering them an opportunity to be involved and help with understanding is all we can do. They will have to apply it and use it to help their child be successful.

d.    As parent needs are met I will continue to evaluate the future needs that may arise therefore continuing active parent involvement with trust between both parties.  

Taking action for school improvement – I will meet with the LEP parents and hold a Spanish session at the February 11, 2013 Parent Fair. I will help with basic translations and answer any questions that the bilingual parent may have. I will hold to sessions and hand out a survey to assess basic needs they believe would be beneficial to them as the parents of LEP’s. I will then assess the requests and present my findings to my site supervisor. Depending on the needs and resources available every effort will be made to meet the needs of the parents and build  a positive parent school relationship during the May parent fair that will close out the school year.

Sustaining improvement – Ongoing outreach meetings and communication will be necessary to build a strong relationship between the non-English speaking parents of the LEP students and the school. Holding a session in their native language thru out all three district parent fair meetings will build a strong foundation for future positive communication and the assistance they need. I believe that I have set up a basic foundation for future parent involvement expectations. My only concern is that the success of my efforts will be hard to judge. I will only have closing surveys for the parents after the sessions and will also keep track of the parent sign in sheet numbers. I will compare the amount of parents for each session and report my findings to my supervisor and administration.

action plan activites and goal!

Action Planning Template
Goal: How to receive more parent involvement from parents of LEP students?
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Hold open meeting to survey Hispanic parents.	Self	Feb. 11th 2013. 5-7 pm	invitation Survey Classroom	Evaluate conversations and surveys to plan for the future Parent fair meeting in May 2013.
Review local Dr. Offices with personnel who speaks Spanish.	Self	February 2013-May 2013	Phone and local phonebook or referrals form school staff and parents. Internet access.	Present the information in easy to read flyer to the parents of LEP students.
Review/ research Dentist offices.	Self	February 2013-May 2013	Phone and local phonebook or referrals form school staff and parents. Internet access.	Present the information in an easy to read flyer to the parents of LEP students.
Translate school supply lists	Self/ front office and registration personnel.	January 2013-May 2013	Ask front office to provide me with an updated version of the school lists for next year for grades prek-2 grade.	Translate an easy to read school supply list and hand out during registration for the upcoming school year May 2013-August 2013.
Meet with Mr. King, the superintendent, to explain the needs surveyed from the Feb. 11th meeting	Self, site supervisor, superintendent, assistant superintendent.	February 2013-May 2013	Computer, surveys, easy to read data found on the surveys.	Confirm meeting agenda for the May 2013 parent fair meeting.
Create and translate session name for February 11th meeting.	Principal/self	February 2013	Computer, word, internet, email	Confirm name of session.
Create a survey to be handed out to the parents of the Feb 11th meeting.	Self	February 2013	Computer	Evaluate the information provided.
Write a report and present my findings to my site supervisor, superintendent, and Assistant superintendent.	Self	April 2013	Computer, power point	Evaluate the responses form my superiors and form an agenda for the future sessions to be presented in Spanish at the Parent Fair.
Create an agenda meeting some of the priority needs to be presented at the May 2013 Parent Fair.	Self, opinion and approval from Superintendent.	April 2013	Computer	I will evaluate the success of May’s Parent fair by recording and comparing attendance from previous parent fairs and surveying the parents who attend.
Collect and evaluate surveys from Mays Parent Fair meeting and create an easy to read spread sheet with the parent evaluation.	Self	June 2013	Computer, May’s surveys and evaluations	Review the data with site supervisor and superintendent.

Format based on Tool 7.1 from Examining What We Do to Improve Our Schools

(Harris, Edmonson, and Combs, 2010)

Week 2 thought ... Research inquiry ROCKS!

Week 2 thoughts....
I have pin pointed my action research question and look forward to collecting the research. I am in the process of creating a survey and look forward to meeting with hispainc parents at the February 11th Parent Fair my district is holding. I really think research inquiry is going to help me find a wayt o reach the hispanic parents which in turn will have positive effects on my hispanic students. 

I learned that action reserach is not just a research paper as it once was thought to be. instead it is a new methode where you can dig deeper and ask questions that may have never been asked before. It allows for evaluation and ongoing changes to occur. I learned that it is very easy for an action reseracher to lose sight of there actual question because so much information and or research can come up posing even more action reserach questions. You must stay focused and approach one question at a time. 

Research inquiry should be an adminsitrator's best friend.....  

Why blog if you are an educational leader....

If you are an educational leader in todays technical world then blogging should not even be a question it should be a daily task that has become part of your routine. Blogging can be used to inform staff of upcoming events expectations or random thoughts that pertain to your campus or procedures. it can be a way to communicate with staff parents and community members. It can reach many with little effort. Using paper can be a hassle because you have to copy it and send it home with young students. Parent may or may not receive the information. If you blog important information can always be shared via the web. School updates and events can be easily checked by anyone with an internet connection. Blogging is the future an age of growing technology. Every educator and educational leader should be familiar with the idea and should try to implement it.

Action research and its uses!

Today I started working on my second class from Lamar University. I began by reading Leading with Passion and Knowledge by Nancy Dana. The work was eye opening and insightful. It discussed three different educational research traditions. I learned that Practitioner Inquiry is the new educational research tradition that allows for better results and growth. It is a very helpful educational research option that all principals and future principals should learn about. It allows for continuing professional growth and positive changes to occur without the need to consult an outsider who does not have first hand experience with your campus, problems, or staff. As the principal you do the research and collect data of whatever problem you may be inquiring about. Practitioner inquiry or action research allows for three benefits. The first benefit is that actual theories and knowledge are generated from research grounded in the realities of educational practice.  An outsider is not called into your campus to evaluate the problems. The second benefit is that the practitioner becomes a collaborators in the research process by investigating  the problem at hand. The third benefit is that the practitioners play a part in the research process making it more likely to facilitate change with the knowledge they gain from the research they collect. No outsider is called in and no one feels like they have failed. Problems or inquires are based on the everyday campus procedures and problems that may arise. Then the administrator reviews these procedures and may or may not find an area that may need to be reassessed or looked at to make it better.