best_practices_at_high_tech_high_north_county

8/7/2019 Best_Practices_at_High_Tech_High_North_County

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Best Practicesat

High Tech High North County

Autumn Caban Amanda MorleyChelsea Nygaard Amanda Wolfe


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School Size

About 450 studentsEach class has 20-25 students in it

Teaching Teams = 50-60 students

Example: Juniors have a Humanities/Math/Biology team

of teachers.3 classes of 20 students each

Students stay with same group for core classes (3 of 5

periods per day)

Students stay with same grade until 5th period


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Perspectives on School Size

Students:

Benefits - really get to know each other and grow with each other as agradeFrustrations - cant choose classes; feels too separated by grade;small school = fast rumors

Administrators:Benefits - easy to get to know all students and their families really well

Challenges - too easy to become everything for every child (too manyhats per person)

Teachers:Benefits - Teams enable students to build stronger relationships.Challenges - Cohesiveness within each team presents itself assegregation amongst grades sometimes.

Inclusion Specialist/Academic Coaches:Benefits:

For inclusion specialists: fewer students with special needs perspecialistFor students: time with the same group of peers makes students

more comfortable and allows them to be more successful


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Climate

Love them first, and theyll trust you. . . If all we teach themin the first 3 months is that theyre loved, then were content.

Nikki, the Director

Climate strives to empower students to be critical thinkers

and thoughtful individuals.Very supportive of student initiatives.

Fully inclusive.

Includes having open conversations about acceptance

and tolerance.


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Perspectives on ClimateStudents:

School is very strict about behavior: if something happens, they will track you down. Can go too far withprosecuting.

Example: 1-time offence = expulsion.Its safe.You get to know every face.The energy is better [than at another school].

Administrators:Strong support from teachers and executive officers of High Tech system.

Constant informal feedback.Sometimes too much.

Teachers:

Dont set up a lot of rules which allows teachers the ability to individualize for students, but can make it confusingfor some students when trying to decipher what is allowed and what isnt.Zero-tolerance policy provide students an opportunity to withdrawal before expulsion hearing so that they canreapply the next year after showing improved behavior.

Inclusion Specialists/Academic Coaches:The strongest aspect of the climate is a strong sense of community, inclusion of everyone.Difficulties: Academic coaches roles are somewhat undefined, so that there can be a separation betweenacademic coaches and their supporting teachers.


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Leadership

Very democratic environment. Teachers

and students have a strong voice in the

school.

Leadership among staff is very organic.

Very grassroots-y.


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Perspectives on Leadership

Students:

Feel like they can initiate projects, clubs, fund-raising, etc. - and besupported.Administration:

School is essentially teacher-driven; their concerns and needs are aprimary consideration for every decision.

Teachers:

Lots of support but teachers must seek it outThe school is teacher-driven and their input on how things are run isalways requested and utilized; involved with making changes andpolicies.Administrative duties which require teachers to meet 5 days a weekevery morning and sometimes in the afternoon.

Inclusion Specialists/Academic Coaches:The system is very democratic. Inclusion Specialists basically speakon behalf of academic coaches, and the inclusion specialists have asmuch voice as any other staff member in decision making.


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Teaching

Predominantly student-centered approach

Teachers are viewed more as facilitator's than sages


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Perspectives on Teaching

Students

Teachers care about how you are doing.Teachers care and are lenient about how you do your work

AdministrationIts important to make sure the teachers are given opportunitiesto share their thoughts, opinions, and feelings.

My job is to facilitate, not dictate. Nikki, the DirectorTeachers

Being able to write and create own projects makes it similar tobeing a college professor. This is the greatest aspect andbiggest challenge of being a teacher at HTHNC.

Inclusion Specialists/Academic CoachesInclusion Specialists and Academic Coaches need to workhand in hand with teachers in order to make teaching inclusive.Their specific means of accomplishing this is up to the specificteam.


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Curriculum

Curriculum is project-based learning. There are no settextbooks in use, though they serve as reference.

The school places high emphasis on practical world

connections, and uses core curriculum to support those

connections.Standards serve as guidelines rather than requirements.

Standardized tests help guide curriculum - the

important standards are used as basic support for

additional content.


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Perspectives on Curriculum

Students:Enjoy the projects, like building something,like the freedom, like the multiplepieces to projects (visual and essay reflection)Some students interviewed worried about testing well for the SATs

Administrators:Our first question is, What content is important? Then we worry about linking itto the standards.The 3 weeks before CSTs = major cram session.

Teachers:Standards are used to help build and guide projects to a small extent.Presently working on creating a guideline for math classes because of trendsseen in success on CST exams.CST scores are used by some teachers for reflection about the success of theirprojects teaching students content.Some teachers utilize the MDTP as a pre and post assessment in order to

assess their effectiveness.Inclusion Specialists/Academic Coaches:

Curriculum is based around standards, but is handled very different fashionsamongst teachers. Inclusion Specialists feel that this diversity is beneficial forstudents with special needs, and strive hard to best support teachers in howeverthey choose to handle the curriculum.


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Community Experiences

One of the design principles of the school is the adult world connection

which is bringing kids into the adult world and vice versa.

Nikki, the Director

Collaborations with community members and organizations are

encouraged

i.e. Exhibition of art work at the apple store

Guest lectures from local colleges

Internships - Juniors take three weeks out of the school year to work as

interns

Intersession - 1 week to 10 days during the spring where students go on

an exploratory adventure out into their communities or around the world

Travel to Vietnam - work at an orphanage

Snowboarding - action photography, physics

Real to Real - around the community


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Perspectives on Community Experiences

Students:Break from school, a time to bond with peeps from school, a chanceto learn something out in the community

Administrators:Power Lunches allow students to sign up for a lunch with a memberof the professional community.

Its great that professionals will often come in to help students withtheir projects.

Teachers:Internships cause transformationsSenior projects, internships, and service learning help students to seebeyond the school.

Inclusion Specialists/Academic Coaches:The Inclusion Specialists main goal in community experiences is tomake sure that students, especially those with special needs, feelprepared and safe so that they can achieve meaningful growth throughthese experiences.


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Scheduling

No Bells, buzzers, or ringers - virtual adult hoodStudents are called into class by the teachers

8:30 - 3:30

5 periods a day, every day

3 periods of core classes1 period of exploratory

1 period of choice physical activity (Mdub and t-

squared)

Yoga, volley ball, strength training, etc.Fridays start with Advisory and no choice period


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Perspectives on Scheduling

Students:

Some feel frustrated about the restrictive schedule.Enjoy the break at the end of the day.

Administration:The un-bell schedule is largely based on the ideas of Sir KenRobinson, (RSA):

Bells are used in factories, for routines. . . we want our humanshere to be thoughtful and responsible. . . they should be able tofollow a clock!

Teachers:Lack of variety can be a problem since students are with a teacher fortwo hour blocks. Its important to keep changing activity and adding

variety to schedule.Inclusion Specialists/Academic Coaches:

While there are some challenges in not having bells or great variety instructure, students, especially those with special needs, like structureand the schedules work very well for them. The schedule itself alsohelps support a sense of community.


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Technology and Materials

We dont spend on textbooks, so were able to invest in todays

primary tool - computers. . . Now, its as important as having a

pen.

Nikki, Director

There is a 2:1 ratio of students to laptops at the school.

Every student takes multimedia classes, and are expected to

know how to use internet functions.

The school is wireless, and all classrooms are equipped with

projectors and other electronic equipment.


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Perspectives on Technology andMaterials

Students:helps with in class work and research for projects

Administrators:Staying up-to-date is the biggest challenge, particularly with theirlimited budget.

Teachers are given lots of autonomy deciding how to spend theirallotted funds for the class.

Teachers:Benefit: Access to technology makes it easier to facilitate research.Challenge: Monitoring the appropriateness of computer use.

Inclusion Specialist/Academic Coaches:

Having great technology on hand does not really change how theinclusion specialists teach students. Instead it often just changes whatthey need to know so they can help students use programs andtechnologies that the students are already familiar with.


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Assessment

Authentic assessments with Rubrics are the norm

Projects

Presentations of Learning at the end of the semester

Transitional Presentations of Learning at the end ofthe school year

Integration of short answer exams is incorporated to

assess content knowledge and understanding


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Perspectives on Assessment

Perspectives on Assessment:Students:

Really get nervous about the Presentations of Learning butdevelop essential skills in public speaking

Teachers:Needs to be more rigid in order to maintain the academicintegrity of the projects

Inclusion Specialists/Academic Coaches:There are very few students who actually need assessmentsmodified, and this is usually done simply by having students doless of an activity. Inclusion specialists and academic coachesadvise teachers on how to adapt or modify assessments.


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Professional Development

All staff meet every morning before school.

Staff meetings

Content meetings

Teacher team meetingsPromote Professional Development events throughout

year.


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Perspectives on Professional Development

Administrators:

Most needed talents are already in the building.Grad school students will frequently come in as speakers.

Teachers:Some teachers do action research more than others, but isessential in order for projects to be effective.

Action research occurs naturally within required mentorshipvideos that are done by all teachers on a regular basis.

Inclusion Specialists/Academic Coaches:Inclusion Specialists are involved in all staff days andprofessional development and are supported in going to

professional development.Academic Coaches, however, do not gain much professionaldevelopment. The school is trying to restructure thiscomponent of the academic coaches position.


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Relationships

They really are everything at High Tech High

The school is serious about building good relationships

with the community, as well as fostering good

relationships between every type of connection in theschool


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Perspectives on Relationships

Students:

"You can tell that the teachers care about you and want you to dowell."Feel that they get to know the teachers and the teachers know them.

Administrators:Communication channels with parents are largely based on monthlyopen meetings and frequent phone calls and emails from the directors.

Teachers:Teacher-Teacher relationships are strong because of how the school isset-upStudent-Teacher relationship has to work otherwise the teacher will nolonger have a job (no tenure)

Parent-Teacher relationships tend to be strong with many teacherssending out weekly emails to keep them informed.Inclusion Specialists/Academic Coaches:

The jobs of Inclusion Specialists and Academic Coaches are verymuch about relationships. They work very hard to have strongrelationships between themselves and the students, parents, teachers

and administrators. These relationships tend to be very good andenerall stron and thus su ort students success.


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Reflections on High Tech High -NC

Strengths:

* Student engagement inlearning

* Inclusive and safeatmosphere

* Natural differentiationthrough project work

* Strong

Teacher/Student

Community

Weaknesses:

* Un-tested so far - 1stgraduating class this year

(other HTH have some data)

* Content seems to suffer forthe sake of the project attimes

* Some students are leftunchallenged by the variousprojects.
http://www.hightechhigh.org/about/results.php

best_practices_at_high_tech_high_north_county

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