manager classroom culture
Who is Danielle?
Currently, I serve a Manager, Classroom Culture, here in South Louisiana. In this role, I will be working with first and second year teachers across our region to support the continued development of their classroom culture this school year and beyond. In my past life, I was a 2006 Connecticut CM, and I taught 7th & 8th grade science in the Elm City, or New Haven. I taught for 5 years in New Hay-Hay, in both my placement school and in a charter network (Achievement First). In 2011, I joined staff in the now former Delta region, where I was a MTLD until 2013. I also worked for a year as an inclusion instructor at an all-girls school in Manchester, England. This year, I am thrilled to partner with SLa TLD staff, TFA national staff, and Lee Canter’s Center for Transformative Teacher Training (CT3) as I assume the role of a Real Time Teacher Coach (walkie talkie, bug in ear, intense in-the-moment management |
What is the Role of the Real-Time Teacher Coach?
My role as the RTTC is to collaborate with communities, administrators, teachers, and students to support South Louisiana students by cultivating a classroom culture where students can develop and thrive personally and academically.
My unique role is to serve as a dedicated specialist, able to devote a considerable amount of time to a small group of corps members for a shorter period of time. For example, I may work with one teacher multiple times each week for 3-4 weeks, during which time I can provide very specific feedback and support for any priority area that would impact classroom culture such as classroom management, lesson execution, and relationship-building. I may also pull in content specialists and MTLDs when necessary.
Who is Danielle working with and why?
I will work with corps members who can benefit from strategic coaching around classroom culture (hopefully, everyone!) at any point in the year so that students can be set up on a pathway to achieve their classroom and personal vision.
How does Danielle partner with my MTLD and me?
I will be actively partnering with both teachers in my monthly RTTC cohorts as well as with their MTLD in order to ensure that they experience measurable (and sustainable) growth around classroom culture (Culture of Achievement and Student Engagement). Some of that work involves creating or tweaking your classroom environment, enforcing/reinforcing expectations, building relationships, gaining clarity on vision for culture or content, etc.
What can I expect of Danielle? What does Danielle expect or me?
RTTC
CM
My Vision for RTTC
Just like teachers have visions for their work, I too have a vision for my work as a RTTC this year. Here is what I am working to accomplish in my work in RTTC this year.
Vision: All teachers I coach this year will love and respect deeply, and know how to appropriately support (through high behavioral expectations), ALL of their students.
·Teachers will constantly work on building trusting, caring relationships with all of their kids.
·Teachers will understand and explore how their identities and experiences impact their interactions with students and the actions they execute with their students/in their classrooms.
·Teachers will build stronger, more engaged classrooms, through implementing skills aligned with the NNN model.
·Teachers will build and internalize an enduring understanding about why modeling their classroom around the NNN model creates safe and brave classrooms where optimal academic achievement occurs.
I will measure my success in coaching my teachers this year through:
1. Regional Survey Results – In order to measure my efficacy as a RTTC, my goal will be to have an average survey score of 6 or 7 from all teachers I coach by the final two rounds of coaching. This will ensure that I am looking at and analyzing survey results consistently and also modeling what it means to seek and implement feedback in order to meet the needs of my teachers and constantly improve. In order to hold myself accountable to this, I will need to be transparent with my teachers about the importance of the survey and why I ask them to do it after every round of coaching. The regional survey will be my formative self-assessment on my efficacy as a coach.
2. National Survey Results – In order to measure my efficacy as a RTTC, my goal will be to have an average survey score of 6 or 7 from all teacher by the time they take the national survey (this would be taken/given in their final round of coaching). The scores that I receive on my national survey will be seen as one of the cumulative or summative evaluations on how I did as a coach with each of my teachers.
3. Student Engagement – I will measure my success with each of my teachers by collecting and analyzing improvements in % of students engaged during each of my coaching cycles (beginning with the baseline observation through the final cycle of coaching). Ideally, all classrooms that I coach have a final student engagement % of over 85%. Classrooms that do not meet this 85% goal have to show significant increase in the % of students engaged by the final cycle (a significant measure being a growth of over 25% from start to finish if the 85% threshold is not met).
4. Growth on TAL – All teachers’ classrooms will be measured along their growth in CoA on TAL. Growth on TAL will be determined from their baseline observation through their final cycle of coaching. The M,TLD and myself will together decide the teacher’s first and final CoA on TAL. All teachers will show growth on TAL during our coaching experience together.
5. MTLD Feedback – M,TLDs will feel empowered to continue to support their CMs upon RTTC exit and feel that RTTC was useful and purposeful to the CM’s development. This will be measured through a survey M,TLDs will fill out at the end of a RTTC round and my goal is to have all answers average 6 or 7.
6. Growth of RTTC Rubric – As I continue to commit to personal learning and development, I will continue to grow along the RTTC rubric this year, with the goal of reaching distinguished in all of the rubric rows by May of 2016. I will actively work on seeking feedback around my growth along this continuum from my national coach, Kristin Cervantes and my regional manager, Kim Tang. In pushing myself to be a distinguished RTTC within TFA, I will work actively to become a leader in the RTTC movement for 2016 summer training.
7. Enduring Impact – Classrooms that receive RTTCing will continue to operate within the NNN model after coaching is completed. This will be assessed by semester check-ins with M,TLDs or pop-in visits throughout the year. Classrooms that do not show enduring commitment to the model will have the opportunity to engage in a mini-coaching opportunity with me during my “off” week when necessary.
My role as the RTTC is to collaborate with communities, administrators, teachers, and students to support South Louisiana students by cultivating a classroom culture where students can develop and thrive personally and academically.
My unique role is to serve as a dedicated specialist, able to devote a considerable amount of time to a small group of corps members for a shorter period of time. For example, I may work with one teacher multiple times each week for 3-4 weeks, during which time I can provide very specific feedback and support for any priority area that would impact classroom culture such as classroom management, lesson execution, and relationship-building. I may also pull in content specialists and MTLDs when necessary.
Who is Danielle working with and why?
I will work with corps members who can benefit from strategic coaching around classroom culture (hopefully, everyone!) at any point in the year so that students can be set up on a pathway to achieve their classroom and personal vision.
How does Danielle partner with my MTLD and me?
I will be actively partnering with both teachers in my monthly RTTC cohorts as well as with their MTLD in order to ensure that they experience measurable (and sustainable) growth around classroom culture (Culture of Achievement and Student Engagement). Some of that work involves creating or tweaking your classroom environment, enforcing/reinforcing expectations, building relationships, gaining clarity on vision for culture or content, etc.
What can I expect of Danielle? What does Danielle expect or me?
RTTC
- Short term support of corps member in tandem with MTLD building the class closer towards its vision
- No nonsense nurturer style of coaching
- Intense, supportive coaching cycles (observation, meeting, coaching, and debrief meeting)
- Sets clear short term goals and plan of action to achieve with corps member and checks in with MTLD to ensure this vision is aligned to what s/he thought or expected
- Continuous communication with MTLDs (cc-ing email, updates to Dropbox tracker, etc)
- Follows up on progress towards goal during coaching cycle with corps member, MTLD, and principal
- Responds to phone calls within 24 business hours
- Responds to emails within 48 business hours
- RTC business hours are Monday-Thursday 7AM– 7PM.
CM
- Willingly partners with RTTC during coaching cycles
- Sets clear short term goals with RTTC
- Communicates any schedule changes with RTTC at least 24 hours in advance or as soon as changed occur via phone or text
- Commits to implementing next steps set forth by RTTC
- cc: MTLD on email communication with RTTC and cc: RTTC on email communication with MTLD during coaching cycles
- Responds to phone calls within 24 business hours
- Responds to emails within 48 business hours
My Vision for RTTC
Just like teachers have visions for their work, I too have a vision for my work as a RTTC this year. Here is what I am working to accomplish in my work in RTTC this year.
Vision: All teachers I coach this year will love and respect deeply, and know how to appropriately support (through high behavioral expectations), ALL of their students.
·Teachers will constantly work on building trusting, caring relationships with all of their kids.
·Teachers will understand and explore how their identities and experiences impact their interactions with students and the actions they execute with their students/in their classrooms.
·Teachers will build stronger, more engaged classrooms, through implementing skills aligned with the NNN model.
·Teachers will build and internalize an enduring understanding about why modeling their classroom around the NNN model creates safe and brave classrooms where optimal academic achievement occurs.
I will measure my success in coaching my teachers this year through:
1. Regional Survey Results – In order to measure my efficacy as a RTTC, my goal will be to have an average survey score of 6 or 7 from all teachers I coach by the final two rounds of coaching. This will ensure that I am looking at and analyzing survey results consistently and also modeling what it means to seek and implement feedback in order to meet the needs of my teachers and constantly improve. In order to hold myself accountable to this, I will need to be transparent with my teachers about the importance of the survey and why I ask them to do it after every round of coaching. The regional survey will be my formative self-assessment on my efficacy as a coach.
2. National Survey Results – In order to measure my efficacy as a RTTC, my goal will be to have an average survey score of 6 or 7 from all teacher by the time they take the national survey (this would be taken/given in their final round of coaching). The scores that I receive on my national survey will be seen as one of the cumulative or summative evaluations on how I did as a coach with each of my teachers.
3. Student Engagement – I will measure my success with each of my teachers by collecting and analyzing improvements in % of students engaged during each of my coaching cycles (beginning with the baseline observation through the final cycle of coaching). Ideally, all classrooms that I coach have a final student engagement % of over 85%. Classrooms that do not meet this 85% goal have to show significant increase in the % of students engaged by the final cycle (a significant measure being a growth of over 25% from start to finish if the 85% threshold is not met).
4. Growth on TAL – All teachers’ classrooms will be measured along their growth in CoA on TAL. Growth on TAL will be determined from their baseline observation through their final cycle of coaching. The M,TLD and myself will together decide the teacher’s first and final CoA on TAL. All teachers will show growth on TAL during our coaching experience together.
5. MTLD Feedback – M,TLDs will feel empowered to continue to support their CMs upon RTTC exit and feel that RTTC was useful and purposeful to the CM’s development. This will be measured through a survey M,TLDs will fill out at the end of a RTTC round and my goal is to have all answers average 6 or 7.
6. Growth of RTTC Rubric – As I continue to commit to personal learning and development, I will continue to grow along the RTTC rubric this year, with the goal of reaching distinguished in all of the rubric rows by May of 2016. I will actively work on seeking feedback around my growth along this continuum from my national coach, Kristin Cervantes and my regional manager, Kim Tang. In pushing myself to be a distinguished RTTC within TFA, I will work actively to become a leader in the RTTC movement for 2016 summer training.
7. Enduring Impact – Classrooms that receive RTTCing will continue to operate within the NNN model after coaching is completed. This will be assessed by semester check-ins with M,TLDs or pop-in visits throughout the year. Classrooms that do not show enduring commitment to the model will have the opportunity to engage in a mini-coaching opportunity with me during my “off” week when necessary.