Bernice MacNaughton High School

 

School Information

School Name:  Bernice MacNaughton High School
School Address:  999 St. George Blvd., Moncton, New Brunswick, E1E 2C9
School Phone:  506.856.3469
School Fax:  506.856.3406
Principal:  Gary Wilson
Principal email:  garywil@nbed.nb.ca
Web Address: http://www.bmhs.ca/

 

Demographics

Number of Students:  902
Number Eligible for Free and Reduced Lunch: We run "Breakfast & Lunch for Learning" programs that feed between 80-100 students daily.
Percent of Limited English Proficient:  figures not kept
Percent of Special Education:  8.3%
Racial/Ethnic Percentages: figures not kept

 

Student Achievement Data:

Mathematics – Red Days:
When students were identified as experiencing difficulty in Math 10, they were given special interventions known as “Red Days”, where they re-covered the material differently, in strategic pullout groups.  As both graphs indicate, there tends to be a 22% improvement in test scores when the material is presented differently to students who receive this intervention.

Extension Room:
We have been running an extension room where student is summoned when one of their teachers signals a missing assignment.  The extension room is run by a teacher whose courseload has been reorganized to allow him to work with students over lunch.  Over one quarter of the student in our school have been sent to the Extension Room, and over 700 assignments have been completed there.

Total students who used the ER: 263
Total visits: 753

 

Please comment on any aspect of the data that you believe is particularly significant.

The province of New Brunswick has only one standardized test at the high school level. BMHS has consistently been 20-23% higher than the district and provincial averages. In 2006, an average of 1 out of every 100 students in New Brunswick scored at the highest level (strong achievement) in the Reading Comprehension test. In 2007, 1 out of every 4 BMHS students scored at the highest level (strong achievement). This is a result of teachers and the school developing a number of focused interventions to help these students.

During the past 3 years we have significantly reduced the failure rate in a number of subjects with traditionally high failure rates. For example, Science 10 had a failure rate that had hovered between 30-40% for many years. Teachers created SMART GOALS and a systematic plan of interventions to address this problem. The failure rate for Science 10 during the 2007-2008 school year was 3%; a result of three years of continuous planning and growth. The number of students required to attend Summer School at BMHS was down by over 50%.

We are the first school in the province to employ a teacher, who is given one hour per day, to generate data for other teachers. This has allowed our teachers to examine and change their instructional practices on a skill by skill basis, make changes to assessments and see how large groups of students achieved on common assessments, and to celebrate the successes of both students and teachers. Teachers worked collaboratively to discuss best practices to promote student learning.

*** Please see the appendices for charts that support our statements below.

 

Please present additional information that indicates your efforts to build a professional learning community have had a positive impact on students and/or teachers.

The shift towards working as a Professional Learning Community began in the spring of 2006. In order to educate the staff on the concept, breakfast meetings were held where teachers began their professional dialogue.
There was also a focus on common assessments as well discussions about continuum in some subjects.
As a staff, we began to create a Professional Learning Community by responding to the 4 critical questions in groups in 2006.  In teams, teachers discussed the four critical questions:

• What do we want students to know?
• How will we know when students have learned it?
• How will we respond when a student experiences difficulty?
• How will we respond when they already know it?

During the first year as a PLC, teachers collaborated to create skills binders for each of the courses at Bernice MacNaughton High School. These skills binders included: identified essential skills for the course, as well as sample activities, assessments (both formative and summative) and rubrics. In the fall of 2006, the administration began to move away from administrivia during staff meetings and move towards professional development opportunities.
During the 2009-2010 school year, teachers worked in content teams to create learning continuums for each major subject area.  This was an ongoing team project which took place over several months, and resulted in documents made available to all teachers, as well as poster size charts of the continuums which are displayed in the school for staff use.
Most recently during the fall of 2010, content level teams of teachers have worked diligently on three major projects for the courses they teach:

• A common assessment timeline
• A breakdown of the skills and content of the course
• The selection and recording of the power standards for the course

These documents have been created and are in use in classrooms today, however they remain a topic of discussion and revision as our teaching staff uses them and continues to discuss them.  Teachers in content level teams meet regularly at scheduled times which are largely built in to the Directed Learning schedule each week.  This continues to be a major challenge: teachers want more time to meet and work collaboratively.

As a staff, we decided to create a Professional Learning Community by responding to the 4 critical corollary questions.

Question # 1 What do we want students to know?

- Each teacher was required to meet with ‘like subject’ colleagues to identify the skills that students were expected to learn in each of the courses that they taught. To accomplish, this teachers had to consult provincial curriculum guides/documents. The product came to be known as the ‘skills binder’.

- Each team was asked to review their skills binders and to identify the essential skills for their course.

- Each team was asked to outline strategies that would be used to ensure students learned the required skills. These strategies included both instructional and assessment best practices. Though the skills and assessments developed remained common, teachers were free to decide what instructional methods worked best for their classes.

- Each team was asked to create formative and summative assessments based on the essential skills

- Each team was required to provide evidence of collaboration (ACTION PLAN FORMS)

- Each team was given a date by which the skills binders had to be completed. Completion of the binder would include the list of essential skills, sample activities, sample assessments, and rubrics.

Question # 2 How will we know when students have learned it?

- Teachers of ‘like subjects’ were asked to follow a common shell when creating the final exam for the course. For example, we standardized the number of recall questions, short written responses, and extended written responses.

- We also standardized the number of choices students would have for each section. For example, students were given three essays to choose from.

- This standardization has now developed to the point where many of our summative assessments are 100% ‘word for word’ common. Teachers are able to use the results from these common formative and summative assessments to plan their future lessons.

- Teachers review the data from these common assessments and break them down by skills, strands, and level of questions (Blooms Taxonomy), in order to ascertain areas of student strengths and weaknesses.

- Our staff received professional development on Quality Assessment Practices from Marcia Emberger. Teachers used the information from this session to assist in the creation of their year end examinations.

- Each team was required to create a minimum of five formative assessments for every summative assessment. These teams meet with an administrator twice each year and are required to link the formative to the summative assessments.

- Grade 9 math and English teachers created a placement test for the grade 8 students in our feeder schools to complete each June.

Question # 3 How will we respond when a student experiences difficulty?

- Using the placement test, and in consultation with the grade 8 teachers, students were identified as not having the prerequisite skills for 9th grade math and English and a supplemental period of math and English was built into their schedule each day.(see chart 1)

- Teams use RED Days. (Remediation/Enrichment Days) After an evaluation, teachers will determine which students need more time to acquire the necessary skills. These students will receive additional support for a short period of time while the rest of the class will receive enrichment. The students who received remediation will then be re-evaluated until they meet the desired standard.(see chart 2)

- We created a mandatory Learning Strategies class for students who failed their English Language Provincial Assessment (ELPA). Students in the province of New Brunswick must pass this provincial assessment in order to graduate. (see chart 3)

- Our struggling 9th grade readers are paired up with a grade 12 student who is taking the Reading Tutor 120 class. Seniors receive training on how to teach reading using the Great Leaps Reading Program. Their percentile ranking improved dramatically in a short period. (see chart 4)

- BMHS was the first school in the province to employ a full-time Study Hall teacher. She is responsible to work with subject teachers to ensure that students are proactive in completing their assignments and in preparing for future assessments. Grade 12 Honors students can earn a “free” period every day, but are required to work in Study Hall once per week. (see chart 5)

- We have created a system of discipline entitled the Highlander Way. This is a document that adheres to the principles of Ron Moorish and Harry Wong. We spend the first few days of every year teaching/reviewing these principles. Freshmen students get a more in-depth coverage in their mandatory Personal Development course.

Question # 4 How will we respond when they already know it?

- We are the first school in our district to create a Grade 9 Enrichment class

- We have five AP courses and many 1 level (advanced) courses (see chart 6)

- We offer our grade 12 students a chance to earn a credit as a Reading Tutor

- We have an Artist in Residence Program where local actors, musicians, and artists meet with our fine arts students to provide enrichment

- We offer grade 12 students a chance to earn the opportunity to take one less class in their final semester. A student must have an average of 85% or higher and be on schedule in terms of accumulating all of their credits. These students spend two classes each week helping out the Study Hall teacher. They also get three study periods each week.

 

Please elaborate strategies you have found to be effective in the following areas:

1. Monitoring student learning on a timely basis. 

Students receive given four progress reports and two semester reports each year.

Students who do not meet academic standards on assessments are given extra support during DIRECTED LEARNING and the chance to re-write tests and assignments to show mastery

Potential graduates meet with the principal or vice principals on a regular basis to track progress towards graduation.

Teachers are learning more about formative assessment and its use on an informal daily basis to inform instruction.

In the fall of 2010, all of our staff members are using Engrade as an online grade and record-keeping program.  As a result, administrators and guidance personnel are able to view the most current student results at any time in all subject areas.  All teacher teams have added a category of formative assessment to the records, and students and teachers are both aware that these marks do not “count,” but are practice and preparation for the final summative assessments.

In the fall of 2010, some of our staff members are regularly using Moodle for online formative assessment preparation, and for sharing documents with students.

2. Creating systems of intervention to provide students with additional time and support for learning.

Eight Fixes incorporated school-wide in the fall of 2010 – here is our version:

--Don’t include student behaviors (effort, participation, adherence to class rules, etc.) in grades; include only achievement.

--Don’t reduce marks on “work” submitted late; provide support for the learner.

--Don’t give points for extra credit work or use bonus points; seek only evidence that more work has resulted in a higher level of achievement.

--Don’t consider attendance in grade determination; report absences separately.

--Don’t assign grades based on student’s achievement compared to other students; compare each student’s performance on preset standards.

--Don’t include zeros in grade determination when evidence is missing or as punishment; use alternatives, such as reassessing to determine real achievement or use “I” for “Incomplete” on report card.

--Don’t summarize evidence accumulated over time when learning is developmental and will grow with time and repeated opportunities; in those instances, emphasize more recent achievement.

--Don’t leave students out of the grading process.  Involve students; they can and should play key roles in assessment and grading that promote achievement.

Fall 2008 saw the innovative creation of thirty minutes of Directed Learning time each day for support, intervention, extra help, and independent study.  This has been a very successful way to engage and support all learners at every level, and is a well-established part of our daily routine at BMHS.

We have created a system of discipline entitled the Highlander Way. This is a document that adheres to the principles of Ron Moorish and Harry Wong.  It is reviewed with students at the beginning of each school year.
Teams use RED Days  (Remediation/Enrichment Days). After an evaluation, teachers will determine which students need more time to acquire the necessary skills. These students will receive additional support for a short period of time while the rest of the class will receive enrichment. The students who received remediation will then be re-evaluated until they meet the desired standard.

We created a mandatory Learning Strategies class for students who failed their English Language Provincial Assessment (ELPA). Students in the province of New Brunswick must pass this provincial assessment in order to graduate.

We offer our grade 12 students a chance to earn a credit as a Reading Tutor: our struggling 9th grade readers are paired up with a grade 12 student who is taking the Reading Tutor 120 class. Seniors receive training on how to teach reading using the Great Leaps Reading Program. Their percentile ranking has improved dramatically in short periods of this intervention.

Grade 9 English teachers create a placement test for the grade 8 students in our feeder schools to complete either in June or September.

Using the placement test, and in consultation with the grade 8 teachers, students were identified as not having the prerequisite skills for 9th grade math and English and a supplemental period of math and English was built into their schedule each day.

During the first 3 years of PLC initiatives, we significantly reduced the failure rate in a number of subjects with traditionally high failure rates. For example, Science 10 had a failure rate that had hovered between 30-40% for many years. Teachers created SMART GOALS and a systematic plan of interventions to address this problem. The failure rate for Science 10 during the 2007-2008 school year was reduced to just 3% a result of three years of continuous planning and growth.

Our staff received professional development on Quality Assessment Practices from Marcia Emberger in June 2008. Teachers used the information from this session to assist in the creation of their yearend examinations.
We were the first school in our district to create a Grade 9 Enrichment class.

Advanced level courses:  We offer four or five AP courses during the academic year, as well as many other advanced level courses in Grades 10, 11, and 12.  AP courses offered in 2009-2010:  English Literature, French Language, Psychology, Calculus, Chemistry

Artist in Residence Program: Local actors, musicians, and artists meet with our fine arts students to provide enrichment.  Recent visitors include:

Nino Ricci, author                                                       Linden MacIntyre, author
Robert Moore, poet                                                     
Visual artist: Dan Steeves, artist

Grade 12 Tutors:  We offer grade 12 students a chance to earn the opportunity to take one less class in their final semester. A student must have an average of 85% or higher and be on schedule in terms of accumulating all of their credits. These students spend two classes each week helping as a tutor to other students, and they also get three study periods each week.

3. Building teacher capacity to work as members of high performing collaborative teams that focus efforts on improved learning for all students.

In the spring of 2010, the SPR positions we re-assigned within the school from a content-based focus (formerly department heads of Math, English, etc.) to a broader area of academic responsibility.  The five new SPR positions focus on:

1. Data interpretation
2. Communications and special events
3. Professional Development
4. PLC Initiatives
5. Assessment

Collaborative teaching teams may request time to meet collaboratively during assemblies and other school-wide special events.

We employ a teacher, who is given one hour per day, to analyze data for other teachers.   This has allowed our teachers to examine and change their instructional practices on a skill by skill basis, make changes to assessments, see how large groups of students achieved on common assessments, and to celebrate the successes of both students and teachers.

In the spring of 2008, after reading several articles, the resource teachers, school psychologist, guidance counsellors, and one member of the Administration team met off campus for two days in order to give a concentrated effort to the development of the school pyramids of intervention. Three of these individuals had previously attended the Pyramid of Intervention Institute in San Diego, CA.  See our pyramids in detail through these links:

BMHS Pyramid of Intervention: Academic Achievement
BMHS Pyramid of Intervention: Behaviour

During the 2008-2009 academic school year, a focus on better quality formative and summative assessments took place. A Learning Team conducted a book study of Rick Stiggins’ book Classroom Assessment for Student Learning: Doing It Right, Using It Well. Another focus included using SMART goals individually, in teacher teams at the department level, as well as at the school level.

2007/2008:  Strategic Planning sessions were held in the spring each year with input and discussions involving the administration team, guidance personnel, and SPRs. During the spring of 2007 the first annual Strategic Planning Weekend took place off campus and all faculty members were welcome to attend. Prior to the weekend event, staff members completed surveys about the schools progress, “What was working? And what had yet to work?” During the Strategic Planning Weekend the surveys guided discussions surrounding topics which warranted celebration, as well as areas which needed additional focus.

During the 2007-2008 academic school year, a new faculty position was created:  the PLC coordinator became an individual to whom teachers could turn for support with respect to working in a Professional Learning Community. A “creating time to collaborate committee” was created in order to address the greatest challenge – TIME. Several options were discussed in order to allow teachers to find time to collaborate.

2006:  Teachers of ‘like subjects’ were asked to follow a common shell when creating the final exam for the course. For example, we standardized the number of recall questions, short written responses, and extended written responses.  We also standardized the number of choices students would have for each section. For example, students were given three essays to choose from.

This standardization developed to the point where today many of our summative assessments are 100% ‘word for word’ common. Teachers are able to use the results from these common formative and summative assessments to plan their future lessons.

PLC Professional Development:
Five SPRs and principal attended the PLC Assessment Institute: “Ahead of the Curve” in Niagara Falls, October, 2010.
Two teachers attended the PLC “Assessment Institute” in Saint John, August, 2009.
Principal and vice-principal attended the PLC institute:  “Total Curriculum Alignment” in San Diego, March, 2009.
Two vice principals, four SPRs and the PLC school coordinator attended PLC institute: “PLCs at Work” in Moncton, Fall 2008.
Vice-principal, guidance counsellor, and resource teacher attended the PLC institute: “Pyramid of Interventions” in San Diego. They developed our school-based academic and behavioral pyramids based on best practices, November, 2007.
The principal attended the PLC “Assessment Institute” in Portland, Oregon, March, 2006.

 

List awards and recognitions your school has achieved:

Math Awards: (most recent results)
2009-2010:  49 students from grades 9, 10 and 11 participated in the Canadian Mathematics Competition. This national event, sponsored by the University of Waterloo, is a contest written by approximately 64,000 students from over 1400 schools across Canada.
Our grade nine team placed 7th in the province in the Pascal competition.
Our grade ten team placed 3rd in the province in the CALEY COMPETITION.
Our grade eleven team placed 10th in the province in the FERMAT COMPETITION.
April 2010:  seven students participated in the Euclid Competition, also sponsored by the University of Waterloo.  BMHS had one gold medalist.
BMHS was a featured school in the second edition of Whatever It Takes: How Professional Communities Respond When Kids Don't Learn By Richard DuFour, Rebecca DuFour, Robert Eaker, Gayle Karhanek         
April 2008 – BMHS was a presenting school to School District 8 Administrators on “Our PLC Journey”
 August 2007 – BMHS was a presenting school to School District 2 Administrators
October 2007- BMHS was a presenting school to New Brunswick School Principal’s Conference on “How to Start a Professional Learning Community at the High School Level”

- 2007 Pascal Math Competition Zone Winners- our grade 9 students won their zone (the province of New Brunswick) in the University of Waterloo National Math Competition

- PLC Mentor teacher has presented in 7 countries to teachers and administrators on various educational topics

 

Appendix

Tiers for Classroom Teacher, School Team and Resource, Guidance, Outside Support