[-] text size [+]

Meadowlark Elementary

School Information

School Name: Meadowlark Elementary
School District: Sheridan County School District #2
School Address: 1301 Avon St., Sheridan, WY 82801
School Phone: 307.672.3786
School Fax: 307.674.9810
Principal: Jason Hillman
Principal Email: hillmanj@scsd2.com
Web Address: http://scsd2.com

Demographics

Number of Students: 312
Percent eligible for Free and Reduced Lunch: 36.9%
Percent of Limited English Proficient: 0.6%
Percent of Special Education: 14.1%
Racial/Ethnic Percentages:

  • White: 87.7%
  • Black: 0.3%
  • Hispanic: 5.5%
  • Asian: 0.9%
  • Other: 5.6%

Student Achievement Data

Scale: % at or above proficient on state assessment for Meadowlark vs. State Average

Grade 3
Math
Reading
Writing
2008-09
98/81
82/54
90/55
2009-10
95/81
76/56
98/80
2010-11
100/88
84/66
100/80

 

Grade 4
Math
Reading
Writing
2008-09
92/75
92/71
89/45
2009-10
98/78
95/73
98/80
2010-11
95/81
98/84
95/75

 

Grade 5
Math
Reading
Writing
2008-09
93/72
88/63
85/67
2009-10
95/71
87/63
96/80
2010-11
98/78
97/77
98/86

Our school goal is in the area of writing.  As we became a PLC and created essential outcomes and interventions for struggling students, our students’ ability to write proficiently increased.  In fact, by promoting an environment that allowed our staff to work together to build shared knowledge in the area of writing our scores soared exponentially.  Below is a comparison of our pre-PLC scores and our current writing scores.

Third grade writing scores on the state assessment:

Before PLC    41% proficient                        2011    100% proficient

Fourth grade writing scores on the state assessment:

Before PLC    59% proficient                        2011    95% proficient

Fifth grade writing scores on the state assessment:

Before PLC    51% proficient                        2011    98% proficient

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

As our school embarks on its fifth year of our PLC journey, it is very rewarding to reflect on the growth we have made as a school community, both academically and socially.  Our school has very high expectations for students and staff.  There is a strong commitment to student learning and the importance of data.  Staff have been asked to change daily practice and redefine what is being taught and assessment methods.  We have transformed from a below average school to one of the highest performing schools in the state of Wyoming. 

Teachers have been asked to change the way our school functions. We are now a collaborative team as opposed to a group of “individual contractors.”  Along with our academic success, we have experienced positive growth in our school community.  Even with all of the change, work, and added pressures that we have experienced, our school climate is excellent.  Parent and community feedback is very positive.  On a recent climate survey conducted by the local teachers’ association, staff at Meadowlark Elementary answered the following questions.           

I feel:
            like I belong at the school                               100 percent agree
            student learning is relevant                             100 percent agree       
           
I work with people who:
                        treat me with respect                                       100 percent agree
                        listen if I have ideas                                        100 percent agree
                       
My principal:
                        treats me with respect                                     100 percent agree
                        is an effective instructional leader                  100 percent agree
                        is effective in helping us reach goals              100 percent agree
                        supports peer collaboration                             100 percent agree
                       
Staff also agreed one hundred percent that, “Quality work is expected of me, students and all adults working in this school.” 

We are often posed the question, “What are you guys doing up there?  How is it that you have changed so much and raised your level of expectations yet everyone is so happy?”  I always refer to the PLC model when answering this question.  We are a true PLC, and that is why we are successful.  Many people are not satisfied with that answer; they don’t understand that being a PLC affects every aspect of the school.  They develop a stronger understanding once they are able to experience or observe our school and what being a PLC means to us. 

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

1. Monitoring student learning on a timely basis.

Students are assessed every two to three weeks in the areas of reading, writing and math.  The results of the assessments are used for more individualized instruction for students.  Running records are utilized in the area of reading to monitor student learning.  Formative assessments developed within the school are utilized in the area of writing and unit assessments are used in math.  Each assessment result is diagnosed every two to three weeks.  The data dictates the type of intervention or enrichment students receive.

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

Our shared vision at Meadowlark Elementary School includes a system that provides differentiated instruction for all students, based on student need.  One strategy that supports our vision is the implementation of intervention and enrichment time everyday for every student.  We agreed upon standards, or essential outcomes, based on state and district standards, student data, and existing scope and sequence.  Our teams created rubrics and common assessments based on each essential outcome.  Outcomes are taught for two to three weeks in the regular classroom.  Each student is assessed and students that demonstrate proficiency receive enrichment in small groups, while students not demonstrating proficiency receive intervention in small groups.  Each team consists of certified and classified staff.  The certified staff member having the highest percentage of proficiency among students is assigned the intervention group for that outcome.  The theory behind this is simple; the teacher with the highest level of proficiency communicated in a fashion that enabled students to succeed.  This is also a continuum of adult learning as staff share successful strategies.  These practices and strategies are reviewed on a weekly basis within team meetings and monthly with the parent group.  Parents are informed when each essential outcome is being taught in the classroom.

 We are experiencing great success utilizing this model; our percent proficient on the state assessment has greatly increased over the past four years.  Our school’s writing proficiency has increased from fifty-one percent proficient in 2007 to ninety-eight percent proficient in 2010.  We also maintain a high level of performance in mathematics and reading. 

3. Building the capacity of teachers to work as members of high performing collaborative teams who focus the efforts of their team on improved learning for students.

After making the commitment to become a professional learning community our first order of business was to define, “what we were about” at Meadowlark Elementary.  We started with our mission.  We had an old mission statement that was created to satisfy an outside source that said we needed it to complete our school improvement plan.  We as a staff didn’t care about the mission because it had no effect on our school whatsoever.  We needed to define a new mission that truly represented what we believed.  The most important aspect of this was the process we went through in defining our mission.

It was made clear from the beginning of our work that the mission we were creating was for our school community, not to satisfy someone outside of it.  This was the first step in creating a powerful team culture at Meadowlark Elementary.  Our staff decided our mission would be three parts, and we would define what each part meant to us.  Our mission is to celebrate learning, respect diversity, and build community. 
Next we listed many of the actions and traditions that had occurred within our school in the past.  We designated each of them to go with the corresponding part of our mission.  There was also a list of items generated that we currently were not doing, but would support our new mission.  This list included items such as teacher collaboration, common assessments and celebration assemblies.  We added those to the substance, or definition of our mission.

We participated in a similar activity to define our beliefs and vision for staff, students and parents.  The activity we used to define our beliefs was very powerful.  It caused us to look in the mirror and question if we truly support what we believe, or do we even believe what we say we do.  We started with a large piece of butcher paper and listed what our beliefs were.  Everyone participated, and it was fairly simple to come up with a belief system.  It included things such as, “All kids can learn” and, “Schools should be a safe place for students.” One belief was strongly stated, “Teachers should work together for the benefit of our students.” 

In the end, we had an essential list of important and impressive beliefs.  These were the kind of beliefs that outstanding schools hold true.  The problem for us and most other schools is that these beliefs were just words on paper.  The question was raised if we would still consider them our true beliefs if we had to change our behaviors to support them.  We then took on the task of listing all of our actions.  We found some of our actions did not match our beliefs.  For example, if we believe that teachers should work together for the benefit of students, then why do we have teachers at the same grade level teaching their own perception of the curriculum?  Why are they not working as a team and building shared knowledge in order to help students learn at a higher rate?  If we believe school should be a place of celebration, why are we not celebrating?  If we believe a school should be a place of trust, why aren’t we openly sharing student data and helping one another improve?  If we believe student learning is the key, then why do we let other factors interfere with student learning?  After this discussion, we realized we had some gaps between what we believed and what we did.  We had to have real “mirror checks” at that time.  If our actions did not match our beliefs, then we really didn’t believe it; we were just saying it.  Our beliefs were nothing more than jargon on butcher paper until it was decided that our behaviors were going to change to match what we believed.  Our teachers made a commitment to support our beliefs through our actions.

This process was key in creating a collaborative culture.  Building a collaborative culture is imperative to school academic success; a culture of trust and team has to be developed before true open and honest collaboration can occur.  These activities paved the way for us to form collaborative teams with a focus on student learning.  Formative assessments, essential outcomes, rubrics, teaching strategies and professional texts are at the core of our collaborative meetings.  They all tie back to improving the level at which our students learn.

List any Awards and Recognition Garnered by Your School

  • Principal Jason Hillman named Wyoming’s National Distinguished Principal by the National Association of Elementary School Principals
  • Teacher leader Martha Eberhart named Sheridan County School District #2 Teacher of the Year
  • Visitation by United States Senator Mike Enzi
  • Visitation by Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill
  • Visitation by Wyoming Department of Education
  • Staff asked to present on the effectiveness of Professional Learning Communities