#7 Links from recent days, OEL Liaison/Links, ELA MCAS Update

I have a love/hate relationship with Fall. The trees are starting to turn and it will be peak season for the beauty of New England - orange, reds, greens, rust, browns, the cool mornings and warm afternoons... but it also signals RAKING (ugh), shorter days, and putting the garden to bed. The worst part of summer for me is mowing the lawn, the best part of winter is not having to mow the lawn!

Geoff Rose reminded me last Thursday was only the 10th day of school; it feels like we have quickly settled into a routine and then over the last few days you have received a lot of information, numerous emails from various folks. Some of this is due to leadership transition as we work to define roles and be supportive. As we settle into the new year with new leadership, your strong leadership, moral imperative, and steadfastness is even more needed to keep your schools humming and focused on teaching and learning.

Recent Links:

All Admin PD Day Slide Deck
All Admin PD OEL Presentation 
PLC Roster
School Support Contact Information
School-Central Shared Folders
Schedule of Assessed Standards SY20 Folder
AHERA Letter from John Hanlon
Testing Memo Email from Mary Dillman 09/19/19

Research for Better Teaching Newsletter

Here is RBT's September Newsletter (PDF from my email). This issue is on Intelligence and Growth Mindset. There's a great video on unlearning - the Backwards Bicycle that is a great one to show staff.

From Rachel Chen, OEL Liaison

Welcome back! My name is Rachel Chen, and I am your Office of English Learners’ liaison for the 2019-2020 school year. I will be your main point of contact for questions related to support and services for English Learners. When necessary, I will also be able to refer you to various team members to provide you more direct or specialized support. We are so excited about this year!Please find some helpful resources:

• LATF / ACCESS Coordinator registration form (due September 20, 2019)

• LATF Job Description

• LATF Calendar

• LATF Meeting dates for the SY19-20

• EL Code Change Request Form (LCCR)

• English Learner (EL) Program & Scheduling Guidance (updated for SY1920)

• Aspen instructions for inputting ESL schedules

• Link to sign up for Scheduling Clinics

We are also pleased to announce that new this year Data Warehouse will have student schedule compliance updated twice a day. Please see the above guidance for more information.Finally, some things to be aware of in the near future:

• RFP for After School Programming

• LOOK Act Bilingual Programming Statement of Interest for School Leaders

First LATF meeting is Monday, September 23rd!Wishing you a great start to school year 2019! Please reach out to oellinstructionteam@bostonpublicschools.org if you have any questions.

Changes to ELA MCAS Test Design

As part of DESE’s efforts to reduce testing time for students, the test designs for the 2020 English Language Arts MCAS tests in grades 3–8 and 10 have changed. Changes include:

• the elimination of one operational essay in each grade;
• the addition of multiple choice items, including both language and reading items;
• a small adjustment to reporting category percentages; and
• a small reduction in the total number of points on the grades 6–8 and 10 tests.

In addition to helping reduce testing time, these changes are also intended to make the student testing experience on the grades 3–8 tests and the grade 10 test more similar.

#6 All PD Thursday, Calendar, Teacher Leadership Opportunities

🤣 Back to School Humor 🤣

See you on Thursday - All PD

Andrea Zayas and I will meet with Region 1 all together after the launch of the All PD. You will have time to connect and work on your Quality School Plan. The agenda for the day is linked here.

Superintendent Visits to Schools and Community

I sent you invitations to the currently scheduled superintendent visits on Friday. Some schools were left off and needed to be added, others were regrouped based on location, and some had to be moved due to Dr. Cassellius' schedule. About a week before your visit, the Office of Engagement will send you an email notification. 

Please share these announcements via your school communication channels:

Charlestown, N. End, East Boston Community Visit English
Charlestown, N. End, East Boston Community Visit Spanish
Six Evening Community Meetings throughout Boston

District Review School Visits (AIR)

Principals have begun receiving emails from AIR to conduct classroom observations as part of the District Review. The email subject line will say "AIR Observations at your BPS School." There will be a request for your master schedule and a school map.

Visit Calendar Information

You can view Dr. Cassellius' Region 1B visits on the calendar as "BC @ School." Her community meetings are listed as well as other BPS events such as School Committee and EL Task Force.

I have listed the district review observations as well. They are entitled as "AIR @ School."

I am still working on my rotating calendar as I am trying to tie my visits to your priorities. This is what the calendar looks like (with annotations):

Teacher Leadership Opportunities

Teacher Leadership Working Group

This working group of educators and BPS staff will be developing a Teacher Leadership strategy for the district, so educators can have equitable access to a range of dynamic leadership opportunities throughout their careers. In addition to monthly meetings, activities include conducting an inventory of leadership roles, interviewing teacher leader colleagues, conducting focus groups, and sharing the work with your networks and communities. See the full job description here and apply here. Stipend $3500 (through December 2020). Deadline: September 30th. Contact Paul Tritter or Nicole Ireland with questions.

Professional Learning Advisory Board (PLAB)

This is a working group of BPS educators dedicated to improving professional learning for all. This year we will work on advising the Telescope Network, The Teacher Leadership Working Group, and more. See the full job description and meeting dates here, and apply here. Stipend $1000. Deadline: October 6th. Contact Paul Tritter with questions.

Those interested in being considered for either/both the Teacher Leadership Working Group and PLAB should apply only to the teacher leadership group and use the checkbox indicating your interest in both groups.