LESSONS FROM THE FIELD: MIDDLE SCHOOL FOUNDATIONS ACADEMY GRANT ANTIOCH UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT PRESENTATION TEAM Swanson and Cosgrave consulting Monday, March 4, 2019

What is your most memorable moment from middle school?

REFLECTIONS How does your district deliver CTE instruction to middle school students? What are the opportunities and challenges of creating career-themed middle school academies?

SESSION OVERVIEW Briefly review middle school reform trends Learn about the Middle Schools Foundations Academy Grant Hear how the Antioch district is implementing the MSFA grant Participate in table group discussions on key areas Serve as a critical friend and provide input on our design Discuss ideas and implications for delivering CTE instruction to middle school students

THE WAVE OF MIDDLE SCHOOL REFORM Public Schools Accountability Act (1998) Comprehensive School Reform Movement (2000) No Child Left Behind (2001) 1983  Meeting the national need for a competitive workforce 1987 Standards movement School accountability 2000 Rigorous standards and curriculum Equitable, high quality instruction Team teaching Healthy learning environment Parent/Community school partnership 2001 Standards-based education Authentic assessments Team teaching Middle school philosophy

THE PERFECT WAVE Expansion of the academy and pathway concept to our middle schools Proposition 98 Career Technical Education Initiative MSFA grant application announced Great opportunity for middle school restructuring and redesign Allows for I-N-N-O-V-A-T-I-O-N!

THE INNOVATOR’S MINDSET “Our thinking must focus on what learning can truly be, not what it has been.” George Couros, 2015 Christine Being innovative has been at the center of everything, including how we have approached the concept for this magnet school by using the Design Cycle developed at Standard to guide the process. Our goal has been to look beyond what has already been done to create an experience for students that is powerful and progressive.

MIDDLE SCHOOL FOUNDATIONS ACADEMY GRANT $25K CDE planning grant Offered to 10 LEAs in 2018-19 Goal is to link middle schools with CPA programs

MSFA GRANT: KEY ELEMENTS Cal-CRN CPA Connection CTE Courses Leadership Seminars WBL Partners  

Academy Design There are key PHASES to design work

ACADEMY DESIGN PHASES Blah Vision & Process Academy Design Schedules & Structures Assessment & Curriculum Instructional Strategies Blah Instructional Strategies Student Supports Continuous Improvement

Academy Design There are key PHASES to design work Each phase includes many important QUESTIONS to resolve

Academy Design There are key PHASES to design work Each phase includes many important QUESTIONS to resolve In theory: Linear process In practice: Not so much

INNOVATION AND DESIGN Extensive project based learning English Language Arts and Social Science Integration Math and Science Integration Intensive applications of technology Elective offerings to align to CPA academies and CTE pathways Teacher and Student Teams Professional Learning Explore additional growth areas after initial implementation

MINI TABLE PRESENTATIONS Table #1: Bell Schedule and Masterscheduling Table #2: Work-Based Learning Table #3: The CPA Connection Table #4: Curriculum and Instruction

CRITICAL FRIENDS PROTOCOL Staff presents general information about our current thinking Address focus questions Participants provide input and feedback regarding the design I wonder if . . . . . Have you ever thought of . . . . . Staff reflect on group discussion. Think out loud Share key points and lessons learned with the larger group

OUR ROAD MAP MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE July Meet with elementary school principals Schedule collaboration and planning days Middle school and high school teachers meet and greet Middle school teacher teams begin PBL lesson planning Design team determine regular day schedule and elective offerings Attend Virtual Enterprise workshop Participate in PBL residency program Cal CRN collaborative planning day for elementary teachers Cal CRN collaborative planning day for 7th and 8th grade teachers Middle school teachers visit high school CPA academies Curriculum planning related to elective offerings, including CTE Collaborative planning between middle school and high school CPA teachers Hold in-district summer PBL Institute Offer regional workshop for school districts interested in middle school restructuring and redesign through the MSFA grant PBL Conference Middle school 7th grade team meet before the beginning of the school year to prepare for program implementation

LESSONS LEARNED Have a shared vision for the reform Set norms of collaboration Engage your team in design thinking Be open to all ideas . . . Innovate! Create a roadmap with benchmarks Identify professional development needs Be flexible and adjust, as needed Communicate and be transparent

NEXT STEPS Thank you for attending our workshop! Please complete the evaluation forms. Have a great conference! Please consider joining us for… Spring 2019: MSFA Webinar Fall 2019: Middle School Site Visit E-mail: mikesantos@antiochschools.net