1. Medicine Hat School District 76
Developing tomorrow’s citizens through improved learning, living and relationships
Building Capacity
Presentation to the Board
January 2013

2. Capacity
Individuals and groups are in high capacity if they possess and continue to develop knowledge and skills, if they use time, expertise and resources wisely, and if they are committed to putting in the energy to get important things done collectively and continuously (ever learning).
Michael Fullan
“The Six Secrets of Change”

3. 5 Principles of Capacity Building Culture of Collaborative Learning
Common Focus Language
Build on Past Learning
Culture of Collaborative Learning
Embedded ongoing PD
Community Engagement
Building Capacity = Sustainability

4. District Focus = Building Capacity
Goal: Enhanced instruction = improved learning.
Common language
Instructional Intelligence
Tribes
Cooperative Learning – Kagan
Developing school and district culture – evident in practice.
Concentration of resources and energy.
Maintain focus over long term – not a project but a commitment.
Moving forward – build on learning.

5. Cooperative Learning Common Focus/Language Research and Engagement
Common Language and Focus
Cooperative Learning Common Focus/Language
Research and Engagement
Tribes
Building Community
Adaptive Schools
Past/Current Learning
Kagan
Instructional Strategies
Instructional Intelligence
Past Learning

6. Culture of Collaborative Learning
Collaborative Learning Culture
Embedded PD – Instructional capacity
District/School PLC’s
Professional Development Capacity Building
Board & Administrators – Leadership Capacity
AISI Steering Committee – Leadership Capacity
District PD Committee – Leadership Capacity
Engagement – shared decision making capacity
District Staff
Students
Parents
Community

7. Instructional Capacity
Tribes
District teachers
Trainers
EA’s
Parents
Bus Drivers
Cooperative Learning - Kagan
Adaptive Schools
Cognitive Coaching
Instructional Intelligence
7 Habits
Inclusion
Learning Coaches
Multi-disciplinary PD
EA ongoing PD
Instructional technology
School based initiatives.
Personal PD
PD in Leadership

8. Building Capacity - Mentorship
New Teachers:
Orientation
Focus on instruction and learning.
Instructional Intelligence
Tribes
Beginning Teachers Conference
District – ATA co-sponsors.
Mentorship Program
Partner with ATA - 4 sessions in first year.
How to be and effective mentor.
Parents as partners.
Classroom management.
Reflective practice.
Ongoing collaborative release time for mentors and protégés to meet.
Instructional Intelligence/Tribes
4 sessions with Terry Freeman.

9. Mentorship – Future Capacity
Student Teachers:
Career Fairs
Orientation meetings.
District vision – focus
Interviewing and hiring practices.
Classroom visits.
Meetings with U of A cohort.
II/Tribes sessions with student teachers.

10. Research Capacity How Far Have We Come? – measuring our success.
Formal data:
Self-reflection surveys.
School based data.
Anted octal notes.
Tell Them From Me surveys – student engagement.
Standardized examination results.
Yearly School Plans - Reports
Accountability Pillar data.
Informal indicators:
School visits.
Collaborative sharing.
Growing instructional leadership.
Self-organizing learning teams.
Growing common language and focus.
Board presentations – growing sophistication – connecting various strategies – connected to principles of enhance instruction and improve learning.