Manor Independent School District

Academics Above Everything

Board Bulletin

With the advent of the Common Core State Standards in 2009, teaching stand-

ards across the country saw a significant increase in rigor. Although Texas contin-

ues to use the TEKS, the state’s standards have undergone a similar shift towards

the critical thinking and multiple modes of understanding that characterize

“college and career readiness” standards. In order to prepare teachers for the

transition, many school districts spent thousands of dollars on professional de-

velopment that promised to provide educators with skills and strategies for

instructional delivery, often delivered using a workshop method lasting one or

two days.

Unfortunately, research by non-profits and leaders in the field of education has

repeatedly shown that these “one-off” workshops have little to no effect on

student achievement. While there are some benefits to professional develop-

ment workshops, such as the exposure to new teaching practices or the oppor-

tunity to see a method modeled by a master teacher, their inherent lack of rein-

forcement and follow-up throughout the school year often results in teachers

forgetting what they learned, or worse, struggling to implement a new and effec-

tive method and failing due to lack of support.

Today, a growing number of school districts (including MISD) are embracing a

variety of PD activities. According to Linda Darling-Hammond et al., the most

effective form of professional development for educators is job-embedded,

meaning it happens as part of a teacher’s normal weekly or monthly schedule,

and has five critical elements:

Collaborative Learning

Teachers spend time working in supportive groups that can span grade levels and

subject areas. These often take the form of Professional Learning Communities

(PLC).

Links Between Curriculum, Assessment, and Professional-Learning Decisions in

the Context of Teaching Specific Content

Educators, particularly those in the fields of math and science, must engage in

professional development that supports their understanding of subject-area

knowledge as well as best practices for teaching and assessing particular content

areas, such as Socratic seminars or project-based learning.

Active Learning

Initial acquisition of skills or knowledge is only the beginning. Teachers must

apply what they’ve learned, collect data, and receive feedback to track progress

in integrating new practices and identify effects on student achievement.

Deeper Knowledge of Content and How to Teach It

It’s not enough to be an expert in classroom management or facilitating inquiry-

based learning. Teachers must have a thorough understanding of what they are

teaching and the different ways to teach it. A high school math teacher that lacks

knowledge of trigonometry may struggle to analyze and correct student misun-

derstandings in calculus.

Sustained Learning Over Multiple Days and Weeks

Teachers engaged in 30-100 hours professional development activities spread

across six to twelve months are more likely to see an increase in student achieve-

ment.

In the next issue, this topic will be explored further through a description of

current PD offerings at MISD and a look at innovative learning opportunities

across the country.

Rethinking Professional Development Issue 3, April 10, 2015

April 18 - Workshop

April 20 - Regular

May 18 - Regular

June 15 - Regular

Upcoming Board Meetings

Continuing Education FAQ

Superintendent’s Corner

Information Items

Professional Development Opportunities

TASB/ESC Region 12 Spring Workshop

Time: May 21st, 2015 from 4:00pm to 9:00pm

Location: ESC Region 12, 2101 West Loop 340, Waco, Texas

Cost: $50

Summer Leadership Institute—TASB

Time: June 11-13, 2015; Post-Legislative Update option June 10

Location: Marriott Rivercenter, San Antonio, TX

Cost: $310 to $535 depending on number of days attending

Bullying and Cyberbullying—Region 13

Time: May 13th, 2015 from 9:00am to 12:00pm

Location: ESC Region 13, 5701 Springdale Rd, Austin, TX 78723

Cost: $75

Rethinking Professional

Development

Continuing Education FAQ

Superintendent’s Corner

Bond Update

Information Items

Professional Development

In This Issue...

1. Manor Mustang Health Center

At the end of March, the Manor Mustang Health Center opened for services.

The center is located behind Manor New Tech High School in a 2,500 square

foot portable.

Primary care services for elementary students are provided in the portable by

staff from People’s Community Clinic (PCC). Behavior health services are pro-

vided by Austin Travis County Integral Care therapists for students in K-12.

Primary care services for secondary students are provided at the main PCC

location in downtown Austin.

If you plan on attending the ribbon-cutting ceremony (see below), please

contact Chelsea.

PD Effectiveness Data

“When teachers receive well-

designed professional develop-

ment, an average of 49 hours

spread over six to 12 months,

they can increase student

achievement by as much as 21

percentile points (Yoon, Duncan,

Lee, Scarloss, and Shapley, 2007). On

the other hand, one-shot,

"drive-by," or fragmented,

"spray-and-pray" workshops

lasting 14 hours or less show

no statistically significant

effect on student learning

(Darling-Hammond, Wei, Andree,

Richardson, and Orphanos, 2009).”

-Edutopia.org

Every year, school board members in the state of Texas must meet a set of continuing education requirements that were

adopted by the State Board of Education. Below is a summary of requirements for first year board members and experienced

board members as well as an FAQ for clarity.

According to Chapter 3100 of the

Texas Government Code, when re-

citing the pledge to the state flag,

one should “stand at attention with

[the] right hand over the heart.”

Continuing Education Required

of Local School Board Members

Tier First Year Board Member Experienced Board

Member

Provider

Local District Orientation 1 At least 3 hours required

within 60 days of elec-

tion/appointment

Not required Local district

Orientation to the Texas Educa-

tion Code

1 3 hours required within

120 days of election/

appointment

Not required Education Service

Center

Update to the Texas Education

Code

1 Not required After legislative session:

length determined by

issues addressed in legisla-

tion

Any registered

provider

Team-building Session 2 At least 3 hours At least 3 hours each year Any registered

provider

Additional Continuing Educa-

tion, based on assessed needs

3 At least 10 hours At least 5 hours each year Any registered

provider

Open Meetings Training — 1 hour required within 90

days of election/

appointment

Not required AG’s office or

other approved

provider

Public Information Act Training — BBD (LOCAL) appoints the Superintendent as the

board’s delegate for this training. Not required for BoT.

AG’s office or

other approved

Who assesses the needs for Tier 3 continuing education?

During the board’s annual teambuilding workshop, the session facilitator will look at a list of upcoming major board activities

(ex. bond planning) and identify in which of those activities board members would benefit from having additional training.

Who keeps track of the records of attendance at board member continuing education sessions?

The local school district is the official record keeper. Board members should be sure to give the administrative assistant

(Chelsea Lambert) copies of any documentation they receive for attending sessions. This is especially critical for non-TASB

events that give continuing education credit, as these attendance records must be hand-entered into TASB’s reporting sys-

tem.

What happens to board members if they don’t get the required continuing education?

Each year at the board’s last regular meeting of the calendar year, the president of the board must announce publically which

members of the board have met their annual obligation and which have not. This information must also be made available to

the media.

In addition, TEA may request evidence at any time of board member compliance with the continuing education rule.

When does the year start and end?

A board member’s annual continuing education requirements must be completed by the last regular board meeting in the

calendar year. So, a board member has from January 1 of a given year until the regular December board meeting of that year

to complete the requirement.

Can I take online training courses to fulfill Tier 3 requirements?

Up to five hours of Tier 3 training may be fulfilled via online training courses.

Learn more about Continuing Education Credit Requirements here.

Bond Update

ShadowGlen Elementary Tour

On April 9th, a group of staff members were invited to tour ShadowGlen Elementary. Below are photos taken of the interior

and exterior.

2. School Planning and Management

School Planning and Management is a monthly publication for administrators

that contains articles about construction, design, energy plans, and more. All

of their content is available online at webspm.com. If you prefer a print copy,

you can request a free subscription here.

View from ShadowGlen Trace

Front Entry

View of Courtyard

Stairwell Leading to 1st Grade

2nd Floor Learning Pod

Cafeteria

Dear Board Members,

In an effort to improve and streamline communication, I will compile relevant updates and share district news via the

Superintendent’s Corner. If you would like additional information on anything posted here, please do not hesitate to reach

out and ask.

Thank You,

Kevin Brackmeyer

- - - - - - - - - -

Anti-Bullying Committee Update

This morning the Anti-Bullying Committee met to discuss next steps and focus of the anti-bullying campaign for the 2015-

2016 school year. A very collaborative discussion was had regarding connecting digital literacy & anti-cyber-bullying with

district/campus/community efforts. A brainstorming session was held on ways to bring in student leadership & community

involvement (parents/business leaders) into the anti-bullying committee campaign. The committee also reviewed other anti

-bullying programs & suggestions as they planned for next year’s initiatives and programming.

Legislative Update

The pace has really picked up at the Capital lately. Here are a few items of interest:

On Monday, the House Public Education Committee met and passed 7 pending bills that will now go to the full House for

consideration. Among these bills was HB 743, which would require assessment instruments to be determined to be valid

and reliable by a third party, would narrow the number of TEKS assessed to readiness standards, and would reduce the

amount of material on the test to be age and developmentally appropriate.

Representative Huberty introduced the house version of SB 149 (Seliger) which would create Individual Graduation Com-

mittees (IGCs) for students who have met all other requirements for graduation, but still have one EOC to pass. This version

differs from the Senate version in the reduction from 2 EOCs to 1. After a great deal of testimony, including a parent and a

senior from Manor High School, the bill was passed out of committee unanimously. This bill is time-sensitive, as 28,000 high

school seniors still have at least one EOC left to pass in order to graduate in the Spring of 2015.

Next week promises to be even busier for the education committees. A hearing of the House Public Education committee

will cover 19 bills, including ones that overhaul the school finance system and propose major changes to the accountability

system.

District Art Show

Student artwork has been on display in the Central Admin building all week, and staff from all across the district came to

cast their votes for the People’s Choice awards at each grade level. The MISD Art Show will be held on Saturday, April 11th

from 10am to 12pm. Below are some of the many incredible pieces on display.