Interrogating Our Systems: Instructional Supports by Jessica Vinacco

Creating a Classroom Culture

rmegathlin — 2025-06-06 12:28:00 UTC

Focusing on building a classroom climate that makes all students (particularly MLL students) feel welcomed by way of SEL instruction. Less "why was FDR a good leader?" and more emphasis on making sure students feel connected to their peers and class.

Genre Based Writing

2025-06-06 12:28:50 UTC

Next year will be even better if we dig into genre specific writing instruction, student work analysis and appropriate use of scaffolds/interventions to support the use of specified genre.

Language Objectives & Feedback

2025-06-06 12:29:33 UTC

Teachers need support in writing, implementing and giving feedback on language objectives.

How do you give actionable feedback in the moment and iteratively.

2025-06-06 12:30:40 UTC

Next year, it would benefit our students greatly if the school was more conscious about the percentages of ELLs and Sped students in mainstream and co-taught classes. Perhaps guidance could take a seat in ILT. And moving forward ELL students could have their own liaisons that are responsible for tracking their progress and wellbeing? Lastly, there is rarely ever a conversation or meeting about the toll a transition of an ELL student from a workshop class to a rigorous mainstream class.

Educational Culture

2025-06-06 12:32:26 UTC

We need professional development on understanding students' educational culture from their native countries. This will help us understand the differences in writing styles/techniques, but also in behavior and conduct. Example: In many countries, when teachers are absent, there are no substitutes; instead, students just leave the class.

Specific PD for CTE

2025-06-06 12:32:39 UTC

CTE specific PD on language objectives and WIDA standards would help teachers better support MLL's. While confident in content delivery, many need strategies to identify language demands and integrate scaffolds like sentence frames and visual supports into technical instruction.

2025-06-06 12:33:49 UTC

Expand Sped PLC to all MCAS subjects in 9th and 10th grade. Norming best practices and looking at ongoing data was crucial in moving sub-separate students into cotaught performance territory.

Professional Development

cmanchester2 — 2025-06-06 12:35:33 UTC

We cannot offer choice PD any longer; but targeted whole-school PD.

Language Objectives
WIDA
Classroom Culture/Building Community
Teaching Writing
Providing Feedback

PD Plan is needed - map out for the year.

PLC can support the work of the PD.

ILT LWs can support through LWs

Losing time for PD next year (no more half days)

Data Share-out

2025-06-06 12:35:33 UTC

Implement a monthly data share-out from ILT during faculty meetings.

Time

2025-06-06 12:35:46 UTC

Is there a way we an change up the learning walk time so it's not just period 1?

2025-06-06 12:36:34 UTC

Teachers need to accompany admin/leaders on learning walks so it can break the stigma. It communicates transparency and keeps the walks themselves from feeling evaluative. There should also be a goal set in place to see specific subjects (sped/ell) a minimum number of times to be sure we have a good data set from which to make decisions.