Institutional:

Ensuring appropriate policies and values are advocated across the District and school administration, and evident in the classroom.

Personal:

Critically reflecting on one’s attitudes and beliefs about oneself and others to uncover biases.

Instructional:

Ensuring instructional materials, activities, and teaching strategies represent a variety of backgrounds and cultural experiences

Delaware Department of Education Regulation 508

Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) is a standards-aligned, comprehensive school improvement FRAMEWORK for enhancing academic, behavioral and social-emotional outcomes for ALL students.

Cross-disciplinary teams represented at the district, school, grade and individual levels use a problem- solving process to integrate evidence-based academic, behavioral and social-emotional practices matched to student needs and with fidelity of implementation.

Ongoing research that expands our understanding of:

• effective instructional practices (e.g., blended learning, trauma-informed pedagogy and social-emotional learning)
• the changing landscape of issues and needs that educators must address in working with students, families, and communities
• changes in policies and statutes that govern the work of educators (e.g., changes in the curriculum requirements for graduation)
• Educators’ evolving professional responsibilities, particularly when assignments and duties change (e.g., making a switch to online learning environments in response to a national crisis).

Every classroom is full of students with their own needs, abilities, and levels of understanding. Data-driven instruction aims to take all of this information into account when teaching. There are three main steps involved in data-driven instruction.

• Data collection: Data gathered from class assessments and standardized test results, as well as observations from the teacher, provide actionable data to drive instruction
• Data analysis: Separate essential information from non- essential information. Watch for patterns and dive into the reasons behind these results
• Action: Allow data analysis to draw conclusions regarding the success of the instructional delivery and to identify next steps instructionally for individual students

Under the Delaware Teacher Growth and Support System (DTGSS), administrators use frequent, brief in-class observations to collect evidence of teaching and learning in action. 

DTGSS observation, feedback, and evaluation focus on Core Teacher Skills in which research-based best practices (reminiscent of Marzano and Learning) become the focus of organizing, planning, assessing, and designing instruction.

Belief in self as a learner and motivation to improve and grow are essential in maximizing student potential. Educators' attitudes and beliefs shape their students’ attitudes towards learning as either being of a ‘fixed mindset’ or ‘growth mindset’ through their daily interaction with students. 

Having a ‘growth mindset’ is essential for any learner, including those that have chosen a profession grounded in learning new and challenging concepts. Educators must not only embrace a ‘growth mindset’ when it comes to students, but also when it comes to personal, professional learning and growth. 

Key Strategies:

• Continue the adoption of high-quality instructional materials, prioritize essential standards, and adjust pacing guides
• Provide high-quality MTSS Tier 1 instruction for all students, every classroom, every day
• Analyze MAP and SmarterBalanced data to identify strengths and areas of need for all students
• Use longitudinal MAP data to set individual student goals (typical growth plus)
• Administer common formative/summative assessments
• Use data to identify and provide targeted MTSS Tier 2 and Tier 3 strategic and targeted support to struggling general education students in literacy and mathematics, setting goals and monitoring student progress within the interventions
• Close identified learning gaps via remediation and acceleration (30:70)
• Administer SmarterBalanced Interim Assessments to allow teachers to check student progress throughout the year, giving them actionable information to inform instruction
• Promote the delivery of instruction through the intentional and purposeful use of technology to provide individualized instruction, increase opportunity for small group instruction, and promote collaborative, project- based learning
• Evaluate and narrow data sources to those providing a comprehensive, longitudinal data set for monitoring student progress and making decisions to improve instructional practice.
• Engage in the planning and creation of the Wilmington Learning Collaborative with the intent of Harlan Elementary School being a member school
• Partner with Community in Schools (CiS) to provide intense focus and support specific to 9th Grade students meeting “on-track to graduate” requirements
• Expand access to programs such as Endless Possibilities to meet the learning needs of non-traditional students
• Pursue the donation of Brandywine Country Club with a sense of urgency to meet the needs of our community’s birth to four-year-old population
• Conduct Equity Audit to examine practices, policies, and procedures through an equity lens
• Increase access and opportunity to advanced academic programs and courses by providing appropriate supports for success
• Provide a continuum of services to meet the needs of students with disABILITIES while ensuring access to appropriate grade-level content
• Provide appropriately challenging experiences for advanced learners across the District, including the Parallel Curriculum Model with the Gifted Services Program
• Ensure access to high-quality grade-level content for multilingual learners through inclusive opportunities and co-teaching models based on culturally relevant instruction
• Support rich and meaningful visual and performing arts learning experiences for students of all abilities

Key Strategies:

• Ensure MTSS Tier 1 school-wide positive expectations and behaviors are defined and taught
• Develop procedures and classroom routines that are consistent with school-wide expectations
• Ensure that agreed-upon routines, procedures, and expectations are consistently enforced by all staff
• Partner with Equity and Beyond to conduct an equity audit as the initial data collection on which to develop a formal equity plan based on identified areas of need and equity training among all staff
• Use data to identify and provide targeted MTSS Tier 2 and Tier 3 strategic and targeted support to struggling students
• Expand alternative education options for students not meeting success with Tier II and III interventions
• Evaluate and revise/eliminate ineffective alternative education programs to ensure high-quality educational opportunities and experiences are provided to all students
• Continue the collective High School Joint Student Council Meetings to solicit student voice for consideration in decision-making as appropriate
• Implement quarterly meetings with middle school students from each building to gain insight and perspective for consideration in decision-making as appropriate
• Meeting once a month on a rotating basis by school with elementary students to gain insight and perspective for consideration in decision-making as appropriate

Key Strategies