LI News Blast #1: Logistics and Reminders

Happy Friday, LIs!  Thanks for reaching out with the issues your PTs faced during the last Virtual Session.  Teachlikeachampion.com, which hosted the videos, was down. Please encourage your PTs to watch the videos at a later date to support their development, while excusing them from the associated discussion posts.  This is the only assignment that was impacted.  

If you haven’t done so already, please complete the LI SURVEY from the NYC Teaching Academies program that was sent last week! Thank you to those who have!

Virtual SBS:

• Now that our last Virtual SBS has closed, we are eager for your feedback!  Please complete the LI Feedback Survey prior to our 3.19 Virtual LI Meeting. Your feedback will have a huge impact on future Virtual SBS. 

LI Meeting 3.19:

• Our Virtual LI Meeting is scheduled for 3.19 from 4:30-7:30. Sign-in details are below and will be emailed to you as well.
• Please note that although there is a call-in number, you are highly encouraged to join the online meeting so you can fully participate.
• Dial-in number (US): (605) 313-4118
• Access code: 294721#
• Online meeting ID: lmorel3
• Join the online meeting: https://join.freeconferencecall.com/lmorel3
• You will be prompted to download the desktop app, so please give yourself a few minutes for this before the start of the meeting at 4:30

• Please remember that if you are facilitating RCS, you are required to attend the session, as we will be discussing and planning for RCS at the meeting.
• At the meeting, we will:
• Review and plan for scoring the three upcoming micropapers
• Review Gateway 1 data to identify trends
• Plan RCS in response to PT data
• Analyze our LI data from the first PT survey

RCS:

• For those of you unfamiliar with RCS, Responsive Coaching Sessions (RCS) are developed based on PT needs.  Following their official Gateway observations, program staff analyzes their performance data and determines the areas of support that are most critical.  We then develop targeted sessions to provide additional content and practice in those areas.
• These sessions do not include any new content; rather, they are review and practice of a skill already learned around which PTs need further practice and feedback.  RCS jump directly into practice or analysis of exemplars (videos, lesson plans, etc.) as a form of remediation and intervention to move PTs towards mastery of Gateway benchmarks. RCS are an hour long, versus SBS which are 2 hours long, because they are intensely focused on one skill.
• PTs placed on Performance Improvement Plans have already been invited to RCS focused on 2C: Managing Classroom Procedures and 3A: Communicating with Students.
• If there are seats remaining next week, we will open the RCS to any PT who wants to attend.
• If your PTs receive an invite and ask you about it, please encourage them to attend!  PTs in the past have found the sessions immensely helpful.

Per Session:

• As previewed in last week's News Blast, per session is due by Thursday, March 21st.
• There is NO SBS on March 21st.
• Include hours for the week of March (25th-29th).
• Blank per session forms and sign in sheets live here.
• You will upload your completed per session and sign in forms here in the folder with your name (or the Substitute folder).  DO NOT put your social security number on your per session form.
• If you have any trouble with the folder, let me know and I can send you the link to your folder directly.  Everyone has a folder with edit permissions, so uploading should be no problem. 
• For this round of per session submissions, you will submit 2 per session forms and 2 corresponding sign in sheets:

• Pay Period ending 3/15
• Pay Period ending 3/30
• Click here for sample completed per session forms and sign in sheets for these two pay periods.
• I recommend using an App like Genius Scan to PDF your forms into one document.
• Save your document in the following format: LastName.FirstName.Month
• Ex: Morel.Laura.Morel
• Here is the pay schedule: 

LI Survey Data:

• If you have not already, please review the data I sent you on March 4th with your individual survey results and complete the reflection form.  Download the form and email it to me prior to our 3.19 meeting.  

PT Survey #2:

• PTs were emailed their second survey.  Typically, many PTs say they don't receive the email.  Please tell them to email Ciani Jones at cjones59@schools.nyc.gov directly to report issues.  This way she can send them the link ASAP.

Upcoming SBS

**Gateway 1 Reflection Paper is due on March 20th.

3.20 (D75) - EIST I: Eliciting and Interpreting Student Thinking 

• Emphasize that to understand student thinking, a teacher must primarily listen to students explaining their thought process.
• Consider adding a short model with a PT, in which you ask a specific question, listen, and probe.
• Remind PTs to "mine for gold" when they watch the videos.  The teachers in the videos aren't perfect nor are they expected to be; PTs should focus on the specific skill being modeled.

3.20 (Non-D75) - Planning Questions

• Layer in your own process for planning questions and provide examples.
• On slide 12, there are three videos.  Enough time is allotted for the slide to show all three.  Feel free to show only the video(s) relevant to your students and use the extra time elsewhere in the session.
• Explain that low-level, literal, and recall based questions have a use, but primary as a means of engaging students, activating prior knowledge, or in the Knowledge Acquisition stage.
• In the closing of the session, preview the assignment due 3.28: Formative Assessment Data Reflection and Analysis.

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