St. Francis of Assisi Plan for Continuous Growth 2019-2022 · St. Francis of Assisi School Charism:...

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St. Francis of Assisi School Plan for Continuous Growth

2019-2022

“Walking Together in the Light of Christ”

St. Francis of Assisi Plan for Continuous Growth 2019-2022

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School Mission:

Empowering Learners and Leaders through Christ

School Vision: Creating, Engaging, Loving and Growing together through Christ

St. Francis of Assisi School Charism: 'Charism' is the Greek word used in the New Testament for "favor" or "gratuitous gift". Charisms, or spiritual gifts, are special abilities, given by the Holy Spirit, enabling individuals or communities of faith to be powerful channels of God's love and saving presence in the world.

• Primacy of Christ

• Reverence for Creation and Environment

• Dignity of the Human Person

• Relationships and Community

• Passion for Peace

• Quest for Countercultural Simplicity

• Compassion and Service, especially for the Poor

School Context: St. Francis is an inner-city school with a diverse population of students. 53% of our students are enrolled in the Neyihaw Pimatisiwin Program and 25% of our students come from other countries and are new Canadians or refugees. Our population has decreased by 24 students from last year and we have a lot of transiency as families move in and out of our catchment area. Many of our students come from impoverished homes having experienced a host of trauma and addictions. To combat these issues, we offer no school fees, free bussing, free fieldtrips, we feed our children breakfast, snack, and lunch and we host the Leader in Me program along with a focus on healthy eating and fitness through Apple schools. We also run a Cree program which encompasses the Language, Culture, along with a Dancing and Drumming Program.

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Review of Previous Year’s Goals: Goal

Achieved/continue

Modify

Evidence/data used

Goal 1: Live and enhance the distinctiveness of Catholic education

Continue but modify Although we met some of our goals, there are indications through our Accountability Pillar that we can still be working on this area

Safe and Caring Scores are low for the school in the accountability Pillar. The physical environment is in place; however, we need to work with the students on their Catholicism and appreciation and universality of it.

Goal 2: ECSD Students are successful

Continue but modify Although we managed to hit some of our goal, we are not meeting our regression analysis expectations. We will continue to Focus on Literacy and Mathematics.

PAT scores give us an indication that we struggle in certain areas. Our regression analysis suggest that our students can be doing better.

Goal 3: ECSD supports First Nations, Metis and Inuit student’s success

Continue but modify Although we are doing many of the actions in our school, we still see a lack of belonging and our students not performing at their expected levels.

PAT and regression scores show us that our children could be achieving at a higher level.

Belonging scores within the Accountability suggest that our students are lacking that sense of belonging at our school.

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Data Analysis: Areas to celebrate

Accountability Pillar Measures • Program of Studies • Parental Involvement

District Satisfaction Survey

Improvement in the Two-Year Comparison

Parents

• My child’s school has a positive reputation in the community • My child’s school creates and promotes a Catholic Learning environment • Daily prayer and religious celebrations are important at my child’s school. • Students in my child's school receive additional services and support

when they need it. • My child's school demonstrates care for the environment. • My child's school teaches respect for different cultures and religions. • My child is developing reading and writing skills that will prepare them for

the future. • My child is developing math and number skills that will prepare them for

the future • Collaboration skills are taught at my child's school. • My role as the primary educator of my child is respected by the school. • I am involved in my child's education. • Level of satisfaction with the learning expectations for students. • Level of satisfaction with your opportunity to be involved in decisions

affecting your child's school and learning. • Level of satisfaction with your opportunity to access information about

activities in the school.

Staff

• In our school, technology is meaningfully integrated into instruction. • Parents/guardians are involved in the decisions about their child's

education. • I have appropriate opportunity for input into school/site level decisions

that affect my job. • I am satisfied with the decision-making processes that take place at our

school/site. • I am satisfied that our School Council is fulfilling its advisory role. • I am aware of the District Plan for Continuous Growth (Goals and

Priorities) for this school year.

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Students

• Our religious celebrations at school are important. • Prayer is important at my school. • My classroom learning activities are meaningful. • The school rules are fair. • My school teaches me to make healthy food choices and to be active. • I know what I need to do to improve in my schoolwork. • My school gives me the opportunity to use a variety of technology tools. • My school teaches me to take care of the environment. • My parent/guardian helps me with my learning.

Table C Five Highest Above the district

Parents

• Please indicate your level of satisfaction with your opportunity to access information about overall student achievement in the school.

• Please indicate your level of satisfaction with your opportunity to access information about activities in the school.

• Please indicate your level of satisfaction with your opportunity to be involved in decisions affecting your child's school and learning.

• Please indicate your level of satisfaction with the learning expectations for students.

• My child is developing math and number skills that will prepare them for the future.

Staff

• Our school/site demonstrates care for the environment. • I am treated with dignity and respect by my co-workers. • District professional development provides me with an opportunity to

improve my work skills. • I receive the resources required to do my job given the limits on

school/department and district resources. • Parents/guardians are involved in the decisions about their child's

education. Students • Prayer is important at my school. • I can make choices about my learning. • My school teaches me to make healthy food choices and to be active. • My teacher helps me learn. • My school teaches me to take care of the environment.

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Regression Analysis • We were (-) across the board

PAT/Diploma analysis Five Year Multi Year Report

• Did not beat the provincial average in any of the subjects

Improvement from the Previous Year

• Our Acceptable Standard in Social Studies improved from the previous year.

This is significant as we excused 10 students from writing which really affects the average.

Areas to target for growth Data Source Measures Goals in response to data

Accountability Pillar

Achievement Measures • Safe and Caring • Education Quality • PAT (Acceptable) maintained • PAT (Excellence) maintained • Work Preparation • Citizenship • School Improvement Improvement Measures • Safe and Caring • Education Quality • Work Preparation • Citizenship • School Improvement Overall • Safe and Caring • Education Quality • PAT (Acceptable) maintained • PAT (Excellence) maintained • Work Preparation • Citizenship • School Improvement

• We will be working on Safe and Caring and Citizenship through both our Catholic Identity Goal and our Catholic Education Goal, Strategy 3 of Goal 4, Goal 5, and Goal 6.

• For our PAT scores we had 10 students who did not write the exam. We will put in the proper supports/accommodations to have as many students as possible write the exam (readers, writers, and MP3s).

• We will be working on Education Quality, Work Preparation, and School Improvement through all our Goals but particularly Goals 3, 4, and 5.

• School improvement will be addressed through all Goals.


Decline in the Two-Year Comparison

Parents

• My child has the opportunity to participate in Social Justice activities at school.

• St. Francis of Assisi will do a

better job of celebrating and letting the community know of the Social Justice projects we are involved in.

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Data Source Measures Goals in response to data

District Satisfaction Survey (cont.)

• I am satisfied that my child's school uses a variety of methods to help him/her learn.

• My child's school helps my child learn to the best of his/her ability.

• Ongoing professional development of staff is a priority in my child's school.

• My child is learning the attitudes and behaviours that will make him/her successful in the world of work.

• I am satisfied with the way that student discipline is handled in my child's school.

• My child's school focuses on continuous improvement.

Staff

• Our school/site is involved in social justice, service, and charitable activities (e.g., Food Bank, Sign of Hope).

• Our school provides differentiated learning experiences for all students.

• I am satisfied with the way student discipline is handled in our school.

• The approach to conflict management with adults in our school/site is reflective of our core values.

• Our school focuses on continuous improvement through data analysis.

• Our school is providing the necessary supports for children with special needs

• Our school is a safe environment for children to learn.

• Our school/site is a safe environment in which to work.

Students

• I enjoy learning about the Catholic faith. • I am happy with how much I am learning. • I show respect for others in my school.

• St. Francis of Assisi will celebrate and inform our community more effectively about what we are doing through:

o Our Newsletter o Agendas o K Swift o Our school Sign o Classroom Newsletters

• St. Francis of Assisi will employ a Restorative Justice discipline process that concentrates on

• Indigenous Traditional teachings. • Through our Collaborative

Response model, we hope to work on support for students and self-regulation that address many of these issues.

• Through all our Goals as well as

the data analysis are goal is to address staff measures.

• Professional Development will

occur monthly as will Collaborative Time. At these times we will be addressing the measures we need to improve in to move forward as a school.

• Through all the Goals in our

Growth plan we hope to address the measures the students feel are lacking at our site. Specifically we want to create pride and

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• My school teaches me to show respect for other cultures and religions.

• My teacher expects my work to be done well.

• I feel safe in my school building.

Table C Five Furthest Below the district

Parents

• My child has the opportunity to participate in Social Justice activities at school.

• Ongoing professional development of staff is a priority in my child's school.

• My child's school focuses on continuous improvement.

• Please indicate your level of satisfaction with the cleanliness of the school.

• Overall, how satisfied are you with the quality of education that your child is receiving in school?

Staff

• Our students collaborate through a variety of learning approaches.

• Our students are taught to use the skills of critical thinking and inquiry in their approach to learning.

• Our school provides differentiated learning experiences for all students.

• Our school focuses on continuous improvement through data analysis.

• Our school is providing the necessary supports for children with special needs.

Students

• My Catholic school encourages me to deepen my understanding of my faith.

• I am happy with how much I am learning. • I feel safe in my school building. • I feel safe on the playground during school

hours • Overall, I am happy with my school.

understanding through our Catholic Goals and Goals 5 and 6.

• We will take part in Social Justice

Activities that are inexpensive where actions are more important than monetary funds. This will be relayed to our parents.

• In the same manner we will make sure parents are aware of the PD and collaborative work we are doing at St. Francis of Assisi.

• As part of our OHS review we will

meet with our custodial team to look at the areas of concern as noted by staff and parents.

• As seen above we will try to

address these satisfaction results through the Goals we will be implementing this year.

• Through our Catholic Goals and

Goals 5 and 6 we will address the concerns that our students have mentioned.

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Regression Analysis

Regression Results • Language Arts • Mathematics • Science • Social

All of the above subjects were –‘s on our Regression

We are trying to address this in our School Goals. However, we also had 10 students excused from the exam which has a profound effect. We are making sure that we have the necessary supports in place so as many students as possible are writing the PATs.

PAT/Diploma analysis

Five Year Multi Year Report

• Except for one year in Language Arts at the Acceptable level, we routinely struggle with our PAT results.

• We continually struggle in our basics of both Language Arts (Reading and Writing) and Mathematics (Basic Fluency)

• We are addressing this in Goal 1. Specifically, we are looking at reading and math fluency (basic facts)

Goals: Catholic Identity Goal: St Francis of Assisi will explore and recognize how we all belong to God’s family regardless of our Culture, Race, or Religion. District Correlation: Goal 1: My Catholic school belongs to God’s family.

B) Explore and recognize ourselves as members of the Catholic Church. 1 Corinthians 12:12 - For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.

Strategy 1: Students will be given opportunities to make connections between their culture and Catholic teachings so they can recognize the similarities and commonalities. Actions Traditional Indigenous Teachings (Wisdom, Truth, Love, Honesty, Courage, Humility, and Respect) will be taught and tied to Catholic teachings and Christ (“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you").

• Administration and Staff will use a reparations form based on traditional Indigenous teachings as a part of school wide discipline. This will also be connected to the teachings of Christ and his message of love everyone.

Measures/ Evidence of effectiveness - Students, parents and staff can talk confidently about the traditional teaching and how they are similar/connected to Catholic teachings. - Staff are using the Reparations form as part of our discipline policy and making connections between

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Our ILS Consultants are making connections between traditional teachings and the Catholic Faith so that students understand that they are one and the same. Cultural diversity and the acceptance of it will be highlighted through this process. St. Francis of Assisi will continue to accept, love, and support students from all over the world. We will celebrate their culture and lives through music and cultural days. We will make connections to Catholicity whenever possible

School and Classrooms will use the book “Why Am I Here” to promote an understanding that all God wants (and all religions) is for people to be the best version of themselves.

St. Francis of Assisi will create Christmas cards that are religiously themed for the Christmas Bureau hampers that will be going out across the city.

Catholic and Indigenous teachings. - Our three ILS consultants will make connections between the Indigenous culture and Catholicism. Students understand that they are not two different entities but instead two expressions of the same idea. Acceptance and appreciation of our differences will become the norm in our school. - Music of different cultures is being practiced as part of the music program and in our classrooms with culture days. Ties made to the Catholic Faith whenever possible, an understanding that religions all strive for us to be our best versions. -A strong relationship between the African Center and St. Francis will be promoted. - A greater acceptance of cultural diversity is demonstrated. -Cards created by every class celebrating our Catholic Faith. -Improved Catholicity scores on our district survey along with Safe and caring Schools on the Accountability Pillar.

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Strategy 2: St. Francis of Assisi will celebrate any sacraments our students receive as well as Catholic Feast days and make prayer a daily part of our lives. Actions Father John will continue to be invited to all our school celebrations and any classroom ones that the teachers would like him involved in (Blessing of the Grade 4 Bibles, etc.) Grade 4 class will all receive bibles from the school. This Bible will have a personalized Calligraphy ownership commemorative inscription on the inside cover.

Seminarians assigned to our school will discuss and explain Sacraments with the students in and effort to increase the number of students who are receiving them. Any students who receive a Catholic Sacrament are celebrated on our broadcast as well as on a bulletin board.

Measures/ Evidence of effectiveness

-Father John is a frequent and welcome sight in our School. The children know him and welcome him into the school as part of our Family. -The Grade Four Bible celebration takes place and the importance of this book is made overtly clear. School will bring in cake and fruit to signify the importance. Children treat their Bible with reverence and demonstrate and understanding of its importance.

- More students receive the sacraments in our school and a greater understanding of their importance is demonstrated.

- Students who receive Sacraments are recognized and celebrated on our Broadcast and on a Sacrament Bulletin Board. We will also celebrate these students at our year end celebration. We will witness more students receiving their Sacraments.

-More Students report a greater understanding and appreciation about our

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Catholic Faith and the learning of it.

Catholic Education Goal: By June of 2020 our Students, Parents and Staff will show a greater appreciation and understanding of our Catholic faith as demonstrated by our District Satisfaction Survey, Accountability Pillar (Safe and Caring School) and actual actions within our school. District Correlation:

1.1 Demonstrate the distinctiveness and strengths of Catholic education. a. Continue to enhance the home – school – parish relationships. b. Enhance and strengthen our Catholic identity within each site by implementing our Catholic Identity Plan 2019-2022. (See Appendix I) c. Demonstrate a way of life rooted in the Catholic Christian call to discipleship and service. d. Ensure that permeation of faith remains central in all our day to day practices.

1.3 Demonstrate commitment to and excellence in Catholic education. a. Deliver and support our Religious Education programs to all students as a spirit-filled lived experience with the same excellence as all other areas of study. b. Provide faith formation opportunities for all staff that further their personal and communal growth as participants in a Catholic educational community. c. Continue to develop the role of the school-based chaplain to support the faith formation of students and staff and support sacred-space environments.

Strategy 1: Students will be provided numerous opportunities to engage in Catholic teachings Actions School Chaplain along with the staff to lead/supervise activities and initiatives that promote the Catholic Faith at St. Francis of Assisi.

Have a parish table front and center at Meet the Teacher and Demo of Learning nights. The staff of St. Francis of Assisi will work with our Chaplain and our local parish (St. Matthew) to ensure a Catholic worldview is alive and present throughout our school.

Measures/ Evidence of effectiveness -Community and parents notice a greater participation at the church. - Anecdotally, staff and parents notice students have a greater connection to their faith and are more positive about it.

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• Prayer table that is central to each classroom and used as a teaching tool as well as a place of reverence.

• Create sets of prayer tablecloths representing the

liturgical cycles for each classroom as well as the main prayer table. These cloths will announce the liturgical season as well as double as a teaching tool for teachers.

• Making our school lawn sign a visible symbol for our

community of Christs’ presence in our school by ensuring it mentions our Catholic faith as well as our connectedness with our parish. This will also be demonstrated daily on our School splash screens on the TVs.

• Ensure we are praying at least three times per day;

morning, before lunch, and after school

• Do social Justice Activities outside of monetary collection so that our student can all participate.

Father John will continue to be invited to all our school celebrations and any classroom ones that the teachers would like him involved in (Blessing of the Grade 4 Bibles, etc.) Grade 4 class will all receive bible from the school. Our two seminarians will become active members of our school as they visit the school weekly and work with our students.

-Greater understanding of the liturgical seasons and what they mean to us as Catholics. -Prayer as greater part of our everyday life. -Improved District Survey and Scores from both parents, staff, and students. - Father is in our school/classrooms frequently and involved in our celebrations. He is an active part of our school community. -The seminarians come to our school weekly and a schedule is developed so that they visit all classes by Christmas break. They too become an active part of our school community.

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Christmas Concert will be Faith based songs as well as our Cree song will be Silent night. Starting in December Faith based Christmas songs that are part of our Christmas concert will be played on the Broadcast We will promote on Broadcast any students that receive their sacraments. Broadcast will also have student developed prayers every morning. All classes will do a scavenger hunt looking for different religious symbols around the school. They will then explain these symbols to their classmates and create a representation using pic collage or bookmaker (any technology app) to show the symbols found. Students will then be encourage to bring their own religious symbols to school and make connections. We will have a Stations of the Cross ceremony this year before Easter for our students to understand the trials Christ went through. We will go to St. Matthew’s Church for both an Easter and a yearend celebration

- All songs sung at Christmas Concert are faith based. -Songs are played on the Broadcast and students become more familiar with them. - Last year no one in the school received a Catholic Sacrament, if we have any individuals they will be promoted greatly. -Student created prayer daily. -The different products will be displayed around the school, so students are aware of the religious symbols and their meaning in our school. -The Stations of the Cross have been performed for our students and they are able to demonstrate a better understanding of Christ’s struggle during The Passion. - Make at least two trips to the Church this year. -Improved Catholicity scores on the District Survey

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Strategy 2: Students and staff will demonstrate daily a Christian identity and a call to service. Actions Teachers and Admin will greet students at their doors daily and make/create connections with students. We will make sure students know they are safe and cared for. Staff will model and treat all students and each other ethically, understanding that fair does not always mean equal. We will strive for equity. Every day will be a reset day. Once matters are dealt with, they will be forgiven. They will be given an opportunity to make reparations. Students will learn from the experience and then supported to be the best possible version of themselves.

The Principal will visit classrooms to discuss and the school will have assemblies about, why our school needs to be a safe and caring place. Our Indigenous Learning Support staff will support this message with the “Safe Place, Safe Space” teaching as they work with our students’ drumming and dancing. At every opportunity connection between Indigenous teaching and Catholicism is made.


- Staff seen at the doors meeting and greeting students welcoming them to our school, making connections, and developing relationships.

- Staff will be transparent in their actions and make sure students are aware of why actions are occurring and what the consequences are.

Students will learn from their mistakes and use the “I want to make things better” discipline sheet. We will see a decrease in unsafe and uncaring behaviours.

Students are familiar with the language of Safe Space Safe Place and about bucket filling.

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Strategy 3: Keep our Chaplain position in place to ensure Catholic Education is supported in our school. Actions

Chaplain will go to all Professional development sessions and bring back that knowledge to our staff and students. Chaplain will have time at one monthly staff meeting to do some religious professional development with our staff. Chaplain will oversee the deployment of Seminarians and help with their delivery of religious material.


Chaplain has attended all professional development offered by the district. Chaplain will provide monthly religious PD to staff. Seminarians are in the school weekly visiting all classes and contributing to our Catholic culture.

Goal 3: By June 2020, all teachers (classroom, learning coach and administrators) will increase their instructional repertoire of how to be a teacher of literacy and numeracy through deepening knowledge and skills in the areas of: a) fostering a collaborative culture which promotes a growth mindset for high achievement and, b) engaging in authentic literacy and numeracy practices across and within their disciplines. Success will be visible through student progress and success and reported stakeholder feedback. District Correlation: ECSD Goal One: ECSD students are successful 1.1 Focus on strategies to support seamless transitions from K to 1, grades 6 to 7, grades 9 to 10, and

12 and beyond. 1.2 Identify and implement best practices that align with excellent pedagogy and learning

environments while developing a strong foundation in literacy and numeracy. A strong start to learning necessitates a focus upon developing competencies, i.e. communication, growth and well-being, creativity and innovation, critical thinking, problem solving and management of information.

1.3 Implement pedagogical and assessment practices focused on improving students’ conceptual and procedural knowledge of subject-area disciplines and cross-curricular connections.

1.4 Identify and implement best practices in disciplinary literacy from early learning through to graduation to ensure all students have the foundational skills for success.

1.5 Ensure that flexible and responsive programming meets the diverse needs of all learners. 1.6 Continue to review career pathways for students. 1.8 Continue to pilot and evaluate the provincially funded school nutrition programs and report success.

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Strategy 1: Staff will work with students to increase both their reading levels and comprehension.

Actions • As part of School PD St. Francis of Assisi will examine

what are the important parts of a Literacy program. o We will investigate:

Word Walls Word work Phonics Guided Reading Independent Reading Read Alouds

Guided Reading groups will continue, but teachers will determine the time they are held instead of it being done first thing in the morning. Music Teacher will receive Leveled Literacy Intervention training so more students can be successful. Both Assistant Principals and our Learning Coach will also continue to deliver Leveled Literacy Intervention, Guided Reading or Book Studies to our students. Guided reading groups will be multi grade if necessary. Guided reading will not always be determined by levels but instead gaps in learning. Will allow children to learn different strategies from peers. Reading will not be limited to levels. Children will have more voice and choice. Classroom Libraries not organized according to levels but instead genre, authors, etc. Extra Guided Reading sessions for our students needing support provided by our Indigenous Learning Services support. These sessions will focus on Indigenous books and hence culture and teachings.

Measures/ Evidence of effectiveness - Teachers will report increased confidence in communicating to students and parents what a good literacy program looks like and the components that are involved. -Improvement in F & P scores. Goal is to move a year in levels even if students are not currently at grade level. - Seeing a variety of grouping for guided reading. Groups are not being determined only by level. - Classroom libraries are not organized by level. -Improvement in PAT and Regression Analysis scores.

- PD time given to Learning Sprint Team and teachers are invited to join the team or use strategies in the classroom.

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Learning Sprint team will share Professional development with staff, so this strategy is available for Teachers in their classroom Strategy 2: Necessary supports will be put in place for struggling readers so staff can be confident that understanding of concepts is being tested rather than reading ability. Actions Formative and summative assessment will be triangulated so teachers can ensure students are receiving information in other ways than just reading. They will also be able to demonstrate knowledge in different ways besides just writing. Struggling readers will be provided readers for text intensive tests. Struggling writers will be provided scribes for written tests. These supports will be year-round and used during the district and PAT exams.

Measures/ Evidence of effectiveness - Triangulation of assessment is apparent in teacher practice as well as Powerschool reporting. - Students are provided reading and writing supports when required. - Improved PAT and Regression Analysis scores.

Strategy 3: From our PAT analysis, teachers will focus on basic math facts through Number Sense and Fluency. Actions Every class will devote time to basic facts through Number Sense and Fluency. Mathematics consultant will be brought in to provide teachers with engaging activities teaching opportunities to help student learn Number Sense and Fluency. Numero club will continue. School will hold a Math Fair. Kickin’ It resource used by all grades. Mathletics purchased for all students.

Measures/ Evidence of effectiveness - Mathematics Consultant meets with staff to show different strategies and resources to teach Number Sense and Fluency. - Students are having the opportunities to learn Number Sense and Fluency in a variety of interesting and engaging ways. - Improved PAT and Regression Analysis Scores.

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Teachers will use common language, practice and Assessment in the area of mathematics. All classes will begin Math journals with their students.

-Improved understanding of math concepts in class. -Better student attitudes as determined by a pre and post Math survey. -Teachers and students can speak more confidently about grade level standards and the assessment of them.

Strategy 4: Using the Collaborative Response Model, students will reach their full potential and show greater success academically. Actions St. Francis of Assisi will employ a Collaborative Response Model to focus on Tier 1 and 2 supports in an effort to improve all students’ academic standing. Teacher will develop an understanding of the different literacy, mathematical and behavioural Tier 1 and 2 supports that can be used in a classroom. Multi-Disciplinary Team will present to teachers Tier 1 and 2 behavioural supports that can be used in classrooms before Tier 3 and 4 supports are initiated Through the use of Tier 1 and 2 behavioural supports students will improve in self-regulation allowing for greater academic success. MDT meetings will continue every Friday at lunch to examine the different supports in place for our students. CRM will begin in January with a focus on tier 1 and 2 supports. MDT and the Learning Coach will meet with Grade levels during collaborative Planning time four times throughout the year to discuss the Tiered supports and identify the students needing those supports.

Measures/ Evidence of effectiveness - CRM is being used starting in Jan. of 2020. -Teachers express and demonstrate a greater understanding of the differences in the Tiers of support and it is identifiable and observable in their practice. -Professional development is given on the Tiers and as a staff we develop and implement supports that work for our students. - MDT bagged lunch meetings continue throughout the year. -Teachers express confidence that all students can learn and understanding that they are the single largest contributor to academic success. - Less time is spent dealing with behavioural issues and more time on learning. -Improvements are seen in the Accountability Pillar, District

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Professional Development will occur about the different supports available and the difference between Tier 1, 2, 3, and 4 supports.

Survey, PATs, and Regression Analysis.

Goal 4: St. Francis of Assisi staff will plan, attend, and engage in Professional Development that targets our school goals as well as engage in constructive professional dialogue during our collaborative planning time. District Correlation: ECSD Goal Four: ECSD has excellent teachers, and school and school authority leaders 4.1 Provide professional learning opportunities that build the capacity and leadership of all staff to

improve learner success. 4.2 Ensure that teachers, principals and other administrative leaders have the capacity to meet the

new Quality Standards, in collaboration with stakeholders and school authorities. 4.3 Continue to use the 10 Dimensions of Catholic Leadership to support, encourage and invest in

the creative and innovative abilities of all staff. 4.4 Promote excellent teaching practices consistent with the Teaching Quality Standard, Leadership

Quality Standard, and Superintendent Leadership Quality Standard, all which guide and support student achievement.

4.8 Support teachers and system leaders to implement technology effectively and equitably into the learning environment, identify indicators of progress, and be accountable for enacting policies, procedures and standards, as outlined in the Learning and Technology Policy Framework. Strategy 1: Professional Development will be provided to teachers that will focus on the continued improvement of literacy teaching Actions Grade 1 teachers will take part in Dr. Georgiou’s research project. An extra morning session will be planned with our LSI Consultant and grade one teachers to support understanding of the program and greater confidence in the delivery of it. Learning Coach will receive additional training as part of the research project in order to support identified struggling learners after phase 1. Grade 1 teachers and Learning coach will provide information to all staff of their learning and strategies learned.


- Grade 1 teachers will receive the research project training.

- Grade 1 Teachers meet with the LSI Consultant Dec. 13 for the morning.

- Grade 1 teachers will commit to the 30 minutes required daily of the project.

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Principal will take part in Literacy Principles for Principals ERLC professional development. St. Francis of Assisi staff will then look at the principles and ensure all of them are part of their literacy program. Every second Thursday afternoon will be devoted to professional development and every third Thursday to collaborative planning so our different goals can be addressed, discussed and worked on.

- Learning Coach will receive training in the teaching of the project as well and attend required Professional Development.

-Administration will go to the required Professional Development for the project.

-Fewer struggling grade 1 readers will be seen in the 19/20 school year

-Principal will go to the Professional Development Sessions on Literacy Principles.

- Necessary principles for successful literacy programs will be analyzed by staff and all teachers will ensure these principles are being used in their Language Arts programs.

- Teachers will be able to confidently speak of the components necessary to have a successful Language Arts program

-F & P, PAT and Regression Analysis scores will improve.

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Strategy 2: Professional Development will be provided to teachers that will focus on the continued improvement of Mathematics teaching. Actions Schedule the Math Consultant to work with the staff to find different engaging activities that will help us work on math fluency (basic facts), the understanding of how they are learned, and the assessment of them. Staff will look at:

• Scope and Sequence K-6 • Developing proficiency with addition and subtraction • Developing proficiency with multiplication and division • Accessing Fact Fluency • Enriching Fluency Through Games

Every second Thursday afternoon will be devoted to professional development and every third Thursday to collaborative planning so our different goals can be addressed, discussed and worked on.


- Teachers express a greater understand of how math fluency occurs and to build on foundational knowledge.

- Teachers demonstrate a greater understanding of the scope and sequence of the Alberta Program of Studies and what is needed before and after students’ current grade levels to be successful.

-Teachers are assessing basic facts in more engaging ways than just pencil and paper tests

- Teachers observe students learning mastery of their basic facts by using different methods and the use of games.

-Professional Development and collaborative time will be provided for the further exploration of the five listed areas targeted. Teachers will feel more knowledgeable and confident in these areas.

-Staff see an improvement in Math Fluency (both in tests and anecdotally) and our PAT

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scores improve particularly on Part A.

Strategy 3: St. Francis of Assisi staff will further expand their work on the Collaborative Response Model. Specifically looking at Tier 1 and 2 supports that can be universally applied to ensure greater overall student success. Actions St. Francis of Assisi staff will develop a greater understanding of the different literacy, mathematical and behavioural Tier 1 and 2 supports that can be used in a classroom. Multi-Disciplinary Team will present to teachers Tier 1 and 2 behavioural supports that can be used in classrooms before Tier 3 and 4 supports are initiated As a staff we will discuss, label, and categorize these different supports. We will determine which ones work best at which grade levels. We will discuss as a school, divisions, and grade groupings.

True CRM model begins being implemented in January 2020. Admin, MDT, Teachers, and EAs are all represented at these meeting.


- More Tier 1 and 2 supports are being demonstrated in the classroom. -Multi Disciplinary Team reports that less students are being referred to them

-Through the use of Tier 1 and 2 behavioural supports students will improve in self-regulation allowing for greater academic success.

Meetings begin in January and continue monthly until the end of the year. Each month a different grade/ division is invited to the table.

Use of regulation activities is being seen throughout the school and is having a positive effect on behaviour and academic success.

Strategy 4:

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Through professional development and dialogue, St. Francis of Assisi staff will have a better understanding of curriculum, common language, common practice, and effective assessment practices. Actions

In addition to the above strategies St. Francis of Assisi PD and Collaborative time will focus on:

o Connections between the different tiers of support and good teaching strategies.

o Teachers will discuss common practice and language in Language Arts, Mathematics, and Religion

o Teachers will have discussions with surrounding grade colleagues about the curriculum and strategies that need to be in place for students to have success in their grade year.

o Teachers will engage in professional dialogue to ensure innovative assessment practices are keeping pace with innovative teaching practices. Are teachers: Triangulating Assessment. Giving students voice by co-constructing

criteria. Ensuring student action is a part of

assessment.


-Success is seen in our data results along with student and parent feedback from district and provincial surveys.

- More Tier 1 and 2 supports are being used in the classroom and a greater understanding of the levels of supports is demonstrated and verbalized.

-The language of “levels of support necessary” is seen rather than identifying specific students.

Goal 5: St. Francis of Assisi School will empower Indigenous Learners to take ownership for their learning and for all our students to have an appreciation for the Indigenous Culture and its way of life. This will promote appreciation of cultural diversity throughout the school. District Correlation: ECSD Goal Two: ECSD supports First Nations, Métis and Inuit students’ success 2.1 Increase academic success and cultural knowledge by promoting successful practices to support

First Nations, Métis and Inuit students. a) Continue programs and enhanced academic and cultural supports for all students that

lead to successful transitions between all levels, increased high school completion rates, improved successful transitioning to post-secondary, career development and encourage life-long learning.

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b) Ensure that all teachers and leaders have the acquired skills to meet and exceed the foundational knowledge of First Nations, Métis and Inuit standard as outlined in Alberta Education Teaching Quality Standards.

c) Support the provincial Pre-K–12 Cree language and culture programming. 2.2 Provide and promote cultural diversity.

a) Engage Elders in a collaborative approach to meet the cultural needs of Indigenous students through the Indigenous ways of knowing.

b) Recognize the Council of Elders as the authentic, active participants in spiritual ceremonies, traditional events and cultural protocols.

c) Provide opportunities for on-going professional development for all District staff in cultural awareness.

Strategy 1: Cree Language and Culture will be celebrated and shared throughout the school to promote cultural diversity and create a sense of ownership and pride in our Indigenous Learners. Actions Supports from Indigenous Learning Services, Elders and Knowledge Keepers.

Using traditional teachings for empowering our students to take ownership of their learning. Integrate one of these teachings into our assemblies per month.

Use the seven traditional teachings (Wisdom, Humility, Courage, Love, Respect, Honesty, and Truth) as the basis for our discipline. When necessary have students work on a restorative justice piece based on these teachings using discipline as a teaching opportunity.

ILS will work cooperatively with staff to bring the seven-universal teaching to students.


-Supports from ILS, Elders, and Knowledge Keepers are used frequently by our school. These supports are welcome and comfortable in our school and known to our students.

-Traditional teachings being used throughout the school. Students, Staff and Parents are familiar with the seven teachings.

- Teachers report a greater confidence in speaking about/teaching these seven teachings.

-ILS instructors using the seven traditional teaching language and expounding

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Pow Wow and Round Dance and drumming will continue to be taught at the school. Students will travel to perform as requested.

School will host a Sacred Pipe Ceremony in June. School will host an Edmonton Regional Learning Consortium Community of Practice for Indigenous Learning (Dancers and Drummers will present). ILS representative will work with whole school Wednesday afternoons on “safe space, safe place” as we work on the acceptance of diversity at St. Francis of Assisi.

St. Francis of Assisi will create three distinct areas to support our Indigenous learners and share their culture with our students and school.

• A Cree language room for the teaching of Cree and Cree Culture

upon and further explaining it.

-Dancing and Drumming for the Round Dance and Pow Wow continue to be taught at St. Francis of Assisi. Our Drummers and Dancers travel to perform at other schools as well as taking part at Celebration of the Arts. More students will join the program.

- School hosts a Sacred Pipe Ceremony in June where our families are invited to experience the ceremony.

- On Nov. 22 St. Francis hosts an ERLC Community of Practice for nine other schools so we can demonstrate the great things St. Francis of Assisi is doing. A smudging along with drumming, singing, and dancing will take place.

-ILS instructor will bring Indigenous culture to the entire school on Wednesday afternoons. The themes of “filling a bucket” and “Safe Space” will be continued on there as well to improve in sense of belonging and understanding of Cultural diversity.

- Three distinct rooms will be created for our indigenous teaching/learning.

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• A Drum Room recognizing the spiritual importance of the Drum where drumming, dancing and Cree culture will be taught to students.

• A Cree Literacy/Games Room where identified students will receive extra literacy help with a focus on Indigenous books and a kinetic style of learning.

Traditional Teachings along with restorative Justice used in school discipline procedures.

-The creation of these spaces will help our students see the importance of Indigenous teachings in our school as well as the distinctiveness of parts that make the whole. This will also allow our instructors to create their own space and have confidence about having their own home/area. - Traditional teachings being used as part of the discipline process. Students able to make associations on where they could have used the traditional teachings more effectively. Restorative plans are made out that involve the seven teachings. -Improvement of scores in belonging and safe and caring on our Accountability Pillar/District Surveys.

Strategy 2: Students will experience a broad spectrum of teaching and learning experiences. Actions Creation of the three different rooms will allow students to learn in a variety of ways.

Measures/ Evidence of effectiveness - Language, Literacy, Dancing, Drumming and Culture sharing all help promote a sense of belonging and acceptance of cultural diversity. -Positive class interactions with mixed students in whole class experiences throughout all grades.

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Drum rattle, dress and teepee making will occur for all students. Under One Sun Literacy program will be used with Indigenous learners who need extra support in reading. This will be combined with cultural activities games to tie reading to kinetic learning. Whole class cultural experiences will take place, so everyone experiences Indigenous culture and then can connect it to their culture. All are connected to Catholic teachings All classes will learn about the seven traditional teachings both from ILS instructors and St. Francis of Assisi Staff. All students and staff will learn these words as well as some simple everyday words in Cree (Oh Canada will be sung in Cree on Broadcast).

-All students have the opportunity to work with their hands to create Indigenous culture pieces. - Identified students showing an improvement in Fountas and Pinnell scores while also expressing a greater appreciation for reading. -Greater sense of belonging reported on School Satisfaction Surveys and Accountability pillar. - Students and staff will learn about the traditional teachings, why they are important and their connection to Catholicism. They will be able to say these teachings in Cree as well as a minimum of five everyday words. PAT, Sense of belonging, Safe and Caring, F & P scores all improve as well as overall measures on the Accountability Pillar.

Goal 6: St. Francis of Assisi School will continue to take purposeful directed action to improve as a safe and caring school. Everyone (student, staff and parents) will feel welcome and know that they are a vital part of our school community and its culture. These actions will be communicated to the community. District Correlation: ECSD Goal Three: ECSD respects diversity and promotes inclusion 3.1 Implement the Inclusive Education Policy Framework by ensuring that schools focus on the

creation of welcoming, inclusive, caring, respectful and safe learning environments for all students and staff.

3.2 Continue to support the provincial Inclusive Education Policy Framework. 3.3 Continue to develop partnerships supporting and advancing inclusive communities.

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Strategy 1: St Francis of Assisi Staff will take direct action to ensure St. Francis is a safe and Caring school. We will do this by:

o Following Gospel values and the teachings of Christ o Respecting everyone who enters our building. o Dealing with everyone in a respectful manner o Using an Indigenous and Catholic form of discipline o Continue to work on effective measures from last year

It will be observable from the moment you enter our doors, that St. Francis of Assisi is a “welcoming” place. Action

From the traditional teachings teachers will create essential agreements reflecting about what staff imagine St. Francis of Assisi can become. From this process work, teachers will take the traditional teachings back to the classrooms and do similar process work with their students to determine how they will create a school they want to be part of. From their work and discussions students will create Essential Agreements for their classroom. Staff will use “I want to make things right” reparations using traditional teachings as our discipline procedure. EBS, BT-TA, OT-TA, and FSLW will work with targeted students and classes on different social skills to ensure Catholic values are being maintained and taught to help keep St. Francis of Assisi a safe and caring school.

Measures/ Evidence of effectiveness - Using the seven traditional teachings, teachers have collectively created an agreement of what we would like our school to become. -These teachings are then presented to the students as they determine how we are going to make St. Francis a special place. We will have assemblies highlighting these different traditional teachings. -Seeing an improvement in students and classes that are targeted for specific skills. - Improved Accountability/School satisfaction data. - Parents, students, staff and Community demonstrate a change in perception about St. Francis of Assisi as reported in district data as well as anecdotal information.

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Review Date 1 March 30, 2020 Review Date 2: June 19, 2020

St. Francis of Assisi Plan for Continuous Growth 2019-2022 · St. Francis of Assisi School Charism:...

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