Linda Williams, curriculum director, and John Kidney, technology coordinator, introduced a new way of keeping track of standards and benchmarks, other than using a gigantic 3-ring binder to the school board on Monday.
"We have missed two days of staff development. In order to make those days up, because it is a contractual day, we chose to pilot a program which we call teacher-led staff development," Williams said. "We introduced our staff to a curriculum-manager software."
This computer resource compiles not only the standards and benchmarks that teachers must meet, but other important information such as what they teach and when they teach certain units into one program.
Williams said that the teachers will implement their 15 and a half staff development hours, by collaborating with their grade-level team, content team or course-offering team to make sure what information needs to be on the curriculum manager software.
Teachers can access this information 24/7 on-line.
"We started introducing staff to the program two weeks ago," Kidney said. "Teachers can work together as a collaborative team and the information is all now in one place."
"Curriculum manager has made the teams more aware of what they teach, when they teach and how they teach," Williams added. "This will hold us more accountable for our own learning and instruction."
The board talked about how schools will continue to progress and implement new technologies as our society continues to be shaped by innovation in the field.
The Webster City four-year-old preschool program recently held a verification visit with the Iowa Department of Education, which produced positive feedback and results for Webster City.
"We are ecstatic," Pleasant View Principal Mindy Mossman said. "There are 10 Iowa Quality Preschool Program Standards with 172 criteria. We met 169 out of 172."
"The program had to meet 85%," Superintendent Mike Sherwood said. "And the schools were at 98.5%."
Mossman said that since the meeting, they have now met 100 percent of the 172 criteria.
The two items that the Iowa Board of Education wanted the program to work on is, one, how the schools arrange their classrooms, and two, phonetic awareness.
"They visited our classroom, looked at our portfolios and they did interviews," she said. "With our classroom visits, they said that they saw teachers practicing what they are learning."
The review saw positive behavior supports, creative curriculum and teachers that were calm and gentle.
"They saw empathy and a strong social foundation being built with the students," she said. "When they see kids helping and caring for each other, then they know that is being modeled by the teachers."
When it came to the teacher's classroom portfolios and the preschool's program portfolios, the department was quite impressed.
"When they looked at their portfolios, they saw that the kids' work sampling was the best that they had ever seen," Mossman said. "They saw a strong link between the curriculum instruction and assessment."
The department felt that family of the preschoolers had strong respect for the staff.
"Families were appreciative of the program quality," she said.
Webster City's preschool system is composed of privately-run preschools but the state saw the organizations being run as a cohesively."
"The state sees that in a very positive light," Mossman said. "There are only two districts in the state, including Webster City, that is doing that."
And Mossman is impressed with the teachers and associates that are in the Webster City preschool program.
"When you have teachers that really care, are really dedicated, love the kids and love what they are doing, they do a great job," she said.
Sherwood discussed how the competition gym project has progressed.
"The bond sales schedule has been set," he said. "The bond sale is at the end of April."
Architect work continues as a second round of work has been done on the footprint of the new addition. Staff affected by the facility will meet with principals and athletic directors to address any needs that they feel need to still be met.
Contact Carrie Olson at lifestyles@freemanjournal.net or call 832-4350.