The Daily Southerner, Tarboro, NC

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  • Kimberly Bellamy

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August 5, 2009

SUMMER SCHOOL

Staff in class for training

KIMBERLY BELLAMY

It’s apparent that the methods that Edgecombe educators are using are making a difference with a majority of the schools meeting or improving on Adequate Yearly Progress last year, but bigger strides are being made for further improvement.

Administrators, instructional coaches, central office staff and a selected group of teachers received training this week from The Centers for Quality Teaching and Learning (QTL).

The training focused on common and formative assessments, which involves teachers and students evaluating what works and doesn’t work during the learning process.

QTL Senior Instructional Specialist Rachel Porter said the training encouraged them to do ongoing assessments to measure growth and differentiate their instruction.

“It empowers teachers and students to use assessment data to increase achievement,” she said.

The information they received targeted looking at what can be changed to gain better results from start to finish and not just using the same teaching methods the whole time without exploring ways to help those that weren’t receptive to the previous lessons.

“It’s about the small things that teachers do throughout the year,” Porter said.

Some of the tools used to train the educators were reviewing articles and professional journals, group activities, discussions, looking at their county pacing guides, and creating a rubric.

Some administrators said that the training was just reinforcing what their schools are already practicing.

“The New Schools Project has been pushing formative assessments since its inception,” said Sherita Cobb, Early College principal.

Some noticed how the information presented would help them collaborate with other educators and take new approaches to testing and teaching their students.

“It’s going to help us with our Professional Learning Communities and help us understand better how to differentiate the lessons being taught,” said Dannie Williams, North Edgecombe principal.

“It’s not waiting until the end of the year but taking benchmarks throughout the year.”

The training was geared towards the lower grades but the administrators said that they could see how this could help secondary education.

“We can take some of these concepts and use them in high school,” said John Westberg, SouthWest Edgecombe principal.

The administrators gained insight of how this training will be used as QTL works closely with their teachers this year.

“We’ll be working with all elementary and middle school teachers this year, so we’re giving them an overview and background of what we’ll be doing,” Porter said.

“We’re all in various stages or levels of implementing the Professional Learning Communities but we’re at a place where our teachers can become more empowered,” said Brenda Hargrove, Stocks Elementary assistant principal.

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