“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”
Wayne Dyer

 General Sessions

 Ways We Want Our Schools to Be: Creating a Culture of Learning

How does addressing the social and emotional needs of children better prepare them for increasingly complex academic standards?

Research indicates that students who are in a caring environment—one that meets their need for autonomy, belonging, and competence—build an attachment to school and a renewed desire to learn and improve academic achievement.

In this session, participants will:

• Review the research that indicate show school climate impacts academic achievement
• Reflect on their own school’s climate todetermine whether it provides possibilities for students to have a greater voice
• Explore how developing an inclusive campus climate increases student interest in learning

 Beyond Alignment and Compliance with Common Core State Standards

How do we go beyond alignment and compliance with the Common Core State Standards to use them as a vehicle for inspiring students and deepening their learning?

In spite of the rhetoric and best intentions, the education community still struggles under the weight of limited perspectives and old paradigms about standards-based instruction. Some teachers treat the standards like daily objectives and haven’t stopped to think about the standards as outcomes or “the end in mind” for their students. They also don’t look for the evidence to know if students are making the progress toward the standards needed.

In this session, participants will:

• Think about and discuss what it means to be “college and career ready”
• View lesson video looking for evidence that students are developing the skills and habits expected by the CCSS
• Examine how key standards can be addressed through lesson design that integrate the English Language Arts Standards in purposeful ways
• Gain an understanding of the intent and outcome-based design of the CCSS

Leadership Strand

Thursday Afternoon Sessions

 Learning from Lesson Study

Why is lesson study a powerful model for professional learning and how does it relate to the Common Core State Standards?

Even though lesson study is commonplace in Japan, considered one of the most powerful designs for professional development, and closely aligned with the Standards for Professional Learning, very few American teachers have participated in lesson study. Our work with districts that have embraced lesson study has taught us valuable lessons we want to share.

In this session, participants will:

• Hear the experiences of districts who are implementing and growing lesson study across their schools
• Discuss the successes and challenges inherent in schoolwide lesson study cycles
• Explore relevant issues around improving teacher practice in relation to the CCSS

 Creating and Supporting a Collaborative Community of

Adult Learners

How do we create a school culture that supports practitioners who put student achievement at the center?

With the goal of improving the quality of instruction and student achievement toward meeting the standards, let’s think about the structures that need to be in place for teachers to work successfully in collaborative teams.

In this session, participants will:

• Experience ways to build trust and develop and deepen relationships across the staff and teams
• Review agendas that foster conversations and keep the focus on student learning
• Discuss ways to structure schedules to provide time for job-embedded professional learning

  Leadership Strand

Friday Morning Sessions

Planning for Effective Program Implementation

What do we need to consider and plan for when implementing new programs and other initiatives in our schools?

Change is hard. Real change in schools occurs only with a thoughtful plan that takes into consideration the needs of all the stakeholders.

In this session, participants will:

• Discuss the support needed for successful innovation and the challenges schools face
• Hear the experiences of others who have successfully implemented change
• Plan their own implementations, including carrying out the initial PD, providing on-going support, and identifying indicators of success

 Transforming Instruction for a New Generation of Learners

How do we make shifts in instruction to adequately prepare students today for their future?

The new millennium demands a generation of learners who understand the importance of collaboration, communication, critical thinking, problem solving, and innovation. How do we embody the spirit and intent of the Common Core State Standards in materials selection and instructional planning that will help school faculties responsibly prepare this new generation of learners?

In this session, participants will:

• Reflect on the skills students need to develop to their full potential
• Think about the challenges of changing instructional practice and materials
• Explore how to prepare students to lead the world they will inherit
• Hear the experiences of others

Teacher Leader Strand

Thursday Afternoon Sessions

 Lesson Study: Learning to Plan Powerful Lessons Together

What is lesson study and why should wevalue this model of professional learning?

When lesson study is implemented well over time,it has the power to transform schools, both in terms of student achievement and the Professional Learning Community. Through collaboration with peers, teachers grow in their ability to plan and teach effective lessons. Student learning becomes the central topic of collegial conversations and the central focus of teaching practice.

In this session, participants will:

• Learn about the power of lesson study to transform schools
• Experience aspects of planning and researching a lesson
• Hear from others who are implementing lesson study

Building Collaborative Teams

How can the Common Core State Standards help us in our development as a Professional Learning Community?

We often hear teachers say, “we do our PLC on Monday afternoon” (or some other arbitrary day or time). Professional Learning Communities are not something we “do.” They are something we “are” and can’t be compartmentalized to a day and time. Shifting our thinking from “doing” to “being” is at the heart of our work.

In this session, participants will:

• Experience team builders and other structures to use with colleagues
• Learn how norm setting can further deepen the thinking and discourse
• Review agendas that focus the conversations on student needs and teacher practices

Teacher Leader Strand

Friday Morning Sessions

 Facilitating Student Talk, Interaction, and Thinking

What practices work for deepening conversations and expanding student thinking?

Engaging all learners in meaningful conversations that lead to deep understandings of text, improved writing, problem solving, self-regulation, and critical literacy skills is at the heart of our work at DSC. And yet, many classrooms continue to be dominated by the voice of the teacher and a few students who seem to always know the “right” answer.

In this session, participants will:

• Consider the research on the importance of talk on student achievement
• Experience practices that encourage and develop more sophisticated conversations
• Reflect on how to bring the Speaking and Listening Standards to life in classrooms

Standards-based Assessment in DSC Classrooms

How can we design classroom assessment processes that provide teachers and students with the information needed to ensure progress toward our learning goals and standards?

Assessments make a difference for teachers when they provide the information needed to adjust instruction and provide feedback that helps students develop a clear vision for the intended learning and teaches them how to self-assess and set goals for themselves.

In this session, participants will:

• Learn how to weave assessment for learning into daily teaching practice
• Gain an understanding of how to design and use a variety of formative assessments
• Develop concrete examples of classroom applications for assessing and grading
• Learn to lead others in studying assessments that are purposeful and informative

 Implementing IDR: A Path to Increasingly Complex Text

How can we develop both the critical skills to read and the passionate LOVE of reading?

Among other things, the Common Core State Standards call for students who are independent, engaged, proficient, flexible, and open-minded. They also call for discerning readers who have deep and wide reading experiences. The only way to accomplish these goals is by providing time for students to read independently during the school day. Reading every day is more critical now than it ever was before.

In this session, participants will:

• Examine ways to structure time and resourcesfor Individualized Daily Reading (IDR)
• Consider the teacher’s role in IDR
• Discuss challenges to and strategies forimplementing an effective IDR program