First Place, West Division, Elementary Schools
Dr. Susie Lee Hodge, Principal
5132 Jonetta St
Memphis, TN 381092
Memphis City Schools
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Recipe For Success:
Organizing and Scheduling
The organization of the school day includes scheduling, assignments of duties and responsibilities, and establishment of professional learning communities, (PLC’s). The principal works with teachers to develop duties and responsibilities that support a climate conducive to teaching and learning. Teacher and staff expectations are communicated in written and verbal form. Students know the rules and understand expectations. Classes are scheduled to allow support time for music, art, physical education, and library. This allows teachers planning time to work in Professional Learning Communities each week. Data is the key in discussing student progress during the meetings. Interpretation of accountability data is conducted in PLC meetings, during faculty study sessions, and on individual basis. The principal is a leader in training for staff interpretation of data. All teachers are responsible for interpreting the data. Data notebooks are turned in weekly. Data discussions are held in faculty meetings.
Teacher Evaluation
The principal conducts daily walkthrough visits. Teachscape is a tool used to provide a snapshot of instruction in each class/school. The data provides graphs and charts to determine the emphasis on teaching styles, subjects taught, and strategies for classrooms and school. Feedback is provided to teachers. Formal observations are conducted during the year.
Student Discipline
Positive Behavior Intervention, (PBIS), is a District Initiative to support student discipline. Data provides a means to identify areas of the school where problems occur most frequently. Assistance is provided to teachers in identifying causes of problems and strategies for improvement.
Curriculum Decisions
Principal and teachers work as team to make curriculum decisions based on data to meet needs of students in the building. District interventions and formative assessments for students include Stanford Reading/Language Arts, Stanford Math, Discovery Education, Aims-Web, Headsprout for grades K & 1, and Folio Writing Assessment for grades 4 & 5. The school purchases Write Score for TCAP preparation. Graphic Organizers are emphasized in every subject and grade.
The challenge is how one mixes and influences the ingredients, knows when to substitute or change, and is able to stabilize or redirect while focusing on the end product.