Just a quick reminder that the Community forum is coming up this Monday evening at 7pm at the Federated Church in Williston. Take advantage of the opportunity to have your voice heard concerning the recent reconfiguration process in the Williston schools. (Click "read more" to continue...)
Please Come To:
- Learn more about the reconfiguration plan implemented by the school administration and its implications for educational equality.
- Learn how the Williston schools compare to other schools in our own Supervisory Union (Shelburne, Charlotte, Hinesburg).
- Learn how the Williston middle school compares to other middle schools in the local area and throughout New England in terms of structure and academic rigor.
- Hear how our school’s current house configuration affects the scheduling and academic rigor provided for our children.
- Come together as a community to determine appropriate actions to take to guarantee that our children are receiving an outstanding education that better meets both their academic and social needs. Develop a plan and petition to present to the CSSU Superintendent, school administration, and Williston School Board.
1 comment:
I thought it would be appropriate to post this letter written by walter Nardelli to the parents and community of Williston
School Configuration
There has been much discussion concerning the outcome of the configuration study. Let me clarify some points that have been lost in the discussion.
I have to admit I do have an agenda. I want to do everything possible to provide the children of Williston with the best education and as cost effectively as possible. That is what I believe that the taxpayers of Williston expect and deserve.
This is my third year at Williston. I do not have the “history” of previous configuration discussions. I do know that it has been an issue in the past. Let’s make a few things clear. With declining enrollment some house disruption is a given. There is no magic grade configuration that will meet the needs of all students and parents. In fact there is no research that states one configuration model is better than another as measured by student academic outcomes. This is important to note since that is how successful schools are judged. In fact configuration has an academic growth impact of between 1 and 5%. So if we are interested in student academic performance, we need to invest our time, money, and energy in other areas that will yield better results.
We had a great response to the configuration survey; 742 people responded. We analyzed the data carefully and shared it with you along with the comments on the questions posed. It is important to note that on all questions the majority of the respondents supported the current structures. We took a particularly close look at the areas with the narrowest margins of support. After analyzing all of the information two issues arose. One is the isolating aspect of any teaming or house system for students and the other was the transition to fifth grade. Almost all of the issues arising now are related to one or both of these issues. Therefore, how do we address these issues? We considered several alternative configurations but each created new ways of isolating students and only moved the transition problem from one grade to another. To address the issues we need to look at the way we are currently doing business.
While reviewing our survey we had the opportunity to have a recognized national consultant review all of the information and our current configuration. Raymond J. McNulty, Vermont’s former commissioner of education is currently with the International Center for Leadership in Education as a Senior Consultant and Executive Director of the Successful Practices Network. He donated his time as we reviewed the data and moved toward a solution. Here are his thoughts: There isn’t compelling research to recommend one grade configuration over another. In general, fewer transitions are better. There are three major factors of successful schools. They are the relevance of the work, relationships, and rigor. The weaknesses of any system will be magnified over time. The current structure has the basic configuration components of a great school system. Consider a continuum of interventions to the problems identified. Set specific goals. Collect information from educators, parents and students. If you are not successful in achieving the goals, then return to the structure discussion. This work is not a one time event but a process.
The vision for the model we proposed is as follows:
1. We want to maximize the strength of teachers and have them reach more students within the schools. This means that regardless of the house, students will receive instruction from teachers associated with other houses who are known for their expertise in specific areas.
2. We need to balance the sense of house and school. We will do this by creating more opportunities for students to mix by grade level both academically and socially.
3. We will improve the academic and social transition from fourth to fifth grade.
We know we can not make everyone happy regardless of our recommendations. We can address the issues that arose through the survey by targeting our energies to improve where we are weakest without compromising our strengths. This is my commitment to the children of Williston.
Walter Nardelli
District Principal
Williston School District
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