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Academic Vision

 


Instructional Vision 2020-21

Pride High School (PHS) is LISD's Academic High School of Choice. PHS exists to serve students with many different stories who, for one reason or another, may not have found success in a more traditional setting.  PHS focuses on individualized learning through self-paced online curriculum blended with student-centered instruction. PHS is the ideal choice for students who wish to accelerate their learning because they are seeking to graduate early, those who are seeking to recover credits, or students who are simply seeking a smaller high school community. 

Blended Learning Environment

Coursework will combine the use of Quality Student-Centered Instruction with Self-Paced Online Curriculum Delivery. This model will provide more flexibility for students and teachers as well as varied ways for students to engage in and demonstrate their learning.

Quality Student-Centered Instruction

Teachers and Leaders will:

  • Use the structures and strategies of The Fundamental 5 
  •  Clearly define products, tasks, and assessments
  • Give students regular feedback
  • Support multiple paths for practicing and refining skills, and demonstrating mastery of course standards
  • Use student work to adapt scaffolding and instruction to meet student needs
  • Provide structures and support for students to actively participate during instruction and to manage their own time during work periods Allocate time for student reflection, revision of work, and reteaching as needed

Self-Paced Online Curriculum Delivery

Teachers and Leaders will:

  • Use Edgenuity online courses to provide opportunities for initial credit or credit recovery
  • Use a variety of assessments and provide immediate, actionable feedback.
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Accelerated Learning

Teachers and Leaders will:

  • Allow students to move through course content at a pace that matches their level of readiness to demonstrate mastery
  • Allow students, upon completion of course requirements, to accrue credit and move on to new course content
  • Use accelerated block scheduling for identified students in order to increase the learning time and facilitate the completion of a full credit in one semester

Individualized Student Experience & Support

Teachers and Leaders will:

  • Develop individualized learning plans for each student that maps out a detailed path to meeting graduation goals
  • Use frequent assessments to identify the instructional needs of students
  • Analyze data from assessments, draw conclusions, and share them appropriately
  • Develop differentiated and enhanced learning experiences, develop reteach plans and improve future instruction based on assessment outcomes
  • Actively monitor the impact of classroom-based interventions
  • Identify the specific students that need additional support outside of the classroom and target areas for each student

Use of Technology

Teachers and Leaders will:

  • Provide a 1:1 student:computer ratio in every classroom
  • Provide access to the Edgenuity platform for self-paced online curriculum delivery
  • Regularly use Google Classroom to organize for and engage students in classroom activities
  • Regularly use Google Classroom practices that foster a student-centered learning environment such as:
    • Collect student work and offer immediate feedback
    • Customize assignments for a personalized learning experience
    • Use online discussion forums to promote student voice and choice
    • Share important announcements and due dates
    • Provide access to a variety of support materials

Professional Development

School leaders will support teachers to:

  • Reflect on and improve practice, using informal means as well as in meetings with teams 
  • Gather information, analyze data, examine issues, set meaningful goals, and develop new approaches in order to improve teaching and learning.
  • Demonstrate strides towards accomplishing goals
  • Actively pursue professional development and learning opportunities to improve quality of practice or build expertise and experience to assume different instructional and leadership roles
  • Seek and respond appropriately to student feedback
  • Seek and respond appropriately to feedback from Administration 
  • Participate regularly and appropriately in all meetings

Vision for Ongoing Development: Project-based Learning

Teachers and Leaders will:

  • Incorporate the use of project and problem-based units into every class
  • Develop thematic, interdisciplinary projects that incorporate standards from two or more courses
  • Provide opportunities for students to apply new knowledge to realistic and complex problems, 
  • Require students to use high-performance work organization skills (e.g. work in teams, use technology appropriately, communicate ideas, collect, organize and analyze information)
  • Enhance projects with multiple contacts with outside adults who have expertise and experience that can ask questions, provide feedback and offer advice