FOSTERING EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING

Similar to building student culture, there has been intentionality in moving away from the privatization of teaching practice. The Middle School administrative team has worked with the faculty to embrace the growth mindset with an open-door policy supported by a robust supervision and evaluation program. By the end of the year, all teachers will have had three meetings and four documented observations. The meetings focus on professional goals chosen by the teacher and self-reflections based on the criteria in the annual evaluation. In an anonymous survey of all Middle School teachers in October, 95.7% of teachers said their strengths as an educator have been recognized by the Principal, Mr. Beck, and 86.4% of teachers said that observations and meetings have helped them to improve their teaching practice. Themes from one on one meetings are reinforced in Middle School faculty meetings.

At the time of writing this report, the Middle School has had over twenty divisional meetings this school year. These meetings serve to build capacity by modeling and sharing best practices. The teachers are also supported by the Principal’s newsletter, Looking Back, Moving Forward, which builds the reflective capacity of teachers on the craft of teaching. Each of the eighteen newsletters so far this school year draws from teacher observations to make connections across disciplines.

Excellence in teaching is also supported through professional development. Middle School teachers worked actively with TC2 throughout the year. One impact has been to move towards using “guides to success” in assessments for students. Early in the school year, the Middle School took on the responsibility of moving the school forward around Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Eight Middle School teachers attended the DEI X Conference in Seoul They also formed the foundation for the MS DEIB Committee, which works on issues in the Middle School and is contributing to a school-wide process of a DEI Commitment Statement