By NEIL ZOLOT
WAKEFIELD — The School Department is calling them “curriculum visits.” They could also be called collaborating on teaching strategies, internal professional development, mentoring or what you will, but the school principals in Wakefield will be fostering how curricula are taught and how teachers can learn from each other.
“This year we’re a bit more focused on how we’re using curricula and instructional procedures and getting into classrooms to see how teachers are teaching,” Walton School principal Brian Schmitt said at a joint appearance of the principals to discuss their school improvement plans at the School Committee meeting Tuesday, September 9. “Administrators and teachers will visit other teachers to see what they’re doing.”
“We’re talking about instructional visits and encouraging cross-curricula and intra-curricula observation,” Wakefield Memorial High School principal Amy McLeod added.
“We have strong curricula,” Doyle School interim principal Erin Manzi said. “We have that foundation and now we’re going to be implementing it. We’ll focus on instructional practices in all situations and allow teachers to observe other teachers.”
“It’s about practices in the classroom,” Greenwood principal Tiffany Back feels. “We’re looking to get curriculum vests happening. We want to get teachers into classrooms. If there was one curriculum that worked for everyone, everybody would be using it.”
“The goal is about collaboration and getting into classrooms to see what things look like,” Woodville principal Matt Carter explained. “The focus is implementation and making sure it’s leading to the outcome that’s intended.”
Galvin Middle School principal Megan Webb called it “looking at day-to-day strategies in the classroom,” although McLeod cautioned increasing numbers of Multi-Language Learners, Special Education students and students with social and emotional needs will require new strategies.
The principals worked over the summer on their school improvement plans and this idea of instructional visits, getting feedback from curriculum coordinators and teachers.
“We’re proud of the collaboration between elementary schools to determine how to support students and what can be done in the classroom,” Dolbeare principal TJ Liberti said. “We work collaboratively to see what works and what doesn’t.”
Will it work? School Committee chairman and Saugus High School teacher Kevin Fontanella thinks so. “I feel cross-curricula observation is really valuable,” he said. “The best way to get innovative ideas is to watch it.”
The principals also introduced new teachers to the School Committee. There are 16, which Superintendent Doug Lyons called “a low number for the size of our district.”
It could be considered lower because teachers who move within the system are considered “new” because of their new role, although even experienced teachers and administrators need time to acclimate to a different curriculum, job and school. Manzi, for instance, was a curriculum coordinator before taking on her current role at Doyle.
Lyons thanked 6th grade Galvin Science teacher Elizabeth Doucette for her role as District Mentor Coordinator in getting new teachers acclimated to their new schools.
“I design, implement and oversee the induction and mentoring program for newly hired teachers, ensuring they receive the essential support needed to thrive during their initial year of teaching,” she said. “It centers on two key elements, assigning a trained mentor and providing an orientation for beginning teachers. We try to make it so they feel comfortable when school opens.”