My Goals For This Semester

Since I asked each of you to come up with at least two goals for the semester, I thought it was only fair if I did the same. Since The Fischbowl sort of serves as my personal blog for our staff development (not its primary purpose, but it’ll work for this), I’ll post my goals here. This will give you the opportunity to comment on them, as well as to hold me accountable as we progress through the semester.

Since I’m not in the classroom, my goals by necessity will have a different focus than yours. Also, they might not be quite as specific as yours, although maybe you can help me improve them. So, here goes.

Goal #1: To help each of you have the best semester of teaching you’ve ever had. Now this is not as outrageous as it appears at first blush. After listening to the great conversations you’ve had all fall, and some of the changes you are thinking about trying to implement this semester, I feel fairly confident that this will be the best semester for most of you even if I do nothing. But here is how I’m hoping to help you achieve this noble goal.

Action Plan

1. Continue to facilitate our staff development, expose you to technological and other tools to help you achieve a constructivist, student-centered classroom, and continue to push your thinking in every possible way I can (hopefully stopping just short of driving you completely insane).


2. Observe each of your classrooms at least once in February, March, April and May. First, to simply get a better idea of what and how you teach so that I can better facilitate our staff development. Second, to hopefully offer suggestions/provide feedback/push your thinking based on what I observe in your classes. If anyone has concerns about me dropping in on your classes, please let me know.

Goal #2: To make progress on my plan for Arapahoe to have a One Laptop Per Child program (AOLPC).

Action Plan

1. By the end of the semester, get all the principal decision makers necessary for such a program in the same room to begin this discussion. This would include, but is not limited to, Ron Booth, Stan Scheer, Boni Hamilton (and anyone else on Stan Scheer’s staff/ITS Staff that he deems appropriate), Ray Hawthorne, at least one school board member (Renee Howell would be excellent since she knows AHS), and one PTO member. I may also ask others on the CIT to attend as well. While I ultimately want to include students on this as well, I don’t think we can include them just yet (until hopefully we’ve made some progress).


2. Continue to research OLPC plans and how best to implement them in hopes that we will be able to implement a plan beginning August 2007 (2008 at the latest).

Goal #3: Do advance planning for the implementation of the LPS portion of the grant that will begin next August (along with the second year of the PFSE grant).

Action Plan

1. Research the specific equipment we will be purchasing this summer.


2. Develop a detailed implementation plan for this summer, including timelines for purchase, installation, and software setup. With the massive amount of equipment that will be coming in over the summer, this will be a must. I will also need to cajole a few folks into helping me (hint, hint).


3. Meet with ESC personnel regarding wireless implementation for the laptop portion of the LPS grant.


4. Along with the CIT, plan in semi-detail at least the first semester of staff development for cohort 1 (that would be you guys) and cohort 2 (that would be the 30-40 additional teachers that will be coming on board next year).


5. As their schedule permits (and this may end up being more in the summer), work closely with Anne, Brad and Brian to help them plan for the laptop implementations in their classrooms in the fall. This includes not only the software installation and configuration of the laptops, but classroom management issues, space issues, security issues, and – most importantly – curricular issues.

Now, this is probably at least one goal too many (since it’s all in addition to my “regular” duties), but – as I see it – they all have to happen this semester, so I might as well write them down and see how I do. Your thoughts?