MONROE - With overwhelming support by school staff and students' families, the Monroe school district will be continuing one-hour early release on Mondays for the 2015-16 school year.
Teachers and administrators use the time as "professional collaboration time," to work on things like Educator Effectiveness, a statewide evaluation system for teachers and administrators implemented this school year. Other activities include training for staff, preparation for new assessments, aligning curriculum and professional development, according to District Administrator Cory Hirsbrunner.
"There's a lot of research behind why it's important to have collaboration time for teachers," Hirsbrunner said. "There's also a lot of benefit for teachers to have time throughout the day or some time to get together and collaborate about curriculum, about assessments, about instruction - so that we're all working off the same standards, both horizontally and vertically."
The district sent out a survey in December to all of its staff and all families within the district asking their opinion on Monday early releases. This is the second year the school district has had Monday early releases. Before that, the district had about three days of in-service per year.
Almost half of the district's staff participated in the survey - 47 percent - and over 300 of the 1800 families participated with an 18 percent response rate.
About 70 percent of school staff indicated the professional collaboration time (PCT) activities have been valuable to them as educators. One-hour early releases one day per week was also the top choice on when to have PCT. Less popular options included during half-day early releases, full-day in-services throughout the year, summer and before or after school.
"We've got higher expectations we have to meet," Hirsbrunner said. "We have more mandates. This provides us an opportunity to engage all of our staff and not just pockets of staff that we're able to get sub support during the work day."
Families also supported the continuation of early release at about 72 percent, with 28 percent against.
More than half of the families who responded chose Fridays over Mondays as the preferred day for early release, but Hirsbrunner said Mondays make the most sense.
"You have to look at this from an educational perspective," she told the school board. "They were looking at it from a personal - family - (perspective) and I get that. I get that. As a parent, I would like to have my kids have Friday off, too ... but educationally it just doesn't make the most sense."
Hirsbrunner said she used information from the surveys in making the calendar for next year.
The 2015-16 calendar, approved Monday by the board, closely resembles this year's calendar with the continuation of Monday early releases. According to Hirsbrunner, staff responses to the calendar were "very positive," as was feedback from administration and the teachers and support staff unions.
One notable change is the addition of an in-service day, where students have off, on Jan. 25 - whereas this year the district has no breaks from early January to mid-March.
Spring break will also be the fourth week of March, rather than the third week as it is this year.
Dates to know for the 2015-16 school year:
• First day of school: Sept. 1 for grades 4K-9 and Sept. 2 for grades 10-12.
• Last day of school: June 3 for students and June 6 for staff, unless snow days need to be made up
• Winter break: Dec. 24 through Jan. 1, with an in-service day on Dec. 23
• Spring break: March 21 through March 28
Teachers and administrators use the time as "professional collaboration time," to work on things like Educator Effectiveness, a statewide evaluation system for teachers and administrators implemented this school year. Other activities include training for staff, preparation for new assessments, aligning curriculum and professional development, according to District Administrator Cory Hirsbrunner.
"There's a lot of research behind why it's important to have collaboration time for teachers," Hirsbrunner said. "There's also a lot of benefit for teachers to have time throughout the day or some time to get together and collaborate about curriculum, about assessments, about instruction - so that we're all working off the same standards, both horizontally and vertically."
The district sent out a survey in December to all of its staff and all families within the district asking their opinion on Monday early releases. This is the second year the school district has had Monday early releases. Before that, the district had about three days of in-service per year.
Almost half of the district's staff participated in the survey - 47 percent - and over 300 of the 1800 families participated with an 18 percent response rate.
About 70 percent of school staff indicated the professional collaboration time (PCT) activities have been valuable to them as educators. One-hour early releases one day per week was also the top choice on when to have PCT. Less popular options included during half-day early releases, full-day in-services throughout the year, summer and before or after school.
"We've got higher expectations we have to meet," Hirsbrunner said. "We have more mandates. This provides us an opportunity to engage all of our staff and not just pockets of staff that we're able to get sub support during the work day."
Families also supported the continuation of early release at about 72 percent, with 28 percent against.
More than half of the families who responded chose Fridays over Mondays as the preferred day for early release, but Hirsbrunner said Mondays make the most sense.
"You have to look at this from an educational perspective," she told the school board. "They were looking at it from a personal - family - (perspective) and I get that. I get that. As a parent, I would like to have my kids have Friday off, too ... but educationally it just doesn't make the most sense."
Hirsbrunner said she used information from the surveys in making the calendar for next year.
The 2015-16 calendar, approved Monday by the board, closely resembles this year's calendar with the continuation of Monday early releases. According to Hirsbrunner, staff responses to the calendar were "very positive," as was feedback from administration and the teachers and support staff unions.
One notable change is the addition of an in-service day, where students have off, on Jan. 25 - whereas this year the district has no breaks from early January to mid-March.
Spring break will also be the fourth week of March, rather than the third week as it is this year.
Dates to know for the 2015-16 school year:
• First day of school: Sept. 1 for grades 4K-9 and Sept. 2 for grades 10-12.
• Last day of school: June 3 for students and June 6 for staff, unless snow days need to be made up
• Winter break: Dec. 24 through Jan. 1, with an in-service day on Dec. 23
• Spring break: March 21 through March 28