{"data":{"ID":350,"Class":"Conversation","Created":1383355743,"CreatorID":79,"RevisionID":null,"Status":"Accepted","Title":"Rethinking School to Focus on What Matters","Handle":"Rethinking_School_to_Focus_on_What_Matters","ShortDescription":"Based on our forthcoming book, which provides school leaders with a hands-on guide to rethinking practices to create truly innovative schools, this session will present a framework and step-by-step guide for school transformation.  School leaders are invited to bring their whole team along to engage in several exercises to kick-start the process.","Description":"It is our belief that the concept of \u201cschool\u201d as most of us know it arose out of century-old needs; our world has changed and so must the notion of \u201cschool.\u201d  Many existing and even new schools continue to focus on tinkering to make the old way better; what is needed is a whole new way.  In contrast to traditional schools that often focus on the needs of adults and rely on \u201cthe way we\u2019ve always done it,\u201d 21st century schools must focus on students\u2019 needs as the primary driver.  By focusing clearly on each school\u2019s vision and instructional goals, and building all structures and designing all processes in support of those goals, we believe schools can begin to transform their schools into the 21st century learning environments our students need.\r\n\r\nWhile many educators understand WHY schools need to change, few existing tools and resources actually show educators HOW to engage in the school transformation process.  Our book (on track for publication by Teachers College Press in March 2014) was written to provide a framework for how educators can begin to rethink school practices, with examples to demonstrate and inspire innovation, and step-by-step exercises that will guide school leaders\/designers and their teams through the process of making it happen.   This session will provide participants with an overview of this process and the opportunity to engage in several of the activities; it is our goal to help participants clearly define and articulate their visions and to begin rethinking how practices align.","Link":["http:\/\/www.novareschools.org"],"Audience":["All School Levels"],"Practice":"5 min\tWelcome, introductions and goals for the session\r\n\r\n10 min\tBackground\/history of the iSchool and an overview of the four levers for school transformation: time, human capital, curriculum, and culture\r\n\r\n35 min\tDifferentiated Workshop time:  Participants will focus on one or more of the following foundational activities (based on exercises from the book):\r\no\tDefining your goals and values\r\no\tDeveloping a preliminary vision\r\no\tIdentifying the gaps\r\nThen participants will, based on their school\u2019s needs, focus on exercises related to the area of change they believe will provide the greatest lever for school transformation.  All exercises include a hands-on guide and activities designed to engage school leaders and their teams in a step-by-step process.\r\n\r\n10 min\tSharing, wrap-up and session feedback","Presenter":["Mary Moss"],"PresenterAffiliation":["NYC iSchool\/Novare Schools\/Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools"],"PresenterEmail":["mmoss@novareschools.org"],"ScheduleSlotID":35,"ScheduleLocationID":15,"SubmitterID":79,"AdditionalComments":null,"LiveChannel":null,"Hashtag":null,"VokleID":null,"RecordingURL":null,"ConferenceID":3}}