Herb Campbell School Council Annual Report for the 2008/2009 School Year June 4, 2009
Dear Parents and School Community:
With the arrival of the new school year, Herb Campbell welcomed our new principal, Matt McCutcheon, to work with Tim Pedersen, our vice principal. School Council held four public meetings during the 2008/2009 school year. Prior to each public meeting, the council members met to discuss ongoing parent concerns and agenda topics that would be of interest to the school community. We worked to provide a connection between students, parents and staff to share information that would allow for a positive education experience for everyone. All parents are welcome to attend our meetings, and we encourage input from everyone in our school community. The first meeting next year will be held on September 21, 2009 at 6:30 p.m.. We hope to see you there!
Sincerely,
Nancy Reid & Marilyn Matis Co-Chairs
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Members
The school council members for the 2008/2009 school year were: Marilyn Matis, Co-Chair Nancy Reid, Co-Chair Christina Early Cindy Evers Duncan Quarrington Bill Reid Marina Smith Donna Steenge Jeanette Wilson Matt McCutcheon Tim Pedersen Barry Macdougald Parent FI Representative Parent ENG Representative Parent ENG Representative Parent FI Representative Parent FI Representative Parent ENG Representative Parent ENG Representative Parent FI Representative Parent FI Representative Principal Vice Principal Teacher Representative
School Council Meetings for 2008-2009
Monday, October 6, 2008 Monday, November 24, 2008 Monday, February 23, 2009 Monday, April 27, 2009
School Council Meetings for 2009-2010
Monday, September 21, 2009 Monday, November 23, 2009 Monday, February 22, 2010 Monday, April 19, 2010
Activity Summary
Monday, October 6, 2008 – First Meeting
Principal’s Report – Mr. McCutcheon gave a presentation outlining his core beliefs, which include success for students, and the importance of communication. School population is currently 713 students, (510 are in French Immersion and 203 in English). A committee is being formed for parents to work with staff to develop a Code of Conduct for the school. Mr. McCutcheon also gave an update regarding the reorganization done on September 19, and provided numbers of students and staff involved in special education. Transportation – Mr. Pedersen gave a report, and outlined the steps taken to limit the issues with bussing this year. He met with the Transportation Department in August to look at the routes, stops and number of students at each stop, and this helped things go more smoothly in September. EQAO – Results from May/June’s testing varied at Herb Campbell. All Grade 3 results were lower than the Board and provincial results, and the Grade 6 results were higher. Staff will look at the data and determine the greatest area of need.
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Committees – Parents were invited to join the Code of Conduct Committee (contact Mr. McCutcheon), Parent Handbook Committee (contact Cindy Evers), and Herb Campbell’s 50th Anniversary Committee (contact Pat Shields). Parents Reaching Out Grant – Herb Campbell will apply for the grant of up to $1,000 to use towards an initiative to get parents involved in the school.
Monday, November 24, 2008 – Second Meeting
Principal’s Report – Mr. McCutcheon. School Success Planning - school success planning has taken place. Staff determined the “greatest area of need” is “Reading”, specifically the areas of making connections and making inferences. CASI testing will be done in December to provide a baseline, with further work on the school success plan to follow. Interviews - All parents should have an interview in the first term, using the traditional interview style, not student-led conferences. Clubs – There are many clubs available for students to participate in. Snow Days - The school will be open to students during regular school hours when buses are cancelled, with parents providing their own transportation for children. Trips – Grades 4-6 ski trips have been arranged. Teacher contract – Teachers are currently working without a contract. Meetings are ongoing between the teachers’ union and the Peel Board. Parents Reaching Out Grant – It has been decided to have a spring fair type of event to allow parents to browse through “booths” set up covering various topics of interest to parents. Code Of Conduct – A committee made up of staff and parents is working on completing a Code of Conduct for Herb Campbell, which will be followed by everyone at the school. Homework – A committee to work on a Homework Policy will be formed following the Code of Conduct. A discussion about homework took place at this meeting, with parents sharing their views. Premier’s Awards For Teaching Excellence – Nominations are now open for these awards.
Monday February 23, 2009 – Third Meeting
Principal’s Report – Mr. McCutcheon. Staffing – There are currently 28 classes (713 students). Projections for next year are estimated at 26 classes (667 students). Reporting In Term 2 – Reports cards will be going home on March 9, 2009, and interviews will be held on March 12 and 13, 2009. Overnight Excursions – Grade 6’s will be going to Cedar Glen in March, Grade 7’s will be going to Niagara Falls in May, and Grade 8’s will be going to Quebec City in May. Code of Conduct – The new Code of Conduct was a collaborative effort between parents and staff over the past several months. A draft copy was presented at this meeting, for parent comments. Homework Policy – A committee is being formed for parents and staff to formulate a policy regarding homework. First meeting is to take place on March 5, 2009. Projects And Group Projects – A general discussion took place with parents regarding projects and group work. Group work can lead to cooperative education, but there can be many challenges associated with group work, such as distances between students, and fair assessment. Regional Programs – A presentation was made outlining the many regional program opportunities available to Peel Board students. For further information, there are links provided through Herb Campbell’s website.
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Spring Garage Sale And Information Fair – The Community School Association and School Council will co-host an event on May 9, 2009. Two workshops are planned by Rob Stringer from City Parent Magazine, “What’s My Style” (learning styles) and “What’s My Motivation”. Other plans are still underway. New Smoking Law – A handout was shared with parents regarding a new smoking law prohibiting persons from smoking in a motor vehicle when anyone under the age of 16 is present in the vehicle.
Monday, April 27, 2009 – Fourth Meeting
Eco-Club Report – M. St. Hilaire updated what the Eco club has been doing this year. They have been working on a butterfly garden, and the design is to be revealed April 28. Principal’s Report – Mr. McCutcheon. Five Minutes to Change the World – Mme. Lopoushek’s intermediate drama club presented this skit during Education Week. Bullying – Guest speaker Mark Brown delivered a presentation to the students. EQAO – names changed from Grade 3 test to “primary assessment” and Grade 6 test to “junior assessment”. The assessment is done over three days (2 hours/day) for each grade at the end of May and beginning of June. Staffing – Tentative teacher assignments will be made public in early May. School Success Plan Update – Herb Campbell has been focusing on making inferences when reading. Grades 3-8 have done an assessment called CASI (Comprehensive Attitude Strategies Inventory). Then a six week teaching and learning cycle (specific teaching aimed at improving the area of need) was done. Students will complete a post-assessment at the end of May, which will show how well the teaching/ learning cycle worked. The post-assessment can be used as evaluation of students for report card purposes. Grades K-2 made their own assessment along the same lines as CASI, also working on making inferences. CASI is done in English. M. St. Hilaire is looking into the possibility of a similar assessment in French. Homework Policy – The homework committee is made up of a group of parents and teachers. They have met twice so far, and will have a draft ready for June. Code of Conduct – A draft has been completed by the committee. The final version will be unveiled in September, along with the Homework Policy. Land Expropriation – An application has been made by the Peel Board to expropriate a portion of the land east of the school’s property for the purpose of construction of bus lanes. Information Fair – School Council will host an Information Fair in association with the Community School Association’s Garage Sale on May 9. Rob Stringer of Youth Coach Canada will present two workshops, and there will also be information booths. Region of Peel Website – Parents were informed of a website for parents, teachers and students promoting a healthy lifestyle (www.schoolhealth101.ca/action).
Monday, June 1, 2009 – Year-End Meeting
Welcome, Goodbyes, Opportunities – Thank you to Marilyn Matis for hosting this year’s potluck yearend meeting. Nancy and Bill Reid will be leaving school council next year. Also, Barry Macdougald, the teacher representative, will be retiring. Anyone interested in becoming a member or working as co-chair may speak to Mr. McCutcheon or Marilyn Matis.
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Planning Meetings – A discussion took place regarding eliminating the planning meetings that are held prior to each public meeting. A vote was taken, and it was decided to eliminate the planning meetings. Agendas for meetings will be made up through e-mails with the members, and consultation with Mr.McCutcheon. Combined Meetings With Community School – A discussion took place regarding holding school council meetings on the same evening as community school association meetings. School council meetings would begin at 6:30 p.m.. A principal’s report would be given at 7:15 p.m. with a common message to both groups. Community school’s meeting would follow the principal’s report. It was decided to try combined meetings on a trial basis next year. The dates for next year’s meetings will be September 21/09, November 23/09, February 22/10, April 19/10. Overnight Excursions – A high percentage of students in Grades 6-8 participate in the overnight excursions currently offered (Gr.6 – Cedar Glen – 90% participation; Gr.7 – Niagara Falls – 75% participation; Gr.8 – Quebec City – 75% participation). Some comments from the group were: they would like to receive trip information earlier in the year, allow more time for payments, offer an alternative daytrip closer to home for students who don’t participate in the overnight trips, parents are impressed with the educational value of the trips, each trip has its merits, a suggestion was made to change the Gr.7 Niagara Falls trip to an Ottawa trip, another option could be an Ottawa/Montreal trip in Gr.8. A survey will be sent home to parents in the fall for their input. PRO Grant Evaluation – This year’s speaker was excellent, but overall there was a poor turnout. This has been an issue for the past 3 years when school council has arranged for speakers. Ideas for next year – activities revolving around education week, involving students and highlighting student achievements will encourage parents to attend. Information booths could be set up (as was done this year). Further discussion of ideas will take place next fall. The PRO grant application for next year will be due on October 19/09. Review Of Last Year’s Concerns - Parent/Teacher interviews – Traditional parent/teacher interviews took place this year (rather than student-led) and the same format will be used next year. There was positive feedback from parents regarding this change. - Transportation – Mr. Pedersen has worked closely with Transportation, and with improved communication and problem solving, things went more smoothly this year. Bus stop times may be available online this year, as well as being posted at the school. - Curriculum overviews – Teachers provided these to students at the beginning of the year, explaining what would be covered throughout the year. Suggestions - Post them on “My Class” sites, if possible. Ensure each student has taken one home. Mention the curriculum overviews in a newsletter, so parents are expecting to see them come home. - Math – a plan for success. Comments - There has been some improvement. Still some concerns about feedback for students (tests being returned) in some cases. Stress importance of providing a foundation of the basics. If math workbooks are purchased, parents would like to see them used more. A math information booth during education week could be of interest to parents. - Positive, effective and consistent disciplines/classroom management. Comments - There has been some improvement. The RAP program is no longer used. Still some concerns in senior classes. - Music & Performances – The senior music program will be modified next year, students will have 2 music classes per week, and there will be a more holistic approach. We are working towards having student performances, and a wider showcase of students. Music should be placed on a future school council agenda, for an update of how things are going. - Homework Recommendations – A homework committee is working on a homework policy for the school, a draft should be ready by the end of June, to be implemented in September. - Communication / New Phone System – The VOIP phone system will be changing next year. There has been improvement regarding communication, and phone calls are returned within 24 hours as a general rule, however it was commented that this is still occasionally an issue. Also, parents would appreciate more communication from teachers to know what is going on in class.
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- Parent Handbook – Cindy Evers and her committee have been hard at work throughout the year. A draft has been prepared, with just a few additions still to be inserted. The handbook will be printed and ready for distribution in the fall. - Consistency In Marking – Working on improving consistency in marking. Teachers consult with each other discussing marking, striving for a consistent level of achievement. The Peel Board is also looking into this issue. Goals & Suggestions For Next Year - Improved communication between school council and the community school association. - Come up with a school “mission statement”. - Create a “sense of belonging” in the school. Improve student recognition and student involvement. There was a suggestion to modify the format of SOAR assemblies. Present format highlights only a few students with awards or athletic achievements. A new format could include many students in the assembly. For example, an entire class may perform a song or skit. Awards can be given (some schools ensure each student wins at least one award by the end of the year). Some schools do monthly assemblies, a different grade or class is highlighted each time. Parents would be welcome to attend the assemblies. - Education week activities and performances should also focus more on involving all students. - Student newsletter “Hawk Talk”, written by students, for students, giving advice or suggestions for books, etc.. - “Reading Buddies” is an excellent activity for students to participate in, as both parties benefit. - Sports – Be more inclusive with team sports, so that all students can benefit from the extra training and practice time (i.e. possibly have an ‘A’ team and a ‘B’ team). In smaller schools, most students would be able to participate in team sports, where larger schools tend to only have one team, excluding many students from the benefits of involvement and training in team sports. - Measurement – Try to develop measurements (in addition to EQAO) in different academic areas so that school council can monitor progress within the school to help achieve student success. - Improved security for the front entrance area of school.
Other Activities
November 10, 2008 – A School Council Information Night was held at Lincoln Alexander Secondary School. Jeanette Wilson attended the dinner and informative workshops. May 9, 2009 – School Council hosted an Information Fair. Rob Stringer of Youth Coach Canada presented two informative workshops about learning styles and motivation. Following the workshops, information booths were open for parents to visit. Thank you to those who set up booths: Long & McQuade (music), Alan Jones from the Peel Board (math), Matt McCutcheon (special ed), Tim Pedersen (reading tips) and Marianne Tate (regional programs). Also thank you to everyone who worked to organize this event. May 14, 2009 – A thank-you dinner arranged by our superintendent, Shawn Moynihan, was held for principals, vice-principals, trustees and school council chairs at Allan Drive School in Bolton. Following the dinner, a session of sharing ideas between the participants took place. Everyone left with a few new ideas to bring back to their own school councils. This event was attended by Matt McCutcheon, Tim Pedersen, Marilyn Matis and Nancy Reid. Code of Conduct Committee – School council members Marilyn Matis and Bill Reid took part on this committee, along with other parents and staff members. Homework Policy Committee – School council members Marilyn Matis and Nancy Reid took part on this committee, along with other parents and staff members.
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