Professional Development Specialists and Teachers visualize growth mindset together

After the first District Flex Day on leveraging a growth mindset to raise student achievement, classroom teachers and their Professional Development Specialists are teaming up all over the District to turn ideas into action. Professional Development Specialist Kristen Bates and teachers at Sunnymeadows and Cloverdale Elementary Schools are using popular movies to help students visualize their growth on Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessments. “Kids know what growing means, but they don’t always connect that with the tests they take. These ideas help them see that their work is a step in the right direction,” Bates said. Professional Development Specialist Susan Young at Vista Heights Middle School agrees, “One of the International Baccalaureate learner profiles is that students should be reflective learners. As we have student-led conferences, our students lead their parents and teachers through their own growth – and that includes MAP scores as well as classroom work portfolios.”