OUSD Middle School Science Curriculum in Focus Planning notes
June 18-20, 2002

In attendance: Paul Barron, Anthony Cody, Caleb Cheung, Malia Dinell, Angela Grimes, Julie Froehlig, Kenzo Sung, Betsy Rosenberg, Dan Fleming, Hong Tran, Erin Zane, Frederick Logan, Phil Cotty, Steve Luntz, Fred Mangrum, Carol Balfe, Mirella Rangel, Dale Koistinen, Eileen Engel, Stan Fukunaga

Curriculum
Each team looked at their binders and worked on reorganizing and refining the curriculum there. We also will be working this summer to get as much as possible on the web.

Assessment
Carol Balfe shared the 8th grade assessments with the whole group, and showed how the District had prepared item analyses, which are very useful in evaluating the effectiveness of our curriculum. The 6th grade team volunteered to work with her this coming year to prepare similar assessments for their grade level. We also hope to give incoming 8th graders a short, ten to fifteen question pretest in the Fall, so individual teachers can chart growth and be alerted to the concepts their students are expected to master.

Professional Development
We received the schedule of dates for the professional development sessions next year, and chose locations for each of our conferences. They are:
Aug. 28: SMART Center (units 1 & 2)
October 16: Chabot Space and Science Center (unit #3)
Dec. 4: Calvin Simmons Middle School (unit #4)
Feb. 5: Bret Harte Middle School (unit #5)
March 26: Montera Middle School (unit #6)
May 21: Chabot Space and Science Center

We are also planning an Open House event, hopefully at the SMART Center, to be held Aug. 28, where we will distribute the first two units, and hands on materials. Each team is organizing a list of what will be distributed at that time.

Outreach
We have about seven middle schools represented in our team, leaving another seven that lack a strong CIF presence. The unrepresented schools tend to be less stable, with greater needs. If we are to succeed, we need to reach those teachers and students. Instructional Leaders: We understand there is a new grant called Counting on Colleagues, which will be funding our work. We are hoping this falls along the lines of proposals we have made to play the role of Instructional Leaders. This person would work with their school and possibly one additional school, and would:
1. Solicit needs
2. Develop a contact list and communication system with all teachers at the site
3. Identify a lead contact ­ try to get them more involved
4. Survey the equipment and CIF materials needed
5. Do outreach and Monday reminders prior to each conference
6. Establish a positive relationship with the principal
7. Collect feedback from the site regarding their needs and how our work is affecting them, and how we might do better
8. Support the distribution and administration of 6th and 8th grade assessments
9. Help sites prepare Professional Development plans and apply for grants to support their growth.
10. Meet monthly with other CIF Instructional Leaders to share information
The CIF leaders took on personal responsibility for each and every unrepresented middle school, so we are hoping there are funds to support this ambitious work.

Media
Part of our strategy in the coming year is to build awareness of our project and especially our mini-conference series. The goal is to make hands-on science an expected part of the middle school experience, so that students and parents are actively pushing for it. This will help convince principals and teachers of the benefits of participating in our conferences. An article will appear featuring our work in the Montclarion in August. We will seek more coverage as the year progresses. We are also creating a five-minute long video, featuring CIF teachers doing exciting hands-on activities, and interviews with CIF teachers about the value of hands on science, and the CIF process. We have some excellent footage and will be putting this video together over the summer. We hope to air it on KDOL in August and September, have it presented as part of the Superintendent's Back to School Rally, and use it in outreach presentations to science departments and principals. We also plan to produce a brochure featuring our project and the dates for our events, and a full color poster, including a calendar.

Principals
Principals are a key constituency we have to cultivate. We have testimony from a number of first and second-year teachers that the combination of curriculum, hands-on materials and collegial support that CIF has provided made a huge difference in their lives this year. Several have stated that they would not have made it through the year without this support. The number one problem most Oakland principals is supporting and retaining new staff. If we can make clear the importance of our work in this regard, we can gain strong allies in our efforts to reach every middle school science and math teacher in Oakland. We hope to do this indirectly through the video and media work, but we also want a direct approach. To this end we will attempt to schedule a short presentation to the principal's meeting in the fall, and also a formal dinner up at Chabot Space and Science Center, in September, to which we would invite principals and other partners like Phyllis Harris of New Teacher Support, and others.

Please share your opinions or thoughts as this process unfolds.