M.P.S Council attendees: Ellen Everson, Andrie Nel, Beryl Scrivens

This conference was organized as a joint effort by the Ottawa Carleton District School Board and the Ottawa Carleton Catholic School Board and was targeted primarily to parents and Council members on a variety of pertinent topics. What follows is a high level summary of salient points gained during specific workshops attended by M.P.S Council members. For additional insights and discussion please contact one of the attendees.

• We have a good thing going at M.P.S!!!!! We are very fortunate that we are not facing additional challenges faced by other schools including, English as a Second Language, Transportation issues, and crime in our school. In many ways we are insulated from all this.

• Our school already practices many of the drivers of school excellence thanks to our staff and principal. While there is always room for improvement, we have a solid foundation upon which to build at the local level.

• Management with parents is a key success factor to make a school a nurturing, collaborative atmosphere conducive to student learning. M.P.S Council, therefore, plays an integral role in fostering that engagement.

• Numerous times heard about the importance of community. That school is a community partnership but so often schools - particularly in the inner city - have become disjointed from the community. Here, M.P.S has a strong advantage that we can appreciate and leverage when dealing with the next two points.

• The REAL issues, to my mind, are all about the funding - or lack thereof. There is a serious disjoint between the provincial level of funds provided and board level of funds needed. For example, the difference between the allocated levels of funding for salaries versus the real costs of salaries is $31M across our school board. Before we can do anything else, the board has to compensate for this "salary gap". Unfortunately, with our aging demographics, Health Care will continue to receive priority so our slice of the pie is not likely to get any bigger any time soon. Rather, finding new/creative ways to work with what we have is what it's going to take. As a Council Member it compels me even more to ask the question of how council can help because, simply stated, unless the new government makes radical changes Arts (incl. music, design & tech, etc.) is on death row. I'm left with the impression that Mike performs miracles with no funds.

• Given the reality, at all levels of education we need to look for new innovative ways to get the biggest bang for our buck. It's the old "do more with less" challenge.

• Acknowledgement that the previous provincial government seriously screwed up where funding formula and processes are concerned.

• A commitment to clean it up [AN: remains to be seen…this government is still in the honeymoon phase of government]. Expects to have a coherent policy in November.

• Planning for a new provincial voice for parents that will replace the Ontario Parent Council but, while he guarantees a "seat at the table" for the new organization he is taking a very passive role in how it will be formed and organized and represented. Kathleen Wynn (sp?) is supposed to facilitate the process of organization over the next 3-4 months. [AN: If anyone is interested in pursuing this I suggest they should contact her.]

• Use a new 3Rs as their guiding principles: Respect, Responsibility, Results

• Synergies with School Council; it's not just about fund raising but also about input, advocating, and advice to the school

• Principals encouraged to integrate Council with their Improvement Planning Team

• Areas generally in need of improvement: Materials, Student Learning, Teaching

• Recited long list of various Council initiatives that were representative of good Council involvement including Castor Valley's book purchasing initiative. Other examples of initiatives included Council hosting workshops, buying library materials, providing manpower for order processing of materials, running after school programs, etc.

Dr. McCracken, Director of Education, O.C.C.D.S.B
Presented his "top 10" list of things that make schools excellent

1. Development of an excellent principal (though board programs, mentoring)

2. Development of an excellent staff (commented on gender balance and professional development)

3. Importance of everyone knowing the Mission of the school. (Can we articulate ours?)

4. Being Learning Communities; be guided by the questions: What does a student need to know? How will we know when they know it? What do we do if they don't?

5. Set achievable goals (work with data and set targets)

6. Run innovative programs

7. Focus on school readiness programs (early literacy and numeracy)

8. Communication!!!!!! With Council, parents, business, community,

9. Parent involvement: talk to staff, be involved in child's homework, attend meetings, volunteer, financial support. Model for your children.

10. Recognize the "invisible child" who - since not gifted or special needs - is often overlooked. These are the "pampered child", the "hurried child", the depressed child, socially isolated children, and children experiencing sexual identity crises

Helen Raham; Executive Director, Society for Advancement of Excellence in Education
Research Evidence of Drivers of Excellent Schools

• Active leadership

• Focused goals

• Resources and training aligned with goals

• High expectations for all students

• Data-driven management, so you know when you get there

• Collaboration among teachers

• Focus on measuring results not the input

• SMART goals are ones that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time bound.

• Parental involvement

• Participant's comment: how do you engage parents?

  • In B.C they have an assigned community rep who liaises with parents and community

  • Can make better use of the web site

  • Provide parents with access to education (e.g. parenting seminars) to draw them in.

Focused talk on Megaskills; which she coined as the basic values, attitudes, and behaviors that determine student's success at learning. When these skills are well developed, students will learn much easier! They are:

1. Confidence - feeling able to do it

2. Motivation - wanting to do it

3. Effort - being willing to work hard

4. Responsibility - doing what's right

5. Initiative - moving into action

6. Perseverance - completing what you start

7. Caring - showing concern for others

8. Teamwork - working with others

9. Common Sense - using good judgment

10. Problem Solving - putting what you know and what you can do into action

11. Focus - concentrating with a goal in mind

Workshop: The I.P.R.C (Identification, Placement and Review) Process
Presenter: Lamar Mason

A lot of information - very little time! Lamar Mason is an excellent presenter and is a wealth of knowledge. Some useful tips:

• parents need to establish good relationship with teacher

• meet early in the school year with teacher to review students` needs

• ask for a "case conference" with teacher, principal, spec ed teacher

• need cooperation with the school

• not all children have "learning disabilities". Some just have a different "learning style" (eg can't absorb information orally: this is a learning style - not a disability)

• some learning styles (or disabilities) can be social; not academic

• identify strengths and weaknesses so a program (I.E.P) can be put into place

• the school must deliver the students` I.E.P within 30 days after the start of the school year

• the "statement of needs" on the I.P.R.C document usually lists 4 statements. Parents can request that more needs be identified here than just four

• an I.E.P may be developed for a student not formally identified but who may require special education programs and services or accommodations to program delivery in order to be successful

• when an I.P.R.C identifies a student as exceptional, the principal MUST ensure that an I.E.P for that student is developed and maintained. It must be delivered with INPUT from the parents and the student;

• the I.E.P should contain a detailed description of the programs and services to be provided to meet the students` needs

• the I.E.P identifies a students` specific learning expectations and outlines how the school will address these expectations through special education programs and services. It also identifies the methods by which the students` progress will be reviewed

• the I.E.P for a student who is 14 or older and who is not identified solely as gifted, must also contain a plan for the transition to post-secondary education, or the work place, or to help the student live as independently as possible in the community

• in developing the I.E.P, consideration must be given to any recommendations made by the I.P.R.C that may be particularly appropriate for meeting the students` needs

• the I.E.P must clearly state the learning expectation for each subject area (specific knowledge and skills the student must demonstrate within a specified period)

• for each "need" on the I.P.R.C, the I.E.P must identify the specific teaching strategies, accommodations and resources (human and material) required to facilitate the students` learning

• the I.E.P must state the accommodations required by a student (more time for tests, oral rather than written responses, scribe, provision of notes by teacher, etc.). This is important when it comes to writing E.Q.A.O tests as no accommodations will be made for this testing unless it is documented on the I.E.P

• The I.P.R.C: A Guide for O.C.D.S.B Personnel and Parents

• Guidelines for the Creation and Use of Individual Education Plans

• http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng.general/elemsec/speced/speced.html

• http://www.seaclearning.ca

• http://www.ottawa-seac.ca

• http://www.ocdsb.edu.on.ca/General_Info/Spec_Ed/Special_Education.htm