District Administration - May 2012 - (Page 26)

Maria Delapoer, superintenDent, Greater albany (ore.) public school District 8J AdministratorProfile By Courtney Williams All Students Thrive With Proficiency-Based Instruction This school chief stresses daily intervention, professional development and leadership. state standards,” says Delapoer. “Teachers work together in professional learning communities four hours per month to share best practices, determine the essential learning targets in each content area, and develop high-quality evaluation systems.” Proficiency-based learning works best in classes that require demonstration, such as band, world language and math classes. In world language, students have to demonstrate that they have mastered a concept by reading, writing or speaking. With proficiencybased instruction, students must demonstrate their knowledge of each concept before they can move on in all academic subjects. Delapoer plays a major role in making sure proficiency-based instruction is carried out effectively. “My job has been to publicly support moving in this direction, make sure we continue to improve our practice, and educate our school board members about proficiency-based instruction and demonstrate its importance to student learning,” she says. She has spent time educating board members about proficiency-based Superintendent Maria Delapoer works with students in a first grade class at Clover Ridge Elementary School. THE TREND OF PERSONALIZED learning has caught on nationwide, but the entire state of Oregon has been using a similar method—proficiencybased instruction—since 2002 when it gave districts the option to award credit for proficiency. To earn credit, students demonstrate what they know based on clear learning targets defined by state standards. Students have intervention time built into their school day to work on concepts in which they aren’t yet proficient. Once they master a concept, they move on. The Greater Albany (Ore.) Public School District 8J is one of four districts selected to work with Oregon’s Business Education Compact (BEC), a 26 May 2012 nonprofit organization that advocates for proficiency-based instruction across the nation. The BEC has been running proficiency workshops since 2005 to train educators and help them improve their practice. Albany is located in the heart of the Willamette Valley, 60 miles south of Portland. The district’s mission is “Unprecedented Achievement,” and students are reaching that mission with the strong leadership of Superintendent Maria Delapoer. The Path to Proficiency “Rather than use a system based on grades, attendance or homework, we use a system that makes sure students master the concepts aligned to Oregon Superintendent, Greater Albany (Ore.) Public School District 8J Age: 60 Tenure: 4 years Salary: $136,000 Schools: 20 Students: 9,160 Staff: 1,012 Per-child expenditure: $7,151 Web site: www.albany.k12.or.us Maria DelaPoer District Administration http://www.albany.k12.or.us

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - May 2012

District Administration - May 2012
Contents
From the Editor
Letters
News Update
Sustainability Update
Conversations
Administrator Profile
District Profile
Problem/Solution
Product Focus
Digital Reading Empowers Students
The Critical Task of Hiring a New Chief
Hard Acts to Follow
Leading the Way
Sally Reis & Joe Renzulli
CIO News
Not Your Mother’s Student Information System
Professional Opinion
Noteworthy Books
New Products
Going Mobile

District Administration - May 2012