Matteson Illinois School District 162: Making a Difference

Reflective teachers consider individual consequences and deliberate ethical and moral implications

Last Monday and Tuesday, I worked with the Matteson District 162 teachers at Huth Middle School in Matteson, Illinois. Matteson is a large elementary with a sixty-percent low income demographic among an enrollment about 3200 students. However, the seven schools consistently make AYP, with more than 80% meeting and exceeding state standards in 2008.

Reflective teachers consider moral and ethical implications!

Teachers need time to talk and practice problem solving issues of buildings and classrooms

How do they do it? Being a newcomer to the district, I can’t say “for sure” but after meeting more than one-hundred of their teachers, I believe part of their success is grounded in an educational willingness to look through new eyes at what might seem to be recurring issues. One of the workshops I led was entitled “Becoming a Reflective Teacher.” More than 60 teachers signed up for the workshop and that says something about the willingness of an educational staff to see things in new ways. We had fun in the workshop solving the age old problem of which way to place toilet paper on the roll; the fun was an entryway into reflecting on classroom methods, building and facility considerations, and climate and culture: discipline issues. If you are interested in pursuing Reflective Teaching with your staff, in your building, or within your department, a practical text I recommend is Promoting Reflective Thinking in Teachers: 50 Action Strategies by Taggert and Wilson, published by Corwin Press.

At the end of every school  year, the teachers are offered a series of professional development workshops to attend over a period of five days.  The offerings range from technology to mentoring to professional reflection to differentiated instruction. Because the district is K-8, the sessions are also designed for specific grade-level teachers. The second day, I offered workshops in differentiated instruction: 12 Effective Differentiated Methods. For the most part, this a “bang! bang! bang!” workshop.  I quickly introduce the activity or method and the group practices how it plays out through some authentic text or mathematical problem.

Teachers practice the strategties for a real feel of engagement level.

Word sorts can also be used as a preassessment of background knowledge and a formative assessment for progress