Part 1: Analysis of Context

1. What do we know about our learners?

École Lord Tweedsmuir is located in the Cloverdale/Clayton area and has a school population of 2100 students, including a French Immersion program for grades 8-12.  The school is semestered and runs an extended day schedule with a 5-block day for grade 10-12 students.   The school offers a wide variety of programs, including a teaching kitchen, BASES program, Connections, District Automotive Service Technician Program, extensive applied skills and fine arts programs, as well as many  extracurricular offerings.  Lord Tweedsmuir students  perform well in classes, have good attendance and work well with their teachers.   Peer relationships and staff relationships are important to our students.  Most of our students feel it is important to do well in school and they want to learn new things.  Most students also are enthusiastic about participating in learning.

2. What evidence supports what we know about our learners?

Our staff wondered if our students were truly connected to the school and had a hunch that they were not.  We surveyed our entire student body in December 2016.  A survey was created with staff input and administered to every student on December 6th and 9th.   A total of 1489 students participated in the survey.  The results were examined by a team of teachers who then worked with district staff to follow up with a student forum.  The results of the student and staff survey, as well as the student forum, formed the basis of our year-long inquiry into the connectedness of our learners.

Part 2: Focus and Planning

3. What focus emerges as a question to pursue?

In September, our entire staff (about 160) met to develop an inquiry question or a hunch about our students.  We wondered about student connection to the school.   The majority of the staff felt that although there were great programs at the school and no major issues, that there were many students who did not feel connected or a part of our community.  Through a series of activities and discussions, our question emerged:  How can we continue building opportunities that all students and staff feel connected to our Lord Tweedsmuir Community?

4. What professional learning do we need?

A small group of staff members who worked all year to analyze the and share the results of the surveys, has worked with the professional development committee to organize learning opportunities.  In May 2017, our focus was on Social Emotional Learning, with a speaker from UBC, Miriam Millar.  In September 2017, our staff will continue this work and plans are underway to develop strategies and structures that will cultivate the connectedness for our learners.  Our focus for next year will be to develop community in our classrooms and in common areas and transitions.  Continued support for our Social Emotional Learning focus will be important.

5. What is our plan?

  1.  Work with staff to develop a question (Sept 2016)
  2. Develop a survey with staff input (Oct-Nov 2016)
  3. Survey all staff and students (Dec 2016)
  4. Collate results and report on results (Jan 2017)
  5. Plan and run a student forum – for deeper conversations (Feb 2017)
  6. Plan and run professional development workshop to review results to create a plan of action (Feb 2017-April 2017)
  7. Social Emotional Learning Speaker (Miriam Miller from UBC) – May 2017
  8. Work with staff to plan the administrative day for Sept 2017 – with a focus on acting on our plan to develop/cultivate community in classrooms and throughout the school.

Part 3: Reflect, Adjust, Celebrate

6. How will we know our plan is making a difference? (evidence / success criteria)

We will survey students and staff again next year to see if there is a positive difference.  We will also have on-going surveys of staff at various times throughout the year.

7. Based on the evidence, does our inquiry require adjustment?