Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary 23-24
OUR CONTEXT
OUR CONTEXT
Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary is located in the Cloverdale/Clayton area, on the shared, unceded traditional territories of the Kwantlen, Katzie and Semiahmoo First Nations. Our school is one of the largest in the district, with a population of approximately 1850 students and 150 staff. A third of our families speak a language other than English at home which reflects the diversity of the community we serve.
We want our learners to have the fullest school experience possible and provide a wide range of both curricular and extracurricular offerings, including an extensive Athletics program, professional teaching kitchen and Culinary Arts program, district Connections program, district Automotive Service Technician Program, Youth Explore Trades Skills program, Fine and Performing Arts program, as well as other clubs and activities such as Student Council, GSA (Gay Straight Alliance), Student Library Council, Mindfulness Club, Ad Astra Club, Mathematics Homework Help Club, and many more. Our students are proud to represent Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary at our various academic, athletic, performative and cultural events.
Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary school has an amazing sense of community with students of diverse backgrounds, abilities and interests. "Panther Pride" is highly valued! Our students and staff are engaged in their learning and demonstrate excellence in all forms of learning every day. We celebrate the diversity of our school community and work together to create a friendly and inclusive environment grounded in caring and respect.
Lord Tweedsmuir is conveniently situated near several community hubs, including the Cloverdale Fairgrounds (which hosts the Cloverdale Rodeo each year), Cloverdale Recreation Centre and Arena, Cloverdale Youth Park (including skate park) and the Museum of Surrey, and is accessible by public transit.
OUR LEARNERS
OUR LEARNERS
Students being able to successfully transition from one grade level to the next is an important indicator of overall student achievement. At Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary, our learners have historically completed successful transitions above the average Surrey School District rates.
However, in the Spring of the 2019/2020 school year, our learners were faced with challenges and adversity that no one could have foreseen during the global pandemic. We know from preliminary evidence that the pandemic deeply affected our learners' mental health, social and emotional development and academic growth. This evidence has surfaced through observations and dialogue between students and school staff as well as through evidence of learning gathered in classrooms. These factors all have an indirect and direct impact on the transition of students as they move from one grade level to the next and as such, was chosen to be a focus area for Lord Tweedsmuir's Student Learning Plan.
Our learner’s sense of well-being and social and emotional health also surfaced through the annual Ministry of Education’s Student Satisfaction survey. Several questions on the March 2023 Grade 10 student survey indicate that additional supports for students’ health and connections within our community would be beneficial.
Over the past year, and with this goal of supporting students’ Transitions success through increased social emotional support, engagement and connections with the school and staff, there have been many initiatives and events that have helped to strengthen our students’ sense of community.
This year LTSS created a Staff Anti-Racism Book Club and a Student Anti-Racism Alliance. Both groups explored, learned and promoted Anti-Racism professional development and awareness in the school through numerous events. Their efforts help to create an inclusive, equitable and welcoming school culture for our students. The celebration of diversity and the pro-social and emotional benefits to our entire school community are powerful supports for the success of our students.
Our student-led Anti-Racism Alliance organized numerous cultural celebrations throughout the year.
Celebrating Diwali at Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary!
Recognizing “Pink Shirt Day” at LTSS!
Happy Lunar New Year at LTSS!
Another very positive community-building initiative that makes connections with our incoming Grade 8 students and our Senior Leadership students was this year’s new initiative for Grade 7 Tour/orientation visits. All of our Associate school’s grade 7 students spent a morning at LTSS learning about our school with our Leadership students as hosts and tour guides.
This year’s Food Drive collected items for a local Cloverdale community kitchen charity. Students were encouraged to donate items and “move the principal out of his office”! The event was a great success with hundreds of items collected for families in need. The event, sponsored by our student council, promoted by our staff, was a wonderful way to bring our students together for a common cause and build connections within our school.
OUR FOCUS
OUR FOCUS
Our focus is on supporting grade-to-grade transitions for students who require extra assistance and encouragement to stay engaged in school through the development of a Transitions program. More specifically, we are targeting support towards several distinct group of students within the Transitions cohort. The plan is to apply direct, intentional support to each learner in the cohort through positive connection with an adult, with the goal being for each student to demonstrate growth in school connectedness and engagement. Our intention is that this will in turn lead to successful emotional, academic, and social growth from grade to grade, and thus, increasing the rate of successful student transitions.
In order to support the goal being for each student to demonstrate growth in school connectedness and engagement, a variety of initiatives occurred throughout the year at a school-wide level and also within the Transitions cohort.
School-wide community building activities included numerous special events during the 23/24 school year.
Our Grade 8 Retreat brought our newest Panthers together for orientation and school spirit in the Fall.
“Friday Night Lights” Football game brought 1000+ spectators to our field to cheer on our team!
Orange Shirt Day was recognized throughout all curricular areas.
Numerous Spirit Weeks were hosted by our Student Council. Our Halloween costume parade was a big hit!
Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary’s Remembrance Day Ceremonies was a powerful and poignant reminder of the sacrifices of our Armed Forces. Our students, staff and community guests were able to share a very important message of remembrance and gratitude.
This year we held a Christmas Door Decorating contest. The LTSS Alumni Association was invited into the school as judges!
This year’s Winter Grad Formal Dance brought our graduating students together in celebration and friendship.
We again participated in the RCMP Basketball classic. Our Senior Boys won 1st place… to the delight of our many LTSS basketball fans.
We hosted the first annual LTSS Fine and Performing Arts Night. Students’ works of Art and Dramatic performances were on display to a very appreciative audience of friends and family.
Our LTSS Culinary Arts students again participated in this year’s Chili Cook-off. Our students represented LTSS with talent and pride!
We started a new tradition this year with our Graduates’ Family celebration mix and mingle photo-op!
Within the Transitions program, our students and teachers worked on several areas including:
- Self-reflection
- Resiliency
- Focusing on strengths
- Academic success
- Fostering positive relationships with teachers and peers
Furthermore, additional support available through the Transitions program included: homework help, additional communication with families, goal-setting, and having another trusted adult who is able to advocate for the student. These teachers, in collaboration with classroom teachers, school counsellors, administrators, youth care workers, and other support staff, support learners with their social, emotional, and academic needs to find success in school.
The Transitions program was staffed with four teachers, each with one non-enrolling block, to support their learners. Teacher 1 focussed on ELL students. Teacher 2 primarily focussed on social/emotional support of her caseload. Teacher 3 focussed on Grade 12 students and their graduation planning and support. Teacher 4 focussed on Grade 8 students and helping them become engaged within the school.
Structures:
- Transitions teachers would provide drop-in support for their students during the school day.
- Teachers would also structure “pull-out” sessions for students who required more intensive support.
- Students were also able to book meeting times via an online booking system.
Students were identified for the Transitions program through consultation between members of the Lord Tweedsmuir Student Support Team, and these decisions are based on feedback and evidence collected from teachers and other school staff. This team includes counsellors, administrators, youth care workers, and Safe Schools liaisons.
During the 23/24 school year, the Surrey School District surveyed four students who were being supported through our Transitions Program. Students were specifically asked about their sense of belonging and connections within our school community. Again, our students’ responses indicated that establishing increased engagement, belonging and support with the school would be a valuable outcome.
OUR NEXT STEPS
OUR NEXT STEPS
Throughout the year, we have been gathering quantitative data in the form of achievement of courses passed from students within the “Transitions” cohort. There has also been an opportunity for student feedback through interviews and student surveys.
This data along with student feedback will guide our decision making in continuous quality improvement of our Transitions program. Although we are redesigning the model for Transitions for the future, our hope is that we will be able to reintroduce this direct, targeted, intentional support for another Transitions cohort. Our team will also look to identify other models that positively support students who are struggling to engage with the school and who would benefit with additional social emotional assistance.
Below are excerpts taken directly from a recent student survey :
What has been the most helpful part of working in Transitions?
"being able to talk to an adult about how I feel about school and what i think is good for me"
"letting my emotions out and having someone there to help me go through it"
"Being able to express my problems academically and emotionally...Having someone to talk to makes me feel safer and comfortable at school"
"Help with school, and being able to rant and get my emotions out without lashing out"
Surrey Schools
Formed in 1906, the Surrey School District currently has the largest student enrolment in British Columbia and is one of the few growing districts in the province. It is governed by a publicly elected board of seven trustees.
The district serves the cities of Surrey and White Rock and the rural area of Barnston Island.
