Introduction: Charlie Workshop Goals: Charlie Scheduling Guide -Chapters & Appendices: Charlie -Why So Important - District Role: Tracy -Stages & Steps: Susan Group Activity: Susan Software Options and Features: Tracy Resources: Tracy Question & Answer: Charlie
Fundamental Need: If students aren't scheduled into the same sections as the other students in their SLC, with a cadre of teachers working together, the SLC and its subsequent benefits are lost. They're back to being randomly placed into any class in their subject. They don't have their group of teachers and fellow students for support. There is no SLC. Most Frequent Problem: There are many considerations that have to go into developing a master schedule, and many difficulties that can arise: What courses will be offered. How many sections of each. Who will teach each section. What courses will each student take to graduate, get into college. Hard to Do: Now complicate the process by requiring certain students to take classes together with certain teachers. The headaches begin.
Open System: CASN research indicates that high schools with the most successful scheduling approaches usually use an inclusive process in building the schedule. They incorporate many stakeholders in the high school community, particularly those most affected by the outcomes of scheduling. Team Members: Lead SLC teachers + Department Heads, Counselors, Student Advocates, the Principal, Data Analyst, others? Who would/do you have on your MST? Team Size: The team should be big enough that some tasks can be shared, but small enough to work efficiently.
Intro: There are five basic stages: Planning Student course selection Master schedule construction Analysis, adjustment, and distribution of schedules Fine tuning and re-adjustment For purposes of providing a timeline we describe stages and steps in the master schedule development process by month, using a traditional ten-month school year calendar, September - June. This timetable may differ for schools on trimester, year-round, or other academic calendars. At each stage of the process the steps may vary, based on many considerations: the degree to which a school focuses on equity, the size of the student body, the type of student information system software utilized, the number/ size of SLCs/ Academies, the extent to which SLCs /Academies have “pure” cohorts of students, the range of global (schoolwide) course offerings, and a variety of constraints. But the stages themselves and at least many of the steps in each apply in most situations. As you go through this section, think about how you can adapt the information to your own setting. (Ask questions to go with stages: Who are your stakeholders, when do students register for courses?, etc.)
(Use handouts from guide for each stage) Planning: During the fall semester the team of teachers in each SLC needs to consider the year ahead of them. They need to discuss the various matters that bear on scheduling, reflecting on the plusses and minuses of the previous year and making adjustments as needed. Which courses? Common prep periods? Location of SLC classrooms? Informing new students about SLCs Looping, advisories & early departure/late arrival Student Course Selection: How does your school distribute course selection materials to students/parents. Who advises students on which courses to take? What data is used to place students (test scores, teacher recommendations?)
(Use handouts from guide) Once all students have signed up for their next year's courses, how will this data be incorporated across the school, and how will SLC requests and needs be integrated with schoolwide ones? • How will course requests be gathered from students and collated? • Who will input/tally/analyze these in the computer? • Who will teach each section of the SLC courses? • How will SLC courses fit around the high school singletons and doubletons? • How will sections be balanced within the SLC, and across SLCs? • What process will exist to allow SLC teams to interact with the high school Scheduling Team/ Coordinator to resolve conflicts? • How will summer school sign-ups be handled?
(Use handouts from guide) Analysis...Distribution: Once a tentative master schedule has been developed, how will it be shared with SLC teams, and what will be the process for making adjustments, finalizing the schedule, and providing students and teachers with their individual schedules? • Are adjustments needed to balance SLCs/ sections re. size and student makeup? • Are there scheduling conflicts for any SLC students? How will these be resolved? • Will a tentative schedule be provided to students and teachers prior to summer? • How will summer school credit be incorporated? • How will schedules be distributed to students and teachers before the fall semester? Will there be an orientation to explain them to students and allow feedback and/or change requests? • How will changes in fall student schedules be handled? Fine Tuning: • What worked and didn't? What needs to change? • How will feedback from SLC team members be incorporated for the next year? • How will input from students and parents be incorporated? • Who will be on the schoolwide Scheduling Team?
(Use handout from guide) These are the major constraints that effect the master schedule, and need to be considered throughout the process. Constraints that can't be accommodated become sources of conflicts.