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DENMAN ISLAND COMMUNITY SCHOOL –

EDUCATIONAL MODELS AND HIRING SURVEY –

MAY 2011

Survey deadline is May 24, 2011. One survey per parent, please.Complete surveys online at
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/2VKGFST
Return paper copies to the PAC drawer in the school office or put in the Abraxas Books Free Post under 'S'.

This survey will help us give the School District clear direction about hiring priorities. The
questions in the survey reflect emerging themes identified thus far in the community visioning
meeting of April 21, the follow-up meeting of May 2, and a number of PAC meetings. Over the
next year there will be an ongoing visioning, self-educating, experimenting and discussion
process about the focus of the school. Our goal for now is that the forthcoming hiring bring us
the best possible staff for that process.

Please begin by identifying yourself.

Name (Optional and confidential): 26 people completed the survey (19 online, 7 on paper).

I am a...

 69% (18) Parent of current elementary school student


 19% (5) Parent of future elementary school student
 12% (3) Parent of elementary student enrolled elsewhere
 0 Parent of elementary-aged homeschooled student

2. It is important for the PAC to have input during the hiring process.

 81% (21) Strongly agree


 15% (4) Agree
 Neutral
 Disagree
 Strongly disagree

1 skipped answer

3. Which five qualities would you most like to see in school staff?

 73% (19) Engaged and Engaging


 46% (12) Maintains respectful environment
 42% (11) Creative
 38% (11) Enthusiastic
 38% (10) Collaborative
 38% (10) Encouraging
 35% (9) Involved in the community
 35% (9) Understands Denman’s cultural context
 35% (9) Athletic
 31% (8) Compassionate
 27% (7) Dedicated
 27% (7) Energetic
 27% (7) Open to changes within the school
 23% (6) Innovative
 12% (3) Flexible

Other essential qualities or qualifications:

We need Karla Florian and Bethany Ireland (the new amazing music teacher) and
Amber Clark (E.A.)

Male

Honest

Local if possible

Critical thinking in regards to society at large, aware, socially conscious

Fluent in a second language, preferably French or Spanish. Demonstrated


experience in conflict resolution.

French, Music, enforces gentle atmosphere (no bullying, roughness, coarse


language or name-calling)

Fresh

Open-minded and loving

C’mon, only five… how about all of the above?

Active listener, healthy esteem

Someone who enjoys being with the students and has fun while still teaching.
Have music background, 2nd. Language specialization, and an understanding and
ability to engage in a 21st. century teaching model.

Ready to think outside the box, respectful of students’ individuality, gender


balance
Intelligent and respectful. We need a strong teacher/leader/administrator who can keep the classroom
environment safe and provide a strong role model for the school who the children respect. Lack of
leadership has caused many problems over the past several years. I want the majority of our teachers to
live on Denman Island, hire those who have an investment in the community and care about the kids.
The students need some stability and consistency for next year, especially given what a disaster last year
was. The only exception for us regarding hiring locally, is that we will not be returning to the school
should the Teaching Principal remain the same. We feel very strongly about the need for a change in
leadership.

The following definitions may help to clarify the questions below. For more information on these learning
approaches and models, please visit the links attached to the distributed minutes of the April 21 meeting or follow
the links below as a starting point. (Paper copies of the information in these links are available in the Transition Year
Documents binder in the school office.)

Interdisciplinary: Taking one activity or theme as a starting point for learning a variety of ‘subjects’ – for instance,
gardening as a way to study biology, nutrition, food science and cooking, health and medical science, botany,
working and planning in groups, meteorology, social studies and history (the development of agriculture and its
influence on human civilization; gardening and use of plants in different cultures), art, literacy and music (art, books
and songs about gardens) etc.

Place-based: Uses the students' community/neighbourhood and surrounding landscape as a classroom for hands-on
learning, exploring the curriculum, local history and culture through creative projects.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Place-based_education
http://www.antiochne.edu/anei/cpbe/

4. The staff should have familiarity with, and be interested in, educational
approaches that …

Individualize the learning experience.

 58% (15) Strongly agree


 38% (10) Agree
 4% (1) Neutral

Connect the student with the place we live in – its natural environment, culture and people
(Place-based curriculum focus).

 58% (15) Strongly agree


 31% (8) Agree
 12% (3) Neutral

Apply hands-on, practical examples of studied concepts (active learning).

 73% (19) Strongly agree


 23% (6) Agree
 4% (1) Neutral

Use technology appropriately, to engage students rather than replacing teaching.

(Please note that due to a typographical error (incorrect spacing) this question appeared to be part of the above
question on the paper copy of the survey. The error was discovered after the survey deadline. Therefore, 7
people’s answers may have been different than shown. These individuals’ responses have been applied to both
the active learning and technology questions. Please accept my sincere apologies for this oversight. –W.W.)

 54% (14) Strongly agree


 35% (9) Agree
 12% (3) Neutral

Group students according to interests, abilities and learning styles rather than age.

 69% (18) Strongly agree


 27% (7) Agree
 4% (1) Neutral

Present curriculum in an interdisciplinary way.

 54% (14) Strongly agree


 35% (9) Agree
 8% (2) Neutral

Use a variety of assessment approaches.

 46% (12) Strongly Agree


 42% (11) Agree
 12% (3) Neutral

No respondents selected the Disagree or Strongly disagree options for the above questions.

Other possible approaches:

Have all parties at the table.

Mentorship, apprenticeship, community projects, show kids how to find and


evaluate information, teach them how to think rather than just memorizing facts,
eventually allow high school students to be schooled on Denman, make the school
a resource for homeschoolers.

Inquiry based, student centred learning, authentic assessment

Mentorships, work experience, team learning (supported students teaching eager


learners).

I think good teachers already do a lot of these things.

Project based, kinesthetic, relevant to students’ lives


I'm interested in the 21st Century learning approach, Jeff Abbott's version. I want a cosmopolitan
approach to learning, with our children being given a variety of experiences, from a variety of cultures,
with the opportunities to pursue their own interests. I'm concerned about the curriculum becoming "too
local" as it's too limited. There needs to be a good balance. I'm very interested in the 21st Century
Teaching style that Sherry Elwood discussed at the last meeting with curriculum being focused more on
areas students needed to work on, and if they've mastered it move on, while moving away from merely
cramming facts to pass Provincial exams. There has been a serious lack of Phys Ed and Sports/team
activities of the past several years. Kids need to be physically challenged and energized in order to learn
properly. Especially kids who are kinetic learners. I was so happy to hear Sherry acknowledge that
students test scores increased if they had exercise before their exams. Maybe SD71 will finally see how
important this is to the curriculum being successful and will implement changes to have more time
allocated for Phys Ed. and recess. I think so much of the bullying that has happened over the years could
have been greatly averted had these students had the opportunity to get that energy out of their system
(early intervention) before it lead to them having a melt down and physical altercations. I would like the
assessment process to be changed and more reflective of the students actual abilities, interests, and
needs to reflect on the whole child and not just measurables

5. The staff should be willing to…

Work collaboratively with a small team of staff.

 85% (22) Strongly agree


 12% (3) Agree
 4% (1) Disagree

Engage in ongoing and extensive collaboration with parents and community.

 73% (19) Strongly agree


 23% (6) Agree
 4% (1) Neutral
6. Other priorities for the hiring process:

Should live in this community and love children.

Male, sports interests, arts, music. I feel that the ‘3rs’ (reading, writing, arithmetic)
are very important.

It would be nice to have a male role model.

Experience teaching/working with kids outside of classroom environments, eg.


someone who has worked in outdoor education ect.

See above.

The candidate should be flexible enough to adapt to changes within the school over
the next several years and have a genuine interest in the directions the Denman
school is looking at. They cannot be territorial about their class if they are going to
work with community mentors. This is not a job for ‘9-5ers’.

Fresh

Hiring someone who knows the kids and loves them, that would be someone that is
involved in the community and that the parents trust 100%. Someone who is educated
and has many years experience working with kids. Someone that the kids will listen to
and has a natural gift when it comes to dealing with kids.

I believe it is imperative that we have a team of people who work well together, and
with the successive circles of community that surround the school. This team will
obviously be very small, and needs to be functional, enthusiastic going into the year,
and led by a creative and flexible leader who has experience and skill in small
communities. I think getting job descriptions/postings from any of the small schools in
SD64 (from Jeff Hopkins) might prove very useful in this process.

Student input on this question is valuable.

Teachers need a principal who will work with them as a team member not a dictator.
Like a team captain rather than a general manager. Happy teachers make good
teachers. Teachers also require the support of parents to work as a team, rather than
their judgment… open the conversation.
The staff should be present in the school 5 days per week. The staff should be local.
The staff should be committed to working not only in the classroom but at lunch, after
school and during field trips.

Supportive of gender differences in behavior and learning styles (i.e. not expect boys
to be girls).

We need to have feedback as to who will be hired for the teaching/administrator position ASAP
so that parents have time to make appropriate decisions should they chose to leave the school.
Thank you for taking the time to do this survey and gather the results .

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