Wednesday, August 17th was the first Collaborative Team Meeting professional development time for all district teachers.
Collaborative Team Meetings will be implemented on every Wednesday throughout the rest of the school year and will allow all district teachers to be part of a Professional Learning Community.
The communities will provide educators with time to work together to focus on student achievement and data that shows which students are progressing academically and which may need additional support.
"Collaborative Team Meetings give teachers time to have deep, clinical conversations to create and implement plans for each child," said Dr. Jared Cleveland, Springdale Public Schools superintendent.
Watch Channel 5 Feature on Collaborative Team Meetings in Springdale
Some Springdale Schools teachers have previously participated in Collaborative Team Meetings in support of district Professional Learning Communities for about eight years. The implementation of weekly Collaborative Team Meetings will make that same professional development time accessible for all district teachers.
"The time will allow our teachers to work together," Cleveland said. "Teachers can work like a clinical team, similar to a medical team, in support of all our students," he said.
District students will be released early on Wednesdays under the new policy. The student instructional school day will increase by 10 minutes, while the length of teacher contract days won’t change.
Elementary students will be in school from 7:45 a.m. to 3:10 p.m. and will be dismissed on Wednesdays at 1:50 p.m. Middle school students will be in school from 8:05 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and will be dismissed on Wednesdays at 2:10 p.m. Junior and senior high students will be in school from 8:40 a.m. to 4:05 p.m. and will be dismissed at 2:45 p.m. on Wednesdays. The schedules were determined in response to survey feedback and transportation needs.
Springdale Public Schools is the largest school district in Arkansas with an enrollment of about 22,000 students and approximately 3,000 staff members.
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