Overview

We are so fortunate to have many fabulous and dedicated educators in Winchester! Your students’ teachers have been hard at work all summer developing their craft and improving their own learning to better serve all of your student(s)!

Our focus as a district has been on the many ways we can shift and grow to better serve the whole student, diverse learning styles, and how to best prepare students for their futures.

Every week this summer, we have had hundreds of educators in professional development (pd) learning, collaborating, and developing new activities, assessments, and practices for their classrooms and teaching spaces.

Recent PD Highlights

• PBAs (Performance-based Assessments):  These are authentic assessments (or simulate authentic experiences) that give students “real world skills”; often actually interacting beyond their classroom and having students “DO” something with their content standards and learning; rather than memorizing and regurgitating information.  

• Curriculum work aligning to standards: Every content area and grade level across the district has been hard at work adjusting their curriculum for the year to come based on student data, adjustments from the pandemic, and in alignment with the latest research around best practices.

• Differentiation: We have been focusing on meeting students where they are, allowing them to access learning in different ways, and having them stretch beyond their comfort zones.  We have been particularly supporting different intelligences and giving students voice and choice.

• Grading for Equity & Standards-Based Grading:  Thanks to a generous grants from WFEE, a group of teachers within the district (primarily at the middle and high school) have been focusing on examining their assessment practices and ensuring equity for students, as well as increasing alignment to their area’s standards