Character: Claim 1
Channel
View School for Research students take increasing responsibility for their own learning.
Character and culture are essential
values and themes that we embrace at Channel View School for Research (CVSR). We believe that demonstrating
core values, such as integrity, character, and a strong work ethic, are as
important as academics. By building strong character and culture, our students
are taking responsibility for their own learning.
Our
students created “15 Words to Live By” – a code of character that staff and
students should live by. These words – Respect,
Manners, Caring, Challenges, Tolerance, Achievement, Kindness, Trust,
Confidence, Sportsmanship, Responsibility, Friendship, Community, Honesty, and
Potential – represent who we want to be as a school community. The school
community recites our “15 Words to Live By” at the beginning meetings, grade
assemblies, and school events.
The
character component of our curriculum has transformed our school culture in
recent years. Through assessment, reflection, and goal setting, we are
incorporating character learning into our everyday instruction; students are
taking responsibility for their own learning, which, in turn, positively
influences academic, social, and behavioral growth.
Evidence 1: Student
Tracking of Progress in Crew
In Crew, students
regularly track their progress on Habits of Scholarship and make connections to
future success. Students support each other in their learning, which leads to an
increased sense of belonging. The following school-wide survey demonstrates the
strong connection between Crew and the creation of community of learners at
Channel View.
Student-Led
Conference
The Objective of the Student-Led Conference (SLC) is to
increase student accountability and autonomy concerning academics, Habits of
Work and Learning (HOWLS), and Service, Trust, Accountability, Respect (STAR
Rubric). The SLC began as a parent conference looking at grades and
individual work products. Now it is an all-inclusive conversation
and self-reflection, comprising of everything that makes our students well
rounded: academic work, self-evaluation, character learning, transcript and
report card review, goal setting, and college planning.
PowerPoint Presentations
Student A
PowerPoint Presentation (Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Nest)
This
10th grader created this presentation to share with his
parents during an SLC conference. He was excited about sharing a service-learning
experience at Ronald McDonald House. He was able to identify that he needs to
work on paying attention in class. He also set a goal of obtaining a part-time
job to pay for an Adobe Premiere Pro to support his interest in video editing.
Student B
PowerPoint Presentation
This
11th grader shares that she is taking several Advanced Placement (AP) classes to better
prepare herself for her college workload. She finds the AP courses challenging,
but she is proud of her accomplishments. She is looking forward to attending a
4-year college.
Student C
PowerPoint Presentation
This
11th grader was proud to share her National History Day experience.
She was able to combine her love of art and history to create a final research
product. The SLC provided this student with an opportunity to share this
success with her parents.
Student Self-Assessment
Self-Evaluation
During
Student-Led Conferences, students justify grades in each class by referencing
specific assignments that show their mastery of learning targets. Students also
complete self-evaluations of their performance in each class and share them
with their families. Students are held accountable for their progress when they
explain areas of strength and areas in need of improvement.
Example 1:
Student SLC Self-Evaluation
Student
A used a scale of 1 (lowest) to 4 (highest) to assess a variety of assignments in
math class. The student used HOWLS to
identify strengths and areas in need of improvement. The student also set goals
in an effort to take responsibility for his learning.
Reflection
We want our students to be STARs –
showing Service, Trust, Accountability,
and Respect in all facets of
school. As we strive to incorporate the
STAR Rubric in everyday learning, teachers are continuing to develop and refine
STAR Rubric targets, lessons, and assessments, so they are aligned with our
curriculum.
Example 2: SLC
Star Character Learning Assessment
Student
B assessed her own learning using the STAR Rubric Learning Targets. The student
identified a character trait she is doing well (accountability for learning)
and one where she needs to improve (public speaking).
Transcript
Evaluation
Transcript
Evaluation gives Channel View students a lens to view the academic
progress they made during each year of high school. Because they learn how to review
their transcripts, our students are able to evaluate
important data, such as total credits earned towards graduation, credits earned
and needed for each subject, and New York State Regents Exams completed and
needed for each subject. This allows our students to take responsibility for
their future by understanding graduation requirements.
Example 3: SLC
Transcript Evaluation
Student
C took responsibility for her learning by reviewing her transcript and assessing
her progress towards fulfilling graduation requirements. She used her
transcript evaluation to set goals for meeting college and career readiness
benchmarks.
Goal Setting
The
Channel View Achievement Support Plan is a contract made between the student,
parent, and Crew leader to guide the student towards taking responsibility for
their own learning.
Example 4:
Achievement Support Plan
Student
D took responsibility for her learning by identifying STAR strengths and areas
needing improvement; she then used this information to assist her in setting goals. She concluded that she is a loyal
person who needs to work on arriving to class on time. She also determined that
she must commit to attending after-school help and completing work on time. The
Achievement Support Plan helps guide students toward achieving academic, social,
and behavioral growth.
Evidence 2: Student Commitment to Academic Advancement
As
we continue to build a culture of students who take responsibility for their
learning, our data collection shows that the population of students enrolled in one
or more Advanced Placement classes has increased over a three-year span.
Student participation in academic programs outside of the designated school day
has also increased. Students stay late, arrive early, and come in on Saturdays
to attend Extended Day extra help, Saturday Academy, Regents Prep, Algebra 4
All, AP for All, and College Now classes. Our students are demonstrating the self-advocacy
skills necessary for improving their academic performance.
Advanced Placement
Enrollment
While
some might not see enrollment as directly linked to achievement, research has
shown that students who take AP classes are more likely to graduate college
within four years. This improved graduation rate is not only the result of
entering college having already earned several credits. Students who do not
score high enough on their AP exams to earn college credit are still more
successful in college than their peers who did not enroll in any AP classes. AP
classes help familiarize students with the rigorous coursework they will
encounter at the university level. As high school students, they build the strong
academic skills and habits of work and learning that will support them during
their college careers.
In
addition, according to AP for All, “the gains are greatest for low-income
students and students of color.” Channel View participates in the Expanded
Success Initiative Program (ESI), which focuses on supporting the college and
career readiness of Latino and African American students. In order to support
our student population and ensure equity, Channel View has opened
up more AP classes.
We
encourage all of our students to enroll in AP classes,
so they are introduced to the challenges of college-level work while at Channel
View. While there are specific AP courses designed for grades 9-11, as seniors,
students can choose classes based on their interests. Channel View seniors have
chosen to enroll in AP Statistics, AP Computer Science Principles, AP United States
Government and Politics, and AP Psychology.
The
following chart shows that the number of Channel View students who enroll in AP
courses has increased over the past three years.
Enrollment for
Each Advanced Placement Course Offered at CVSR
|
|
2016-17 |
2017-18 |
2018-19 |
|
AP English
Language |
38 |
66 |
32 |
|
AP English
Literature |
30 |
62 |
63 |
|
AP Psychology |
33 |
14 |
11 |
|
AP World
History |
33 |
66 |
95 |
|
AP U.S. History |
28 |
62 |
66 |
|
AP Statistics |
- |
29 |
- |
|
AP Biology |
28 |
34 |
32 |
|
AP English
Seminar |
- |
- |
33 |
|
AP Spanish |
- |
- |
32 |
|
AP Human
Geography |
- |
- |
147 |
|
AP
Environmental Science |
- |
1 |
25 |
|
AP Computer
Science Principles |
- |
3 |
- |
|
AP US
Government and Politics |
- |
7 |
- |
|
Total Students Enrolled in 1 or More AP Class |
190 |
344 |
536 |
Saturday Academy
Regents Prep
Channel
View students demonstrate that they take an active role in their education by
voluntarily attending extra help and study sessions. Students travel to Channel
View on weekends to take part in a variety of review classes. As Channel View
students have accepted more responsibility for their own learning, their
attendance of these study sessions has increased. Channel View’s emphasis on
self-assessment and reinforcing HOWLs and STAR has encouraged our students to
seek out opportunities to enhance their own education.
Evidence 3: Scholarship
Report
The
data in the following graph shows the impact of HOWLS and the STAR Rubric on accountability
measures taken by our 6-12 students to improve their learning. All core
subjects have experienced an increase in the number of students earning between
a 90 and 100% for their semester grade. Having students take responsibility for
acknowledging their academic strengths and weaknesses has enabled them to
develop specific action plans to help them achieve their academic goals.
These
results have been achieved through a school-wide focus on Habits of
Scholarship. Students take accountability for work and learning habits
reflecting on the STAR Rubric
throughout the year. A few years ago, our Crew Leaders incorporated STAR
self-assessment and goal setting into their curriculum to encourage students to
take accountability for their learning. All students participate in
goal-setting activities throughout the school year. The following evidence comes
from students in grades 6, 8, 10, and 11. It shows their growth throughout the
school year. As Channel View students increasingly took accountability for
their learning, their academic scores improved.
During
her mid-year survey, this sixth grader shared that she was not participating in
community service, sometimes struggled with cooperation, did not always turn in
homework, and occasionally was not focused during class. She set STAR goals and
by the end of the year, she was making time for community service,
collaborating with her peers, arriving to class prepared, and staying focused.
STAR Rubric: Grade 6
Mid-Year Survey
STAR Rubric:
Grade 6 End-of-Year Survey
During
his mid-year survey, this eighth grader mentioned that he is not always able to
help his classmates because he struggles in Algebra. He also said that he
sometimes does not feel comfortable enough to make eye contact when he is
speaking with someone. Despite these concerns about communicating with his
peers, he set a goal to increase his participation. In June, he noted that he
now makes eye contact with everyone and discussed his continued work in Algebra. Although
he passed the Regents exam, he plans to retake it in order to score above an 80.
STAR
Rubric: Grade 8 Mid-Year Survey
STAR
Rubric: Grade 8 End-of-Year Survey
During
his mid-year survey, this student reported that he is not always honest when he
is worried about consequences. He notes that his grades have been “punitively
impacted.” He set goals to be more attentive and check in with his teacher and
peers. At the end of the year, he described himself as an honest individual who
is always prepared and takes accountability for his actions.
STAR Rubric: Grade 10 Mid-Year Survey
STAR Rubric: Grade 10 End-of-Year Survey
During
her mid-year survey, this student identified that she was not on track to
complete the number of community service hours she had planned to work this year. In
June, she noted that she had completed this goal by volunteering to assist her
teachers. In the mid-year survey, she also acknowledged that she had to get better at citing sources in
order to meet the requirements for Trust. She set a goal to start projects
earlier, so she would not rush to complete assignments and try to take short
cuts. At the end of the year, she concluded that she had successfully met this
goal.
STAR Rubric: Grade 11 Mid-Year Survey
STAR Rubric: Grace 11 End-of-Year Survey