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Instructional Supervision Plan for ESM

Instructional Supervision Plan

Selena Frizzley
EEA 539: Supervision of Instruction
Masters of Education in Leadership
Date: November 5, 2016
Instructor: Dr. Dave Khatib

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Instructional Supervision Plan for ESM

In promoting the success of all students through learning and professional growth, an
educational leader needs to make the decisions and change of practice for the benefit of the entire
school. Leaders need to take time to study and reflect on school data in order to locate gaps in
student learning. In this paper I will review the district goals and three year plans for Holy Spirit
Separate Regional Division No.4 and align these with the specific needs of my school district for
the benefit of my students and Ecole St. Mary School.
The focus of my research is the success of First Nations, Metis and Inuit students
(FNMI). My goals reflect the Division Goal 5 (Provincial Desired Outcome 4): First Nations,
Metis and Inuit students are successful. This is reflected in the Holy Spirit Roman Catholic
Separate Regional Division No.4 Outcome 5.1: The achievement gap between FNMI students
and all other students is eliminated (Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Separate Regional Division No.
4, 2015).
The results of our division, in terms of the achievement gap are an overall concern in our
school and district. As reported by the AERR (2016), dropout rates for FNMI students ages 1418 for the 2016 year are 8.4%. In terms of student achievement, most results for students in
grades 6 to 9 appeared as Concern or Issue. While all the results for grades 10 to 12
appeared as Concern or Issue. Moreover, only 44.1% of First Nations students completing
high school within three years of entering Grade 10. Holy Spirit School Division focuses a great
deal of time and effort into building relationships with their FNMI students and many supports
are put in place to support the academic achievement of their high school students (Holy Spirit
Roman Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 4, 2015).
The goals outlined by the school division act as a guide for the goals that will be
established for our individual school, Ecole St. Mary. One goal, District High School

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Instructional Supervision Plan for ESM

Completion, is to increase the rate of completion for the First Nations, Metis and Inuit students
by 5%. Another goal is the District Target for Attendance, which is to see a 5% improvement in
the absent rate for First Nations, Metis and Inuit children in Kindergarten. These will be used as
a starting point for establishing a plan for the Ecole St. Mary School (Holy Spirit Roman
Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 4, 2015).
To meet the desired outcomes of these school district targets, goal setting needs to take
place at the school level. The Accountability Pillar Results of the Annual Education Results
Report (AERR) highlights the specific results of our FNMI students. The FNMI students writing
Achievement Exams appeared to have improved or maintained measure of evaluation overall.
Although this appears positive, the students results are still overwhelmingly labeled as Issue
or Concern for all subjects in the grade 6 Provincial Achievement Results. An Acceptable
level of achievement overall for FNMI students is 47.5% up from 28.6% the previous year.
While an Excellent level of achievement has remained the same at 0% (Alberta Education,
2016). Goals need to be set to close this gap and increase the learning results for our FNMI
students at the elementary age. Once the students are in junior high and high school the gap is
too large thus the gap in learning needs to be addressed at an early age.
The goals that need to be established for Ecole St. Mary School:
To decrease the achievement gap for the First Nations, Metis and Inuit Students.
To increase the attendance rates for all First Nations, Metis and Inuit Students.
The first step that in necessary in moving forward in decreasing the gap in student
achievement is for our staff to develop a better understanding of FNMI peoples. By better
understanding our First Nations students history and individual stories, we as a staff will be
better able to meet the needs of our students. Scholarly articles will be presented to the staff for

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Instructional Supervision Plan for ESM

study and a book review will be conducted to increase the staff awareness of First Nations issues,
in particular the Black Foot People, as the majority of our First Nations students are from the
Kainai Blood Tribe. Staff will come together and engage in learning in a productive way.
Professional development will be set up for our Professional Development Days to increase
awareness and give the staff a different perspective on Black Foot Peoples culture and history.
Evidence suggests that a high level of family and community involvement increases the
students attendance and academic results. It is important to recognize the role family can play
within an education team and the strength of this role in relation to student achievement
(Shannon & Bylsma, 2007). To achieve our goals, we need to work together with parents and
the community to meet the needs of our students. Likewise, parents need to be in the school
more to create a partnership and to work together.
At Ecole St. Mary School, we are going to start first by inviting an elder to join us for all
parent teacher interviews. Parents will have the opportunity to stop in and share a meal with the
elder prior to interviews. The teachers of Ecole St. Mary School are going to individually call all
the parents of the FNMI students and book a parent teacher interview with them prior to the
interview list being posted on-line. Many of our First Nations families living on the reserve have
limited access to the internet; personal calls will eliminate technological barriers and welcome
families to the school for fellowship and to meet with the teacher regarding their child. Any
opportunity to get parents into the school to talk about their children and about education is
beneficial for our school community.
According to Shannon and Bylsma (2007), cultural relevance is a key element to the
building of positive and sustaining partnerships. In our school we need to increase awareness of
the diversity of our First Nations students and families by supporting them and creating common

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Instructional Supervision Plan for ESM

grounds. Ecole St. Mary School will host an event one evening a term to celebrate Blackfoot
culture. It will be an evening organized specifically for our First Nations families. We will give
Blackfoot language classes and plan a craft for the students. A Blackfoot elder will be in
attendance and available to visit with the families. A meal will be provided to encourage
attendance and reduce the barrier of driving in from the reserve in the evening. Any additional
community resources that seem relevant will be made available for this event. Community
resources can be used to strengthen learning for the community as a whole (Shannon & Bylsma,
2007). Non-First Nations students will also be encouraged to attend, as it is valuable for them to
learn about First Nations culture and history.
To further develop the sense of community and bring the Blackfoot culture into the
school in a variety of different ways we will be offering a few different opportunities for the
entire school. We will be organizing a Blessing ceremony that will include traditional face
painting. An Elder will be present to bless the school and have students participate in a Smudge
Ceremony. The significance of the Smudge ceremony will be explained and the students will
have an opportunity to simply watch or to participate in the prayer
During our Leadership Time, we will offer a drumming program and dance classes, to
encourage students to drum and dance and take part in Blackfoot culture. Through these
programs students will develop a greater sense of pride in their culture and in sharing it with the
school community. Having an opportunity to showcase some elements of their culture and
having additional members of the community in the school to work with the students will be of
benefit to First Nations students and the school as a whole.
Throughout the year we will host a Blackfoot culture day inn which speakers from
different areas of expertise will be brought into the school to talk and guide students through

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Instructional Supervision Plan for ESM

different activities. A tipi will be set up throughout the day, with different classes watching the
steps taken to create the tipi. Lastly our school will participate in a Powwow, in which many of
our own students will drum and dance.
Developing confidence, positive habits and good leadership skills in students has proven
to increase ones academic evaluations as well as leadership in cultural groups that are in need:
English language learners, FNMI and at-risk students. Bowman (2013) highlights the benefits of
developing student leadership at the Middle School level. For example, he has noted the benefits
for students of First Nations background who, through leadership opportunities, develop
connections to others and feel that they belong to a group. Tapping into positive social
interactions and making the student feel part of the school community will lead the student to
more positive behaviors in the future. This will lead to increased student attendance for our
FNMI students. Developing more opportunities in school can help students develop themselves
and learn. Leading oneself through the mastery of leadership is about being present and making
connections to others in all situations that one encounters (Bowman, 2013).
The desire to develop confidence and leadership skills in school aged students is
becoming a growing trend, knowing that the proven benefits include an increase in student
academic results in literacy and numeracy. Other significant benefits include an increase in
student attendance and less referrals to the office for behavioral concerns (Covey, 2008).
Additionally, students overall express a greater sense of connection to the school community as a
whole which has a variety of benefits for all stakeholders. This will impact school culture and
help to meet all the goals being established for Ecole St. Mary School.
Placing a focus on the attendance and academic achievement of the First Nations, Metis
and Inuit students of Ecole St. Mary School will have a positive impact on our entire school

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Instructional Supervision Plan for ESM

population. In order to close the achievement gap for our FNMI students and increase High
School achievement, initiatives need to be implemented in Elementary school. Focusing on
understanding of the Blackfoot people and history is the first step. The next step is to encourage
FNMI students and families to get involved in the school and greater community. Establishing
culturally relevant events within the school to build community is also essential. When
necessary, we will also provide support to families by helping them access community resources,
such as elders and First Nations language instructors. Finally, continuing to build a culture of
student leadership will help to meet the needs of our students in terms of academic achievement
and attendance, as students will feel a greater sense of connectivity to the school and community.

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Instructional Supervision Plan for ESM

References:
Alberta Education (2016). Accountability Pillar Results for Annual Education Results Report
(AERR). Edmonton, Alberta. Retrieved from https://education.alberta.ca/accountabilitypillar/about-the-pillar/
Alberta Education (2016) Accountability Pillar Results for Annual Education Results Report
(AERR) First Nations, Metis and Inuit (FNMI) Report. Edmonton, Alberta. Retrieved
from https://education.alberta.ca/accountability-pillar/about-the-pillar/
Bowman, R. F. (2013). Learning Leadership Skills in Middle School. Clearing House 86 (2),
5963. doi: 10.1080/00098655.2012.744291.
Covey, S.R. (2008). The leader in me: How schools and parents around the world are inspiring
greatness, one child at a time. New York, NY: Free Press.
Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Separate Regional Division No. 4.(2015). 2014/2015 Annual
Education Results Report & 2015-2018 Three year Education Plan. Retrieved from
http://www.holyspirit.ab.ca/_cabinet/2/14/105/Combined_3_Year_Education_Plan_2015
_2018_and_AERR_2014_2015_-_Final.pdf
Shannon, G. S., Bylsma, P., & Washington (State). Superintendent of Public Instruction. (2007).
Nine characteristics of high-performing schools (2nd ed.). Olympia, WA: Office of
Superintendent of Public Instruction