Title: WASC Visiting Committee Final Presentation
1WASC Visiting Committee Final Presentation
- Hong Kong International School
- April, 2007
2Organization for Student Learning
3Organization for Student Learning
- Mission, Student Learning Results, Leadership
- HKIS has developed strong SLRs with input from
all stakeholders - Further assessment and integration of the SLRs is
needed - Senior Leadership are enabling school improvement
through the development of the Office for
Learning. - Further clarification on roles and responsibility
is needed.
4Organization for Student Learning
- Faculty
- HKIS values all faculty and their commitment to
the learning of all students. - HKIS needs ongoing dialogue about performance
appraisal systems. - HKIS supports professional development for
faculty and recognizes achievement. - HKIS needs to establish a school-wide
professional development plan integrated with
SLRs.
5Organization for Student Learning
- Strategic Plan
- HKIS has developed a comprehensive plan for
school improvement. - HKIS needs to prioritize the initiatives underway
to ensure focus on student learning. - The school leadership team demonstrates
commitment to the management of a very complex
organization through the development of
distributed leadership. - HKIS needs to provides sufficient time for
faculty and administrative collaboration.
6Curriculum and Instruction
7Curriculum and Instruction
- Areas of Strength
- HKIS and Administration have in place
- Clearly defined SLRs
- Written standards and benchmarks R1-12
- Uniform curriculum model and design (UbD)
- Extensive in-house curriculum system
(myDragonNet) - Faculty instruction that evidences many research
based teaching practices - Wide range of formal and informal assessments
8Curriculum and Instruction
- Areas of Strength
- HKIS and Administration have commitment to
- SLRs
- Collaborative curriculum development and
refinement - Shared ownership for all students
9Curriculum and Instruction
- Areas for Follow-up
- In order to support the continuing curriculum
work, HKIS administration and faculty needs
ongoing, focused, and structured professional
collaboration that - Aligns and articulates
- SLRs with assessments
- Standards and benchmarks with a method of
tracking and reporting them - Refines
- Standards and benchmarks
- Written curriculum units
- In-house web based curriculum system
- Through annual curriculum review
- Reflects
- Professional conversations that are focused and
structured - Initiatives that are prioritized and sustained
10Support for Student Personal and Academic Growth
11Support for Student Personal and Academic Growth
- Areas of Strength
- Co-curricular and service opportunities for all
- Learning support for students
- Opportunities for Parents
- Consistent communication home
12Support for Student Personal and Academic Growth
- Areas for Follow-up
- Articulate connection between SLRs and student
learning - Gather data about student involvement in
co-curricular activities - Provide instruction and measure growth in
Spirituality, Character Development, and
Contributing to Society SLRs.
13Resource Management and Development
14Resource Management and Development
- Areas of Strength
- HKIS is financially healthy.
- HKIS has a well articulated and aggressive master
facility plan (MFP). - HKIS has planned a comprehensive strategic
initiative with regards to faculty retention and
recruitment. - HKIS has a committed and highly professional
administration, faculty, and support staff. - HKIS is committed to developing and maintaining
high quality facilities - HKIS has robust technological resources that are
capably deployed.
15Resource Management and Development
- Areas for Follow-up
- HKIS should review and align policies and
priorities for all resources, recognizing the
impact on individual, divisional, and school-wide
goals. - HKIS should consider the importance of clear
communication and strategic planning for the
critical initiatives of performance appraisals,
career structure development, and
compensation/benefits as each of these
initiatives are developed and implemented. - HKIS should continue development of a technology
plan that links decision making with a clearly
defined positive impact on student learning.
16Schoolwide Areas of StrengthSchoolwide Areas for
Follow-up
17Schoolwide Areas of Strength
- The HKIS community is to be congratulated for the
outstanding quality and accuracy of its
self-study report and its ongoing commitment to
student learning. - Areas of strength include
18Schoolwide Areas of Strength
- The new Office for Learning, together with
existing instructional leaders, provides a
school-wide focus on the needs of students and
the conditions that will enable their optimal
learning, as evidenced in the initial
improvements made. - The Board of Managers is devoting itself to the
reorganization and continued development of its
work based on agreed upon best practices in
school governance. - The Board of Managers has selected and supported
a highly capable Head of School who has helped
stabilize and guide the school in its on-going
improvement process for the past two years.
19Schoolwide Areas of Strength
- A highly-committed and talented faculty and staff
collectively provide a healthy, appropriate, and
diverse learning environment for students. - The schools improvement initiatives are designed
to enhance holistic learning opportunities for
HKIS students. - The strong emphasis on Student Learning Results
is articulated in the clearly-defined mission and
in the strategic plan.
20Schoolwide Areas of Strength
- While recognizing that more healing must take
place, HKIS is effectively addressing the
concerns articulated in the mid-term WASC report. - The Understanding by Design framework and
myDragonNet are helping to facilitate continued
commitment to curriculum development and the
requisite community-wide communication about
student learning. - Commitment to supplying outstanding resources and
facilities supports the HKIS learning environment
and mission both now and in the future.
21Schoolwide Areas for Follow-up
- Building upon the HKIS self study and its
subsequent work, and in order to continue its
focus on student learning
22Schoolwide Areas for Follow-up
- HKIS should intentionally strive to align
curriculum, programs, school-wide initiatives,
processes, resources, performance appraisal, and
personnel with the pursuit of the schools
mission, student learning results, and strategic
plan. - In considering how best to effectively manage
change and the many planned initiatives, the
Board of Managers and school leadership need to
design a process to clarify and coordinate
strategic institutional priorities over the next
several years, perhaps with the services of an
outside facilitator.
23Schoolwide Areas for Follow-up
- The Board of Managers, school leadership,
faculty, staff, and the Lutheran ChurchMissouri
Synod should continue to build trust, effective
communication, and clarity of purpose. - The HKIS community should crystallize a shared
vision (a picture of the organizations desired
state, tied to the Mission and SLRs, at specific
intervals in the future), in order to focus the
schools efforts, make the best use of resources,
and guide its priorities, allocation of
resources, and decision-making.
24Schoolwide Areas for Follow-up
- HKIS should refine and further establish
organizational design in order to clarify and
institutionalize the desired organizational
behaviors of a professional learning community,
as articulated in the strategic plan. - Particularly with the advent of the Office for
Learning, HKIS should clarify and distribute
leadership roles, responsibilities, and desired
outcomes for all parties concerned. - HKIS should continue to pursue the goal of a
unified and aligned school with two campuses and
four divisions.