In October, Winchester Public Schools Superintendent Jason van Heukelum got good news from the latest Virginia student learning growth results—including that for the 2023–24 school year, seventh-grade math students were number 1 in the state for learning growth; fourth-grade math was in the top 10, and eighth-grade math was in the top 12. All three of these grades had 100 percent of their students reached by Multi-Classroom Leader® teaching teams. And across the district, 15 teams are now reaching 100 percent of students in a subject or grade, with nine teams students’ making high growth.
In our new podcast package, hear from van Heukelum, a principal, and educators about how Opportunity Culture® teaching teams combine with a focus on small-group instruction to make a difference in student learning and school culture.
A Superintendent’s View: Go All-In with Opportunity Culture® Teams, Small-Group Teaching
Viewing Opportunity Culture® implementation as a single, cost-neutral solution for multiple issues—student outcomes and educator career paths and satisfaction—Winchester Public Schools Superintendent Jason van Heukelum discusses why the district “jumped all in” and how that’s working out, with strong learning growth results.
Becoming a Student Growth State Leader: Lessons from Winchester
In this audio piece, Winchester educators discuss some of what it took to get strong learning growth, giving much credit to small-group instruction and the Multi-Classroom Leader® teams that provide structure and support.
How Small Groups Led to Big Middle School Math Growth
For more on small-group instruction, this audio piece delves into reflections and the “how” from one middle school math educator in the Team Reach Teacher™ role. Brian Tavenner believes wholeheartedly in the power of extensive small-group instruction to improve all students’ outcomes and the difference it makes in how he works with student learning data for his class blocks of 50 students at a time, split into two rooms with Reach Associate™ support.
Here more from Tavenner in these short videos, about how small-group instruction allows him to be a more effective teacher, making it worth the additional time and effort: