7-4. Sample Action Plans
ACTION PLAN #1
Philosophy of Respect
RECOMMENDATION:
The school staff, in consultation with the community, develop a local philosophical statement of respect, based on a student-centered environment, which will be used in the school.
RESPONSIBILITY OF: Principal & Committee Chair
SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES FOR CARRYING OUT THE ACTION
RESPONSIBLE
TIME
OUTPUT
1 Write out a philosophical statement on respect. Involve:
- Staff
- Students
- Parents
- Elders
- Others?
Committee Chair
- People consulted?
- Statement written?
2 Research from other sources:
- Local band
- Tribal Council
- Other Native schools:
(list them):
Tom
- Samples received?
- Samples studied
and changed to be
be applicable here?
- Input from local
community?
3 Important everyone buy into the philosophical statement.
- Discuss with all groups who will be impacted by the statement:
- Students
- Parents
- Teachers & Staff
- Community
Principal
Has everyone been consulted?
- Any changes?
- Have these changes been shared with everyone?
- Have concerns been dealt with?
4 Distribute "final" philosophical statement to everyone who should receive it.
Plan for a review of the philosophical statement.
Sally
- Sent/delivered to:
- students
- parents
- teachers
- other staff
- community
STATUS/COMMENTS:
ACTION PLAN #2
Local Value System
RECOMMENDATION:
The school staff, by consulting the community and elders, develop a list of important community values which will direct everyone's actions within the school environment.
RESPONSIBILITY OF: Principal & Committee Chair
SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES FOR CARRYING OUT THE ACTION
RESPONSIBLE
TIME
OUTPUT
1 Research the local value system. Involve:
- staff
- students
- parents
- elders
- others?
- Local values gathered?
- Healthy vs. dysfunctional issues addressed?
2 How are these local values instilled in people? Consult elders.
3. Which of these values is the school system allowed to teach? Consult elders.
- Have elders agreed as to which ones are allowed in the school system?
4. Develop strategies which will encourage the use of these important values within the school system.
Note: The strategies used must honor the way these values have been taught/learned in the past.
- Strategies developed?
- Strategies respect the way the values were taught/ learned in the past?
5 Using the values as a basis, create a list of principles to live, and die, by.
The list should state: As an educator:
- I believe,
- Across from each "I believe" write an "I must" which turns thoughts into actions
- An "I believe" list is created, based on the value system?
- Each belief is supported by action statements?
- These statements are practiced by all staff?
STATUS/COMMENTS:
ACTION PLAN #3
Create A Safe, Caring, Sharing, Cooperating
School Environment
RECOMMENDATION:
The school staff, and community, will create a safe, caring, sharing, and cooperating school environment for the students.
RESPONSIBILITY OF:
SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES FOR CARRYING OUT THE ACTION
RESPONSIBLE
TIME
OUTPUT
1 What constitutes a safe environment?
- Students don't hurt others
- Teachers don't hurt students
- Other ideas?
- Articles on safe schools gathered and analyzed?
- Plans developed on creating a safe school?
2 How is a safe environment created?
- Teach safety
- Discuss feelings about how one feels when they are being hurt and how can it be avoided
- Develop a system where safety is a cornerstone of the school culture and have students practice the system
- Other ideas?
- Activities developed where students could help create safe environments?
- Expectations created and practiced by all?
- Changes to system also made and taught?
3 What constitutes a "caring" school environment in this community? Ideas may include:
- Students are warmly greeted when they come to school (even if they come late)
- When a student is hurt, the teacher takes time to comfort the student, or allow others to comfort
- Respect for the feelings of others is always foremost
- Create situations where students have the opportunity to show they care
- Other ideas?
- Community input on what a "caring" environment means to this community?
- Strategies developed & implemented showing the school system cares?
- Strategies developed & implemented showing the students care?
SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES FOR CARRYING OUT THE ACTION
RESPONSIBLE
TIME
OUTPUT
4 Native people in this community believe strongly in the value of generosity {sharing}. Ways it is demonstrated include:
- Sharing food
- Touching/listening to someone when they are hurting
- Sharing time/playing with students
- Sharing material things
- Helping when not asked but when they see an opportunity
- Creating a classroom environment which encourages helping others, which in turns helps oneself
- Other ideas?
- Has the ways the local Native people show generosity been used to develop the concept of generosity?
- Strategies developed and implemented?
- Are there strategies within each classroom that allows students to demonstrate sharing?
5 What would a cooperating school environment look like? It would look like an empowered school:
- inclusive
- consensus
- self-aware/self-assessing
- safe place
- Personal disarmament = willing to transform/change
- Fight with dignity
- Everyone is a leader, at different times
- Spirit of peace
- Community input is valued
- committed to students
- Realistic = humility
- Are the teachers, principal, students, and community working to create an empowered school?
6 Some other specific strategies:
- Teach students how to recognize how conflicts start on the playground and have monitors who stop fights before they start
- Focus on those students who usually "behave" and develop strategies around their behaviors
- Has the staff, and community designed projects that allow students to develop leadership skills?
STATUS/COMMENTS:
ACTION PLAN #4
Student Empowerment
RECOMMENDATION:
The school staff develop an environment where the rights, freedoms, and responsibilities of students are cornerstones of all interactions.
RESPONSIBILITY OF:
SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES FOR CARRYING OUT THE ACTION
RESPONSIBLE
TIME
OUTPUT
1 Students need to be empowered as a group:
- Patterns
- each group has a task
- create a positive approach
where each group is looking
for solutions
- Intervene in group behavior
- focus on group dynamics,
not individuals
- Create symbols that are important:
- Silence, Songs, Stories, Art,
Dreams, Humanity, Etc.
- Is the school creating experiences where students could experience empowerment as a group?
- Is the school ensuring the empowerment is done in a positive way?
2 Students need to be empowered as individuals:
- Teach a word {ie. Unity}
- Create a conceptual framework for that word
- Allow that concept to become a reality in the student's world
- Important words include:
- Due process
- Belonging
- Dignity vs. Pride
- Caring/Sharing
- Unity
- Rights & Responsibilities
- Security
- Honor
- Chance/Risk Taking
- Emptiness
- Vulnerability
- Integrity {is never painless}
- Ask "What is missing?"
- Is the school creating situations/ experiences where students experience self-growth as individuals?
- Are the needs of individual students being recognized, and situations structured for those individuals?
- Are important concepts being developed along age-ability lines?
STATUS/COMMENTS:
ACTION PLAN #5
Creating a Student-Centered Environment
RECOMMENDATION:
The school staff, in partnership with the community, create a student-centered environment.
RESPONSIBILITY OF:
SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES FOR CARRYING OUT THE ACTION
RESPONSIBLE
TIME
OUTPUT
1 The creation of a student- centered environment requires the development of a respect policy:
- What would a Respect Policy look like, from a Native perspective?
- Philosophy
- Mission Statement
- Goals/Objectives
- How To...
- Etc.
- Does the Respect Policy reflect a student-centered approach?
- Were Natives consulted?
- Do the local Native people support the Respect Policy?
2. A student-centered environment needs to address issues such as:
- Rights, Freedoms & Responsibilities
- Local Values
- Peer Pressure
- Self-Awareness/Control/Hope
- "Fringe" and Beyond Students
- Role Models
- Field-trips
- Extra-curricular Activities
- Consultation
- Commitment
- Symbolism
- Native Culture
- Etc.
- Are these issues addressed in such a fashion that one can honestly say it is in the "best interest of the student"? {not the teacher}
- Are there adequate workshops and/or courses available?
3. Teachers, and administrators, will need training in how to:
- Recognize a student-centered environment
- Shift to a student- centered environment
- Strategies
- Appropriate inservice planned and implemented?
- Time for practicing of new skills/attitudes/etc?
STATUS/COMMENTS:
ACTION PLAN #6
Strategies for Teachers
RECOMMENDATION:
Teachers design appropriate in-service to assist in implementing new skills, etc.
RESPONSIBILITY OF:
SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES FOR CARRYING OUT THE ACTION
RESPONSIBLE
TIME
OUTPUT
1. To deal effectively with students, from a respect perspective, teachers may need additional training in some/all of the following strategies:
- What does a Student-Centered Environment Look Like?
- 5 Basic Premises about Behavior
- 4 Goals of Misbehavior
- What Respect Means {from a Native Perspective}
- Combining the Two Worlds
- How To Teach Students to Make Positive Choices
- Logical Consequences
- How To Use Circle Talks Effectively
- Conflict Resolution
- Negotiating
- Criteria Referencing
- Negative Peer Pressure
- Modeling
- Effective Classroom Meetings
- Monitoring Disrespectful Behavior
- Effective Use of Time Outs
- Confronting Students in Front of Peers
- Consistency
- Other Strategies
- Have the teachers, principal, and community designed an appropriate inservice package?
- Are appropriate instructors contacted?
- Are there enough funds available?
- What plans are made for new teachers coming into the school?
2 In order for new skills or attitudes to be effective, teachers will need:
- Time to practice
- Time to consult with others
- Is there time in the teacher's day to practice what she/he has learned?
STATUS/COMMENTS:
ACTION PLAN #7
School-wide Planning & Monitoring
RECOMMENDATION:
The school staff ensure there is adequate planning, and monitoring, so the changes to a Respect Policy that focuses on a student-centered environment will be successful.
RESPONSIBILITY OF:
SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES FOR CARRYING OUT THE ACTION
RESPONSIBLE
TIME
OUTPUT
1 Each staff meeting has a component dedicated to updating the Action Plans
- Is there specific times when Action Plans are addressed?
2 Subcommittees are struck to address various issues identified by the school and community.
- Subcommittees struck, and working?
3 Teachers learn how to do Peer Coaching in order to apply the new skills and attitudes learned at the workshops.
- Peer Coaching Workshop and follow-up>
4 Community and students are involved in shaping the Respect Policy and Student-centered environment. The community must be kept aware, and involved, in the whole process.
5 On-going evaluation be done in order to ensure everyone, and everything, is "going in the right direction".
6 Strategies need to be developed for those educators who do not "buy into the process".
- What is happening to those educators who are not involved?
7 Time needs to be set aside to celebrate successes along the way!
- Are we celebrating our successes?
STATUS/COMMENTS: