For me, the most significant advantage the Cornerstone Project offers to the development of student excellence is the demystifying of best practices for students and teachers while focusing on literacy instruction. I was pleased to observe the proof of my beliefs during my recent visit to the schools of the Town Hamlets District in suburban London, England. Being able to see Cornerstone in action in more than one setting truly solidified my respect and enthusiasm for the program and what its implementation in our Stamford schools can mean for the development of our students. The universality of student/classroom culture as managed by the Cornerstone program shrinks geography as it knits global intellectual cooperation and synergy....Is this (Cornerstone) one small step for education and one large step for Imagination!?! As you walk through the halls of schools in the Tower Hamlets District, you are keenly aware of the standards and objectives that the teachers and students are working on. That is because everywhere you look the standards and the intentions are posted. The learning intentions are on the bulletin boards, in the lesson plans, on the daily schedule and in the student notebooks. But even more importantly, the intentions are in the minds of the students. As an observer stopping to ask a student "What are you working on?", never was there a response of "I don't know." Students were able to state the learning intentions as well as where they were personally in their attainment of reaching the desired outcome. I believe this is one of the key elements to the success in the Tower Hamlets District. Too often teachers keep the truth from students about their academic successes and shortcomings. Yet, those same teachers are frustrated when students continue to make the same academic mistakes. The question is why? As it is said, when you know better, you do better. If students are not tuned in to how they are doing, then how can teachers expect students to know what to change to become successful? The teachers in Tower Hamlets have honest discussions with students about their current attainment levels and reinforce the need for higher achievement every day. In addition to dialoging with students, teachers provide exemplars for students to use while they are completing their work. There are no secrets. The students know what goal looks like and they know what they need to do to change their work into goal work. The students in Tower Hamlets are no different than the students in Stamford, Connecticut. What they are capable of producing I know students in Stamford are capable of producing. We as teachers just need to continue the work that we have started with Cornerstone while focusing in on removing "the black box" from our school culture. |
