May the Standards be Ever in Your Favor

Allyson Wilson
Staff Writer 
  Bonneville Joint School District #93 promises to design success for every student. This promise requires structured collaboration between teacher teams across the district. While there is not a district-wide guaranteed and viable curriculum yet, teacher teams are hard at work within their PLCs. A PLC, also known as professional learning community, consists of a group of educators that regularly meet to work collaboratively to improve teaching skills, discuss student performance, etc. Each Monday throughout the year, teachers from similar grade levels and content areas meet to discuss essential standards, learning targets, interventions and extensions, and more. Roughly halfway through the year, superintendent Dr. Scott Woolstenhulme and the district office host the annual district-wide PLC meeting. This meeting took place on April 29, 2024 between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m at Thunder Ridge High School. During the meeting, teachers from BHS, HHS, TRHS, LHS, TCHS, and BOHS gathered to determine what is essential for students across D93. The Bonneville Buzz interviewed a few teachers regarding their experiences and interactions within the meeting.
  Catherine Joyner, a BHS math teacher, was in the Algebra II group with teachers from each D93 high school. During the meeting, they reviewed “what [they] deemed was essential to make sure all the schools were on the same page.” Additionally, Joyner’s team covered what can lead all students to success and prepare them to leave high school with what they need to know. When Joyner was asked how effective the meeting was, she answered, “In the time we had, it was good.” Joyner further explained that if there was more time to discuss essential standards, the district meetings would be more effective. To ensure a student is ready to move on to the next course, Joyner’s team identified 30 essential standards for the students to master by the end of the year. Even though PLC meetings are usually productive, Joyner mentioned they may contain conflict, such as teachers disagreeing on the “right” way to teach a standard. Joyner believes when trying to determine what is essential many teachers need to remember “it's not personal” when choosing what is best for students.
 Although many departments at BHS are still “PLC-lite,” dedicated teachers can still make minor to major improvements for the students. Michelle Johnson, a SPED and practical English teacher,When talking about how the schools all got on the same page, Johnson reports, “I think we got there by the end of the meeting, I don't think we started there.” While some teachers  showed up prepared for the meeting,some seemed underprepared or unsure how to proceed. All schools teach differently, but all material is taught.   Students across the district have the right to an education that best prepares them for life after high school. Although each school has plenty of room to grow, there are pushes for considerable change within the district office, schools, and classrooms across D93. Devoted teachers are making a difference one student at a time, and changes are being made one step at a time. Years to come hope to bring about a more collaborative district devoted to student success.