IN Brentwood-Baldwin-Whitehall Winter 2017

Brentwood Borough School District Continued Curriculum compacting is a technique for differentiating instruction that allows teachers to make adjustments to the curriculum for students who have already demonstrated mastery of material, replacing mastered content with new more challenging content and activities designed to promote a deeper understanding and practical application of that content. Academic acceleration is a research-based intervention that moves high-ability students through an educational program at a rate faster than their typical age peers. Acceleration allows students to be presented with new material rather than re-studying material they have already learned. Acceleration is the best-researched yet most under-utilized educational option available for gifted students. There are many different programming options for gifted learners and the “One Size Fits All” approach is not appropriate. All of these options have a place in good gifted programming, but the same program does not work for every student. Individual differences merit educational flexibility and school districts will continue to have to make tough decisions about the programs they offer. The regulations require “Quality” programming for gifted students and districts will have to turn to the literature and research to determine which options will provide the highest educational impact for students. 52 Brentwood-Baldwin-Whitehall “It takes a village to raise a child” is a popular proverb that suggests that a whole community has a vital role to play in the development of its young people. Thirty years of research confirms that parental involvement is a powerful influence on student achievement in school. When parents are involved in the education of their children, those students earn higher grades and receive higher scores on tests, attend school more regularly, complete more homework, have more positive attitudes and behavior, graduate high school at higher rates and are more likely to enroll in higher education than students with less involved families. For these reasons, increasing family involvement in the education of their children is an important goal for schools. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) aims for all children to achieve academic proficiency and gain the educational skills necessary to succeed later in life. This law also mandates that parents are informed on how they can be involved in their children’s schools and in school improvement efforts. The research is clear, consistent, and convincing—parent, family, and community involvement in education correlates with higher academic performance and school improvement. Positive effects are seen at both the elementary and secondary levels. Parental, family, and community involvement is considered to be one of the hallmarks of high-performing schools. Brentwood School District has extended invitations to several community agencies and programs to participate in a round table discussion to develop strategies and programs to increase the involvement of the families of our English Language Learners. Our student body has grown more culturally diverse and students representing many different countries and cultures work, learn, and play in our schools, yet the district has been largely unsuccessful at involving their parents and families in our school community. The district is working to change that. Our schools are seen as the heart of our community, and as such, we have the obligation to make sure all community members feel welcomed and valued. It is the goal of this work group to build a successful outreach program for our immigrant families by the end of the 17/18 school year. Feasibility Study The Brentwood Borough School District worked with HHSDR Architects/ Engineering during the 2016-17 and 2017-2018 school years to conduct a district-wide feasibility study. This long-range planning tool addresses building capacity, utilization, condition, energy efficiency, operating costs, safety and security, and learning environment responsiveness. It was an important time to conduct such a study as the Brentwood buildings are getting older, the District’s maintenance list is getting longer, and 21st Century Classrooms are vital in this day and age of advanced technology. Stakeholder meetings will be held to share the information gathered. No final decisions will be made until the community, parents, families, students, professional staff, support staff, administrators, and Board of School Directors have an opportunity to review the results and provide feedback.

IN Brentwood-Baldwin-Whitehall Winter 2017 | Page 54