Core Values and Foundations (HTH 200)

 

This class served as a crash course in the ways of HTH and the GSE.  Course activities included hands-on experiences, reading and discussion of scholarly articles, personal reflection, interviewing, and writing.  We participated in the HTH Odyssey, an introductory institute for all new HTH staff members, and attended class sessions with fellow GSE students.  The course culminated with an in-depth presentation of learning of the final paper.

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Equity, Diversity, and  Design (HTH 205)

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This course explores conceptions of equity and their implications for teaching, learning, and leading. Participants consider their own backgrounds and identities. Participants discuss and apply structural and pedagogical approaches and examine the High Tech High design principles against the backdrop of inequitable academic outcomes in American schools. Each participant generated a final product describing concrete steps taken to address the essential questions for the course, and reflecting on the intersections between one’s own identity, student diversity, and school culture

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Design and Leadership for Deeper Learning (HTH 210)

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In this course, participants deepen their understanding and skills in instructional design and leadership by connecting the theoretical underpinnings of constructivist learning with issues of design, assessment, ownership, and exhibition. Using a consultancy model along with templates for project design and assessment, participants reflected upon past and current designs and develop designs for immediate and/or future use. The final product culminated in designing a handout for a project along with an artist's statement and appendix. 

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Facilitating Adult Learning (HTH 235)
 

This course examines the multiple levers that school leaders utilize to support adult learning in their schools. Participants critically analyzed the learning system at their school sites and explored ways that school leaders can leverage the environmental architecture of these learning systems to foster the growth of their teachers. At the same time, students investigated the art of coaching, practicing strategies for one-on-one mentoring and support of teachers. The course focused on the following essential question: How can we best support adult learning in our schools through attention to the environmental architecture, as well as one-on-one coaching? Work culminated in a written reflection on a coaching conversation with a colleague, an analysis of the systems at play that support adult learning. The following artifacts also help document the reflection process: a conversation planning worksheet and a list of prep questions

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Inclusive Classrooms (HTH 225)
 

This course offers an exploration of the theory and practice behind inclusive approaches that meet the needs of diverse learners in heterogeneous classrooms. Grounded in a commitment to high standards for all students, participants engage in micro-teaching and consultancies to experiment with differentiation strategies in their own classrooms and schools. Work culminated in a case study write up of a student that would benefit from more inclusive practices

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Authentic Assessment (HTH 215)
 

When we embrace an equity perspective that recognizes the need for equitable outcomes instead of merely equitable opportunities, we realize the need for attending closely to the learning of our students. In this course, we examinedcurrent theories of learning, discuss the implications for assessment, make connections between assessment and instructional decision-making, and tease apart the differences between assessment and evaluation. For our final product, we applied concepts from the course to a Mini Action Research Report.  The report will include a literature review, an action item completed within the classroom setting, and a teacher reflection of the experience.

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Leading Innovative Schools (HTH 230)
 

This course is designed for current and emerging creators, disruptors, doers and change makers. We explored the beliefs, mindsets, tools & dispositions of creatives across industries. We applied design thinking processes & principles throughout the course to make iterative connections between theory and practice. In this course, we drew the connection between and among innovative school leadership, culture, deeper learning, and equity. The final product, #youmatter, incorporated the use of the Innovator’s Compass to tell the story of my journey: where I started, why this work is important to me, how I might begin, and who I might need to become to make my dream a reality.

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Leadership Fieldwork (HTH 400)
 

The Leadership Fieldwork courses support students’ learning as either School Leadership or Teacher Leadership residents at one of the 13 High Tech High (HTH) clinical sites. Apprenticed to a school site critical friend director or teacher leader, students have the opportunity to shadow and observe the various skills and dispositions needed for effective leadership, from cultivating shared vision and purpose to observing and coaching teachers for deeper learning and equity. Students explore what it means to be an effective leader and analyze the intersection of theory and practice in their school setting. In particular, students examine how effective school leaders keep student learning and issues of equity at the center of their work. With the support of their school site critical friend and GSE fieldwork advisor, students observe and practice leadership activities connected to the California Professional Standards for Educational Leaders (CPSEL) and then document reflections of their learning. The reflections must be grounded in both theory and practice and demonstrate the student’s ability to elicit feedback and reflect on their development as leaders. The following are selected fieldworks that highlight my various leadership moves I have made this year:

• Developing a project within a culturally relevant curriculum

• Designing a lesson/Professional Development session on People First Language

• Intervention to create a more inclusive classroom

• Designing structures to cultivate an authentic culture of revision