Welcome to the ACCESS Newsletter
Happy October! We hope everyone is having a safe and smooth opening to the school year. The focus of this month’s newsletter is motivation. Why are students (and adults too) motivated to work hard and learn? This question is important because motivation is the ‘linchpin’ of student learning. Therefore, nurturing motivation where it doesn’t seem to exist becomes part of our responsibility as educators. Read, learn, and reflect on motivation in this newsletter.

We also want to call your attention to the Spotlight section of the newsletter. Each month’s newsletter will spotlight educators who inspire, motivate, and empower others.  For this month, we want to send a huge shout-out to Renee Jerns, Bradley Layfield, Carole Leveillee and Justin Comegys. Learn more about these awesome and motivating leaders below. If you would like to nominate an educator to be recognized in the spotlight section, please email [email protected].

As the Greek philosopher Heraclitus once said, "The only constant is change." Autumn reminds us that our bodies, minds, and surroundings are always developing. It focuses on the impermanence of life, emphasizing how vital it is to embrace the present. As you embrace the work that lies ahead of you this month, may you stay motivated and empowered in the moment and find the beauty and worth in each student and in each other. Thank you, again, for all you do to support Delaware education.
Dr. Renee Jerns, Director of Secondary Education
Indian River School District

Shout out to Dr. Jerns for her constant support and encouragement of principals as they learn how to implement the new evaluation system. Dr. Jerns is always willing to ‘go the extra mile’ to bring everyone together and to ensure everyone knows the what, the why, and the how.
Dr. Bradley Layfield, Principal Sussex Central High School
Indian River School District
 
Shout out to Dr. Layfield for his perseverance and diligence in learning and implementing the new evaluation system. Dr. Layfield is always willing to ‘jump right in’ to offer support and encouragement to all. A powerful role model, Dr. Layfield, possesses the qualities of great leadership. 
Carol Leveillee, Principal, Frederick Douglas Elementary School
Seaford School District
 
Shout out to Mrs. Leveillee for her constant positive attitude. As a leader who embodies a growth mindset, Mrs. Leveillee uses her energy to uplift others. She embraces her role as an instructional leader committed to her staff and students.  Carol's constant smile inspires everyone.
Justin Comegys, Assistant Principal, Delcastle
New Castle County Vocational Technical School District
 
Shout out to Mr. Comegys for his commitment to connect will all of his students and to support all of them as they work to develop their skills and secure jobs. Justin's commitment to learning the new evaluation system highlights his belief that high-quality feedback and support is the foundation for increasing student outcomes for each and every student.  
Motivation
As educators, we are significant figures in children’s lives and the motivation they form to be learners. Because we are so powerfully positioned to influence motivation, we are responsible for engaging students in this task. Influencing student’s motivation to learn happens in complicated ways, but in ways that we can see in behavior that is understandable. How can we do this? We can do this by building relationships, communicating beliefs, building confidence in students, and constructing classroom climates of community, psychological safety, and ownership.  
“Long after leaving school, students remember fondly and in graphic detail those teachers who cared and painfully those who did not. They may not recall the content these teachers taught, but their human impact is indelibly imprinted in their minds.”
(Gay, 2000, p. 49)
The Knowledge Base of Teaching
The new evaluation system, the Delaware Teacher Growth and Support System (DTGSS), is founded on the Skillful Teacher Framework. The elements of the framework are grouped into four functions – Curriculum, Motivation, Instructional Strategies, and Management. Each of these functions are associated with areas of performance. These areas of performance are alive and well in the Delaware Teacher Observation (DTC) Framework. 
Where does MOTIVATION show up in The Delaware Teacher Classroom Observation Framework?
Personal Relationship Building
1.1, 1.2, 1.3

Classroom Climate
1.2, 1.3

Expectations
1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 3.1, 3.3
Motivation Resources
This document lists the ways teachers and schools act when they want all the students to believe in themselves and act from that belief. It is divided into verbal behaviors, classroom mechanisms, focused instructional strategies, direct teaching of effective effort, district policies, and key-ways to connect students to families and community.


This PowerPoint presentation - developed by Jon Saphier - focuses on high-expectations teaching work.


Effective and engaging teachers thoughtfully plan and deliver their lessons. Unfortunately, sometimes a teacher comes to the realization (usually after administering a formative assessment) that the students, in fact, did not master what was intended. Learn what you can do about it in this article by Nancy Love, RBT Director of Products and Programs and author of The Data Coach's Guide to Improving Learning for All Students, and Mary Ann Haley-Speca, Senior RBT Consultant and co-author of The Skillful Teacher.


The motivational structures in place in Mr. VanKrey's Japanese class support and accelerate students' desire to learn effective effort strategies. These structures include weekly quizzes, student self-correction and record keeping of their results, self-reporting and self-assessment of study strategies, goal setting, and plans of action.
Educator Resources
  • ACCESS eNewsletter: Read Delaware’s monthly eNewsletter focused on school staff evaluations. View previous issues here. 

  • DTGSS Schoology group: Get DTGSS information specific to teachers and administrators. Find downloadable resources, including training and overview materials. For access, enter Schoology code: X8WB-ZKQJ-M585J or email [email protected]