Monthly Visit Protocol
Introduction
The Monthly Visit Protocol for Principals Pursuing Excellence (PPE) offers a framework to conduct the required monthly onsite visits between Mentors and Mentees and to capture their collaborative conversation.
The purpose of the Monthly Visit over the course of the year is to examine the extent of implementation of the levers of data-driven instruction and inquiry, student culture, and staff culture, systems that when implemented help establish the conditions for effective teaching and learning. As outlined in the PPE Theory of Action, if the conditions for effective teaching and learning are established, then teachers will have the opportunity to improve instructional practice. If teachers improve instructional practice, then student learning will increase.
Supporting Tools
o 90-day Plan: To be used by Mentees as the primary working tool to guide strategic planning for school improvement.
o Implementation Rubric (IR): Mentees, with the support of Mentor and Turnaround Leader, use the IR, 90-day Plan, and school-level data to determine areas of focus for monthly visits, benchmark progress toward exemplary implementation, determine plusses and deltas on the Reflective Guide, and select actions for the 90-day Plan.
o Reflective Guide: To be completed each month by the Mentor and Mentee during the Monthly Visit.
Process
Before each visit Mentor and Mentee determine areas of focus for the visit by considering current school conditions and 90-day Plan goals. Mentor and Mentee set a working agenda (see samples below) to structure at least two to three hours onsite at the Mentee’s school, which may include a walkthrough, classroom pop-ins, co-observations, PLCs, data analysis, coaching conversation, etc. to meet the unique needs of the Mentee and his/her school.
Sample working agenda A
:00-:10 Greet and go over agenda for day
:10-1:10 Walk-through/pop-ins focusing on student and staff culture rubric
1:10-1:45 Sit in on 4th grade collaborative planning time focusing on data analysis rubric
1:45-3:00 Debrief visit, coaching conversation, fill out reflective guide
Sample working agenda B
:00-:10 Greet and go over agenda for day
:10-:40 Walk-through focusing on student culture rubric rows and differentiated instruction (teachers recently had PD on this)
:40-1:45 Co-observe classrooms A, B, and C for 15-20 minutes each, plus time for transitions
1:45-3:00 Debrief visit, coaching conversation, fill out reflective guide
On the day of the visit the Mentor and Mentee proceed with the working, or a modified, agenda for the visit.
During the last portion of the visit, the Mentor and Mentee partner to complete the Reflective Guide. The guide contains questions to be considered in conjunction with the IR, in order to identify one to two plusses and one to two deltas for data-driven instruction, student culture, and staff culture. Plusses and deltas must be supported by evidence, defensible, and reliable in that others would make the same finding from the same evidence. The Mentor operates as a thought partner for the Mentee, spanning the Coaching Continuum over the course of the year trying as much as possible to remain in a less-directive coaching stance as the Mentee builds the capacity to complete this reflective process independently.
Finally, the Mentee and Mentor consider, in light of evidence from the visit and their conclusions about plusses and deltas, what changes or tweaks (if any) need to be made to the 90-day Plan. They should consider what supports the Mentee requires from the Mentor, Turnaround Leader, and/or the district leadership team to accomplish the 90-day Plan.
After the visit, the Mentor submits the signed Reflective Guide electronically to the Turnaround Leader and Hannah Peria () within 1 week of the visit. Turnaround Leaders and Priority Schools Bureau (PSB) staff, in their monthly check-ins, consider data and trends across PPE schools to determine strategic responses for individuals and groups of Mentees. Mentors join these check-ins three times a year.
Expectations:
The Monthly Visit is evidence-based and designed to promote learning and improvement. Clear communication is essential to the process. Mentors, and any additional visitors, are objective and minimize disruption to teaching and learning.
Expectations for Mentee:
· Explain the purpose and process of PPE, including Monthly Visits, to all staff.
· Before the visit, partner with Mentor to set a working agenda for the visit.
· Maintain good communication with the Mentor.
· Complete the Reflective Guide frankly, providing additional evidence as necessary, in order to determine the highest-leverage next steps possible.
Expectations for Mentor:
· Exhibit the highest professional standards.
· Maintain good channels of communication with the Turnaround Leader and Mentee.
· Bring a hard copy of the Implementation Rubric (IR) and keep evidence-based notes from walkthrough, observations, conversations, etc.
· Employ the appropriate level of directiveness in completing the Reflective Guide along the Coaching Continuum throughout the year, based on Mentee reflective ability.
· Complete and submit Reflective Guide electronically to Turnaround Leader and PSB within 1 week of the visit.
Expectations for Turnaround Leader/PSB staff:
· Review Reflective Guides prior to monthly check-in between Turnaround Leaders and PSB.
· Follow up with Mentor or Mentee, if clarification is needed.
· Synthesize trends across schools and districts regarding plusses and deltas.
· Consider strategic responses to individual Mentees and groups of Mentees.
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