School Priorities: Raise the Bar and Close the Gap

If you ask Head of School Marilyn Wallace what’s new and exciting this year on the School campus, hold on to your hat! Mrs. Wallace is full of enthusiasm for the renovation project, the new high ropes course, student trips, character education initiatives, and most of all, for plans to empower faculty members and “elevate teaching and learning to an even higher level.”

Over the past few years, Mrs. Wallace, School administrators, and small groups of teachers have attended conferences to learn more about how to implement Differentiated Instruction (DI) and the Understanding by Design (UbD) curriculum model. This past summer, they took it one step further. Ten teachers representing Early Childhood, Lower, Middle, and Upper School, as well as directors Merrill Boudreaux, Alyssa Henn, Mike Moyle, and Jane Reider, attended a week-long workshop entitled “Differentiated Instruction: Theory into Practice.”

The ten teachers constitute the new Faculty Leadership Team charged with forwarding school-wide teaching goals, helping to foster a Professional Learning Community, and serving as teaching resources for their colleagues. The team met several times over the summer to plan faculty in-service meetings and discuss ways to mentor and support their colleagues as DI is implemented school-wide.

Upper School English teacher Jodi Fielding commented, “Our team’s ability to think about the DI training through the lens of our unique setting at Principia made the week an incredible experience. I was touched by the selfless, clear thinking this group expressed and the spirit with which they have moved forward to share with our colleagues on campus.”

Another team member, Middle School math teacher Mike McMullin shared, “I think Principia education is moving in the right direction with DI. Even though it will take time and effort, every step forward will be worth it!”

A new term for a proven teaching method, differentiated instruction simply means using whatever tools and strategies are necessary to ensure that every student learns. It does not imply lower standards for some but rather raises the standards for all by working with each pupil in the way he or she learns best until understanding is achieved. The School’s commitment to this goal is already clear in the work of the Faculty Leadership Team and in Mrs. Wallace’s own words: “We are going to raise the bar of excellence for all and close the achievement gap where it exists. We are going to do whatever it takes to reach every student.”