InspirEDSpring 2019British ColumbiaSchool SuperintendentsAssociationCELEBRATING OVER 100 YEARS!The official journal of the British Columbia School Superintendents AssociationBritish Columbia School Superintendents Association 5CONTENTSPublished For: The British Columbia School Superintendents Association #208 - 1118 Homer Street Vancouver, B.C. V6B 6L5 Phone: (604) 687-0590 Fax: (604) 687-8118 cguy@bcssa.org www.bcssa.orgPublished By: Matrix Group Publishing Inc. 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Printed in Canada. 7 A Message from the BCSSA President 9 A Message from the Deputy Minister of Education11 A Message from the BCSSA Executive Director12 A Personal Story About Equity14 Starting with the Truth, Cultivating the Seeds of Reconciliation and Transformation18 Balancing Our Actions: Adaptive School Leaders in Indigenous Education23 The Kootenay-Boundary Environmental Education Initiative: Building the Framework, Setting Goals, Planning for Action28 CR4YC: Changing Results for Young Children 31 Deeper Learning Dozen Works to Build Creativity and Connectedness 35 Re-energized Learning: How New Schools are Bringing New Ideas to School District 60 (SD60) 38 Index to AdvertisersGREETINGSFEATURESBritish Columbia School Superintendents Association 7The British Columbia School Superintendent’s Association (BCSSA) is proud to be celebrating more than 100 years of educational leadership. The learning journey in B.C. has taken us on a path that has helped our province emerge as a leading jurisdiction in innovative educational practice and transformation. We are honoured to be part of an inspired group of partners (Board of Education Trustees, principals and vice-principals, teachers, support staff, First Nations, Ministry of Education staff, parents and many others) who have worked together to co-construct systemic and ongoing change. In May 2019, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) will be coming to Vancouver, British Columbia to help tell the B.C. story to the world, and we look forward to welcoming our global partners to highlight and share our journey.The BCSSA engages with the broader educational partners through our membership and through our Board of Directors. Please see the accompanying list to learn who makes up our current Board of Directors. I would like to take this opportunity, on behalf of the entire BCSSA membership, to express our gratitude to the current Board of Directors and all those who came before them for volunteering their time and service over and above their regular leadership duties. Likewise, I would like to express our thanks to the many BCSSA members who have donated their time to lend the voice of our association to several provincial and local committees and initiatives. We are fortunate to have such dedicated and committed leaders. The BCSSA looks forward to the next 100 years of leading learning and providing opportunities for students to shape and lead the world ahead of them.Chris van der MarkPresident, British Columbia School Superintendents AssociationSuperintendent, Cariboo-Chilcotin School District 27 Summer 2019 (Members Only) August 14-16, 2019 Delta Grand KelownaFall 2019 November 21-22, 2019 Westin Bayshore VancouverSpring 2020 April 17, 2020 Westin Bayshore VancouverSummer 2020 (Members Only) August 19-21, 2020 Fairmont Chateau WhistlerFall 2020 November 5-6, 2020 Westin Bayshore VancouverEvent dates for the next several years are already available online. Visit www.bcssa.org for details.A Message from the BCSSA PresidentThe learning journey in B.C. has taken us on a path that has helped our province emerge as a leading jurisdiction in innovative educational practice and transformation. Chris van der MarkPresident, British Columbia School Superintendents AssociationSuperintendent, Cariboo-Chilcotin School District 27President Chris van der MarkVice-President Alison SidowPast President Tom LongridgeTreasurer Kevin KaardalSecretary Lisa McCulloughExecutive Director Claire GuyProfessional Development Chair Wanda MitchellMember Services Chair Reno CiolfiTHE BCSSA BOARD OF DIRECTORSFraser Valley Kevin Godden Kootenay-Boundary Terry TaylorLower Mainland Jordan TinneyNorthern Dave SloanThompson-Okanagan Wendy HyerVancouver Island Rod AllenCHAPTER DIRECTORSJOIN BCSSA AT THESE UPCOMING EVENTSBritish Columbia School Superintendents Association 9A Message from the Deputy Minister of EducationIt is my great pleasure to provide greetings to the British Columbia School Superintendents Association’s (BCSSA) inaugural issue of InspirED. This is a fantastic initiative on the part of the BCSSA and I am honoured to be given the opportunity to outline the Ministry’s vision for student success within this first issue.Please also let me provide formal congratulations for your association’s 100-year anniversary! It is incredible to think that with all of the advancements and changes in education made over the last 100 years that the actual delivery of education as a provincial service remains relatively stable. District administrators, including superintendents, assistant superintendents, directors of instruction and other senior district executives, are integral to providing the visionary leadership that makes our education system world-class. You provide leadership and integrity as well as passion and courage in times of change as exemplified by your efforts to support an ambitious agenda in the K-12 system through re-designed curriculum, new assessments and clear reporting to students and parents. I know from my experience and in talking with many of you that the work you do each day is grounded in your passion for improving student outcomes. I share the same goal, as does the Minister and our entire Ministry team, and we are all committed to continue to work closely to achieve this important and mutual objective.We know that B.C. students continue to perform among the best in the world. While our results are encouraging, we will not be complacent. To aid in this challenge, the Ministry has developed the Policy for Student Success after several rounds of consultations and input from key education partners, including the BCSSA. It is our shared roadmap to enable every learner in this province to maximize their potential and become educated citizens who thrive in a changing world.As part of this shared roadmap, Ministry priorities, projects and programs have all been aligned under the umbrella of the Policy for Student Success. For example, we believe that all students deserve the best educational experience possible and access to the same services and supports—no matter where they live—which is why we are embarking on a journey to look at building a new funding model that will help reduce inequities, eliminate administrative burden and better support success for students. Government is committed to meaningful reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, including implementing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action. We know that education can play a key role in reducing barriers and increasing equity, which is why we recently announced the BC Tripartite Education Agreement: Supporting First Nation Student Success (BCTEA). This one of a kind agreement in Canada ensures equitable education for B.C. First Nations students, whether they choose First Nations, public or independent schools. We recognize the years of hard work and collaboration undertaken by many of you that went into building the Framework for Enhancing Student Learning, which focuses on outcome-based performance measures and ensuring school districts are taking an in-depth look at how students are doing with intellectual, human and social, and career development. The Framework really sharpens the focus on how to ensure all students are successful, including Indigenous learners, children in care, and students with diverse learning needs. I am a big advocate of using evidence-based decisions to improve outcomes for students and the Ministry is well positioned to support districts in this endeavour. You can access and utilize education data through the Ministry’s SharePoint site and the Ministry’s Education and Analytics team holds frequent online SharePoint Info Sessions to walk through new reports and access information about your students. Ministry Education and Analytics experts are able to work with districts to support the use of data to make evidence-based decisions to improve student outcomes. I encourage anyone interested to take advantage of this offer by contacting EDUC.ReportingUnit@gov.bc.ca.British Columbia has a great education system, and we have the opportunity to make it even better. I look forward to working with all of you beneath the umbrella of the Policy for Student Success as we strive to enable every learner in the province to maximize their potential in this rapidly changing world.District administrators, including superintendents, assistant superintendents, directors of instruction and other senior district executives, are integral to providing the visionary leadership that makes our education system world-class.Scott MacDonald Deputy Minister British Columbia Ministry of EducationNext >