3. SELECT

SELECTING A FOCUS AREA

Like money, time can be invested, spent, or saved. Also, the way teachers’ time is allocated and used is indicative of priorities. As you move toward identifying an area on which to focus improvement efforts, consider what the analyses in earlier sections of this toolkit indicate about how teachers’ time is currently allocated and used. Consider the following:

  • Did the analysis reveal that time is allocated and used in alignment with your school or district priorities? 
  • Is teacher time being invested in ways that advance student learning, or spent inefficiently in areas with little or no impact on student outcomes? 
  • Where are there opportunities to save time so that it can be invested wisely?

Now that your team has analyzed SCTWCS data along with some additional resources via processes in the previous section of this toolkit, it is time to identify a focus area for your team’s working condition improvement efforts. Complete Worksheet 6 by revisiting discussions and information gathered earlier in this toolkit.

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Worksheet 6: Selecting a Focus Area

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Item of greatest strength and item of greatest opportunity for growth
Two items identified for possible elimination or consolidation and their connection to an SCTWCS condition or item
One identified priority that emerged from a time analysis

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As you work to identify an area on which to focus improvement efforts, we encourage your team to start small. Small wins help build momentum and allow for sustained effort over time. Keep in mind the more focused your improvement efforts are, the more quickly you are likely to see results.

We also invite you to consider a range of factors beyond a numerical score to guide your selection of a focus area. Discuss the following questions with your team:

  • What shift is likely to make the biggest difference in teacher working conditions?
  • If improved, what shift might make a difference most quickly?
  • What could we do most readily to improve a situation that impacts something within a survey item?
  • Which shift may connect with existing efforts and values if focused on?
  • What actions to improve something related to survey items are likely to most clearly signal intent to support?

Based on the discussion of the previous questions, complete Worksheet 7 to identify an area on which to focus your team’s improvement efforts.

Worksheet 7: Area of Focus

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