Teachers at Plantation High School participated in a two-fold staff development. First, they had an opportunity to submit student work for the Plantation Pride Exhibit. Next, they were able to visit the exhibit to look for examples of rigor among the projects, as a whole. Principal Susan Bruining was one of many visitors at the Plantation Pride Exhibit. Student work was showcased from all disciplines and all levels. The Space Technology Engineering teacher submitted a rocket. A history teacher submitted Historical Yearbooks, including “historical” superlatives such as Most Likely to be on Money, which George Washington and Andrew Jackson won by landslides. Intensive Reading teachers submitted Concept Maps and Word Arts. The projects were great in number and incredibly creative.

Reading Coach Paul Kantorski and Curriculum Facilitator Amalia Pomerantz were the creative minds behind this Professional Learning opportunity. Teachers visited the exhibit during their planning and completed a brief survey to give an approximate figure indicating what the percentage of projects demonstrated which level of Webb’s Complexities. Mr. Kantorski hopes that this staff development will serve as a precursor for the 2007-2008 school year. Teacher input will be used in future collegial conversations with a focus on the following

• How do you build rigor in the content areas?
• What is an “essential question”?
• How do we take instruction and products to the next level

In addition, Plantation High School has a team of teachers attending a Reading Leadership Team Institute this summer. One of the team’s first endeavors is to analyze the data from the surveys and use it as a guide for determining what is needed to increase rigor and positively impact student achievement. Plantation High is a college preparatory high school and although all students will not go on to attend colleges; the school’s vision is to give students what they need, if they wish to do so.