Recent Changes

Suggestions for the future:
-more cross-grade collaboration and interaction, perhaps through community activities/volunteering.
-team teachers in each cohort grade must collaborate and share a community vision;
-cohort teacher and support staff meetings to ensure a common vision, language, and assessment and value system as well as a scope and sequence for learning needs.
-more engaging electives.
-go back to looping
-continue to develop challenged-based and project-based learning (specifically with electives)
-parent, student & team get together at beginning and end of year to open communication channels and extend the community outward.
-Promoting more parental involvement
pivotal importance espeicallyespecially for IBI
-Developing a foods program- perhaps reaching out to the community for funding, and or grant writing and then having students plan,prepare food for student population- this is also dependant on a different facility
-Continue to focus on community building and student engagement- potentially creating Youth Advisory Councils/ Student Councils

-Bi-weekly: We meet at random intervals to debrief and review our practices and units. We share transition details, assignments and templates so that when the students complete this unit the following year they can review essential terms, videos and games, before moving on to new content and PLO's.
What Does Not Work:
If community is not built, the program will fail. First you will see an increase in absenteeism, then student retention and finally student requirement
Support blocks run by non-community members. Students don't go.
Changing campuses for electives. Students become attached to one home and a routine that when broken, results in absenteeism.

A key role of the YFC was to be the spider at the center of the web; facilitating and engaging in community collaboration with outside agencies. As so many of our students have many stakeholders (parents, social workers, external counselors, police involvement, etc.), the YFCs played a crucial role in communicating with the different parties and facilitating a collaborative and cohesive approach.
The YFCs have also co-planned and created the elective curriculum for students in grade 9 and 10 cohorts; utilizing counseling skills and best practices to help facilitate educating students in a holistic approach. Electives included: Personal Awareness, Leadership, AVID, PE, Planning.
and community.
Education Assistants (EAs)
Having one EA assigned to all three academic days in each cohort was crucial. Erratic and minimal presence resulted in rejection as a community member. In short, unless the EA was a constant and involved member of the community from start to finish, students did not willingly access EA support and also associated a stigma with accessing support. A cohort EA must be able to work in a group dynamic, appear equally accessible to all but strategically prioritize support. Initiative is key. Also, attaching one EA to one cohort who would then move into the next grade with that cohort helped student retention, bridging the unattached period when students are leaving one established relationship with their prior teacher and developing a new relationship with a new teacher. This is a highly vulnerable time for students.
Students with a pre-exisiting negative relationship dynamic. The intimate nature of the cohort makes this toxic for the community and re-enforces the negative dynamic of the participants.
Students with challenges that are aggravated rather than assisted by large group settings. For example, a student that has only be in groups settings of 2 or 3 will struggle with suddenly being in a cohort.
educational settings.
Too many new adults in the room. Support staff need to be involved as community members right from the beginning. Even with the best of intentions, additional erratic support added throughout the year can dilute the community and cause confusion.
Ignoring the phantom skills. Many of our students require explicit support and scaffolding around personal and social skills. The community provided by the cohort provides a microcosm to learn these skills. This is why electives need to be well chosen (e.g. Personal Awareness) and designed in collaboration with the YFCs.
-choice. We encourage students to choose the academic program that is right for them and insist that potential students be fully informed of their options and not coerced by authority figures trying to make the right choice for them.
-Consistency in vision and structure across cohorts
with students.
-
- Constant team the cohorts.
Suggestions for the future:
-more cross-grade collaboration and interaction, perhaps through community activities/volunteering.

A key role of the YFC was to be the spider at the center of the web; facilitating and engaging in community collaboration with outside agencies. As so many of our students have many stakeholders (parents, social workers, external counselors, police involvement, etc.), the YFCs played a crucial role in communicating with the different parties and facilitating a collaborative and cohesive approach.
The YFCs have also co-planned and created the elective curriculum for students in grade 9 and 10 cohorts; utilizing counseling skills and best practices to help facilitate educating students in a holistic approach. Electives included: Personal Awareness, Leadership, AVID, PE, Planning.
Another role of the YFC throughout the years has been to maintain and strengthen connections with students even when they are no longer part of the cohorts. Engaging in supporting students in transitioning into other programs- such as employment programs or re-entry back into school after time away. Though the YFC role has been traditionally linked with the 9's and 10's within the cohorts we also still maintain, foster and support other students as they move through other programs within the school(s) and community.
Education Assistants (EAs)
Having one EA assigned to all three academic days in each cohort was crucial. Erratic and minimal presence resulted in rejection as a community member. In short, unless the EA was a constant and involved member of the community from start to finish, students did not willingly access EA support and also associated a stigma with accessing support. A cohort EA must be able to work in a group dynamic, appear equally accessible to all but strategically prioritize support. Initiative is key. Also, attaching one EA to one cohort who would then move into the next grade with that cohort helped student retention, bridging the unattached period when students are leaving one established relationship with their prior teacher and developing a new relationship with a new teacher. This is a highly vulnerable time for students.
Friday Flex Day
Crucial to the cohort success is the Friday Tutorial Flex day as it decreased student stress and facilitated student ownership over their learning. Due to erratic attendance, students fall behind and become stressed, causing them to skip more which then results in more stress and more avoidance. This can result in dropping out and/or failing. The Friday Flex Day provides a day where students can choose to come in to catch up and/or access extra support. We find that students start to own their own learning and began chose to access the time and support. It is essential that the teacher teaching the cohort be the one running the tutorial.
instruction and one-ononeone-on one support from
Example of 2011 Grade 9 Schedule
MONDAY
LUNCH
12-1pm
Math (Dawn)Math(Dawn)
English
PE 10/Leadership 10(Dawn)
Paper based instruction. Students find this unstimulating and demotivating. As we have paper based and DL options, students can choose that upfront if they wish. If they have chosen the cohort program, it is because they want collaborative learning and community.
Adding students randomly throughout the year. This is very risky as the community has developed and the student can feel like an outsider. If too many new students are added, the initial sense of community can fracture. Additions are best added by the end of the first 2-3 weeks and, if necessary, at semester turn over so the incoming group can be explicitly welcomed to the community.
community and reenforcesre-enforces the negative with suddenly bebeing in a cohort.
Students that have behavioural, social-emotional and learning needs beyond that what we can currently accommodate at the school- for example some students may be a better fit for Belmont due to more diverse programming and staff supports that may be available at Belmont due to its larger student population. The strength of the cohort is the community, having students work together through all core subjects. Students often feel isolated and unsuccessful when they are separated from the cohort group; this can also be exacerbated by students feeling unsuccessful in previous educational settings.
Too many new adults in the room. Support staff need to be involved as community members right from the beginning. Even with the best of intentions, additional erratic support added throughout the year can dilute the community and cause confusion.
Ignoring the phantom skills. Many of our students require explicit support and scaffolding around personal and social skills. The community provided by the cohort provides a microcosm to learn these skills. This is why electives need to be well chosen (e.g. Personal Awareness) and designed in collaboration with the YFCs.
-a diverse group. For example, a smattering of learning disabilities, intensive behaviour designations, gifted, high anxiety, at-risk lifestyles, etc. If there are two many of one type, the dysfunctional culture is re-enforced instead of disrupted.
-choice. We encourage students to choose the academic program that is right for them and insist that potential students be fully informed of their options and not coerced by authority figures trying to make the right choice for them.
-Consistency in vision and structure across cohorts
- When there are two educators teaching a cohort - it is best if these teachers share similar teaching pedagogy and classroom management procedures to ensure consistency and to reinforce routine with students.
- Constant team work, collaboration and communication from all partners and staff involved in the cohorts.
Suggestions for the future:
-more cross-grade collaboration and interaction, perhaps through community activities/volunteering.

Program Vision:
Our cohortscohorts' intent was
Cohort History (Goldstream Campus)
2007 to 2013 (6 years)
In a Nutshell:
The cohorts at the Goldstream campus began with the Jump Ahead program, created in 2007 by Dawn and Tanya to provide home schooled students with an opportunity to interact with their community through projects and "jump ahead" in their high school courses as quickly and efficiently as possible. In 2008, a grade 9 cohort was created by Devon to meet the needs of disenfranchised students with significant learning gaps not succeeding in DL. As the 2008 grade 9 cohort moved into grade 10 and then grade 11, Dawn and Tanya adapted their senior program to meet the new clientele's needs of a more personalized education. As we moved through each year we evolved to better meet the needs of all students, resulting in the program we have today.
Program Created (two 1.0 FTE teachers)
CREATED: Jump Ahead Program developed by Dawn and Tanya targeted at home schooled students looking to "jump ahead" through their high school courses as quickly and efficiently as possible. A focus on community interaction and healthy living.
Gr 10-11 Structure: A semester based program where students were loaded with all core subjects and grades 11 and 12 electives. It was fast paced with the goal of graduating early and contributing via electives to the local community. Two teachers.
9 Created (one 1.0 FTE teacher)
CREATED: Grade 9 cohort developed by Devon in response to the low success rate of students in DL courses. Targeted at students not meeting success in the mainstream system with significant learning gaps. Initially called Jump Ahead 9 and then Foundations. A focus on interdisciplinary (or thematic) pedagogy, team building and in depth analysis of human rights.
Support Staff: A YFC (Alex) was added half way through the year and worked in close partnership to meet student needs.
Gr 10 & 11 Structure: Year long semester based program where a mix of home schooled students, high anxiety students, and students with learning gaps, disabilities and behavioural challenges - a strategic mix of all types of learners for a balance and continued success - took all core subjects and electives. Blended learning was the focus for the cores while electives were predominantly project and community based.
2009-2010
Jump Ahead 9 (two 1.0 teachers by second semester)
Jump Ahead 10
Jump Ahead 11
Support Staff: YFC, IS/LS- FTE 0.6 added mid October (Erin)- worked collaboratively with teachers in both program planning and in supporting the students
Gr 9 Structure: Grade 9 program changed from a five month program to a ten month program. Team teacher (Jaswal) added half way through the year to allow teachers to teach in areas they specialized in and to provide an opportunity for students to experience another teaching style. We took in an additional Grade 9 cohort second semester that ran Feb 2010 to Jan 2011, overlapping the existing Grade 9 cohort. LS/IS provided in class support during specific blocks for students who may have traditionally been pulled out of the class for a support block.
Gr 11 Structure:Tanya taught humanities, math and electives so the students had a core teacher for community building and connections. Students were also registered in Sustainable Resources for a Sc 11 credit with Mike Huck at the Annex (healthy living and community based science course). All core courses were blended learning and project based: Web CT, face to face and AVID. LS/IS provided in class support for students during specific blocks who may have traditionally been pulled out of the class for a support block. Support blocks were offered to students with additional learning needs as identified by a formal designation or by referral from the teacher who were enrolled in classes through Web CT.
2010-2011 Jump Ahead 9 changes name to Foundations 9, Jump Ahead 10/11
Foundations 9: (two 1.0 teachers)
Jump Ahead 10: (EA)
Jump Ahead 11:
SupportSupport Staff:YFC, IS/LS students, EA (17.5hours)(17.5 hours)
Gr 9 Structure:Ten month, linear program. Staggered intake. Two specialist teachers. Paul and Devon taught two cohorts of Grade 9 students. Electives and community resources married (collaboration with Lisa Clarabet). LS/IS provided in class support during specific blocks with the option of additional out of class support on an as needed basis. Two students received more individualized instruction for Math 9 and so often chose to work out of the classroom during the math block.
Gr 10 Structure: Unchanged. Dawn on Maternity until April of 2011, Andrew Still covering her maternity until her return date. EA (17.5 hours) was added by the end of September to help support the high academic and emotional needs (10 formal designations) within this cohort. *EA would float to the grade 11 or grade 9 cohort as needed
LS/IS provided in class support for students during specific blocks who may have traditionally been pulled out of the class for a support block. Support blocks were offered to students with additional learning needs as identified by a formal designation or by referral from the teacher who were enrolled in classes through Web CT.
2011-2012 Futures 9 and 10
Futures 9 & 10: two 1.0 teachers (only one grade 9 and one grade 10 intake)
GrGr 9 & intake in September
DawnSeptember. Dawn and Devon two years.
Full
Support Staff: YFC. Full time EA Tuesday and Thursday.
LS/ISThursday (18h of EA support added and tied to Futures 9 making it so that both Futures 9 and Futures 10 had an EA attached to their cohort). LS/IS provided additional
*Devon and Dawn gave up the grade 9s in March 2012 when they took the curriculum position. Lisa Spalding took over the grade 9s, teaching all subjects.
18h of EA support added and tied to Futures 9 making it so that both Futures 9 and Futures 10 had an EA attached to their cohort
GrGr 11 Structure:Tanya personalized learning).
18h 18h of EA Ahead 11.
LS/IS LS/IS provided in School Based CounsellorCounselor (initially 0.6
2012-2013 Futures 9/10/11
Futures 9: one 0.9 FTE teacher & one 0.1 teacher (Art added Wednesday afternoons) (Michelle & Anita)
One of the biggest factors in cohort success is the modeling of community and collaboration by the overall team (Instructors, YFCs, LS/IS, EAs and administrators)
Youth and Family Counselors (YFCs)
needs. Offering counsellingcounseling services to support student successuccess rather than and so totoo are the the success orof our student and reinforcing healthhealthy community norms. the web; faciliatingfacilitating and engaging cohorts; utilizing counsellingcounseling skills and holistic approach. Electives included: Personal Awareness, Leadership, AVID, PE, Planning.
Education Assistants (EAs)
Having one EA assigned to all three academic days in each cohort was crucial. Erratic and minimal presence resulted in rejection as a community member. In short, unless the EA was a constant and involved member of the community from start to finish, students did not willingly access EA support and also associated a stigma with accessing support. A cohort EA must be able to work in a group dynamic, appear equally accessible to all but strategically prioritize support. Initiative is key. Also, attaching one EA to one cohort who would then move into the next grade with that cohort helped student retention, bridging the unattached period when students are leaving one established relationship with their prior teacher and developing a new relationship with a new teacher. This is a highly vulnerable time for students.
LS/IS
IS/LS rarely if ever removed students
Structure
Core and Elective Courses
2:30-3pm Tutorial
Friday Flex Day
and become stressedstressed, causing them to skip more, resultingmore which then results in more The Friday Flex Day provides a tutorial.
The fridayFriday flex day instruction and one on oneone-onone support from utilize the fridaysFridays on a
Example of 20102011 Grade 9
MONDAY
TUESDAY
FRIDAY
9am-10am
English(Devon)English (Devon)
Math
Personal Awareness 10/AVID(Devon)
Math
Tutorial(Devon & Paul)Dawn)
10:15am-11:30am
Social Studies
LUNCH
12-1pm
Math(Paul)Math (Dawn)
English
PE 10/Business Education 10(Paul)10/Leadership 10(Dawn)
English
1:15pm-2:30pm
Inclusion, not exclusion is crucial to the community development and students sense of belonging. Assistance and tools are equally available for all students who are guided in identifying how they best learn and what they need and when. Differences are accepted rather than highlighted.
Community
Community is the magic of a cohort. Without it, all you have is a group of people assigned to the same space and course materials.
Teachers must have a clear and common vision/philosophy of what community is;
Teachers must explicitly model their philosophy of community through modeling and explicitly teaching social skills, think alouds while resolving conflict and problem solving, a practice of inclusion not exclusion;
The team must design and stagger team building experiences in order to build the community;
Teachers must be responsive and reflective to what is happening in the classroom, the community and world.
Collaboration
Once community is created, collaboration is the natural by product. However, collaboration requires a strong belief that we are stronger together. This must be explicitly taught, constantly modeled and fully embraced by the cohort team.
Collaborative Team:
The team must model collaborative learning, always reinforcing clear values and sharing a common goal for all students.
Teacher Collaboration:
-Annual: Cohort instructors would meet over the summer to touch base about the program, talk about pedagogy and the over plan for the coming school year. More specifically we discuss our personal focus areas, theme, technology, content flow and sharing on any new resources or groups we could participate in to expand and grow as professionals (inquiries to federally funded post secondary inquiry groups).
how to implimentimplement or get
-Bi-weekly: We meet at random intervals to debrief and review our practices and units. We share transition details, assignments and templates so that when the students complete this unit the following year they can review essential terms, videos and games, before moving on to new content and PLO's.
What Does Not Work:
Adding students randomly throughout the year. This is very risky as the community has developed and the student can feel like an outsider. If too many new students are added, the initial sense of community can fracture. Additions are best added by the end of the first 2-3 weeks and, if necessary, at semester turn over so the incoming group can be explicitly welcomed to the community.
Students with a pre-exisiting negative relationship dynamic. The intimate nature of the cohort makes this toxic for the community and reenforces the negative dynamic of the participants.
Students with challenges that are aggravated rather than assisted by large group settings. For example, a student that has only be in groups settings of 2 or 3 will struggle with suddenly be in a cohort.
Too many new adults in the room. Support staff need to be involved as community members right from the beginning. Even with the best of intentions, additional erratic support added throughout the year can dilute the community and cause confusion.
Ignoring the phantom skills. Many of our students require explicit support and scaffolding around personal and social skills. The community provided by the cohort provides a microcosm to learn these skills. This is why electives need to be well chosen (e.g. Personal Awareness) and designed in collaboration with the YFCs.
What Does Work:
-interweaving complimentary electives.
What does success look like?
Growing student population in cohorts and growing interest in registering students in cohorts
Attendance (Statistics based(based on a daily attendance (eg.(e.g. 15 to
Engagement
Students enjoy school, participate and will verbalize this.
Return students- Students choosing to return to Westshore after absences or 'dropping out.' Students that are 'at risk' know that this is a safe community and feel supported in their learning; creating life long learners in our most vulnerable populations. School staff constantly reinforcing to students inclusion and that they do belong regardless of failed attempts at our school or others. Students also returning to Westshore to connect with staff for support even when no longer registered in programs reducing barriers to students accessing services. Staff then assisting students by making referrals to community agencies or assisting students in making a plan to re-enter an educational program.
Staff- Consistency within our staff, team members that are committed to shared visions and values. Staff that choose to work with our most vulnerable youth and populations. Staff being able to explore and create new and innovative approaches to support our students.
Warning;
The cohort communities can be so successful at neutralizing behaviours that it is easy to forget them. Often we will have parents, guardians, former teachers and former support staff amazed at the difference they observe in students. Please keep in mind that a great deal of front loading and maintenance goes into fostering this. If the front loading is not there, behaviours and absenteeism will percolate, aligning what you are seeing with what you have read in their files. This is also relevant when students are leaving us to go to another school. For example, if a student came to us with an Intensive Behaviour designation but after the first 3 months, his or her behaviours were rarely seen, it does not mean the IEP can be discarded. Although that student has likely made inroads, if triggered, those personal challenges are still there to be navigated by that student.

Dawn and Devon began 'looping' the grade 9 and 10s, so students would have the same two teachers for two years.
Full time EA support for academic days: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.
LS/IS provided additional in class for students during specific blocks who may have traditionally been pulled out of the class for a support block.as available.
*Devon and Dawn gave up the grade 9s in March 2012 when they took the curriculum position. Lisa Spalding took over the grade 9s, teaching all subjects.
to their cohort.cohort
Gr 11 Structure:Tanya taught humanities, while Paul Jaswal taught Math and Andrew Still taught Sustainable Resources, electives became more paper-based giving student more flexibility and opportunity to work (have jobs). Tanya's courses were blended learning, cross curricular and project based (more emphasis on technology and personalized learning).
18h of EA support added and tied to Jump Ahead 11.
LS/IS provided in class support for students during specific blocks who may have traditionally been pulled out of the class for a support block. Support blocks were offered to students with additional learning needs as identified by a formal designation or by referral from the teacher.
18hour positions created)created), School Based Counsellor (initially 0.6 but increased to 1.0)
2012-2013 Futures 9/10/11
Futures 9: one 0.9 FTE teacher & one 0.1 teacher (Art added Wednesday afternoons) (Michelle & Anita)
Futures 10: two 0.5 FTE teachers (Dawn & Devon)
Futures 11: two 0.5 teachers (Tanya & Dermott)
Support Staff:YFC, LS/IS,LS/IS (an additional person at 0.6 was added September 2012-based out of the annex), 0. 6 Behaviour Support Teacher,Teacher added December 2012 , EAs, School Counsellor (0.6)
All Grades: EAs attached to cohorts and move with students through grades.
Grade 9: Michelle Bond took over the new incoming grade 9s, teaching all of the subjects.
through JDFL).
Grade 11: Tanya and Dermott teamed up to create the Grade 11 cohort. The senior cohort differed in allowing elective choice on Wednesdays and Fridays whereas electives are determined and interdisciplinary in the junior grades. The senior program is also semester based while both grade 9 and 10 remain linear. Grade 11 is semester based so students who are motivated still have the opportunity to graduate a semester early.
The Cohort Team

2007 to 2013 (6 years)
In a Nutshell:
Tanya to "jump ahead"provide home schooled students with an opportunity to interact with their community through projects and "jump ahead" in their high new clientele's needs.needs of a more personalized education. As we needs of all students, resulting
2007-2008 Jump Ahead 10/11/12 Program Created (two 1.0 FTE teachers)
CREATED: Jump Ahead Program developed by Dawn and Tanya targeted at home schooled students looking to "jump ahead" through their high school courses as quickly and efficiently as possible. A focus on community interaction and healthy living.
10-11 Structure: SemesterA semester based program loadedwhere students were loaded with all
2008-2009 Jump Ahead 9 Created (one 1.0 FTE teacher)
CREATED: Grade 9 cohort developed by Devon in response to the low success rate of students in DL courses. Targeted at students not meeting success in the mainstream system with significant learning gaps. Initially called Jump Ahead 9 and then Foundations. A focus on interdisciplinary (or thematic) pedagogy, team building and in depth analysis of human rights.
Support Staff: A YFC (Alex) was added half way through the year and worked in close partnership to meet student needs.
Gr 9 Structure: Initially five month program mixing grade 9 core subjects with grade 10 electives chosen for their ability to be interwoven and meet student needs. One teacher.
disabilities and behaviourbehavioural challenges - and electives. All core course were blendedBlended learning andwas the focus for the cores while electives were predominantly project and community based.
2009-2010
Jump Ahead 9 (two 1.0 teachers by second semester)
Gr 10 Structure: Unchanged. Dawn on Maternity until April of 2011, Andrew Still covering her maternity until her return date. EA (17.5 hours) was added by the end of September to help support the high academic and emotional needs (10 formal designations) within this cohort. *EA would float to the grade 11 or grade 9 cohort as needed
LS/IS provided in class support during specific blocks as well as additional out of class support blocks for two students whom had previously been on a modified program.
for a ScSc. 11 credit
LS/IS provided in class support for students during specific blocks who may have traditionally been pulled out of the class for a support block. Support blocks were offered to students with additional learning needs as identified by a formal designation or by referral from the teacher who were enrolled in classes through Web CT.
2011-2012 Futures 9 and 10
*Devon and Dawn gave up the grade 9s in March 2012 when they took the curriculum position. Lisa Spalding took over the grade 9s, teaching all subjects.
18h of EA support added and tied to Futures 9 making it so that both Futures 9 and Futures 10 had an EA attached to their cohort.
jobs). Tanya's course scourses were blended
18h of EA support added and tied to Jump Ahead 11.
LS/IS provided in class support for students during specific blocks who may have traditionally been pulled out of the class for a support block. Support blocks were offered to students with additional learning needs as identified by a formal designation or by referral from the teacher.
All Grades: EAs attached to cohorts and move with students through grades.
Grade 9: Michelle Bond took over the new incoming grade 9s, teaching all of the subjects.
through JDFL).
Grade 11: Tanya and Dermott teamed up to create the Grade 11 cohort. The senior cohort differed in allowing elective choice on Wednesdays and Fridays whereas electives are determined and interdisciplinary in the junior grades. The senior program is also semester based while both grade 9 and 10 remain linear. Grade 11 is semester based so students who are motivated still have the opportunity to graduate a semester early.
The Cohort Team
FRIDAY
9am-10am
English
(Devon)English(Devon)
Math
Personal Awareness 10/AVID
(Devon)10/AVID(Devon)
Math
Tutorial
(DevonTutorial(Devon & Paul)
10:15am-11:30am
Social Studies
LUNCH
12-1pm
Math
(Paul)Math(Paul)
English
10/Business Education 10
(Paul)10(Paul)
English
1:15pm-2:30pm
FRIDAY
9am-10am
English
(Devon)English(Devon)
Math
Learning Interdisciplinary Elective
(includesElective(includes Personal Awareness 10/Leadership 10/PE11/Planning 10)
(Devon10)(Devon & Dawn)
Math
Tutorial
(Devon/Dawn)Tutorial(Devon/Dawn)
10:15am-11:30am
Social Studies
LUNCH
12-1pm
Math
(Dawn)Math(Dawn)
English
Personal Wellness 11 Independent Project
Pedagogy
Collaborative Learning
and pedagogical. Students’Students contribute content it becomes “fill in the worksheet”a worksheet pedagogy.
Differentiation
to our clientele’sclienteles diverse learning clear learning intentionintentions and choice
Formative and Summative Assessment (use rubrics as report cards)
It is impossible to effectively differentiate if a teacher does not have a firm grasp of authentic assessment. Teachers need to know exactly what their learning objectives, clearly communicate that with students and understand how to access for mastery rather than assignment completion.
-Bi-weekly: We meet at random intervals to debrief and review our practices and units. We share transition details, assignments and templates so that when the students complete this unit the following year they can review essential terms, videos and games, before moving on to new content and PLO's.
What Does Not Work:
members. Students don’tdon't go.
Changing campuses for electives. Students become attached to one home and a routine that when broken, results in absenteeism.
Multiple teachers. Two teachers is the best fit for the grade 9 and 10 cohorts. Too many teachers results in decreased attachment and then absenteeism.
Paper based instruction. Students find this unstimulating and demotivating. As we have paper based and DL options, students can choose that upfront if they wish. If they have chosen the cohort program, it is because they want collaborative learning and community.
Adding students randomly throughout the year. This is very risky as the community has developed and the student can feel like an outsider. If too many new students are added, the initial sense of community can fracture. Additions are best added by the end of the first 2-3 weeks and, if necessary, at semester turn over so the incoming group can be explicitly welcomed to the community.
-studentsStudents with a
What Does Work:
-interweaving complimentary electives.

Friday Flex Day
Crucial to the cohort success is the Friday Tutorial Flex day as it decreased student stress and facilitated student ownership over their learning. Due to erratic attendance, students fall behind and become stressed causing them to skip more, resulting in more stress and more avoidance. This can result in dropping out and/or failing. The Friday provides a day where students can choose to come in to catch up and/or access extra support. We find that students start to own their own learning and began chose to access the time and support. It is essential that the teacher teaching the cohort be the one running the tutorial.
work. Strengthening communitycommunity, relationships and relationships.above all increasing the opportunities for students to experience success.
Example of 2010 Grade 9 Schedule
MONDAY

Futures 10: two 0.5 FTE teachers (Dawn & Devon)
Futures 11: two 0.5 teachers (Tanya & Dermott)
Support Staff:YFC, LS/IS, Behaviour Support Teacher, EAs, School Counsellor
All Grades: EAs attached to cohorts and move with students through grades.
Grade 9: Michelle Bond took over the new incoming grade 9s, teaching all of the subjects.

The most crucial support staff member was a Youth and Family counselor who met with each new Grade 9 and 10 student in order to develop a proactive relationship and identify potential needs. Offering counselling services to all youth and families within the cohorts; preventative approach to support student succes rather than solely being reactive to students in crisis or high need. A key role for the YFC was also to help facilitate collaboration with parents. Our student population and needs are varied and diverse and so to are the parents of our students. Engaging parents as team members is of pivotal importance for the success or our student population. The YFC participated heavily in team building events and classroom initiatives the first three weeks of any new cohort, establishing a role in the community, removing the stigma of accessing counseling support and reinforcing health community norms. Intensive collaboration between teachers and the YFC allowed timely and effective intervention. Inclusion in classroom community absolutely crucial. Things worked best when a YFC was assigned specifically to the Grade 9 and 10 cohorts, providing stability and consistency.
A key role of the YFC was to be the spider at the center of the web; faciliating and engaging in community collaboration with outside agencies. As so many of our students have many stakeholders (parents, social workers, external counselors, police involvement, etc.), the YFCs played a crucial role in communicating with the different parties and facilitating a collaborative and cohesive approach.
holistic approach.
Education Assistants (EAs)
Having one EA assigned to all three academic days in each cohort was crucial. Erratic and minimal presence resulted in rejection as a community member. In short, unless the EA was a constant and involved member of the community from start to finish, students did not willingly access EA support and also associated a stigma with accessing support. A cohort EA must be able to work in a group dynamic, appear equally accessible to all but strategically prioritize support. Initiative is key. Also, attaching one EA to one cohort who would then move into the next grade with that cohort helped student retention, bridging the unattached period when students are leaving one established relationship with their prior teacher and developing a new relationship with a new teacher. This is a highly vulnerable time for students.
Student Achievement (Statistics based on a class size of 22)
Approximately 80% success rate (18 out of 22 students successfully complete the year). Within the first 3 months, we tend to loose 3 students for a variety of reasons (often about 2 will repeat the following year). 3 of the remaining 18 students will often have program modifications such as dropping electives but they will complete the courses they are in.
or others. Students also returning to Westshore to connect with staff for support even when no longer registered in programs reducing barriers to students accessing services. Staff then assisting students by making referrals to community agencies or assisting students in making a plan to re-enter an educational program.
Staff- Consistency within our staff, team members that are committed to shared visions and values. Staff that choose to work with our most vulnerable youth and populations. Staff being able to explore and create new and innovative approaches to support our students.