Professional Activity (PA) Days

Topic: Provincial Education Priorities​

Format​:​ 

• Full day, in person
• Elementary and secondary schools

Description: School teams will review effective practices, policies/procedures and resources prepared by central departments to support student and school safety. The content includes violent incident prevention, bullying prevention and intervention strategies, prevalent medical conditions, vaping resources, cellphone use and PPM128. Emergency safe schools procedures, safe schools incident reporting, accident reporting and special education health and safety procedures will be reviewed. In elementary schools, Acadience screening will also be a topic of focus.​​

Facilitators: The learning will be led by principals and vice-principals and school-based staff, supported with materials and guidance from central departments including Student Mental Health and Well-Being, Safe Schools and Special Education
Learning/Delivery Method: ​Whole group presentations and small group work ​
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Learning/Delivery Method: Whole group presentations and small group work

Topic: Learning and Growth: Student Literacy, Mathematics, Guidance and Career Education ​

Format:

• ​Full-day, in-person
• Elementary and secondary schools

Description: Elementary school teams will engage in learning related to effective practices and strategies for student literacy and mathematics learning and growth. Educators will engage in learning focused on implementing the revised 2023 Language/Francais Grade 1-8 curriculum. They will learn about principles and requirements for early reading screening as described in PPM 168: Reading Instruction and Early Reading Screening.

Elementary educators will also work collaboratively to develop a greater understanding of high-impact instructional strategies for mathematics as detailed in the curriculum, as well as the HDSB Math Achievement Action Plan​. School teams will also engage in learning related to making connections to skilled trades, transferable skills and apprenticeship, guidance and career education. ​

Secondary school teams will focus on effective strategies for teaching literacy across the curriculum, teaching in one stream, reviewing effective strategies for the Grade 9 destreamed English program, assessment for learning and monitoring effective student achievement practices across the curriculum.

Secondary school teams will also engage in learning on the following topics:​

• ​Supporting student math achievement with a focus on fidelity of curriculum implementation, knowing the mathematics learner, content knowledge, identifying and collecting key performance indicators to measure improvement in student math performance and high impact instructional practices.
• Mathematics Learning that is aligned with the HDSB Math Achievement Action Plan.
• Making connections to skilled trades, transferable skills and apprenticeship.
• Guidance and career education, making connections between guidance counsellors and local employers/labour market with a focus on high-demand economic sectors.

Facilitators: The learning will be led by school administrators and school-based staff supported with materials and guidance from the School Programs Department.

Learning/Delivery Method: Whole group presentations and small group work.​

Topic: Student Growth, Progress Reports & Effective Strategies and Practices

Format:

• Full-day
• Elementary: In-person or remotely
• Secondary: In-person

Description: Elementary school teams will engage in student/parent/guardian/teacher conferences focused on Student Growth and Progress Reports.

Secondary school educators will participate in learning related to the Universal Design for Learning and Differentiated Instruction/Assessment. Learning will also focus on the on-going implementation of de-streamed Grade 9 courses, supporting student achievement in math, as well as strategies and curriculum planning for students with special education needs.

Facilitators:

• Elementary programming will be led by teachers
• Secondary programming will be led by the School Programs Department, System Principals and school-based educators

Learning/Delivery Method:

• ​Elementary: Small group conferences with students and parents
• Secondary: Whole group presentations and small group work​

Topic: Assessment and Evaluation Activities​

Format:

• Elementary only
• Full-day, in-person or remotely

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Description: Elementary educators will be engaged in assessment and evaluation activities including report card writing. This is time designated by the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) collective agreement.​

Facilitators:

• Self-directed day for teachers​

Learning/Delivery Method:

• Individual work time​

Topic: School Improvement Plan for Student Achievement (SIPSA) ​

Format:

• Secondary only 
• Full-day, ​in person ​

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Description: School teams will focus on School Improvement Plan for Student Achievement (SIPSA) work. The HDSB has district-wide goals that each school develops detailed SIPSA plans for. School teams will focus their attention on district and school data analysis, planning effective strategies (literacy, mathematics, assessment and evaluation, monitoring student achievement and student safety and well-being). They will engage in learning related to the SIPSA goals and identify effective strategies. ​

Facilitators:

• School administrators and school staff​

Learning/Delivery Method:

• Whole group presentations and small group learning and planning​

Topic: School Improvement Plan for Student Achievement (SIPSA) ​

Format:

• Secondary and Elementary 
• Full-day, ​in person ​

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Description: School teams will focus on School Improvement Plan for Student Achievement (SIPSA) work. The HDSB has district-wide goals that each school develops detailed SIPSA plans for. School teams will focus their attention on district and school data analysis, planning effective strategies (literacy, mathematics, assessment and evaluation, monitoring student achievement and student safety and well-being). They will engage in learning related to the SIPSA goals and identify effective strategies. ​

Facilitators:

• Whole group presentations and small group learning and planning​

Learning/Delivery Method:

• School administrators and school staff​​

Topic: Student Mental Health and Well-Being

Format: 

• ​Secondary and Elementary
• Full-day, ​in person

Description: 

School teams will engage in learning related to student mental health and well-being with a focus on the mental health literacy learning and implementation of PPM 169: Student Mental Health in Ontario. 

School teams will address the effects of vaping and cellphone use on student learning and well-being. Staff will focus on the academic and health impacts of substance use, such as vaping, along with the challenges posed by excessive cellphone use in the classroom. There will be an emphasis on technology protocols, responsible use of technology and effective classroom management strategies. Staff will participate in cyber safety and online privacy awareness training, gaining insights into potential risks associated with student use of online platforms and emerging technologies. 

Learning/Delivery Method: 

•  Whole group presentations and small group work

Facilitators: 

• ​  School administrators and school-based staff, supported with materials and guidance from various central departments ​​

Format: 

• Secondary only
• Full day, in person

Description: 

School teams will focus on data analysis and sharing related to School Improvement Plan for Student Achievement (SIPSA) work from the 2024-2025 school year. They will celebrate successes and identify steps for next year’s SIPSA.  School teams will also focus on monitoring student achievement and success and work in teams to plan for in-risk students for the upcoming academic school year.

Learning/Delivery Method:

• Whole group presentations and small group learning and reflection​

Facilitators: 

• ​School administrators and staff

Format:  ​

• ​Secondary only
• Full day, in person

Description: 

School teams will focus on data analysis and sharing related to School Improvement Plan for Student Achievement (SIPSA) work from the 2024-2025 school year. They will celebrate successes and identify steps for next year’s SIPSA.  School teams will also focus on monitoring student achievement and success and work in teams to plan for in-risk students for the upcoming academic school year.

Learning/Delivery Method: 

• Whole group presentations and small group learning and reflection

Facilitators: 

• ​​ School administrators and staff