At West Middle School, we have approximately 670 students in grades 6-8. We are currently operating in a Core system for 6th grade and on a junior high schedule for 7th & 8th grade, with classes approximately 50 minutes long. All students have five required classes (Math, Science, Language Arts, Social Studies, and PE/Health, plus a required reading class for all 6th graders) and a choice of two e
lective classes. As a staff, we have been working on developing Professional Learning Communities (PLC's) for the past few years. In these PLC's, teachers are working together with a focus on four critical questions:
· What do we want all students to learn?
· How will we know if they learn it?
· How do we respond when students experience difficulty learning?
· How do we respond when students do learn? On Professional Development Days, our staff spends time in trainings and in their department PLC's discussing these questions. We are moving the emphasis off of "teachers teaching" and towards "students learning" where it needs to be! Please check the student calendar for the schedule of early release dates. RCAS Student School Calendar 2016-2017
This summer with the guidance of our new superintendent, Dr. Simon, we generated building goals for the 2016-17 school year. Our attendance goal is to have 75% of our students attend 94% of the school year or miss less than ten days. In literacy and math, we want a 5% increase in the number of students who are proficient or advanced on the Smarter Balanced Assessment. Students at West are challenged to grow academically, socially, and emotionally. We really try to focus on the positive things that students are doing here! We have great students and a fantastic staff who love what they do. Thank you for allowing us to have the pleasure of working with your children. Dan Conrad, Principal
