Domenic Paolo, PhD
Superintendent
Leola Schools
Message from The Superintendent
Getting to Know Leola
Back to School
I hope everyone has enjoyed a nice refreshing summer break. Returning to school will be especially nice this year too. I am looking forward to having the halls filled with the happy voices of students and teachers.
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Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
I have had the great fortune of meeting and working with some true luminaries in the field of education. Any progress I have made, has been directly attributable to fantastic insights they each shared with me and the trails they've blazed.
Dr. Gardener was one of the first educational researchers I began to follow at the earliest stages of my career. I was thrilled to meet him when I attended Harvard Graduate School of Education. By then I was very familiar with his work in the field of Multiple Intelligences. This theory of multiple intelligences was first presented in the book Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. Dr. Gardner’s theory inspired teachers, school leaders, and special educators to embrace the notion that there are many ways to be intelligent. It was a powerful insight into the field of education and helped educators around the world become better aware of the learning needs of diverse learners.
Dr. Tony Wagner is another educational researcher from Harvard. When I met him he had just returned from a trip to Finland where he conducted extensive investigations into the phenomenal success of Finish students on national tests of academic aptitude such as the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) and the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Assessment (TIMMS).
In Finland there are no standardized tests. In fact, there is really very little testing at all. Finnish teachers are not monitored or rated based on test scores, and teachers (as well as their students) have a great deal of autonomy. It is a system built on trust rather than faux accountability and it leads to real results.
Rick and Becky Dufour were extraordinarily successful in the implementation of Professional Learning Communities to foster school improvement that generated incredible growth within the entire community.
Dr. Rick Stiggins was the first person I met who seemed to truly understand the power of assessment when it was used as a tool for learning. We are all too accustomed to tests that are used to evaluate, rank, rate, or otherwise sort our students. The best use of assessment is when it is used to strengthen understanding and inform instruction.
Bill Daggett is well known for his rigor and relevance framework. The basic premise is that students can sustain incredible levels of rigorous work when they see the work as relevant. More frequently witnessed in the field of athletics, the connection between rigor and relevance can be harnessed for academic gains as well.
Dr. Jim Rickabaugh is currently serving as the Senior Advisor to the Institute for Personalized Learning. He previously served as its director. He has been named superintendent of the year in the states of Minesota and Wisconsin. His book; Tapping the Power of Personalized Learning, has had a profound impact on many school ditricts because of the way it serves as a roadmap for school districts wishing to develop curriculum around the talents and interests of its students.
Dr. Robert Marzano is well known for the identification of the high yeild instructional strategies instructional strategies likely to improve student achievement across all grade levels and subject areas: Identifying similarities and differences. Summarizing and note taking. Reinforcing effort and providing recognition. Homework and practice. Non-linguistic representations. Cooperative learning. Setting objectives and providing feedback. Generating and testing hypotheses. Cues, questions, and advance organizers.