RMS Shadow a Student Challenge
What better way to find out if student experience is positive and schedules are working/not working than by shadowing a broad section of students during a regular school day? That’s exactly what Rotolo Middle School staff members did the week of Oct. 1.
During this week, 24 RMS teachers and administrators cleared their calendars and were each paired with a student to immerse themselves in that student’s school experience for a day. The goal was to observe student perspective by walking in their shoes, record observations during the school day, debrief, and use the collective data to make improvements.
Staff members made note of several things while shadowing, such as the number of times students visited their locker, appropriateness of passing period times, if students appeared to be safe and secure throughout the day, atmosphere in the lunchroom, engagement level in core and exploratory classes, how often students used technology, how often students collaborated with peers, and more.
To walk the walk, RMS staff members suited up for PE class, ate lunch in the cafeteria, got out their Chromebooks and calculators, took the same quizzes and tests as their assigned student, read the same chapters, experienced each passing period and locker stops, and got to know their student’s peer circles.
What was most evident during the 30-minute debrief at the end of each day was how exhausted staff members said they felt contrary to unfazed students who seemingly could tackle another class or two.
“I’m exhausted. It’s go, go, go, but kids don’t miss a beat,” said Jamie Christopher, RMS English language arts teacher. “At every class, kids were prepared and ready to work. We have a lot to be proud of.”
RMS math teacher Heather Breon said it was really good for her to ask questions of the student she was shadowing. “Asking questions helped me know how she felt about her day, not how I was feeling,” she said. “I was beat, but my student said she felt fine after having four core classes in a row.”
One thing that Mrs. Breon noticed was that there wasn’t much time for a bathroom break during passing periods and that going outside for PE was a good brain break.
Time during passing periods was something that came up often in feedback. Surprisingly, the majority of staff members who participated and completed a feedback survey said they felt that the time was appropriate and only a few felt it was too short. In the debrief conversations, both students and staff mentioned a time crunch when traveling from an exploratory class to a core class on the other side of the building or upstairs.
The RMS School Leadership Team is now looking at all of the data collected to see how they can make improvements to student life.
“Over the course of this year, we’ll be using our insights to make real student-centered change,” said Bryan Zwemke, RMS principal. “Shadow day gave us much more than a one-minute snapshot of our student experience, which we get by randomly stopping into a classroom. We’re now in our students’ shoes, building understanding, and asking—and really noticing—what they need.”
Because the RMS Shadow a Student Challenge was such a success, the School Leadership Team is planning on conducting it annually.
“Every staff member who participated said it was valuable—and eye-opening,” explained Mr. Zwemke. “Several staff members who didn’t participate this year said they want to shadow a student next year. We’re excited about this fresh, student-centered approach to drive positive change.”
