Continuity Programs

Contact PhilWP at philwp@gse.upenn.edu to register for any of the programs listed.

Open to all Philadelphia School District Educators
• Writers’ Retreat
• Literature Circles
• Arts and Literacy Study Group
• Social Action General Forum for Educators
• Social Action Forum for Teachers of Diverse Learners
• Seminar in Gender and Literacy-SIGNAL
• Inquiry into Protocols for Looking at Student Writing and Teacher Assignments

Open to PhilWP Teacher Consultants Only
• Advanced Summer Institute II ~Teacher Inquiry and Practice
• Leadership Inquiry Seminar
• Techlit Online Discussion Forum
• New TC School Year Meetings

Open to all Philadelphia School District Educators

Writer’s Retreat
This is a special initiative of the publications committee that supports the publication of teachers’ writings. Participants write about their teaching practices and get feedback on the writings from other PhilWP members and work toward publishing their writing.

Literature Circles
This group discusses selected books often used in Philadelphia classrooms or books that support curriculum. A variety of themes are covered from year to year including gender in the classroom to cultural valuation in communities. Educators collaborate in a number of ways to consider powerful themes, strategies and resources for literature.

Arts and Literacy Study Group
This group investigates utilizing the arts to increase literacy in classrooms in all grade levels focusing on the needs of students and teachers.

Social Action General Forum
This is a social action teacher discussion forum which serves as an additional place where teachers in PhilWP are able to raise their voices about important issues confronting them in their practice. Open to all teacher consultants.

Social Action Forum for Teachers of Diverse Learners
This forum supports an inquiry study group of Special Education and Regular Education teachers from five of ten academic areas. People are invited to participate along with parents and students from their respective schools. Participants keep a reflective journal and write vignettes that help tell the story of working with, for, and as a special needs student. This is an open invitation group for both TCs and non -TCs. PhilWP teacher consultants in consultation with our Social Action Project Team use CSA principles and strategies to guide the group through the five stage social action process.

Seminar in Gender and Literacy – SIGNL
SIGNL groups concentrate on looking at the connections between gender and literature that focus on questions of race, class, ethnicity and sexuality. The format for these conversations centers on books, video presentations, and the sharing of practice by teachers.

LETSWORK Institute: Inquiry into Protocols for Looking at Student Writing and Teacher Assignments
The objective of LETSWORK is to demonstrate the value of protocols as a tool for structuring the talk around inquiry and reflective practice. Interested teachers will be invited to participate in an inquiry community. As with the original continuity group, the value of looking at student work through the structure of the Collaborative Assessment Conference (CAC) protocol will be emphasized, Facilitators will customize the work to fit the needs of participants at individual school sites. Groups will be encouraged to meet a minimum of once a month.

Open to PhilWP Teacher Consultants Only

Advanced Summer Institute II ~ Teacher Inquiry and Practice
Summer Institute II is offered as an advanced institute for teacher consultants who want to engage in or expand teacher research projects. The focus on teacher inquiry leads to the development of individual research questions that teacher consultants explore upon returning to their classrooms. Eight follow up sessions are held in the homes of the participants following the institute. The institute is open to teacher consultants who complete Summer Institute I. Participants also receive continuing education and act 48 credits.

Leadership Inquiry Seminar
This continuity program investigates the broad interpretations and issues around leadership. It serves to build a professional community, to unpack the terms “leader and leadership,” and to identify some of participants’ burning questions regarding these concepts. Together facilitators and participants group questions according to themes and common threads. These thematic groups become the focus areas for the monthly meetings and the individual questions of the teacher consultants who provide the subtopics for the meetings. Interested persons should submit a letter to the project director. Participants are awarded 1 cu (3 continuing education credits) upon successful completion of course requirements. This course begins in November and requires a co-pay of $375 payable at the January class.

Techlit On-line Discussion Forum
TCs are invited to become members of a group list serve. Teacher consultants are provided an opportunity to receive program updates, information and various issues of concern circulated via asynchronous web discussions which take place on a technical list server provided by the University of Pennsylvania.

New Teacher Consultant Meetings
New Teacher Consultants (TCs) who complete Summer Institute I meet four times during the school year at various school sites to continue conversations about classroom practices.

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