Tips from the Pros!

Manage The Process

Identify your scheduling team members

• Department Chairs, Counselors, ESL lead, Special Ed lead, other administrators

Have several “Alignment Meetings”

• Beginning in early January through May/June
• Suggest every 2 or 3 weeks
• Identify who is responsible for what
• Establish deadlines
• Examine current schedule, what works, what doesn’t
• Distribute “Wish List” to teachers (collect input from teachers regarding what they would like to teach

Determine how course requests will be gathered

• Meet with the counselors to determine a timeline.  Establish when they want to be in classes to assist students in course selection process.
• Gather requests on paper?
  • Example option 1: Large group setting, by cohort
  • Example option 2: Small group setting, by English class
• Allow students/parents to enter requests via the portal?

Adjust course offerings based on course requests

• This is decision making time (using numbers to justify decisions)
• Course requests should drive course offerings – just because it is on the course offering sheet doesn’t mean it will be offered

Look for conflicts in the schedule and even dispersion of classes throughout the master schedule

• General rule of thumb: try to offer core courses for each grade level, each period of the day
• Look at trends:
  • For example, offering CALCULUS and AP ENGLISH 12 at the same time is probably not a good idea
• Singletons (1 section offered once a day) must be looked at
  • do these have to occur in a specific period/room/teacher?
• Review Common Planning Periods
  
• Coaching periods
• Career Center considerations
  
• How to structure lunches?
• What Special Programs do you have – CSCC / ESL / Special Ed / Inclusion / VCAP
  
• Rooms/Space
• IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO AVOID ALL CONFLICTS!!!!!!!
  • Parents, students and teachers must be told this.

Special Ed Inclusion

• Work with department chair to identify who is taking what currently and who needs what next year. (shared spreadsheet work wonderfully for managing this) Case managers must be contributing to this as well.
• Avoid conflicts with inclusion sections offered and resource sections offered.

ESL Schedule

• Shared spreadsheets where ESL core content teachers list who is taking what currently and what they need next year is essential.
• Avoid conflicts with sections offered.

Establish Communication method with ALL STAFF concerning their individual schedules for the next school year.

• You CAN NOT have 60 or so individual conversations, multiple times with your entire staff about their individual schedules.
• The master schedule is developed based on student need, not staff need. Announce this face to face to the staff!!
• You need to work with department chairs concerning the department schedule. They can communicate their wishes/ideas to the department chair.  Announce this face to face to the staff!!
• Keep an eye out for the “back door” deal making that some will try. These typically do not have the students' best interest in mind.

You can do this!!

• Sure, first time through is busy and sometimes a headache.
• Stay positive and communicate with others who master schedule…this is key!
• Make life easy and have the master schedule set and emailed to staff before the last day of school.