Frequently Asked Questions
by Lita Repp
October 01, 2006
Advisory Program
Explanation
The advisory schedule will be followed on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays between 2nd and 3rd hours. This 29 minute session will consist of the following three parts: advisories activities for Mondays, club time on Wednesdays, and study halls or assemblies on Fridays.
The School Improvement Leadership Team (S.I.L.T.) will provide all faculty advisors with a notebook of lesson plan activities for the academic year and will provide initial and on-going training for implementing these advisory activities in the classroom.
Frequently Ask Questions:
Incentives Program
1. Why will students want to do advisory activities?
It is a social activity that is intended to be fun for students. We have built an incentive component into the advisory program. The incentives are not centered around grades. Instead, student participation and teamwork is rewarded with school privileges. An ultimate result of advisories is building deeper rapport between students and faculty.
2. So, what are the incentives?
We have monthly awards and semester rewards. The advisory group with the most participation for a month will receive a donut day for freshmen and prime parking spots for one month for upperclassmen.
The semester reward involves a friendly semester long competition in the areas of academics, arts, and athletics. The three top advisories will be rewarded with field trips.
People and size:
1. How many advisees will each adviser have?
Advisers will have approximately 13-15 advisees in their class.
2. How will students be sorted into advisories?
Students have been sorted by grade level, gender, and special needs considerations. A computer was used to randomly match the groups for balance with grade level and gender. Additionally, the AMS building principal was consulted for specific freshmen concerns. Further decision-making on placement for new students to the district or other concerns will be made by AHS Administration in consultation with the School Improvement Leadership Team.
3. Will advisers and advisees be paired for just one year or multiple years?
The intent of this program is for continuity. As much as is feasibly possible, the AHS plan is for the advisees to have the same advisor for their entire stay at AHS.
4. How will parents be involved in the advisory program?
Parents are an integral part of the AHS advisory program.
Beyond the initial overview of the materials on advisories, one of the main purposes of the advisories is for the adviser to contact the parents of their advisees on a regular basis informing them of the academic progress of their student. This regular communication between adviser and parents is a backbone of the advisory program.
5. How will community members outside the school be involved in the advisory program?
One of the major goals of advisories is to encourage active participation of students in clubs with either academic, athletic, or community service interest. By students participating in club activities on Wednesdays, students will become engaged in service projects which will benefit the community. Further, the community will witness first-hand the results of school spirit building activities at events in the community including the fall homecoming event and other special events throughout the year.
Time and space:
1. Where will advisories meet?
Advisory groups will meet in the individual teacher classrooms unless it is required for the group to move elsewhere in case of activities requiring additional space or culminating advisory competitions.
2. How will advisories be able to personalize their space?
The personalization of the advisory space is up to the individual adviser. Teachers will be encouraged to provide an advisory bulletin board complete with photos of their advisory groups, their activities, and general announcements intended for advisory groups.
3. Will there be time for individual meetings as well as group meetings?
Yes, there will be time for individual meetings with advisees. Primarily, Monday advisories are group activities. Of course clubs are on Wednesdays, but Fridays supervised study hall time period will allow for the adviser to meet individually and periodically with the advisees to review academic progress and determine student needs.
Professional Development and Support:
1. How will advisers meet for training and support?
The AHS Advisory Program will provide comprehensive initial training on advisories and supply the entire faculty with an advisory notebook. Additional training will be provided on regularly-scheduled professional development training days.
2. What additional support will be given to advisers who are new to advising?
All faculty will go through the initial comprehensive training on advisories. In addition, new teachers to the Andover district participate in a Mentoring program. The AHS mentor will serve as a helpful resource to answer questions about the program.
3. How will the advisory program obtain feedback from teachers and students on the success of the program?
Each week advisers will complete weekly participation log sheets and turn them into the AHS Advisory program leader. These participation log sheets allow ample opportunity for each advisor to give detailed feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of each lesson. These comments will be regularly reviewed by SILT and helpful suggestions will be incorporated into next year’s advisories. Further, SILT will provide the advisers with Post-survey forms to be filled out by both faculty and students at the end of the year.
Student Ownership
1. What role will students take in creating and overseeing their advisory program?
From the outset each advisory group will discuss leadership and ultimately select a student leader of their advisory who will encourage the full participation and success of their individual advisory group. Further, students will be encouraged to complete the evaluation survey on the success of the program.
2. How can advisories serve as a vehicle for empowering students through student governance, student led clubs, and other ways to take on community responsibilities?
By providing direct opportunities in advisories for students to demonstrate and exert leadership, student-led empowerment will be encouraged. Students will learn about opportunities to participate in a club and hopefully will get very involved in their club’s leadership. Student leaders in the advisories, as well as LINKS program mentors, will be encouraged to apply their leadership skills through student governance opportunities.
3. How can students in upper grades (juniors and seniors) mentor students in lower grades (freshmen and sophomores)?
Upperclassmen will be encouraged to tutor and be study buddies with freshmen and sophomores in their advisory. In addition, the LINKS mentoring program is specifically designed for mentoring new students.
