How I Flipped My Faculty Meetings

“Oh, great. Another meeting that could have been an email.” We’ve all had that thought or heard it from others. How about this one? “That meeting was a waste of time- nothing got done.” (That’s the one you’ll hear from me!) Many of the meetings I hold are with grade levels, grade level bands, or departments. In those meetings, my goals are to discuss problems, brainstorm solutions, and prepare for what’s ahead. In order to get to those action items without taking up too much of my staff’s time, I began flipping my meetings.

My role covers C&I at the district AND school level, so my communication needs to be accessible to staff on a macro and micro level. Macro in that it’s far-reaching, global, and often long-term. Micro in that it’s specific, localized, and focused on the short-term practices that lead to long-term changes.

For my macro-level communication, I compile and send a newsletter via the Smore website. There is always a “must-do” section, with deadlines and reminders. The rest of the newsletter is topical, and covers district-level news, such as upcoming PD, pedagogy for various learning styles, webinar offerings, and new or interesting websites to try.

For micro-level communication, I send an agenda 24-48 hours before a curriculum meeting. The topics within a curriculum meeting may vary, but always reflect a goal that was discussed in the curriculum newsletter. Following the flipped classroom model, I send some of my discussion questions in the agenda to allow for as much preparation as possible.

I keep potential newsletter topics in a Google Keep, so it’s always at my fingertips. Staff will email me ideas for the newsletter, such as cool websites they’ve come across or general questions. Sending out the agendas helps keep us on track throughout meetings, which makes us more productive. But the biggest and best benefit of flipping my meetings has been the sheer increase in time we have to collaborate. My goals in curriculum meetings are to discuss problems, brainstorm solutions, and prepare for what’s ahead, and so far, flipping my meetings has allowed me to do just that!