Adaptive+Schools

Center for Adaptive Schools Website Review By Rebecca Gurkin

Website Overview The website for the Center for Adaptive Schools gives information about creating collaborative groups within the school. The creators of the website say that their mission is “… to help schools develop the technical and social resources to realize continuing student improvement” (Garmston & Wellman 2011). It clarifies what adaptive schools are as well as give information about collaboration. The other part of the website is about attending seminars and how the reader can join the organization. Website Evaluation Authority/Purpose The website was developed by Dr. Robert Garmston, a professor of education from California State University and Bruce Wellman, who owns an educational consulting firm. The Center for Cognitive Coaching supports the seminars advertised by the website as well as the information on the website. The creators of the website have listed address, email address, phone number, fax number and cell phone number. The name Adaptive Schools does indicate a change in the school but the name doesn’t suggest that the website will talk about collaboration. It is easy to navigate the website; all of the links lead the visitor to information about adaptive schools, the creators of the website and how to join the organization. It seems that the website is geared toward administrators than teachers. Accuracy The information within the website seems reliable due to the affiliation with California State University and Dr. Garmston’s background in education. The Center for Cognitive Coaching also has a hand in this website but their website has a very different mission and information than the adaptive school website. The website also contains information from an article from Louis (1996) that suggests characteristics of a collaborative school and they are “shared values and norms, collective focus on student learning, collaboration, deprivatized practice and reflective dialoague”. This information is the only information from a researched source. Even though the information is about fourteen years old, it is still important to schools today and sends a similar message about collaboration as the Friend and Cook (2010) text. Point of View <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0.5in; vertical-align: auto;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">The website does give information about collaboration and explains the thought behind adaptive schools. The purpose of the website is to capture the reader’s interest and have them sign up for a seminar or join the organization. It promotes the ideas of the Center for Cognitive Coaching, Dr. Robert Garmston and Bruce Wellman as a way to promote their collective ideas. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0.5in; vertical-align: auto;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Coverage, Currency and Navigation <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0.5in; vertical-align: auto;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">The authors of the website don’t claim that it is a comprehensive site but more of an overview of their ideas as a way to get an administrator to sign up for a seminar. The links within the website provide more information about adaptive schools and does not lead to outside sources. At the bottom of the website it gives a copyright date of 2003-2011. There is also a revision date of February 23, 2011 and all of the pages within the website are fully developed. The website is easy to navigate with nine links to other pages within the website. One link gives the reader background information about adaptive schools, the other links present information about the creators of adaptive schools and information about joining the organization or attending a seminar. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0.5in; vertical-align: auto;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Recommendation <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0.5in; vertical-align: auto;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Overall, the website does contain interesting information about what adaptive schools are and how teacher collaboration can increase student achievement. The website is written more for administrators looking for seminars for their teachers to attend then giving for teachers to use easily in their classrooms. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Reference <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -0.5in; vertical-align: auto;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Friend, M., & Cook, L. (2007). //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Interactions: Collaboration skills for school professionals // (5<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; position: relative; text-decoration: none; top: -5pt; vertical-align: auto;">th edition). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -0.5in; vertical-align: auto;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Louis, K. S., et. al. (1996). "Teachers' professional community in restructuring schools." //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">American Educational Research Journal //, 33 (4), 757-798. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -0.5in; vertical-align: auto;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Garmston, R. & Wellman, R. (2011) Center for adaptive schools: building capacities for school improvement. Retrieved from http://www.adaptiveschools.com/aboutas.htm