We missed posting last week as MLC’s CBE Team was away from campus. They traveled to Belize City, where they met with the faculty of Sadie Vernon High School to discuss implementing competency-based education. The Ministry of Education in Belize established competency-based education as the required approach to teaching and learning across all primary and secondary institutions. The faculty and staff at Sadie Vernon have been working towards implementing this curricular approach with the support of their school board and their Ministry of Education liaison. They have already completed several professional development workshops in preparation for this year’s work with competency-based education.
The LaGrows were invited to meet with Sadie Vernon’s faculty as they prepare to dive into competency-based education this school year. Over a two-day professional development, Drs. Martin and Nichole LaGrow shared strategies for integrating competency-based education into Sadie Vernon’s institutional identity. They worked with the faculty to craft a Sadie Vernon CBE mission statement, explore grade-appropriate authentic assessments, and draft an institutional rubric to evaluate learning.
In addition, the LaGrows guided the Sadie Vernon faculty in applying backward design principles to specific subjects. Dr. Martin LaGrow provided intentional support and shared additional resources for building competency-based numeracy lessons and units. Dr. Nichole LaGrow provided intentional support and shared additional resources for building competency-based literacy lessons and units.
Sadie Vernon and MLC share a lot regarding competency-based education. We both have talented, dedicated, and experienced faculty and staff. We both are just beginning our implementations of this model of education. We both have a passionate commitment to serving our learners. The time in Belize was a wonderful opportunity to learn with and from new colleagues.
