Audubon Elementary School, 10730 Goodwood Blvd., Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70815, 504-272-2620.
Audubon Elementary has been able to develop a powerful collaborative, professional culture where teachers work together to improve instruction, learn new techniques, and value reflective dialogue on practice. The school has a shared mission to serve all students with high-quality, interactive, in-depth, and engaging instructional approaches. There is regular reflective dialogue about new curriculum and instructional techniques that work. And many teachers try new approaches in their classrooms. They visit each other's classes monthly to observe, discuss, and give feedback in an informal form of peer coaching. Once a year, the entire staff puts on a daylong conference of instructional techniques and curriculum workshops for teachers in the region, attracting several hundred each year who pay a small fee to attend. These funds are then plowed back into instructional materials and staff development opportunities for Audubon staff.