Improvement in how Washington students are doing on the state's WASL exam clearly demonstrates reforms are working, Superintendent of Public Instruction Terry Bergeson says.
Thousands attend January Conference
By Editor Ken Harvey
Some 4,300 educators attended this year’s OSPI January Conference and participated in many of the nearly 300 conference and pre-conference presentations. Below is a small sampling of the conference presentations.
Governor, educators back early education
“Kindergarten is the fastest change agent in education today,” says Federal Way all-day kindergarten teacher Barbara Gray, and apparently Gov. Christine Gregoire and state Superintendent of Public Instruction Terry Bergeson agree.
Speaking
at the January Conference, Gregoire and Bergeson urged educators and legislators
to support a plan to work toward universal all-day kindergarten over the next
five years – starting initially with those most at risk.
Some districts, such as Federal Way and Yakima, have started working toward that goal even without state funding to cover the extra costs because they feel research evidence is so conclusive that there is nothing else they could do to better prepare their students to meet state educational standards.
Time is the key, says Gray. “Time for students, time for teachers not to rush, rush, rush. … Time to listen and time to talk. When you’re doing a half-time program, there is no time to talk.”
The National Board Certified teacher says, “Every piece of research shows positive results with all-day kindergarten. I haven’t seen anything negative.”
The results of all-day kindergarten, according to research, is more time in active, educational activities; higher test scores; greater reading growth; closure of the “achievement gap” by children of lower socio-economic status; reduction of transportation costs; less stress for teachers; and better preparation by students overall to succeed in first grade.
In Federal Way, 86 percent of the all-day kindergartners achieve district standards, while only 69 percent of the half-day kindergartners do. Yakima School District has seen similar success, according to a Yakima all-day kindergarten teacher attending Gray’s presentation.
The question of whether young students might show more fatigue from all-day kindergarten or display other negative impacts was explored by researchers, but no negative results were seen, according to Gray.
Gray and the Yakima kindergarten teacher both told of how some parents initially felt their children should only go to kindergarten half a day. But the parents almost always change their mind within a few weeks. In many cases the children themselves convinced their parents to let them stay all day.
Gov. Gregoire feels this year’s legislative session could be “the most important in Washington state history.” And so far, she says, both Republicans and Democrats in the state Senate and state House have agreed that education is the top priority for the session.
Bergeson acknowledges the Legislature won’t just write a blank check, but more money will almost certainly be allocated. Bergeson and Gregoire are asking for $2.5 billion more for education in the next biennium.
“We need to be smarter on how we spend money,” Bergeson says, “but we are 50 times smarter than we were 10 years ago.”
One of the “smarter” uses of tax money will be to invest in kindergarten and in early childhood education, the governor told educators.
“We have to invest in our state’s educational system, but we cannot throw money at the status quo. We have to invest significantly in 21st century solutions,” Gregoire says.
A more individualized approach to education is also being emphasized by the state leaders.
But the greatest emphasis was given to helping children prepare for academic success between birth and kindergarten.
“The best investment we can make is in those first five years so we don’t have to pay on the back end,” Gregoire said.
According to the National Children’s Reading Foundation, children who enter school significantly behind almost never catch up. And poor readers fall behind in every other subject – even math -- and eventually do poorly in high school and often drop out of school. It is no surprise then, according to the foundation, that:
Gregoire emphasized those direct financial rewards, saying that for every $1 invested in improving kindergarten and early childhood education, society would save $8 in later costs.
“Some may think I am spending too much money, but I am investing in something that will bring us billions of dollars in returns for decades to come,” said Gregoire.
Gregoire suggests the U.S. should declare a war on illiteracy similar to Pres. John F. Kennedy’s declaration that the U.S. would put a man on the moon by the end of the 1960s.
“When we challenged ourselves, we stepped up and did it,” she said of JFK’s declaration.
Of the current legislative session Gregoire declared: “Priority 1 is education. Priority 2 is education. Priority 3 is education.”
Award-winning school really believes ALL students can achieve high standards
Since receiving a Bill and Melinda Gates Grant in 2000, Nooksack Elementary School has been developing an effective professional learning community that has helped the percentage of students passing the fourth-grade WASL increase from 73 to 98 percent in reading, from 61 to 91 percent in writing, and from 61 to 95 percent in math.
The school is achieving these impressive results despite some challenging demographics – 27 percent minority, 13 percent transitional bilingual, 11 percent migrant, 15 percent special education and 49 percent free or reduced lunch.
“Poverty [reflected by the free lunch percentage] is the thing that really kills you,” says fifth-grade teacher Bruce Herzog. Fellow teacher Joni Heutink notes that illegal methadone production has seemed to replace berries as the primary product of the area.
Herzog and Heutink explained how they accomplish such progress, being named one of 10 high-achieving elementary schools in Washington state in 2003-04 and a National Blue Ribbon School Award winner in 2004-05.
“One of the things that really helped us early on was that WASL was the target,” says Herzog. “We had third-graders crying under the tables over the WASL. So we believe it is our moral imperative to prepare students for the WASL.”
Heutink, however, says they aren’t teaching TO the WASL but rather teaching FOR the WASL.
“It took about three years before we made a colossal jump,” Herzog says. “Now the WASL is almost a non-issue. We hardly think about it anymore.
“The professional learning community has been so worthwhile” in accomplishing their goals, says Herzog. To be effective, every educator at their school had to agree to a few key concepts:
1) All students are not only capable of learning, but capable of meeting high standards.
2) What we’re doing right now is not working for all students and needs to be changed.
3) We collectively are responsible for student learning.
4) Achieving better results is within our sphere of influence, and there are no excuses for failure.
“Everyone in our building believes these things,” says Herzog. “This is the common vision that drives our school. There is an ethic that you are supportive.”
“Teachers must believe that change is needed,” Heutink says. “Then you can decide what needs to be changed.”
The educators don’t always agree on the strategies to success, but they have agreed to “be hard on the issue and easy on each other,” says Heutink. “It’s taken some time to achieve this, but now everyone is on board.”
“There is no one way of doing it,” says Herzog. “But people must be willing to make sacrifices.”
When new research is introduced and opposition to new techniques are expressed, questions are addressed, issues are clarified, further education occurs, he says.
“It’s really important that teachers see the need for change individually,” Heutink adds.
“Every staff meeting is an opportunity for training. We are literally elbowing each other out of the way for agenda time,” Herzog says. “Everyone has to agree to take the journey. You have to energize people’s hearts.”
The common vision has led to such decisions as to assign almost all paraprofessionals to work with the K-2 classes so the students can get started right.
That was a sacrifice the teachers in Grades 3-5 agreed to for the benefit of all. But now the teachers in the upper grades recognize the benefit that nearly all students are working at grade level by the time they receive the students.
The school also adopted student-involved (not led) parent conferences. There was a lot of hesitancy on the part of many teachers at first. But research said that was best, and the teachers had agreed to follow the research and adopt the best practices.
“Virtually 100 percent of our parents attend student conferences,” Herzog says. “And now all the teachers agree they really work.”
“Our students feel really good about them, too,” says Heutink. “Some parents need some modeling. This may be the first time they have ever heard anything positive about their child. I was not excited at first, but I would never go back. It’s been huge.”
After their first positive conference, the parents and the children become more involved in the educational process, the teachers say.
The school has very high standards and expectations, but the parents and children have bought into it.
“And yet we are a lot of fun,” says Heutink. And the support comes “not because of high scores, but because of how students feel about themselves when they leave our building.”
All of the teachers have now taken ownership of all the school’s students. Every teacher carries a pocket chart with the name of every student in the school considered at risk. They review the chart regularly in staff meetings so everyone can provide support.
When a migrant family enrolled three children into the school, all three names were immediately placed on the chart to make sure they all transitioned well into the school.
“We didn’t use to talk between grade levels – or even within grade level,” says Heutink. “Now it’s not ‘kindergarten,’ it’s ‘OUR kindergarten.’”
Teachers often observe one another in the classroom and give tips for improvement. At first most of the teachers were hesitant to invite criticism, but everyone is over that fear now, Herzog says.
Another change was to make sure that every lesson has a clear learning target, guided by the state grade-level expectations (GLEs) and the WASL, and that each student should know the learning target.
This has really helped slower students to increase their learning achievement.
Heutink quotes one rapidly improving student who explained his progress by saying, “I finally know what I need to know, and I knew that I knew it.”
Even many special education students are now achieving at grade level.
“Before the teachers didn’t clearly understand what their learning target was, much less the students,” says Heutink.
Another key change was to institute student-involved assessment.
Most assessments now are “formative assessments” that provide students immediately feedback and related instruction. Research shows when there is no specific feedback on assessments, students make no progress as a result of the assessment.
When assessments are graded without feedback, research shows an actual loss in achievement by 3 percent, Herzog says.
If students are provided the correct answers, there is a 9 percent gain in achievement. And if the teacher provides an explanation for each test question, there is a 20 percent achievement gain, he explains.
Daily work at Nooksack Elementary is self-corrected in class to enhance student learning, while the teacher reviews the work only to make sure students make an honest effort.
Every Friday is the formal assessment day at the school, but even those tests are typically formative in nature.
“We have the system down where we can give three tests in the morning, go over them in the afternoon, and assign corrective homework for the weekend,” Herzog says.
“The students that don’t pass will go home with a packet of materials,” Herzog explains. Computer-based instruction is also used at times to help struggling students. This helps students achieve their learning targets.
Eventually all students must retake each test until they pass it. “Reteach, extra practice, reassess. Failure is NOT an option,” Herzog says.
“Summative assessments” such as WASL, which provide no immediate feedback, are like “doing an autopsy,” Heutink says. “It’s too late.”
Heutink recalls how she opposed change originally, but on the way home from a conference she realized she had been harming her students. She now asks herself, “What was I thinking?
“It’s a lot of hard work, but I would never go back to my old ways,” she says. “The guilt would kill me.”
“Results are driving the effort,” Herzog adds. “You can’t argue with the results we’re getting – and the happiness of the children and their parents.
Sumner experiences success building curriculum around formative assessments
Sumner’s Victor Falls Elementary School is quickly catching up with Nooksack Elementary using similar strategies.
The percentage of fourth-graders passing the math WASL has risen from 55 percent in 2003 to 64.9 percent in 2004 to 78.2 percent and 77.1 percent in 2005 and 2006 respectively.
The percentage passing the reading WASL went from 72.5 percent to 81.1 percent, dipped to 69.3 percent and then jumped to 92.1 percent. And the percentage passing the writing WASL jumped from 41.3 percent to 51.4 percent, dipped to 49.5 percent, and then soared to 84.7 percent.
The key concept to the Victor Falls faculty, however, is using formative assessments to help identify how students learn best and then differentiate instruction accordingly.
The school’s staff shared research that substantiates that concept.
“Every child is unique. Although we may rejoice in this fact, it poses a dilemma for educators,” wrote Scott Willis and Larry Mann in the Winter 2000 issue of the journal Curriculum. “When students are diverse, teachers can either ‘teach to the middle’ and hope for the best, or they can face the challenge of diversifying their instruction. … Rather than marching students through the curriculum in lockstep, teachers should modify their instruction to meet students’ varying readiness levels, learning preferences, and interests.”
The researchers say differentiated instruction keeps students more engaged and leads to more rapid progress. Bright students are no longer bored, and struggling students are provided easier access to learning.
“The mind shift piece of this was vital to our success,” says Professional Development Specialist Kellie Fremont.
She says some teachers are still wrestling with the schools’ new strategies, but adds, “We respect that there is a continuum of development. However, we have put in some non-negotiables, including the collection of data.”
Another non-negotiable is participating in professional development activities, including two 1-hour professional development sessions per month, plus online courses and presentations by other teachers at regular staff meetings.
Fifth-grade teacher Cheryl Eldridge says they key is really getting to know each student – their attitudes, preferences, learning styles, etc. She sits down with each student to set individualized learning goals and methods.
“Interviewing and goal-setting are a method of formative assessment,” she says.
Another key concept she uses is “compacting.” By using pre-assessment and other assessment data, she is able to then differentiate instruction relevant to small groups of students, she explains.
“What differentiation suggests is that you create different groups with different needs,” says Eldridge. “I don’t do 27 different learning plans but rather three or four, which I can handle.”
High-scoring Level 4 students don’t need any instruction on the topic. Level 3 students can quickly master the topic through a small group activity, says Eldridge.
More intensive instruction must then be planned for lower-scoring Level 1 and 2 students.
“Individualized goal-setting takes a long time and isn’t practical for everything,” says Fremont, and there are many types of formative assessments that can be applied.
It was in 2003 when the school began strategically using formative tests and gradually changed teachers’ thinking, which led to differentiated instruction, which led to success, says Fremont.
A number of different methods can be used to differentiate instruction, such as small group instruction, independent learning stations, choice boards, problem-based learning where students work to solve problems much like adult professionals would, and providing students varying entry points.
Howard Gardner, the creator of the multiple intelligence theory, says there are five such entry points or avenues for students to explore a given topic: narrational (presenting a story), logical-quantitative (using numbers or deduction), foundational (examining underlying philosophy and vocabulary), aesthetic (focusing on sensory features), and experiential (hands-on).
“If teachers choose to teach only grade-level content, they are saying the rest of the students are on their own. ‘Good luck!’ Some teachers were offended by that concept,” says Eldridge. “For us it was a mind shift to recognize that all students can learn, and we must meet students where they are.”
Computers help differentiate instruction
Computers are powerful tools to help achieve powerful teaching, according to John Hardy, assistant director of the Digital Learning Commons (DLC).
Hardy identified nine of the most important elements that educational experts say are essential to powerful teaching that can be enhanced specifically by web-based instruction, such as offered by DLC.
Those elements are:
1) Student-centered environment.
2) Standards-based curriculum.
3) Focus on conceptual understanding, not recall.
4) Constructivist, based on prior learning.
5) Active participation, exploration, research.
6) Collaborative, trusting environment.
7) Relevant, real-world connections.
8) Reflective, metacognitive opportunities.
9) Performance-based assessments.
Of course, making sure you access quality instruction online is vital to success, and not everything online is high quality.
That was one reason why the non-profit DLC was launched in 2003 on the recommendation of the Washington State Digital Education Initiative Task Force, initiated by former Gov. Gary Locke and is funded by the state, along with private foundations and corporations, and by participating schools.
The program now serves over 56,000 students and educators in 167 schools within 84 Washington school districts.
DLC’s mission is to improve access to high-quality educational opportunities and learning resources online, including online educational materials, courses and tools for students and teachers in Washington state.
DLC does not create all the educational materials itself. A large portion is negotiated with other existing organizations and made more accessible and affordable to Washington schools, he explains.
From DLC’s website at www.learningcommons.org students and educators can find:
“There is a wealth of resources online,” says Hardy, and DLC tries to help Washington educators access the best online resources.
Expert shares trends in math education
A major portion of the January Conference was dedicated to mathematics education, since that is currently the biggest problem for high school students trying to qualify for graduation next year.
Only 57.7 percent of the class of 2008 have passed the math WASL exam so far, so Supt. Bergeson and Gov. Gregoire have both asked the Legislature to remove passage of the math WASL from the requirements for next year’s class – the first class required to pass any of the WASL in order to graduate.
Dr. Uri Treisman of the University of Texas at Austin shared “new trends and emerging practices” in mathematics education.
Improving America’s schools requires “a level of honesty,” says Treisman. And when states or school districts get into “curriculum wars, the first victims are truth and children,” he says.
Ironically, Treisman says, the current war in Washington ignited by the problems students are having in passing the statewide WASL exam somehow overshadows the great success Washington schools are achieving.
“There is almost no discussion of what you should be proud of,” he says.
Instead, Treisman says, critics tend to recycle “simple solutions” that don’t really address the multi-dimensional problems encountered in education.
Achievement on a variety of national tests, Treisman points out, indicate that Washington has one of the top educational programs. It is one of only about 10 states that is clearly closing the Achievement Gap between Anglos and the minorities. Educationally speaking, Washington is the best place for Afro-Americans to live, he says.
Treisman says students in places like Los Angeles and Sacramento, where he has done some consulting, are about three years behind their Washington counterparts.
He suggests that while it would be easy for state education officials to be angered by their many critics, “the bigger issue is that we must maintain broad public support.”
“It is easy to be insulted,” Treisman says, “but we can’t afford to be.”
Some “solutions” in education are not as self-evident as they seem, he says. For example, some schools have decided that some students who do not have a strong math background should take two years to completed algebra – that they should “slow down to speed up.”
But Treisman says relatively few students from such programs ever go on to achieve even a “B” in a higher-level math class. About the only exception, he says, is if the teacher of the two-year algebra class teaches higher-level math classes, as well.
Treisman says he was contracted by a California school to help solve its “math problem” after 143 students failed math. Treisman, however, found that most of the failing students also failed other classes. They weren’t just bad at math; they were bad at learning.
Another simple strategy has been the hiring of math coaches in schools, but Treisman says this strategy has proven disappointing in many schools. However, a strategy used in Chicago to prepare 8,600 students to serve as “teacher allies” has proven extremely effective.
Freshmen students with poor middle school grades were chosen for a short three-week summer training program. None of the students felt capable in math. And these, like most in-coming freshmen, were very concerned about entering high school and, therefore, motivated to receive some early assistance.
Each ninth-grade math teacher chose six of these students to serve as his “allies” in class and then helped each of them become an “expert” in just one math area.
The student allies changed the entire educational environment, according to Treisman. They were much more interactive with the teacher, more willing to ask questions, more confident and more willing to assist fellow students.
The attitude of the “allies” had a positive effect on other students, as well.
The failure rate among the student allies dropped from an expected 50-60 percent to about 12.5 percent.
Success in math and in other subjects, Treisman says, relates more to student attitude than aptitude. Students need to believe they are capable of learning the material and that the teacher is THEIR ally in the process.
Helping English language learners succeed in the middle school mathematics classroom
Helping English language learners (ELLs) learn math requires more than just math expertise, says curriculum expert Linda Griffin of the Northwest Regional Education Laboratory (NWREL).
“Identifying instructional strategies that will be of most benefit for English language learners’ success in the middle school mathematics requires educators to unite two bodies of work: the research and recommendations for effective mathematics instruction with the research and recommendations for sheltered instruction,” Griffin told conference attendees.
By focusing attention on the practices that are identified in both of these domains, mathematics teachers can simultaneously promote students’ mathematical power along with mastery of the academic language for mathematics, Griffin explains.
“One of the instructional practices supported in the research in both domains is the provision of frequent and meaningful opportunities for student interactions about the content,” she says.
Some of the ways to enhance this student interaction, research suggests, include:
Reduce the amount of teacher
talk time.
Use structured and flexible
collaborative learning groups.
Encourage student
communication through discourse and writing.
(From Improving Adolescent Mathematics: Findings from Research, Peck, 2005)
Similarly, the practice of including frequent opportunities for student interactions is identified in Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) Model (Echevarria, Vogt, Short, 2004) as effective for increasing students’ academic language proficiency while gaining content knowledge, says Griffin.
“The interactions component in the SIOP model includes these four features,” she says:
Provide frequent opportunities
for interaction and discussion.
Use grouping configurations to
support language and content objectives.
Consistently afford sufficient
wait time.
Give opportunities for
clarification for concepts.
What it might look like when the practices recommended both by mathematics educators and sheltered instruction specialists are integrated in the mathematics classroom at the middle school level? Griffin offers some ideas:
Ø Use frequent pair-shares throughout the lesson in which students discuss the lesson topic or problem situation with a partner.
Ø Make student presentations a classroom routine. When students interact with each other around the solution to a mathematical problem, they enhance their mathematical understanding while practicing with the academic vocabulary of mathematics.
Ø Have students demonstrate their problem solutions using by making a posters. Use a gallery walk or round-robin poster presentation session in which explain their poster and field questions from peers.
Ø Regularly vary the size and composition of groups. Resist the temptation to always group English language learners together. ELL students benefit from hearing academic language used by their native speaking peers.
Ø Practice adequate wait time. Wait three or more seconds after asking a question and don’t allow students to call out.
Ø Remember to wait three or more seconds after a student completes a response. Students will often elaborate on an initial response or self-correct errors during a pause after they have finished speaking.
Ø Find out how much wait time you typically use. Place a small tape recorder in your pocket and tape a short segment of your class period. Listen to it and time yourself!
Ø When possible, provide math glossaries and in the students’ native language to help English language learners gain content understanding.
“When teachers apply the sheltered instruction techniques that are most congruent with the recommendations from the research in mathematics education, middle school students gain dual benefits: increased language proficiency along with gains in mathematical understanding,” Griffin says.
When principals are focused on student learning – something magical happens
Dawn Billings and Mardale Dunsworth of School Synergy shared research and tools from their upcoming book on research-based school improvement strategies, including which leadership characteristics are most directly related to successful schools.
Among these, first, and foremost, is that in successful schools, school leaders view and ensure that student learning is the central mission of the schools. This means that all other responsibilities are filtered through that lens, says Billings.
“Everything school leaders must do -- establishing a vision, setting goals, managing staff, rallying the community, creating effective learning environments, building support systems for students, guiding instruction and so on — must be in service of student learning,” she says.
The presenters discussed how spending even a few minutes in a school can reveal initial impressions of the leadership atmosphere.
“Is instruction and student learning the clear focus throughout the school? Do you see evidence that all students and their families are welcome and valued? Do staff members believe that all students can meet learning targets, and do students believe that of themselves? These are just a few of the ways you can tell that a school is effectively led,” Billings says.
Through looking at the research and discussing experiences the participants have had with effective principals, they clearly made the case that school leadership is vitally important to student success. In fact, they shared new research by Kenneth Leithwood and Karen Seashore Louis that has identified school leadership as second only to instruction in its impact on student learning.
Research by R.F. Elmore suggests that it is not in the best interest of schools for principals to think they must have all the answers but rather to apply the concept of distributed leadership.
“People should engage in activities that are consistent with their expertise and avoid activities beyond their expertise,” Billings says.
In reviewing the previous decade of reform in Washington state (1993-2003), Jeffery Fouts concluded that “successful schools have made second order changes, adopted a new set of ideas about school functioning and found new ways of organizing and running the school collaboratively. These new ideas have then directed how adults in the school function, how the curriculum is organized and implemented, and what is to go on in the classrooms,” says Billings.
According to Kathleen Cotton’s research, “Essential traits and behaviors of effective principals include high expectations of students, self-confidence, visibility, accessibility, positive and supportive school climate, high levels of communication, community outreach, professional development opportunities, shared leadership, staff empowerment, instructional leadership, classroom observation, and feedback to teachers,” says Billings.
Linda Darling-Hammond’s research concludes that “effective school leaders influence student achievement through two important pathways – the support and development of effective teachers and implementation of effective organizational processes,” Billings says.
Billings and Dunsworth say the bottom line is that “no system can be institutionalized that relies on recruiting and retaining those few magical people who instinctively know not only what to do, but how, when and why to do it.”
Presentation attendees learned how to use the tools provided to ensure a deeper and shared understanding of the most effective school leadership characteristics and behaviors. Specific tools provided included leadership effectiveness rubrics; leadership mapping strategies; survey instruments and interview questions for parents, teachers, students and community members to gauge knowledge of current leadership practices; and successful implementation strategies to use the information gathered to create an action plan to share and distribute leadership within the school and community.
The presentation can be found on their website at www.schoolsynergy.net .
High-poverty, rural districts can ‘ACE’ WASL
Despite challenging demographics such as 57 percent free or reduced lunch and 30 percent English language learners, a higher-than-average percentage of students at Henkle Middle School (HMS) routinely pass the statewide WASL assessment test.
The rural White Salmon students have a history of beating the state average in mathematics. In 2005-06, for example, about 48.5 percent of the seventh-graders statewide passed the WASL, while in White Salmon 55.6 percent passed the test.
Jill Shelley, Karen Strain and Rick George of White Salmon Valley School District. presented the school’s strategies for success.
“We use an ‘ACE’ acronym to help describe different strategies we use to help students be successful on the WASL,” explains Shelley, a teacher at HMS.
The district has several “ACES” up its sleeve.
One ACE for its community of learners relates to Align, Collaborate and Empower.
“Much time is spent reading, interpreting and cross-referencing the Grade Level Expectations (GLEs). Each teacher is expected to consider his or her curriculum and make decisions about what to keep and what to throw out,” says Shelley.
They also make a concerted effort to collaborate across grade levels, across disciplines and with specialists on a regular basis. Then students at Henkle are empowered as they are expected to understand and appreciate their personal responsibility toward their own education.
“We believe empowerment is a crucial element in our program. Our aim is for students to know the learning targets, where they are in relation to the targets, and what they need to do to meet or exceed the targets,” Shelley says. “We empower parents through education and communication, and we empower staff through trainings, mentoring and trust. Teachers are given the right and privilege to make professional decisions about curriculum choices.”
A second ACE has to do with the school’s curriculum, and it stands for: Applications, Conceptual and Essential.
“Application problems are not just what we do after practicing math facts. Applications are the math. Much of what we do is problem-solving based — skills are usually not taught in isolation,” Shelley says.
“The students are taught to grasp concepts conceptually via a concrete-to-pictorial-to-abstract format,” she says.
“E stands for essential in this ACE. Every lesson, activity and project has a student-relevant purpose that is articulated and clear,” Shelley adds..
Another ACE has to do with systemic support, and stands for: Administrative support, Capacity building, and Expenses.
“Teachers need respect and time to follow through with the ACEs,” Shelley says. “Structures of support need to be built into the system. Administrivia can be reduced by means of staff newsletters and well-structured staff meetings. Having the School Improvement Planning team help set priorities creates an environment of cooperation and shared responsibility.
To build capacity, principals need to think outside the box, she says. Much time and energy needs to go into prioritizing and utilizing resources.
The school’s final ACE has to do with students. It stands for Active, Cooperative and Expectations.
“If the learning is going to stick, students need to be actively engaged,” says Shelley. “In our program, cooperative learning is utilized to help create a more student-centered atmosphere that is rich with student discourse. And at the heart of our program is expectations of excellence for all of our students. We truly believe that every student can learn and achieve, so we have a ‘whatever it takes’ approach to reaching them.”
Students do well at Henkle because everyone understands it is a team effort, Shelley says. Students, parents, teachers, administrators and the community are committed to working together to help our students be successful.
‘Facing the Future’ provides culminating project support
Facing the Future: People and the Planet is a Seattle-based non-profit organization that provides about 4,000 teachers each year with curriculum, tools and strategies that help students:
Cecilia Lund, the organization’s education outreach coordinator made a presentation titled “From CBA to Culminating Project: Classroom Activities and Action Ideas.”
She offered ideas and resources to help make these two new graduation requirements a fun and complementary process for teachers and their students. The session walked through a framework for developing effective Culminating Projects on topics linked to two of the Social Studies Classroom-Based Assessments: Humans and the Environment and Constitutional Issues.
The framework included strategies and activities to engage students in:
· Identifying topics that they care about.
· Expressing and considering different points of view on an issue.
· Developing a vision for what they want to achieve in their project.
· Doing research by collecting, examining and documenting sources.
· Developing a plan of action with clear objectives, steps and timing.
· Implementing the project in the classroom, school or community.
· Tracking their progress.
· Producing a position paper (or other form of written work).
· Presenting their findings to the class or a school forum.
“One Facing the Future activity, for example, involves students in creating a national energy policy by negotiating between the government, civic organizations and the private sector,” says Lund.
“Students learn about the process of governance and civic engagement, and write an essay about legislation relating to a global issue. Possible action projects include organizing a voter registration campaign or participating in a local city council meeting,” she adds.
Another activity has students identify the components of an Ecological Footprint by creating a web diagram of a resource they use in their everyday lives, Lund explains. Students compare Ecological Footprints of different groups in the world and raise awareness about the interconnections between consumption and the environment through a lifestyle campaign at their school.
“Facing the Future offers a comprehensive set of resources for teaching and learning about global issues and sustainability,” Lund says. These include:
Activity-Based Lessons
Engaging Students through Global Issues: Activity-Based Lessons and Action Projects offers rigorous and relevant ways to bring global issues alive in the classroom. Each activity is designed to help students understand key concepts, internalize issues, develop critical thinking skills, and implement sustainable solutions. Each lesson includes ideas on action projects that are directly related to the content addressed in the activity.
Student Textbooks
Facing the Future student textbooks include an intermediate textbook -- Global Issues and Sustainable Solutions: Population, Poverty, Consumption, Conflict, and the Environment -- and an advanced textbook -- It’s All Connected: A Comprehensive Guide to Global Issues and Sustainable Solutions. “The textbooks are fully-referenced and highlight positive youth-centered solutions to complex global issues,” Lund says. A Teacher’s Companion with review and assessment questions to go with the reading is available to download for free online.
Website
Facing the Future’s website (www.facingthefuture.org) offers extensive resources for teachers and students, including downloadable lessons, service learning projects, youth-centered action opportunities, and additional information and resources on global issues and sustainable solutions.
Professional Development and Workshops for Educators
Facing the Future offers hands-on, interactive workshops and in-services for classroom teachers, pre-service teachers, and community educators. “These workshops promote global literacy, critical thinking and problem-solving,” Lund says. “They explore strategies and tools to help educators integrate global sustainability into their curriculum; and provide educators with proven techniques to engage students through action and service learning.” Facing the Future also consults with schools, districts, and states interested in the integration of global issues and sustainability across the curriculum.
Facing the Future: People and the Planet can be contacted at 206-264-1503, by emailing cecilia@facingthefuture.org or by visited the organization’s website at www.facingthefuture.org.
Alternative schools fill needs of 32,000 students
Alternative education is more than a program model, it is a philosophy, says Lile Holland, executive director of Washington Association for Learning Alternatives (WALA).
In Washington State alternative education has many forms including, in-school programs, at-risk student programs, dropout prevention, credit recovery, GED prep, theme-based, community-based, contract studies, and parent-partnership programs.
WALA is a Bremerton-based non-profit organization that brings together and supports alternative education administrators and educators throughout the state.
The Solutions in Alternative Education presentation at the January Conference was presented by Holland.
Alternative programs are funding in a variety of way, Holland explains. Basic education allowance is the primary format. However, some programs are levy- or bond-funded.
“Alternative funding under WAC 392-121-182 allows districts to count students for up to 1.0 FTE even though part or all of the instruction takes place beyond the boundaries of the traditional school building,” Lund explains.
The WALA official discussed the different types of alternative programs and the alternative funding model, including; general guidelines, school board policies, the written student learning plan requirements, reporting requirements, and examples of calculating FTE.
“Alternative ed takes many forms,” Holland says, adding that altogether there are an estimated 330 alternative education programs or schools in the state serving approximately 32,000.
Some of the most common types of alternative programs include:
At-Risk Alternative Schools are traditionally secondary schools (7-12) that are self-contained schools in which the student takes all or part of their subjects. The most successful programs are “choice” programs, i.e., the student chooses to attend the alternative school. In most cases the students are either credit deficient or have dropped out and are returning to public education with a deficit in background learning. About 67% of these schools offer their own diploma.
A small number of districts still have referral programs. The students are "referred" to the alternative school because of attendance, behavior or academic problems by their resident school.
“Often this is used as a way for suspended or expelled students to work their way back into the school. This is the least successful model,” Holland says.
“In 2006, alternative schools enrolled over 18,000 students [FTE – 32,000 head count], and experienced a graduation rate of 58 percent, and a dropout rate of 17 percent,” he says. “In many cases these were students who had not been successful at the traditional school, but were successful in the alternative setting.
Some programs offer GED prep courses for students who will turn 21 and still are short credits for high school graduation.
“These student are counted as dropouts, but hey have received vocational and academic skills to help prepare them for adult life,” Holland says.
Alternative Schools with Contract Studies are usually secondary (7-12). They offer students who are credit-deficient the opportunity to make up classes or to take classes not offered at their school.
“Successful student must be able to read at grade level and be self-motivated, as the work is completed with a minimum of direct instruction away from the campus and many times after hours,” Holland explains.
Digital Learning Programs include in-school programs where the computer-driven class is part of the regular school day, and programs that are completed outside the confines of the school and in many cases after hours.
There are programs in place for students in grades K-12. The typical student enrolls in digital courses because they are not offered through their resident high school, according to Holland. Again, the ability to read at grade level is a key to success.
“Many schools use the Digital Learning Commons as the clearinghouse for courses,” Holland says. “Courses range from remedial to AP to college level.”
Distance Learning Programs also use computer-based instruction, but the student receives instruction from an instructor in a district that is not the student’s resident district.
“This is the newest form of alternative education and the fastest-growing,” says Holland.
Several districts have signed contracts with commercial providers to offer such courses.
“We do not have reliable data on the graduation rates or program success, as these programs have not been in operation long enough,” Holland adds.
Again, the ability to read at grade level and self-motivation are keys to successfully completing the courses.
Parent Partnership Programs (PPPs) are generally K-12. In 2006 over 8,000 students were enrolled in PPPs.
“In this format, the parent is the primary instructor,” Holland explains. “The student learning plan is written and supervised by a district certificated teacher, and the student and parent meet with the teacher weekly for progress assessment and assistance. Many of these are former home-schooling families, and many are enrolled in Running Start Programs.”
Because some of the students do not complete high school graduation requirements but, rather, complete an associate of arts degree through Running Start, they are considered dropouts.
Specialty/Theme Schools center instruction around a theme or academic area, such as music, dance or engineering. Most of these schools have entrance requirements that must be met before the student is enrolled. Many offer honors classes or classes designed for technical school programs following graduation.
Specific questions regarding program start-up, program models and reporting were discussed in detail. Attendees were given copies of the WAC, examples of student learning plans, and OSPI reporting forms.
Additional training is scheduled for the WALA Conference in March, additional questions call also be addressed to Holland at walakids@comcast.net or at 800-455-WALA, or visit the organization’s website at www.walakids.com.
Online learning tools help students achieve on-time graduation
Online high school is one alternative educational opportunity available in Washington state.
Sometimes, students need more time, help and different ways to learn, explains Kathy Seltzer of Everett Public Schools (EPS), which provides the program.
Courses from OnlineHS help students earn credits to catch up to their target graduation date, according to Seltzer, but it does not currently offer enough courses for a full four-year program. Other online WASL Prep courses help students succeed on exams.
“Serving more than 1,000 students within the Everett Public Schools and hundreds in surrounding school districts, OnlineHS has a positive impact on student learning,” says Seltzer, an English and health teacher at Sequoia High School. “Students that did not graduate on-time in June were able to recover credit and graduate in August.”
Students from throughout the state can enroll into OnlineHS with a variance, and if they are enrolled in no other school, there is no tuition for up to five courses during the first semester and six thereafter. Students from other schools who enroll into OnlineHS for additional courses must pay a $200 tuition fee for each semester (.5 credit) course.
Since 2002, enrollment in OnlineHS has grown from less than 50 students in six courses to over 1,300 students in 18 courses. According to Seltzer:
· English: 9 - 12
· Math: Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2 w/Trig, Pre-Calculus
· Science: Biology
· Social Studies: U.S. History, World History, Government, Washington State History
· Health: Lifetime Fitness (PE), Health
Students residing in Washington state are required to attend school (RCW28A.225), but attendance for online students is different, Seltzer says.
“OnlineHS students are required to ‘attend’ class, just like students in a building school setting,” she says, but “attendance is defined as weekly assignment completion and contact with teachers.”
Students interact with teachers and other students via discussion boards. Initially they introduce themselves with a brief biographical statement. Then throughout the course, students respond to discussion prompts related to what they are studying.
“To earn the most points, students must submit an initial response and also reply to what others have written,” Seltzer explains. “We also have an open forum (discussion board) where students can talk about anything that is school appropriate.
“It is really amazing how comfortable students are messaging and writing commentary within this medium. As a teacher, I think I know MORE about each student because no one can ‘disappear’ in the back corner,” she says.
Learning online is a student – parent – teacher partnership. Parent involvement increases student success, Seltzer says.
“When parents stay involved in making schedules, familiarizing themselves with course material, assignments and grades, and communicate with teachers, students have a high degree of success,” she explains. “Learning and work completion is transparent online, and this allows parents immediate access to curriculum and grade books.”
In addition to core curriculum, WASL Prep courses incorporate the OSPI Instructional Support Modules for the WASL targets.
“The courses focus on test preparation and practice. In addition to skills review, students learn strategies to pass the test and increase confidence,” Seltzer says.
“This alternative learning environment (ALE) helps students overcome traditional institutional barriers because students can personalize education,” she says.
Students can accelerate achievement with:
OnlineHS works for student’s specific needs to:
“With technology, students can learn virtually anytime, anywhere,” says Seltzer.
For more information go to http://www.OnlineHS.net or email OnlineHS@everettsd.org
Program helps provide technology literacy in middle school
“There is no doubt that technology education is crucial to the success of our youth today and in the future,” says Dr. Dennis Harper, executive director Generation Y. “Today’s youth are part of a generation that has grown up with technology around them. However, schools are often not part of this technological transformation.
“In fact, in many schools, technology is seen as an ‘extra’ that comes after the real schoolwork is done,” Harper says. “This is far from the truth, and cannot continue if we are to provide our children with a 21st century education.”
Generation Y works with schools and after-school community organizations to bring education into the 21st century, Harper explains.
“Learning about how technology works, how to use it safely and wisely comes from actually solving problems and coming up with creative solutions,” he says. “In many schools in California’s Central Valley, students were given just such an opportunity with a program called TechYES.”
Funded by Verizon, the California Technology Literacy Project gave over 10,000 middle school students in underserved schools an opportunity to earn a certificate of technology literacy by completing projects that use technology in creative, appropriate ways, Harper told participants at his January Conference workshop.
In each school, a small group of students and one teacher received special training so they could go back to their schools and help all the other students get their certificates.
“By including peer mentors in the effort, schools were able to offer students the opportunity to participate even if they didn’t offer a technology class. Student peer mentors could help anytime, anywhere and in any language,” Harper says. “Research shows that peer mentoring is a powerful learning opportunity for both individuals, especially in at-risk populations.”
In one school, students completed TechYES projects to teach their parents about technology. At another school, students built games and multimedia presentations to teach elementary students math.
“These students were learning skills and habits of mind that will serve them in their schoolwork and life for years to come,” Harper says.
The results of the project show an “astonishing impact,” according to Harper. They include:
* About 97 percent of the advisors agreed that TechYES helped bridge the digital divide in their schools.
* There was significant positive change in the knowledge and skills of all those involved in TechYES.
* Advisors saw growth in their students' technology skills, in peer mentors' skills as effective leaders, and tutors in their own abilities to teach technology.
“We hope to bring this effective technology literacy program to many more students everywhere,” Harper says.
More details about this project can be found at http://www.geny.org/verizon/ or by contacting Harper at (888) 941-4369 x111.
Consolidated Program Review to cover 18 programs
The Consolidated Program Review (CPR) is a process that incorporates the review of 18 programs funded by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB), also known as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)
A presentation by Gary Gorland of the OSPI CPR Committee explained how CPR fulfills OSPI’s sub-recipient compliance monitoring requirements under federal regulations. But the Consolidated Program Review also provides the opportunity for dialogue and technical assistance between district program managers and their counterparts at OSPI, Gorland says.
“The CPR process consists of a team of staff members from OSPI reviewing school district federal programs, as well as the state LAP (Learning Assistance Program) and Highly Capable programs,” he says.
“This process also encourages active participation by districts through the completion of an online self-study via iGrants and the compilation of program documentation,” says Gorland. “Both contribute to bringing together all district federal program managers to identify how the resources they manage contribute to overall district goals for student achievement and to the five ESEA performance goals:
CPR 2006-07 A Pilot Year:
OSPI has just completed a four-year Consolidated Federal Program Review monitoring cycle of all districts in Washington state.
“We have been in the process of revising CPR to be more aligned with the Department of Education’s focused monitoring of districts,” Gorland explains.
As a result, the
CPR process has been updated for the 2006-07 school year to include:
1) The development of criteria for annual statewide identification of districts
potentially at-risk.
2) Annual reviews of districts determined to be potentially most at risk.
3) Annual reviews of the four largest districts in Washington state.
4) Continue to conduct routine, regional district reviews.
(Regional reviews in 2006-2008 will be districts in ESDs 105, 112, 113.)
Monitoring of districts will begin in February 2007, Gorland says.
Helping students improve understanding, skills
Based on the WASL performance of middle and high school students, specific skills and understandings have been identified as areas of difficulty, according to Jerry Johnson of Western Washington University, John Feal of Blaine High School (BHS), and Mike Shappel, also of BHS.
Two major areas of weakness are (1) using, calculating, and interpreting perimeter, area, and volume in multiple contexts and (2) supporting a conclusion with mathematical information from a chart, table or graph, the three educators explained during their presentation, Johnson explains.
In response to a legislative request, an OSPI task force is developing learning modules and related performance-based assessments that will enhance both the teaching and learning of the mathematics in these difficult areas.
Using a lesson format appropriate for both classroom use and tutorial learning activities, the modules will be distributed on a free CD-ROM to middle and high school teachers throughout Washington State in early March.
Also, a special web area for students and parents, being implemented on OSPI's web site in June, will focus on these same areas, plus the areas of fractions, decimals, percents, proportional thinking, graphs and division.
This conference presentation (1) described the content and format of the modules, (2) discussed the underlying structure and sequence, (3) showed sample materials, (4) previewed the content on the web site, and (5) built confidence that it is possible to overcome these areas of difficulty.
Sunnyside staff reviews Reading First success
The process implemented under a Reading First grant to improve reading instruction for at-risk students in grades K-3 in a small school district in Eastern Washington was explained by Gwyn Trull of Sunnyside School District.
The project, which included Washington Elementary School where she serves as principal, has been very successful, she says.
Spring benchmark data, as measured by the DIBELS assessment in May 2006, indicated that 74 percent of kindergarten students, 68 percent of first-grade students, 55 percent of second-grade students and 64 percent of third-graders met benchmark.
Those scores indicated a definite acceleration in achievement, compared with 2004 results, when 53 percent of the kindergartners, 55 percent of the first-graders, 47 percent of the second-graders and 51 percent of the third-graders met benchmark.
Assessment, core program implementation, and the Walk to Read model were discussed. There was a focus on how goals are set for students based on individual assessment, the placement of students in appropriate interventions, and the progress monitoring of their skills. Current grade level action plans, pacing calendars and progress monitoring samples were shared.
Multiple sources of student performance data are utilized by the district, according to Trull. Teacher in-service opportunities that deepened knowledge of the curriculum and research were also provided.
Presenters emphasized that the implementation of the instructional efforts accelerated reading achievement for all students, including those who qualify as migrant, ELL, bilingual or special ed.
“Washington School staff is proud of the accomplishment they have made in the teaching of reading,” says Trull.
Presenters included the principal, a reading coach, and representatives from the School Reading Leadership Committee.