May 08

TAH Grant Data Update (AMTF & FLAG)

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TAH Grant Data Update (AMTF & FLAG)

Click on the Above Link for the full Blog.

TAH Website / On-Line

Throughout the school year, teachers were asked to share their success within their community.  We had a total of 38 documents posted on-line from our TAH teachers.  A lot of these documents were posted in the local papers supporting the TAH grant itself and each document usually spoke of several teachers, not just one individual.

Also, teachers posted pictures of instructional strategies that were being used in their lessons.  We had 175 strategies posted on the TAH website.  This really went beyond my expectations and I have also enjoyed reading the feedback that the other teachers are leaving for each other.  Way to GO!

Attendance

The average amount of hours for each teacher is well within reach of meeting the goal for the TAH grant.  With the Summer Colloquium coming up in June, we should be within reach of 40 hours for each group.  Last year, our FLAG group (TAH 2) had a low average of hours, but they have really stepped it up this year with an average of 32 hours so far! This is great news for showing growth and sustainability.

AMTF (TAH 1), what can I say?  You guys show up in numbers for everything!

 

Observation Data

This year our TAH teachers were asked to compete, not one, but two classroom peer observations.  So, what did we get?  A lot of excellent data for our evaluator to analyze!  Combine both grants together and you have a total of 229 classroom observations.  That is just mind-blowing to think about.  When coming into your classroom to do your coordinator observation, many of you spoke about what you enjoyed seeing in the other classrooms.  Many great ideas come from each other and when we breakdown the actual data from the classrooms, you will see an unbelievable parity with the instruction.

 

Student Pre & Post Surveys / Test

This last bit of information really made me think of what an impact that this TAH grant really has.  For both groups, the number of students that you reach directly is awesome.  If we combine only the Student Pre-Surveys, you have a total of 3,022 students.  Three Thousand and Twenty Two Students!!  That is just a portion of how many students you have an impact on, because not everyone did the surveys and the test!  And, if we think about how many more students you will have in your classroom in the years to come…… yes, you will have that knowledge from the TAH grant to give your students a great reward.

 

 

Mar 03

TAH Summer Colloquium 2012 (presenter proposal form)

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Would you like to earn an extra $150.00 this summer? Would you like to do a 50 minute presentation about your favorite topic or strategy at our Summer Colloquium? If you answered YES to both questions, then this is for you!

We would like for you to share with the Cadre members your success that you may be having with an instructional strategy. Or share a topic that is engaging and important for others to hear.

You will need to first compete the proposal form. The link to this is below. It is due March 30, 2012.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dHlYUUU2MzNZYXY0QzdBSzJyMmdqUnc6MQ#gid=0

Second, you will need to submit a brief power point, video, or outline about your presentation. It is also due on March 30, 2012. Please send those to me.

All proposals will be viewed by the TAH Advisory Committee. If your proposal is selected, you will be notified by email.

We have great teachers in this grant and we want you to share your knowledge and experiences! Thanks!

Mar 03

TAH Cadres to finish up strong!

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In both of our cadre groups (AMTF and FLAG), teachers are finishing their last cadre meetings in strong form. At our last TAH Advisory Committee, it was reported that both groups were averaging higher completion hours than last year. Below is some impressive data comparing the two semesters for this year.

AMTF – Americas Many Trails of Freedom (Middle School Group)
FLAG – Freedom to Learn America’s Government (High School Group)

Instructional Strategies Notebook (TAH Website)
22 lessons posted back in the Fall Semester of 2011
96 lessons posted as of February 24, 2012

Public Relations Notebook (TAH Website)
4 items posted in the Public Relations Notebook back in the Fall Semester of 2011
23 items* are now currently posted as of February 24, 2012
*Most documents include 3 to 4 teachers each

Attendance (Average Attendance Hours)
AMTF: 21 hours completed back in the Fall Semester of 2011
AMTF: An average of 30 hours completed as of February 24, 2012

FLAG: 18 hours completed back in the Fall Semester of 2011
FLAG: An average of 25 hours completed as of February 24, 2012

Observation Data (Peer and Coordinator Observations)
AMTF: 27 observations completed back in the Fall Semester of 2011
AMTF: 114 observations completed as of February 28, 2012

FLAG: 16 observations completed back in the Fall Semester of 2011
FLAG: 69 observations completed as of February 28, 2012

At the end of this month (March), both groups will be finished with their Cadres and will be looking forward to the Summer Colloquium in June 2012!

Feb 28

What is Formative Assessment?

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What is Formative Assessment?

According to Mathematics Formative Assessment:  75 Practical Strategies for Linking Assessment, Instruction, and Learning  by Page Keeley and Cheryl Rose Tobey, the purpose of formative assessment is to “inform instruction and provide feedback to students on their learning.”  Formative assessment is a very important part of the instructional process.  When incorporated into classroom practice, it provides the information needed to adjust teaching and learning while they are happening.  Formative assessment informs both teachers and students about student understanding at a point when timely adjustments can be made.  We should think of formative assessment as “practice.”  This practice helps the teacher determine the next steps during the learning process.

“A good analogy for this is the road test that is required to receive a driver’s license. What if, before getting your driver’s license, you received a grade every time you sat behind the wheel to practice driving? What if your final grade for the driving test was the average of all of the grades you received while practicing? Because of the initial low grades you received during the process of learning to drive, your final grade would not accurately reflect your ability to drive a car. In the beginning of learning to drive, how confident or motivated to learn would you feel? Would any of the grades you received provide you with guidance on what you needed to do next to improve your driving skills? Your final driving test, or summative assessment, would be the accountability measure that establishes whether or not you have the driving skills necessary for a driver’s license—not a reflection of all the driving practice that leads to it. The same holds true for classroom instruction, learning, and assessment.” If used effectively, formative assessment will help students be more successful on summative assessments. http://www.amle.org/Publications/WebExclusive/Assessment/tabid/1120/Default.aspx

There are many types of formative assessment that do not take an inordinate amount of time.   Assessments such as “Always, Sometimes, or Never True,” the “Frayer Model,” “Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down,” and “Entrance and Exit Slips” are just a few.  The key to effective formative assessment is how the teacher uses the information gathered from the task.  Teachers must use that information to guide their teaching in order to determine what standards students already know and their depth of knowledge.

“Formative assessments are not about gotcha-ing students but about guiding where instruction needs to go next. We should use them frequently, and while or after kids learn a new idea, concept, or process. When you are on your way to the Big End Project (or summative assessment) and students have just learned a piece or a step toward the end, check to see if they’ve got it.”  http://www.edutopia.org/blog/formative-assessments-importance-of-rebecca-alber

Feb 21

Ratio of Interactions

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Some of the most powerful tools that teachers have at their disposal are absolutely free!  The spoken word, a pat on the back, a thumbs up – these positive interactions are highly effective for motivating students and shaping behavior.  Current research indicates that a ratio of 5:1 – five positive interactions to one negative is optimal for relationship building and improving student behavior and performance.  It is fascinating to note that researchers have applied this ratio to adult relationships as well.  Successful business AND marriages are built on positive interactions; therefore, we not only encourage appropriate behavior, but model for our students the types of interactions that will serve them throughout adulthood.

Interactions are deemed positive or negative depending on the behavior which they are addressing.  With this being said, any interaction that is in response to an inappropriate behavior is considered to be a negative interaction regardless of how kindly it is delivered.  For example, a student may be blurting out in class and I say, “Katie, I am so glad that you know the answer, but I need to see that other know as well.”  The correction was delivered in a kind manner, but since the behavior being addressed is negative, the interaction is still a negative interaction.

So, how does this ratio occur in your classroom?  Well, it does not just happen, it requires that you make a concerted effort to systematically acknowledge and reinforce appropriate behaviors as often as possible.  Additionally, when dealing with inappropriate behaviors, it is important to determine which behaviors can be ignored and which behaviors must be addressed.  When a student exhibits an inappropriate behavior in your classroom, ask yourself the following questions:  Can I still teach?  Can the student still learn?  Can the other students still learn?  If the answer to all three questions is YES, ignore the behavior.  If you consciously acknowledge appropriate behaviors and ignore those behaviors that do not interfere with instruction, you will make great strides toward the 5:1 ratio.

Begin your morning with 10 pennies, paperclips, or other small object in your pocket.  Each time you feel the object in your pocket, provide a positive interaction and remove one item from the pocket.  By lunchtime, your pocket should be empty.  Refill and strive to deliver at least ten more positive interactions before the end of the school day.  Even at this rate, you most likely have not reached the 5:1 ratio, but you are training yourself to make positive interactions a part of your daily instruction.  By achieving this ratio, we teach our students that they will more readily gain access to teacher attention by behaving appropriately rather than inappropriately.

“The more positive attention a child receives the more cooperative he becomes.”  (http://www.aish.com/f/p/48918197.html)

Feb 07

KAGAN Training comes to TAH

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On February 29, 2012 WTEC along with the TAH Grant will be hosting a KAGAN event in Richmond, KY.

Currently we have 45 teachers signed up for this training, along with several more on our waiting list. Our TAH teachers have been excited to hear about this training and what new strategies it will bring. Below is a short description about this event.

Kagan Professional Development offers the world’s most powerful and engaging professional development opportunities for educators. Each year, Kagan offers workshops, academies, coaching, and courses to thousands of teachers, trainers, and administrators worldwide. What sets Kagan apart from other training organizations is Kagan Structures. Kagan Structures are research-based instructional strategies that have a track record of improving academic achievement and social outcomes.

We know the number one key to success in school is quality instruction. And the number one key to quality instruction is actively engaging students. It’s all about engagement! Kagan Professional Development offers world-famous Kagan Structures that boost engagement and learning for all students. Experience first-hand the power of the Kagan approach and come away with practical and proven strategies that you can really use tomorrow!

Jan 24

Practices to Support Struggling Learners

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Testing becomes more present on our minds the closer we get to the testing window.  After winter break, the countdown begins.  With all the new changes in standards, testing and the test administration, it can be a little stressful.

To provide some assistance to teachers, the state English / Language Arts PLC compiled a variety of strategies to help struggling learners.  The following practices are best learned when the teacher provides sufficient modeling, followed by guided, then independent practice.  They do not work equally well in all situations, or with all learners.  The key is to transfer as many strategies as possible to the students and demonstrate under which circumstances a particular strategy works best.

When text is complex and the student doesn’t understand:

  • Read on past the trouble spot for more information
  • Use key words in the sentence as clues
  • Read aloud
  • Make personal connections to text
  • Ask, “What else do you know about it?” (background knowledge)
  • Predict what will happen and then check prediction
  • Visualize or make mental pictures of text
  • Keep asking questions to clarify (self-monitor)
  • Find important events and ideas from the passage
  • Summarize notes in the margins or on post-its
  • Web around a repeated word
  • Re-read the section
  • Use the meaning of the most common prefixes & suffixes
  • Highlight key words and phrases
  • Read the question first, and then skim and scan
  • Use knowledge of text structure (expository & narrative)
  • Use Writing to Learn Strategies
  • Chunk by sentence, section, or page to summarize

When the student struggles with words within a text:

  • Look at all parts of the word (beginning, middle, ending)
  • Read on, then come back to the trouble spot
  • Think about what would make sense
  • Substitute another word that would make sense
  • See if it looks like another word you’ve seen (pattern)
  • Figure it out from the rest of the sentence (context clues)
  • Use key words in the sentence as clues
  • Check the graphics (if there are any) for clues
  • Use word analysis (affixes, root and base words, chunking)

When the student’s reading rate is slow:

  • Read only the first and last sentence in each paragraph to get the gist
  • Read the question first, then scan for the answer using words from the question
  • When stuck on a question, skip it, answer the ones you can, then go back
  • Use graphics
  • Look for bold, underlined, defined, or highlighted words in the text
  • Skim and scan
  • Use test-taking strategies to narrow answers
Jan 18

KY Gap Delivery Plan

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KDE has developed a Gap Delivery Plan to ensure that students from typically under-performing sub groups (i.e. Students with Disabilities, English Langauge Learners, Free/Reduced Lunch, etc) achieve at the highest levels possible.The plan has multiple components including   Consolidated Planning with the use of Data; a Communication Plan, Flexible Funding, Individual Learning Plans for students attending Alternative Schools, Digital Learning, Professional development, Progress Monitoring, and Intentional Use of Proficiency Strategies for Subgroups.  You can find out more about this plan at:  http://www.education.ky.gov/nr/rdonlyres/860aab54-b6fc-4a7d-9825-4f490c620393/0/gapdeliveryplan010612.pdf.

 

Jan 17

Making Math Fun and Meaningful

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In order for math to be fun yet meaningful for your students, I encourage you to teach mathematics with the “CRA” approach.  The CRA instructional sequence consists of three stages:  concrete, representation, and abstract.

Concrete:  In this stage, the teacher begins instruction by modeling each mathematical concept with concrete materials (hands-on materials).  This is the “doing” stage.

Representational:  In the representational stage, the teacher transforms the concrete model into representational (sometimes referred to as the semi-concrete) level.  This may include drawing pictures, using tallies, etc.  This is the “seeing” stage.

Abstract:  At this stage, the teacher models the mathematics concept at a symbolic level, using only numbers and mathematical symbols.  This is the “symbolic” stage.

Research-based studies show that students who use concrete materials develop more precise and more comprehensive mental representations, often show more motivation and on-task behavior, understand mathematical ideas, and better apply these ideas to real life situations.  The CRA sequence of learning provides a conceptually supported framework for students to create a meaningful connection among concrete, representational, and abstract levels of understanding.  Beginning with a concrete level of instruction allows students to develop a pictorial representation of those concrete objects and move toward the abstract level of understanding.

Some of the concepts that naturally lend themselves to using the CRA sequence include:  place value, computation, fractions, decimals, geometry, money, percentages, number bases, word problems, or measurement.

http://www.k8accesscenter.org/training_resources/CRA_Instructional_Approach.asp