Improving Achievement and Closing Gaps Between Groups: Data Resources and Hints

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Improving Achievement and Closing Gaps Between
GroupsData Resources and Hints
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• Six Analyses You Can Do To Initiate or Refocus
  Change Efforts
• Two Key Web-based resources for you
• http//www.just4kids.org
• http//www.edtrust.org

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1. Classroom Value-Added Analyses
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How This Research Got Started
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Effects On Students Math Scores In Dallas (Grades
3-5)
Beginning 3rd Grade
Change in Average Score on Math Assessment Over 3
years
Source Heather Jordan, Robert Mendro, Dash
Weerasinghe, " Teacher Effects On Longitudinal
Student Achievement" 1997.
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Student Growth in One Classroom Teacher A
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Student Growth in One Classroom Teacher B
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Student Growth in One Classroom Teacher C
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In High Schools, Can Also Generate Predicted
vs. Actual Performance, by Classroom
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Value-Added Data Systems

• Statewide in TN for 12 years
• Ohio Battelle for Kids has underway in
  one-third of all districts (and will be used to
  evaluate ed schools)
• Pennsylvania (pilot in 10 school districts)
• Other districts around the country

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Value-Added Resources

• William Sanders and June Rivers, SAS in the
  Schools, North Carolina

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2. Whos Teaching Whom?

• collect data on teacher and student
  characteristics--what are the patterns?
• Analyzing master schedules--time AND talent

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Classes in High Poverty High Schools More Often
Taught by Underqualified Teachers
Teachers who lack a major or minor in the
field Source National Commission on Teaching and
Americas Future, What Matters Most Teaching for
Americas Future (p.16) 1996.
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Poor and Minority Students Get More
Inexperienced Teachers
Teachers with 3 or fewer years of experience.
High and low refer to top and bottom
quartiles. Source National Center for Education
Statistics, Monitoring Quality An Indicators
Report, December 2000.
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Analyzing Master Schedules

• the most experienced and best educated teachers
  who are they teaching
• student loads AP vs. Remedial courses

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Regular Team Sample
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Pre-IB Team Sample
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11-12 IB/AP Teacher Sample
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3. What About the Matter of Time for
Instruction?
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Most of us think of semester- or year-long
increments to teach kids what they need to learn,
but...
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Analysis of of School Calendars Tells a
Different Story About Available Time
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The Full Year Calendar
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Less Summer Vacation
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Less Weekends, Holidays, Summer Vacation
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Less Professional Development Days Early
Dismissal/Parent Conferences
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Less Class Picnic, Class Trip, Thanksgiving
Feast, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hannukkah, Awards,
Assembles, Concerts
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Less State and District Testing
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Bottom Line

• Roughly 13-15 Eight-Hour Days Per Subject Per
  Year

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Kids Who are Behind Need Extra Instruction
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4. Organizing Resources for Different Results
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Its easy to fall into a pattern of blaming poor
results on problems beyond our control.

• For example, high 9th grade failure rates
  generally blamed on poor preparation, difficult
  transitions.
• But

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One Colorado High School Student/Teacher Ratio
by Grade
Grade 9th 10th 11th 12th
Average number of students per teacher 30.3 16.7 11.6 12.1
Source Jovenes Unidos Padres Unidos March,
2004.. Data from Colorado School Accountability
Reports.
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Same Colorado High SchoolCounselor Deployment
by Grade
Grade 9th 10th 11th 12th
Number of Counselors 1 1 1 1
Number of Students 572 366 309 213
Source Jovenes Unidos and Padres Unidos March,
2004
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Make sense?

• Thinking about staffing differentlyfor different
  results.

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Staffing Decisions and Class Size ImpactsCore
Subject Teachers Only
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Staffing Decisions and Class Size
ImpactsIncluding SPED Specialists
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Staffing Decisions and Class Size
ImpactsIncluding Title I and ELL Specialists
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Staffing Decisions and Class Size
ImpactsIncluding Enrichment Teachers
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Staffing Decisions and Class Size
ImpactsIncluding Other Certified FTEs
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Staffing Decisions and Class Size ImpactsOptimal
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Reynolds Middle School More Effective Use of
Time Means Increased Instructional Opportunities
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5.Teacher and Student Work

• grades/score analyses
• Standards in Practice
• Calibration

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A Students in High Poverty Schools Score at
About the Same Level as C and D Students in
Affluent Schools
Source US Department of Education, Office of
Educational Research and Improvement. What Do
Student Grades Mean? Difference Across Schools.
Educational Research Report (p. 3) January 1995.
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Standards in PracticeA Quality
Control/Instructional Improvement Tool

• Developed in El Paso, Pueblo, Philly
• now in broad use
• teams of teachers, 2 hours a week
• is work meeting standards?

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Grade 10 Writing Assignment
A frequent theme in literature is the conflict
between the individual and society. From
literature you have read, select a character who
struggled with society. In a well-developed
essay, identify the character and explain why
this characters conflict with society is
important.
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Grade 10 Writing Assignment
Write a composition of at least 4 paragraphs on
Martin Luther Kings most important contribution
to this society. Illustrate your work with a
neat cover page. Neatness counts.
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Calibration Are Assignments at Standard?

• 2 week method
• crate method

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Useful ResourceDataWorks
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14 SC Schools Calibrated
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6. Student Views

• Surveys
• Focus Groups
• Shadowing
• Writing/Drama
• Data Analysis

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What Teenagers Say About School Rigor

• Fewer Than 3 in 10 Think Their School is Very
  Academically Rigorous

Source 1998 Annual Survey from Whos Who Among
American High School Students
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Focus Groupseg. San Jose Unified
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Or How About a Little Real-World Application of
Mathematics Skills?
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By the way, its not just students who ought to
be looking at whos in what courses...
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High-performing minority students often excluded
from higher-rigor courses
Source The Achievement Council and the Education
Trust West analysis of unpublished CA district
data, 2001.
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7. Some New Web-Based Data Resources for YOU!
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• http//www.just4kids.org
• http//www.edtrust.org

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Just4Kids.org
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edtrust.org
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Black 4th Graders NAEP Reading
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Gaps Between Groups?
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Latino-White Gap 4th Grade Reading
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Dispelling the Myth Online 2.0
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Dispelling the Myth
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Dispelling the Myth
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Dispelling the Myth
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Finally, a few words about NCLB
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NCLBRedefined What It Means to Be A Good School

• To be good, you have to be good for all groups of
  students that you serve.

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Also obligated states, districts to get a lot
more serious about teacher quality.

• Most important requirement
• Must work toward a much fairer distribution of
  teacher talent.

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Not surprisingly, a lot of pushback.
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However, results to date show evidence of
improvements, especially in elementary and middle
school grades.
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North CarolinaRaising Achievement, Closing Gaps
Grade 4 Math
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24
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Source North Carolina Department of Public
Instruction, http//www.ncpublicschools.org
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North CarolinaRaising Achievement, Closing Gaps
Grade 7 Reading
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27
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Source North Carolina Department of Public
Instruction, http//www.ncpublicschools.org
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DelawareRaising Achievement, Closing GapsGrade
5 Reading
8
26
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Source Delaware Department of Education,
http//www.doe.state.de.us
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IllinoisRaising Achievement, Closing GapsGrade
5 Math
16
35
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Source Illinois State Board of Education,
http//www.isbe.state.il.us
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OhioRaising Achievement, Closing GapsGrade 6
Reading
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FloridaRaising Achievement, Closing GapsGrade 4
Reading
26
38
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Source Florida Department of Education,
http//www.fcatresults.com
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VirginiaRaising Achievement, Closing GapsGrade
3 Math
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26
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Source Virginia Department of Education,
http//pen.k12.va.us
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PennsylvaniaRaising Achievement, Closing
GapsGrade 8 Reading
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Source Pennsylvania Department of Education,
http//www.pde.state.pa.us/
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MichiganRaising Achievement, Closing GapsGrade
8 Math
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Source Michigan Department of Education,
http//www.michigan.gov/mde
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MassachusettsRaising First-Time Pass RatesMCAS
Exit Exam
Source Massachusetts Department of Education,
http//www.doe.mass.edu
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The Education Trust

• Download this Presentation
• www.edtrust.org
• Washington, DC 202-293-1217
• Oakland, CA 510-465-6444