Closing the Achievement Gap: It Takes a Lot More Than the National Reading Panels Big Five

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Closing the Achievement Gap It Takes a Lot More
Than the National Reading Panels Big Five

• Michael L. Shaw Maria May
• Professor of Literacy
  Reading Specialist
• Education Cherry Lane El. School
• St. Thomas Aquinas
  Ph.D. Candidate
• College Fordham University
• mshaw_at_stac.edu
  maym_at_ramapocentral.org

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Objectives

• Understand that closing the achievement gap must
  include instructional approaches at school and
  classroom levels that go beyond the focuses of
  the National Reading Panel Report.
• Introduce a variety of research-based
  instructional approaches and strategies that
  increase motivation and achievement.
• Create a commitment to work with colleagues to
  assess school strengths and needs in order to
  develop initiatives to beat the odds.

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Why Do We Have An Achievement Gap?

• Learners have not had access at home or the
  community to the types of literacy experiences we
  value in school Listening to stories reading
  together with family members reading to family
  members reading independently talking about
  books writing thoughts, ideas, and feelings.
• Learners lack the knowledge base needed for
  reading and writing Lack of extensive prior
  knowledge about the world lack of automatic
  sight word knowledge lack of extensive
  vocabulary knowledge lack of phonemic awareness
  and ability to decode.
• Learners have not had highly qualified teachers
  who understand how to effectively teach reading
  and writing skills and strategies.

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Why Do We Have An Achievement Gap?

• Schools lack adequate resources to provide
  extensive texts, support materials, and access to
  technology.
• Learners are English language learners who have
  not yet had English language experiences in oral
  and written communication.
• Learners who lack motivation because they find
  reading and writing frustrating and not
  meaningful in their lives.

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National Reading Panel Report Focuses Necessary,
But Not Sufficient

• Phonemic Awareness
• Phonics
• Vocabulary
• Fluency
• Comprehension (Measured by recall, question
  answering, summarization)

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What Else is Needed

• Knowledgeable School/District Leaders
• Macro Level Schoolwide Commitment to Excellence
• Micro Level Exemplary Classroom Instruction
• Building a Collaborative Professional Community
  That Includes Supervisors, Teachers, Support
  Staff, Family, Community

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Research Methodology

• Extensive Literature Review
• On-Site Studies of Schools That Beat the Odds
  Funded by a Teacher Leader Quality Partnership
  Grant (Title III) and a St. Thomas Aquinas
  Faculty Development Grant
• Experiences from the St. Thomas Aquinas College
  Reading Clinic, Cherry Lane Elementary School,
  and On-Site Interventions in Bronx, New York and
  East Ramapo Central School District (A New York
  State Designated High- Needs District in Rockland
  County, NY)

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We Know What Works at the Building and District
Levels

• Educational leaders who
• ?Are knowledgeable in literacy instruction and
  create a schoolwide vision
• ?Build professional communities where faculty,
  staff, parents, and community are committed to
  shared responsibilities
• ?Set high standards for all studentsand scaffold
  to support successful learning

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We Know What Works at the Building and District
Levels

• ?Provide ongoing professional development
• ?Provide time for LARGE blocks of literacy
  instruction across the curriculum with minimal
  interruptions
• ?Establish budget priorities that maximize
  personnel for instructional support, provide
  small classes, and provide text-rich classrooms.
• ?Establish a systematic assessment system to
  monitor progress and inform instruction.

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We Know What Works at the Building and District
Levels

• ?Establish K-12 benchmarks for student
  achievement that are based on grade-by-grade
  standards that are developed by teams of teachers
• ?Develop active parent involvement programs
• ?Establish Extended Day instruction to increase
  instructional time
• ?Provide literacy coaches and mentor teachers who
  are reading specialists.

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We Know What Works at the Classroom Level

• Effective, powerful, and balanced reading
  instruction from knowledgeable teachers is the
  key to successful early reading achievement.
• Center for the Improvement of Early Reading
  Achievement
• The Reading Teacher, March 2001, Vol 54, No. 6

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We Know What Works at the Classroom Level

• This is true at all levels, but closing the
  achievement gap requires MORE.

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We Know What Works at the Classroom Level

• Keys For Success
• ?Implementing Cambournes Conditions For Learning
  (1995)
• ?Immersion (All Day/Every Day Involvement in
  Authentic Literacy Experiences Across the
  Curriculum)
• ?Demonstration (Modeling)
• ?Expectation (High Standards)
• ?Responsibility (Student Reflection)
• ?Approximation (Recognizing Errors as Windows
  Into Strengths and Needs for Instruction)
• ?Use (Time for Applied Practice Through the
  Gradual Release of Responsibility Model Pearson
  Gallagher, 1983)
• ?Response (Specific Feedback)
• ?Engagement (Learners Find Meaning, They
  Envision Success Through Effort, They are
  Supported by Teachers)

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We Know What Works at the Classroom Level

• Teachers Create a Culture of Learning That
  Focuses on
• ?Creating a Print-Rich Environment
• ?Building a Community of Learners
• ?Language Acquisition
• ?Rich Dialogue and Accountable Talk
• ?BIG IDEAS Beyond the Text
• ?Authentic Literacy
• ?Building on Funds of Knowledge (Moll, 2002)
  Students Bring to School Learning
• ? Modeling, Modeling, Modeling

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We Know What Works at the Classroom Level

• ?Teaching Into Independence (Gradual Release of
  Responsibility, Pearson Gallagher, 1983)
• ?Teaching Essential Reading Strategies and Skills
  (Before Reading, During Reading, After Reading)
• ?Using Ongoing Assessment to Plan Instruction and
  Monitor Progress
• ?Emphasizing MetacognitionStudents Reflecting on
  Their Learning
• ?Creating Strong School/Home Connections
• ?Creating a Strong Writing Program
• ?Embedding Test Prep Into the Reading Workshop
• ?Celebrating Recognizing Effort and Achievement

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Taking Charge Reaching and Teaching Readers Who
Struggle
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Taking Charge Reaching and Teaching Readers Who
Struggle
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Taking Charge Reaching and Teaching Readers Who
Struggle - Keys For Success at the Classroom Level

• Motivation and Empowerment
• Strong Focus on Strategy Instruction
• Teaching Thoughtful Literacy
• Ongoing Assessment and Feedback
• Student Metacognition

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Explicit Strategy Instruction Before Reading
Strategies

• Activate Prior Knowledge
• Sample Text (Picture Walk, Examine Text
  Organization and Features)
• Predict (Think Like You Were the Author)

• Form Purpose for Reading Identifying Authors
  Purpose/ BIG Idea (What Lesson Did the Author
  Teach You?)/ Learning Information
• Note That Authors Message/Big Idea/Lesson Often
  Comes at the End of the Text.

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Explicit Strategy Instruction During Reading
Strategies

• Stop-and-Think to Summarize, Predict, Identify
  Important Information, Generate Questions, Make
  Connections, Think About important Ideas
• Figure out Unknown Words to Support Understanding

• Create Sensory Images (Visualize, Hear Dialogue,
  Feel, Smell, Taste)
• Self-Monitor for Meaning/Reread for Understanding
• Focus on the Important Big Idea at the End of the
  Text

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Explicit Strategy Instruction After Reading
Strategies

• Personally Respond to the Reading Experience
• Retell/Summarize
• Identify Authors Intended Message(s)
  (Themes/Big IdeasLife Lessons)
• Make Connections to Self, the World, Other
  Experiences
• Evaluate the Qualities of the Text (Does the Text
  Earn an Award?)

• Generate Questions (I Wonder)
• Extend Reading Through More Reading, Writing,
  Oral Discussion, Art, Drama, Research/ Technology
• Reflect on Learning
• Create School/Home Connections

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Similarities and Differences Between Teaching All
Readers and Teaching Struggling ReadersEmphasis
for All Readers

• Goals Success, Achievement, Enjoyment
• High Standards and Expectations...Achievable
  Challenges
• Principles That Guide Instruction...Building
  Effective Habits of Mind
• Creating a Supportive Learning Environment
• Using Assessment to Guide Instruction and Texts

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Similarities and Differences Between Teaching All
Readers and Teaching Struggling ReadersEmphasis
for All Readers

• Immersing Learners in Purposeful Engagements with
  Literacy Across the Curriculum Throughout the
  Day...Large Blocks of Time
• Building School/Home Connections and Encouraging
  Extensive Reading Outside School
• Thoughtful Discussions Around Texts...The Best
  Reading Instruction Flows on a Sea of Rich
  Discussion
• Thoughtful Reading/Writing Connections...Writing
  to Deepen Understanding
• Ownership and Independence

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Special Needs for Readers Who Struggle in Order
to Close the Achievement Gap

• Building Motivation, Self-Esteem, Confidence,
  Empowerment, Ownership, Sense of
  Success...Affirming the Reading Experience to
  Drive Engagement
• Building Background Knowledge, Including
  Vocabulary
• More Explicit Instruction and Demonstrations of
  What Good Readers Do
• More Immediate Payoffs for Effort Through
  Affirming Human Response

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Special Needs for Readers Who Struggle in Order
to Close the Achievement Gap

• More Authentic Practice...Repeated Reading (e.g.,
  Readers Theater)
• More Careful Text Choices for Guided Reading to
  Ensure Success
• Adaptation of Difficult Texts and Assignments
  Providing Choice
• More Explicit and Purposeful Guiding to Scaffold
  for Success ...Supplying Essential Support
• More Explicit, Embedded Word Study Linked to
  Assessed Needs

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Special Needs for Readers Who Struggle in Order
to Close the Achievement Gap

• More Small-Group Shared Reading and Guided
  Reading Instruction
• More 11 Reading Conferences That Link Careful
  Assessment (Kid Watching) with specific feedback,
  discussion, and reflection (What Did You Do That
  Good Readers Do? What Do You Need To Practice?)
• More Opportunities to Respond to Texts Through
  Oral Discussion, Writing, Art, Drama

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Insights from Teachers Who Are Helping Students
Beat the Odds

• The First Steps are Getting to Know All About Our
  Students and Building Trust
• It is Essential to Use Ongoing, Authentic,
  Multiple Assessments to Guide Planning, Monitor
  Progress, and Communicate Information to Children
  and Parents
• I Have Clear Short-Term and Long-Term Goals for
  Each Student Based on Assessments and I
  communicate Those Goals to My Students. This
  Enables Me to Prioritize Instruction
• Early Intervention is Essential

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Insights from Teachers Who Are Helping Students
Beat the Odds

• Celebrate the Small Things
• Explicitly Demonstrate and Model Every Reading
  and Writing Strategy Many Times
• Working With Parents is Essential and Worth the
  Effort
• The Most important Learning Takes Place in My 11
  Conferences
• Use the Gradual Release of Responsibility Model
  (Pearson Gallagher, 1987)

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Selected Research Supports

• Motivation and Engagement (Cambourne, 1995
  Gambrell, 1996 Guthrie, 2003)
• Strategies for Thoughtful Literacy that go
  Beyond the Text (Keene Zimmerman, 1997
  Allington, 2001)
• Teaching into Independence (Vygotsky, 1978
  Pearson and Gallagher, 1983)
• Teaching English Language Learners and Building
  on Funds of Knowledge that Students Bring to
  Literacy Learning (IRA, 2001 Moje, 2000 Moll,
  2003)

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Selected Research Supports

• Schools That Beat the Odds (Center for the
  Improvement of Early Reading Achievement, 2001)
• Access to Literacy and School/Home Connections
  (Neumann, 2003)
• Student Reflection/Metacognition (Rumelhart,
  1980 Paris, Lipson, Wixon, 1994)
• Using Assessment to Guide Instruction Through
  Flexible Groupings and Differentiated Instruction
  (IRA, 2000 Becoming a Nation of Readers, 1985)