Professional Development for Title I Teachers: A Success Story

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Professional Development forTitle I Teachers
A Success Story

• NCLB Conference
• February 4, 2009

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Goals for Session

• Explain how and why the group got started,
• the content of their sessions,
• and what keeps them together and successful

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Why was the group started?

• A Title I Math Teacher continually asked for math
  content and pedagogy direction and wanted to
  network with other Title Math teachers
• No district in our area has a math coordinator
• Staff development for Title Teachers had
  previously focused on Reading and not math
• The Federal Government mandated that 15 of the
  districts Title budget had to be spent on Staff
  Development if the District was in Status.

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How was the group started?

• A meeting was held with district superintendents
  to find a win-win solution to the mandate that
  15 of Title I funds needed to be spent for staff
  development for districts in status.
• What was asked of districts
• Recruit teachers from the district that were
  willing to take on a long term commitment in math
  staff development and be willing to share
  information with Colleagues back in their
  district
• Pay the sub fees for participating teachers
• NCTM membership for participants

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First Staff Development Experience

• Week long Math Solutions course (40 hours) in the
  summer of 2006
• Follow-up October 2006
• Teachers had been required to try an activity in
  their classroom they had learned in the summer
  and share results in grade level groups.
• Learned about the New ISAT test

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Make-up of group and meeting times

• 20 teachers representing 8 districts
• 2nd 8th grade
• First three years had 6 whole-day sessions during
  the school year
• Meetings were held at the Regional Office of
  Education (twice there were field Trips
  National NCTM conference and visit to a school
  that has only LD students)
• Year 4 (2009-2010)-- 4 whole-day meetings

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Core to Every Session

• Discussions of Math News/issues from National,
  State and County organizations. Info about
  professional development opportunities
• Learn Math Content by solving math problems
• Learn Math content using researched based
  pedagogy
• Formal and informal networking with colleagues
  (grade level group meetings at each session)

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Off-shoots from original group

• Math Recovery Grant with Vanderbilt
• Participants in the group are now members of
  state committees related to ISAT
• A Title I Reading group was formed based on the
  model.

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What Contributed to our Success?

• Sustained on-going sessions
• Relevant to each teachers needs
• Teachers are treated as professionals
• Community of teachers was established (see
  pictorial directory, grade level time at each
  session)
• Appropriate record keeping of sessions (see
  binders of handouts and agendas)
• Activities used could span many age groups
• Strong partnership with the university
• Participants received resources (books, games,
  manipulatives)

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Resources that participants received

• About Teaching Math A K-8 Resource Marilyn
  Burns
• Math Matters Understanding the Math You Teach,
  Grades K-8 second edition by Suzanne H. Chapin
  and Art Johnson
• Classroom Discussions Using Math Talk to Help
  Students- by Suzanne Chapin, Catherine O'Connor,
  and Nancy Canavan Anderson
• Good Questions for Math Teaching Why Ask Them
  and What to Ask Grades 5-8 by Lainie Schuster and
  Nancy Canavan Anderson
• Good Questions for Math Teaching Why Ask Them
  and What to Ask Grades K-6 by Peter Sullivan and
  Pat Lilburn
• Everyday Counts Partner Games
  www.greatsource.com

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Future Plan

• Increase the participating teachers
  responsibility for planning and presenting
  sessions

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Contact information

• Joan Barrett
• Madison County Regional Office of Education
• 200 Clay Street
• Edwardsville IL, 62025
• jbarrett_at_roe41.org
• For this power point and agendas for all 4 years
  of agendas go to
• http//www.roe41.org/handouts/joan/