Leon County Schools School Improvement Training

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Leon County SchoolsSchool Improvement
TrainingOur Schools JourneyKathy Corder and
Jennifer Womble
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Chiles High School Evolving with Professional
Development Our Story of Continuous Improvement
Year 2002-2003 2003-2004
School Goal Reading Goal added (change in FCAT NCLB) Reading Goal
Professional Development Tools What did we do? What did we need? -FLARE Conference Began Reading Council -Faculty Meeting (whole group) In-service to share reading strategies -Electronic SHARE folder of reading materials -Team Up Grant Began to research PLC idea -Faculty Meeting (whole group) In-services -New PD protocol requires follow up classroom implementation for all teachers
Progress Monitoring Tools (DATA Collection) -FCAT -Teacher made assessments -ALS reports -FCAT -Bought Snapshot subscription (Eng. only) -ALS reports -Teacher made assessments
Survey or FeedbackReflection What did we learn? Feedback Evaluation of Faculty Meetings to all staff Faculty did not think it was their job to teach reading. -PD Survey Most Impact on Teaching (AP, Intel, Effective Clsrm Mngt) -Retreat to create school vision with new administration
School Grade A A
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Looking at the Data
Our Students FCAT Results Snapshot Current
Research
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Snapshot Data 2005
Ninth Graders 32 maintained level 3,4, or
5 35 decreased 1 or more levels 19.6
increased 1 or more levels Tenth Graders 29
maintained level 3,4, or 5 28 decreased 1 or
more levels 24.8 increased 1 or more levels
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Other Observations

• Not all of our students performed at a
  satisfactory level in the Reference and
  Research or Authors Purpose/Main Idea content
  area clusters

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The Reference and Research content area cluster
does NOT focus on research directly. Instead,
the items in this section assess critical reading
and thinking skills, such as application,
analysis, synthesis, and evaluation (Blooms).
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Building Effective Literacy Instruction by
Judith Langer

• Judith Langer, professor at the University at
  Albany, and director of the National Research
  Center on English Learning and Achievement (CELA)
  conducted a study of twenty-five schools and
  forty-four teachers.
• Of the twenty-five participating schools,
  fourteen were places where students were beating
  the odds (effective schools).
• The other eleven schools were places where
  student engagement and development of high
  literacy was significantly lower ((typical
  schools).
• The twenty-five schools represented a wide range
  of economic and cultural communities.

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Effective Schools

• Teachers based instruction on separated,
  simulated, and integrated learning activities.
• Teachers and administrators improved test scores
  by focusing on the curriculum.
• Administrators and teachers took and analyzed
  standardized tests themselves.
• Educators reviewed curriculum and integrated
  skills/strategies into learning.

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Effective Schools

• Teachers overtly taught their students strategies
  for completing learning tasks.
• Teachers helped students engage in thoughtful
  dialogue termed shared cognition.
• Administrators encouraged and nurtured teacher
  participation in learning communities.

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Typical Schools

• Teachers and administrators focused on test
  scores.
• Rather than integrating skills into the
  curriculum, the primary mode of test preparation
  was using sample tests, released tests, and
  commercial materials for teaching purposes.
• Only 17 of the teachers in the typical schools
  overtly taught students skills and strategies for
  completing tasks.
• Teachers focused on individual learning rather
  than dialogue and collaboration.

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Why Study the FCAT?

• Develop an awareness of
• how benchmarks are assessed (Question Stems)
• content area focus of reading passages
• cognitive levels
• length of passages
• Build skills tested into current program

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Implications for Instruction

• Incorporate thematic instruction into English
  classes.
• Focus on Systematic Vocabulary Instruction.
• Emphasize student inquiry of content area texts
  utilizing Blooms taxonomy.
• Focus on analysis, synthesis, and evaluation in
  questioning.
• Utilize Socratic seminars in all classes.
• Suspend traditional high school curriculum to
  include expository texts.
• Utilize FCAT question stems in class assessments.
• Familiarize students with FCAT formatting by
  analysis of test construction.
• Utilize assessments that emphasize higher level
  tasks, i.e. analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.

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2006 FCAT Data
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Achievement Level Data
Ninth Grade 25 (4.5) Lev. 1 98 (19.1) Lev.
2 179 (34.9) Lev. 3 121 (23.6) Lev. 4 90
(17.5) Lev. 5 (513 tested)
Tenth Grade 83 (17.2) Lev. 1 130 (26.9) Lev.
2 108 (22.4) Lev. 3 55 (11.4) Lev. 4 107
(22.2) Lev. 5 (483 tested)
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Students Dropping to Level 1 or 2 Achievement
Levels
Ninth Grade of Students 2 to 1 12 3 to
1 2 4 to 1 0 3 to 2 34 4 to 2 34 4 to
2 5 5 to 2 0 53 of 513 tested
Tenth Grade of Students 2 to 1 12 3 to
1 7 4 to 1 1 3 to 2 48 4 to 2 12 5 to
2 4 104 of 483 tested
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TCC Remediation Data
 Enrolled at TCC during the Fall 2005-06 term are
388 students who graduated - at some time in the
past - from Chiles High School.  Of these 388
students, 157 (40) required some kind of college
preparatory classes when they entered TCC. By
remediation area  62 students (16) required
English CP. 94 student (24) required Reading
CP. 117 students (30) required Math CP.
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• What Does the Research Say About Literacy and
  Adolescence?

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Implications for Instruction

• Focus on written responses to text.
• Increase the rigor of reading instruction so that
  tenth graders can meet the increased demands of
  the 10th grade FCAT and our seniors are prepared
  for entry into college or post secondary work
• Encourage all teachers to address strategies
  specific to reading texts in their content areas.
  
• Familiarize students with the rubrics and sample
  responses.
• Provide students with information about test
  construction to ensure success with test-taking.
• Build personal relationships with students and
  use motivating texts and strategies.
• Continue to use assessments that measure skills
  in the high complexity domain.
• Continue the use of Systematic Vocabulary
  Instruction.

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Resources

• Leon County Schools Secondary Reading Portal
• John Maxwells Relationships 101
• Reading Next Report