Selecting and Evaluating Instructional Materials and Technology Resources (Chapter 10)

A major responsibility of a reading specialist is to assist “teachers in one’s school and district in selecting the best instructional materials available” (Vogt & Shearer, 2011, p. 193).  It is vital for the reading specialist to take a leadership role during the adoption of a reading series and other instructional materials.

            Two years before the adoption, the selection process must begin.  The selection process includes providing background research on best practice, examining the district’s standards and school’s philosophy, examining the policies and securing a list of approved series or texts.  A list of tasks with deadlines must be completed along with a timeline that others have access to.  Materials need to be available for attentive examination, comparison, and evaluation (Vogt & Shearer, 2010).

            Maintaining a strictly professional relationship with publishers’ representatives is imperative.  Write down notes about contacts and all communications with these representatives.  It is important to get any and all promises in writing (Vogt & Shearer, 2010).

Publishers should provide professional development for the first year after adoption.  Reading coaches have a responsibility to support teachers in their classrooms.  After the first year, the reading coach provides workshops focused on common issues and concerns (Vogt & Shearer, 2010).

There are several ways to level books including using a GRL (guided reading level), Lexile system, and DRA levels (developmental reading assessment).  The difficulty level should be only one factor considered when choosing texts for students.  Appropriateness of a text depends on the children the text is intended for and their interests (Vogt & Shearer, 2010).

Technology should be used in conjunction with “traditional sound practices we use with print text” (Vogt & Shearer, 2010, p. 205).

“…a strong, well-conceived, systematic, sustained Technology Plan, supported by professional development, should be an integral part of the School Improvement Plan” (Vogt & Shearer, 2010, p. 207).  In order to remain current and fully literate, teachers need to:

1.      Have the ability to incorporate most commonly used basic methods of technology,

2.      Need to know how to adapt evidence-based strategies with print text

3.      Have support to select quality technology materials,

4.      Be familiar with the ISTE Standards and how those standards affect classroom teachers,

5.      Understand their students are using technology outside the classroom and why (Vogt & Shearer, 2010).

      

Additional information can be found at the companion website for this course’s text, Reading Specialists and Reading Coaches in the Real World.

References

Vogt, M., & Shearer, B. (2011). Reading specialists and reading coaches in the real world.

     Boston, MA: Pearson.

Determining a School's Literacy Needs and Developing a Plan (Chapter 4)

            A needs assessment is created to “document the probable needs for a program or service” (Vogt & Shearer, 2011, p. 74).  When creating a demographic school profile, it is imperative to include district demographics; student demographics; professional demographics of teachers, administrators, and support personnel; and parent, family and community members (Vogt & Shearer, 2011).

In a light hearted way, the following video very simply illustrates the importance of working in a successful collaborative team and being inclusive of all stakeholders.  

 

           I would imagine one of the hardest parts of this entire process (developing a literacy improvement plan) would be having the entire team work together.  Often as teachers, we are so focused on our own individual and class goals, we forget we are part of a bigger picture and must work well with others.  I have been on teams that work well and teams where the individuals work independent of each other; it has been my experience that the more a team works together, the more success is had.  One school in particular that I worked at had well working, collaborative teams.  I enjoyed working at that school more than any other school I have had the opportunity to work at, and I do feel a lot of it had to do with how the school worked together as a whole.  

          When planning and collecting data, it must first be decided on the information that needs to be collected.  Next, what methods will be used to collect information?  Finally, the information needs to be organized and analyzed.  “…when you find a piece of information that needs attention, try to identify other indicators that point to the same thing” (Vogt & Shearer, 2011, p. 77). 

A quick way to find out how teachers view different aspects of the literacy program is by using an anonymous survey.  Once the surveys have been completed, they need to be analyzed for patterns.  Strengths should be identified prior to pointing out the areas of need (Vogt & Shearer, 2011). 

Now that the data has be carefully collected and analyzed, the needs assessment report must be written and edited.  The identified needs are summarized in the report.  The report must be written in a most professional manner (Vogt & Shearer, 2011). 

The two-year grid is developed as a next step.  Included is the “school and district demographics, a list of literacy team members, a description of current practices, a summary of the findings from the needs assessment, and a proposal for professional development” (Vogt & Shearer, 2011, p. 82).  The grid identifies step-by-step the activities and changes that will occur in order to help achieve the established goals (Vogt & Shearer, 2011). 

Finally, progress must be continuously evaluated and adjustments made as necessary.  Vogt and Shearer (2011) recommend having the literacy team “gather multidimensional evidence to see if what is being implemented is truly working” (p. 84.

References

Vogt, M., & Shearer, B. (2011). Reading specialists and reading coaches in the real world.

     Boston, MA: Pearson.

Introduction

Hello! My name is Rebecca Gerard, and I am a graduate student at the University of Florida. Welcome to my professional blog.  I have and will be posting assignments from various colleges classes I take in order to earn my masters degree in reading.  Most are learning logs from required and recommended readings. 

My family lives in the Florida panhandle.  We live about five minutes from the most beautiful, peaceful beaches.  The beach is one of my favorite places to be.  I grew up in western New York State, and I have also lived in the Tampa Bay area and southern Alaska. 

I received my Bachelors degree from St. John Fisher College, and then went on to teach at a local head start for three years.  I have taught kindergarten for three years in Florida.  I am currently homeschooling my seven year old daughter.  This spring, I will be teaching readers theater to a small group of six through nine year olds at the homeschool coop we attend. 

I enjoy cooking, sewing, swimming, and spending time with my family.  We have one cat and two miniature dachshunds. 

One day, I hope to write children's books, become a reading coach, or teach college classes.

RED 6540 Assessment in Literacy: Blog Post 5 (weeks 14-15)

"The literature on school-level reform presents multiple studies on the complexities of school-level change, specifically school infrastructure arguments" (Baccellieri, 2010, p. 23).  Research also shows that restructuring alone will not help (Baccellieri, 2010).

"The nature of relationships among the adults within a school is another critical factor related to the success of reform efforts" (Baccellieri, 2010, p. 23).  Collaborative leadership practices are imperative. 

Baccellieri (2010) states that some literature suggests that in order to make significant change in the culture of a school, multiple rather than a single reform strategy must be implemented so the reform will take hold.

     In developing a framework aimed at improving teaching and learning leading to improved student
     achievement, the five core principles as stated by Baccellieri (2010) are as follows: 

1. Improve student learning by improving classroom instruction...
2. Improve classroom instruction through teacher learning of  new knowledge, skills, and dispositions...
3. Support teacher learning through professional learning communities...
4. Structure professional learning communities by providing teachers with the time and resources to discuss student learning outcomes and how to improve those outcomes...
5. Encourage shared discussion of standards-based formative assessments, including student writing, conducted in a professional learning community supported by multiple systems and structures, which can lead to changes in classroom practice. (p.31-32)

 "The term professional learning community is self-defining" (Baccellieri, 2010, p. 47).

"Isolation is the enemy of improvement" (Baccellieri, 2010, p. 72).

In order for teacher meetings and collaborative efforts to improve teaching and learning, a climate of trust an mutual respect is vital.  Curriculum consistency within and across grades is important and providing new instruction materials may be an important first step (Baccellieri, 2010).

Teachers need to have opportunities to talk about and reflect on their practices.  These types of conversations foster change (Baccellieri, 2010).

"Acceptance of collective responsibility for improving teaching and learning is an important characteristic of a professional learning community" (Baccellieri, 2010, p. 121). Innovation with a view to improve student achievement is fundamental to gaining teachers' growing expertise and skill in a PLC (Baccellieri, 2010).

     Data demonstrate that by making connections among the degree of rigor expected of the student
     work, the focus for weekly grade-level team meetings, and teacher professional development
     workshops, this reform has the potential to accelerate the quality of teacher conversations on    
     teaching and learning. (p. 146-147)

This approach also has the potential to providing educaaators the ability to address student learning needs today rather than waiting for the reform to become established (Baccellieri, 2010).




References

Baccellieri, P. (2010). Professional learning communities: Using data in decision making to improve student learning. Huntington Beach, CA: Shell Education.

 

RED 6540 Assessment in Literacy: Blog Post 4 (weeks 11-13)

Response to Intervention (RTI) normally involves three tiers of support.  The first tier "represents instruction and services available to all students, generally provided at the classroom level" (Brozo, 2009-2010).  Brozo (2009-2010) goes on to explain the second tier's objective is to work short-term with small groups of students who need help.  Tier three involves the more intense level of instruction.  It is usually carried out on a one-to-one basis.  The tier of support a student is placed in depends on their needs with the least amount of extra support provided for the student to make successful gains (Brozo, 2009-2010).

Interestingly, the majority of research done on RTI is at the elementary level.  As a result, middle and high schools have been forced to devise their own intervention plans.  Three vital questions for secondary professionals when considering how they are going to devise an RTI-like program include:

1. Is RTI a feasible structure for secondary literacy?
2. Is RTI the most effective model for a comprehensive secondary literacy program?
3. Can RTI provide responsive literacy instruction for all students (Brozo, 2009-2010)?

RTI's goal is to prevent reading difficulties.  There are many details that need to be worked out in order to insure that RTI can be successful at the secondary level, and all teachers must be on board and commited to making RTI work (Brozo, 2009-2010).

     "The key principle of RTI² is that any intervention is predicated on the notion that Tier 1 core
     instruction is responsive, standards-based, and data-driven... instruction be scaffolded so that
     students on all points of the learning continuum can benefit from the educational environment of
     the general education classroom." (Fischer & Frey, 2010, p. 25)
 

References

Brozo, W. G. (2009-2010). Response to intervention or responsive instruction?  Challenges and possibilites of response to intervention for adolescent literacy.  Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 53 (4), 277-281.


Fischer, D. & Frey, N. (2010). Enhancing RTI: How to ensure success with effective classroom instruction and intervention.Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Article: What Reflects a Great School? Not Test Scores

Assessments and schools

 I found this article recently and found it quite interesting.  Whole-school achievement was discussed.  The three interconnected factors considered essential are trust, collaboration, and authenticity.  

RED 6540 Assessment in Literacy: Blog Post 3 (weeks 8-10)

Many schools have more recently reorganized their schedules to allow for professional learning communities (PLCs) to allow for common planning among teachers (Boudett, 2014).  Making time to meet in PLCs can be challenging, but meeting once or twice a month as a team with an agenda will be helpful.  In my experience, it can be challenging to bring everything together from the various members to create a collaborative plan to move forward.  Too often we are working so hard independently, and we forget we are all working towards the same goal of students moving successfully through school.

Some tips for creating an effective data display include the following:

• providing a complete title
• name of assessment and subject
• what grade level was tested?
• name of school
• dates of assessments
• how many students were tested?

• chart should be simple and easy to read
• chart style should be appropriate for intended purpose
• space and color used well
• appropriate font size
• appropriate labels included
• data-point values (Boudett, 2014).

Just get started.  Sounds simple enough, right?  Often times, the idea of needing to be sure you include everything can be enough to completely overwhelm even the most level headed person.  It is not possible to include every single thing when digging into data.  Take one problem and work through that.  Often that one simple problem will address many other related problems.  The important thing to remember is to just get started (Boudett, 2014).

"The problem of practice is directly related to the learner-centered problem; based on evidence found when examining instruction; within the school's control' a statement about practice, not a question; and specific and small" (Boudett, 2014).

Four main tasks to help investigate instruction and articulate problem of practice:

1. Link learning and teaching
2. Develop skill of observing practice
3. Develop shared understanding of effective practice
4. Analyze current practice (Boudett, 2014).

Developing an action plan is not a singular item to be done.  In fact, it is one step in a process.  Plan, solve, look back on plan and results, understand and learn, and then plan once again.  This should be a part of a continuous cycle.

It is imperative for school leaders to "communicate the action plan clearly, integrate the plan into the ongoing work of the school a,d use teams for support and internal accountability" (Boudett, 2014).  Everyone needs to be on the same page and working towards accomplishing the main objective.



References

Boudett, K. P., City, E. A., Murnane, R. J. (2014). Data Wise. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard
     Education Press.