School Counselors: We ’ re in the Student Success Business

1. School Counselors:We’re in the Student Success Business NASAP Annual Conference Tucson, AR June 27, 2009 Greg Brigman, Ph.D. Paul Peluso, Ph.D. Florida Atlantic University

2. Introduction of the Student Success Skills K-12 Model Research Base Program Components Demonstration and Discussion of Key Skills & Strategies Overview

3. Ready to Learn: K-1 Ready for Success: 2-3 Student Success Skills: 4-10 Parent Success Skills: 2-10 Setting Students up for Success

4. What do they have in Common? Don’t let what you can’t do stop you from what you can do. Pat SummitJohn Wooden UT UCLA

5. Fundamentals and Teamwork Your playbook alone will not get you there. You must work on fundamentals and teamwork everyday.

6. Skills: Cognitive, Social and Self-management Attitudes: Healthy Optimism, Self Efficacy Climate: Caring, Support, Encouragement Three Keys to Building Academic and Social Competence

7. Embedding key skills and strategies into the daily curriculum to make the “learning net” tighter.

8. Student Success Skills • Five classroom lessons • Introduce student to the 20 SSS strategies • Begin early in the fall • So students have a tighter fishing net all year • SSS strategies are embedded • Into the regular curriculum to assist learning

10. Research Base for Student Success Skills:Five Key Reviews Of Research Wang, et al. (1994) Reviewed 50 years of research on “What helps students learn” Hattie, Biggs & Purdie (1996) Reviewed 10 years of research on “The effects of learning skills interventions on student learning” Masten & Coatsworth (1998) Reviewed 25 years of research and identified “The most critical factors associated with academic and social competence” Marzano, et al. (2001) Reviewed 10 years of research on “Classroom instruction and summarized research-based strategies for increasing student achievement” Zins, et al. (2004) Reviewed 10 years of research on “The relationship of social and emotional learning to academic success”

11. Student Success Skills: Key Skill Areas Goal setting and progress monitoring Creating a caring, supportive and encouraging classroom Cognitive/Memory skills Performing under pressure: Managing test anxiety Building Healthy Optimism

12. What happens when you teach these fundamental skills to students? • Very encouraging results • Rigorous research design gives us a high level of confidence in results

13. National Panel for Evidence-Based School Counseling Programs • Carey, Dimmitt, Hatch, Lapan, & Whiston (2008). Professional School Counseling. • Found “Strong and Promising” evidence for Student Success Skills program

14. SSS Efficacy Research Four studies • 50 school counselors • 36 schools - two counties • Over 1100 students • Grades 5,6,8,9 • All four studies found students who receive the SSS program outperform comparison students.

15. RTL Efficacy Research Three studies • Pre-K Head Start • Kindergarten • First Grade • All three showed similar trends of positive gains for students in RTL classes compared to those not receiving RTL.

16. SSS Efficacy Research • 15 published articles on SSS and RTL in leading professional journals. • Two national award winning research articles

17. Consistent Findings: • Standardized math scores improved for approximately 86% of SSS students. Average increase was 30 pts for SSS students VS. 5 for comparison students. • Standardized reading scores improved for approximately 78% of SSS students. Average increase was 25 pts for SSS students VS. 7 for comparison students. • Follow-up study shows SSS students continue to make similar gains two years after participating in the program.

21. Student Success Skills: Key Skill Areas Goal setting and progress monitoring Creating a caring, supportive and encouraging classroom Cognitive/Memory skills Performing under pressure: Managing test anxiety Building Healthy Optimism

22. Study Break – Brain GymWe learn better when our brains are awake and alert

23. Goal setting and progress monitoring(cont.)

24. 4 Steps for Life Skills & 7 Keys • Ask students to look at item on Life Skills or 7 Keys goal sheet & Rate progress for that week. • Next ask “Who has improved even a little during the past week?” • Ask for examples from 1-2 students. “Tell us what you did to improve” • “How many of you agree that would be a healthy way to improve_____?” • Ask volunteer to read next item and continue pattern for rest of items

25. Goal Set Sequence • THINK • WRITE • PAIR SHARE • VOLUNTEER SHARE

26. Creating a caring, supportive, encouraging classroom community

27. Four Key Skills Embedded into Pair Share • Attending • Listening • Empathy • Encouragement

29. Pair Shares & Information Processing • Ah ha’s – New ideas, strategies • Ta da’s – Validation of ideas or strategies with which you have had success • Questions for clarification

30. Student Success Skills: Key Skill Areas Goal setting and progress monitoring Creating a caring, supportive and encouraging classroom Cognitive/Memory skills Performing under pressure: Managing test anxiety Building Healthy Optimism

32. Coyote Story

33. Building a Caring supportive, Encouraging Community • What are other strategies you have used to build caring, supportive and encouraging community? • Think, pair share, volunteer share

34. Student Success Skills: Key Skill Areas Goal setting and progress monitoring Creating a caring, supportive and encouraging classroom Cognitive/Memory skills Performing under pressure: Managing test anxiety Building Healthy Optimism

35. Strategies for Boosting Memory • Every 20-30 minutes student share “Most important ideas” • Think, write, pair share, volunteer share • Location Memory • Brain Gym

36. Body Location Memory Pegs • Ten top foods for health: • Blueberries • Nuts • Salmon • Broccoli • Bananas • Frozen Yogurt • Olive Oil • Brown Bread • Spinach • Tomatoes

37. Safe Place Use your imagination to create a safe place.

38. Breathe, Picture, Focus • Breathe in slowly to count of 5, hold for count of 5, exhale to count of 5 • Picture yourself in your “Safe Place” • Focus on your strategy for the task at hand

39. Kaizen • Japanese • Continuous and never ending improvement • The ability to notice even very small improvements in ourselves and also in others

40. Kaizen Little by little, Bit by bit, I’m improving, Everyday

41. Student Success Skills: Key Skill Areas Goal setting and progress monitoring Creating a caring, supportive and encouraging classroom Cognitive/Memory skills Performing under pressure: Managing test anxiety Building Healthy Optimism

42. One of the greatest predictors of student academic success is their level of healthy optimistic thinking. Seligman (1995). Optimism

43. Optimism • Don’t doubt your ability • Doubt your strategy • If what you are doing is not working • Try Something Different!!!

44. Optimism Can Be Learned We can help students learn optimism by teaching them to: Use cognitive, social and self- management strategies Set realistic goals Notice even small improvements Outcome: Students see that what they do makes a difference and become more optimistic and resilient.

45. Student Success Skills • Five classroom lessons • Introduce student to the 20 SSS strategies • Begin early in the fall • So students have a tighter fishing net all year • SSS strategies are embedded • Into the regular curriculum to assist learning

46. Students Fishing for Higher Achievement • Help students get a tighter net • Tighten their net with Cognitive, Social and Self-Management Skills

48. Pair Shares & Information Processing • Ah ha’s – New ideas, strategies • Ta da’s – Validation of ideas or strategies with which you have had success • Questions for clarification

49. Parent Success Skills: Building a Community of Caring, Support and Encouragement Parent Success Skills

50. According to Christenson (2003): A good family-school connection increases the probability that students will be successful in school. The goal of family-school connections for children’s learning must be to create a culture of success that enhances learning experiences and competencies across home and school and underscores that the partnership means shared goals, contributions and accountability (p. 457). Parent Success Skills PARENTS DO MATTER!!