2006 Best Practices Conference on Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment

1. Considerations and Choices in Selecting/Adopting a Literacy (Reading and/or Language Arts) Curriculum/ProgramMelissa D. H. Keenan, Ed.D.Educational Consultant/Literacy SpecialistNH Reading First Professional Development Provider 2006 Best Practices Conference on Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment The New Hampshire School Administration Association (NHSAA) Thursday, January 26, 2006 Concord, NH

2. Overall Purpose of Presentation “What are the research and practical considerations to keep in mind in adopting and implementing a reading/language arts curriculum for your school or district?” Dr. Mark V. Joyce, Executive DirectorNew Hampshire School Administrators Association

3. Background • Elementary School: Dick and Jane • Middle School: Open Classroom with SRA • High School: Literature and Essays • College: Directed Reading Teaching Approach • Preschool/Daycare: Developmentally Appropriate Practices • 6th Grade Teacher: Basals/Essays to Reading/Writing Workshop • Masters Program: Literacy, Society, and Culture • 3rd Grade Teacher: Whole Language/Integrated Curriculum/Inquiry • Doctoral Program: Reading Recovery; Reader Response; Research • Tutorials: Embedded and Explicit Instruction • College Teaching: Apprenticeship Model • Reading Excellence Act: Fountas & Pinnell/Four Blocks to Core Programs • Reading First: Comprehensive Reading Program

4. Definitions • Best Practices & Research • Language Arts & Literacy • Curriculum & Programs

5. Best Practices & Research Scientifically Based Research • Employ systematic, empirical methods that draw on observation or experiment; • Involve rigorous data analyses that are adequate to test the stated hypotheses and justify the general conclusions; • Rely on measurements or observational methods that provide valid data across evaluators and observers, and across multiple measurements and observations; and • Be accepted by a peer-reviewed journal or approved by a panel of independent experts through a comparatively rigorous, objective, and scientific review. Stanovich & Stanovich, 2005 National Institute for Literacy

6. Reading Writing Listening Speaking Receptive Expressive Print Oral From Language Arts to Literacy Sociocultural Context

7. Curriculum = Program Curriculum: Addresses “The What and the When” What do we want our children to know and be able to do with respect to language arts? Program: Addresses “The What, the How, the Who, the Where, the When, and sometimes even the Why” Instructional programs are our tools for addressing our curricular expectations and for carrying out instruction.

8. Underlying Assumption Inevitably, programs inadequately meet our expectations and therefore must be strengthened and enhanced by the decisions we make to establish a comprehensive literacy program.

9. Comprehensive Program Leadership, Coordination, Communication Curriculum Assessment Instruction Programs and Materials Needs of Special Populations Access to Print Professional Development Technical Assistance Program Evaluation

10. Programs and Materials • Core Programs and Materials • Supplemental Programs and Materials • Intervention Programs and Materials

11. What are our choices/options?

12. A Sampling of Programs and Materials

13. Resources • Consumer’s Guide for Evaluating Programs • Reviews and Ratings of Programs • Research • Presentations by Publishers • Close Examination of Programs/Materials • Consultations with other Districts/Schools • Piloting of the Programs

14. Issues to Address • Teacher Autonomy & Professional Judgment • Philosophical Orientation • Fidelity of Implementation • Program Evaluation

15. Comprehensive Program Leadership, Coordination, Communication Curriculum Assessment Instruction Programs and Materials Needs of Special Populations Access to Print Professional Development Technical Assistance Program Evaluation

16. Leadership, Coordination, and Communication • Prioritize: Principal, as Instructional Leader • Appoint a Literacy Coordinator • Expect All Staff Responsible for literacy instruction to play a role in the process • Establish Instructional Teams • Bring on the Literacy Coaches • Work with all constituents who have an impact on literacy instruction

17. Resources • Planning and Evaluation Tool for Effective School-wide Reading Programs • Principal Tools to Support A School-wide Reading Initiative • Coaching Resources • Instructional Team Guidelines

18. Comprehensive Program Leadership, Coordination, Communication Curriculum Assessment Instruction Programs and Materials Needs of Special Populations Access to Print Professional Development Technical Assistance Program Evaluation

19. Curriculum Local language arts curriculum What do we want our children to know and be able to do? Informed by: Overall Goal and Vision Statement Community Expectations Scope and Sequence Charts NH Language Arts Frameworks Grade Level Expectations National Standards Research

20. Curriculum What are our tasks? • Become well informed by reading curricular documents and research • Divide up the work by specializing • Be patient with the process and give it time • Develop a clear understanding of the continuum of skills (to ensure systematic instruction) and map these skills across year • Align curricular expectations to progress reports/report cards

21. For example:From Reading to Essential Elements Scientifically Based Reading Research • Phonemic Awareness • Phonics • Fluency • Vocabulary • Comprehension

22. Overview Documents

23. Taken from University of Oregon IDEA website

24. Comprehensive Program Leadership, Coordination, Communication Curriculum Assessment Instruction Programs and Materials Needs of Special Populations Access to Print Professional Development Technical Assistance Program Evaluation

25. Assessment • We need valid and reliable tools, as well as informal tools. • We need tools for different purposes: • Screening • Progress Monitoring • Diagnostic • Outcome

26. Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS)

27. Issues to Address • Importance of Valid and Reliable Data • Consistency and Efficiency • Time for Training, Calibration, Data Entry, and Analysis • Teacher Ownership vs. District Ownership • Data Informed Instruction

28. Data Informed Instruction

29. Resources • DIBELS (http://dibels.uoregon.edu) • Big Ideas in Reading: Assessment • Analysis of Reading Assessment Instruments • Assessment Analysis Coding Forms

30. Comprehensive Program Leadership, Coordination, Communication Curriculum Assessment Instruction Programs and Materials Needs of Special Populations Access to Print Professional Development Technical Assistance Program Evaluation

31. Instructional Settings Tier I Tier II Tier III Instructional Routines Whole Group Small Group Independent Practice Instruction • Instructional • Strategies • Lesson Phases • Characteristics of Effective Instruction • Content Specific Strategies

32. 3-Tier Reading Model I Core classroom instruction All students II Approximately 20–30% of students Strategic Intervention III Approximately 5–10% of students Intensiveintervention (may include special education students) Taken from University of Texas Vaughn Gross Center for Reading and Langauge Arts

33. Apprenticeship Model of Instruction Goal: Foster Independence through effective and systematic instruction. To With By Student Gradually Assumes Responsibility Teacher Gradually Releases Responsibility Orientation Explicit & Systematic Extensive Modeling Guided Practice Corrective Feedback Maximize Engagement Relevant Independent Practice

34. Example: Research Based Strategies for Fluency instruction Taken from Univeristy of Oregon Big Ideas website

35. Comprehensive Program Leadership, Coordination, Communication Curriculum Assessment Instruction Programs and Materials Needs of Special Populations Access to Print Professional Development Technical Assistance Program Evaluation

36. Needs of Special Populations • Special Education • Socioeconomic Level • Race • English Language Learners • Migrant/Homeless • Transient • Troubled/Difficult • Gifted

37. Access to Print • Library programs and resources • After-school programs • Summer programs • Tutorial programs • Family Literacy/Parent Education programs • Community-based programs

38. Comprehensive Program Leadership, Coordination, Communication Curriculum Assessment Instruction Programs and Materials Needs of Special Populations Access to Print Professional Development Technical Assistance Program Evaluation

39. Professional Development • Ongoing • Job-Embedded • Data Driven • Responsive and Supportive • High-quality, knowledgeable trainers • Opportunities for modeling, demonstration and practice

40. Resources • Professional Development Guidelines from Professional Organizations • Teaching Reading IS Rocket Science: What Expert Teachers of Reading Should Know and Be Able to Do (Moats) • Every Child Reading: An Action Plan (Partnership for Reading) • Tips for Designing A High Quality Professional Development Program (National Center for Reading First Technical Assistance)

41. Comprehensive Program Leadership, Coordination, Communication Curriculum Assessment Instruction Programs and Materials Needs of Special Populations Access to Print Professional Development Technical Assistance Program Evaluation

42. Technical Assistance • Logistical support • Technology support • Administrative support • Coordination and Communication • Change Process

43. Program Evaluation • Student Achievement • Program Implementation • Summary of Effectiveness

44. In summary . . .

45. Leadership, Coordination, & Communication Inform All Activities Technical Assistance Curriculum Reading Writing Listening Speaking Viewing Content Areas Evaluation & Reporting Professional Development Assessment Screening Tools Diagnostic Tools Progress Monitoring Tools Outcome Based Tools Informal Tools Instruction Explicit or Direct Modeling Guided Practice Application Programs and Materials Core Programs Supplemental Programs Intervention Programs Access to Print Activities Meeting the Needs of Special Populations

46. Contact Information: Melissa D. H. Keenan, Ed.D. Lancaster Learning Center PO Box 269, 97 Main St. Lancaster, NH 03584 Phone: 603-788-2288 Email: mkeenan@ncia.net