Responsive Leadership: One School’s Journey to School-wide RtI

1. Ventura RtI Symposium Responsive Leadership: One School’s Journey to School-wide RtI Lori Thomas-Hicks Principal, Santa Rosa Academic Academy lthomas-hicks@atas.k12.ca.us Making it all work! CiCiMeikle Intervention Coordinator cmeikle@atas.k12.ca.us

2. Goals of the Session • Provide an overview of the essential elements of RtI, while identifying effective strategies of implementation within several element. • Offer materials and strategies that may be duplicated at any site in order to improve student success and maximize resources.

3. Response To Intervention RtI is a seamless problem-solving process that enhances the learning of ALL children. It is implemented by ALL educators, combining the unique talents of both general educators and educational specialists. When educators shift their mind set and come to view all professionals on campus as… support for all children, great things can happen! Teachers begin to feel empowered!

4. Response To Intervention RTI is the practice of providing high-quality instruction and intervention matched to student need, monitoring progress frequently to make decisions about change in instruction, differentiation or goals and applying child response data to important educational decisions. (NASDSE, 2005)

5. Elements of RTI • High Quality Core Instruction and Assessment for ALL students School-wide (Universal Access) • Accurate Diagnostic Assessment • Interventions that Match the needs of the population (Differentiation) • Meaningful Progress Monitoring and Communication • Employing Problem Solving based on Data in the Decision Making Process. • Systems change.

6. Quote “ Every person (or organization) is perfectly aligned for the results he/she gets.” ~ Kukic ~

7. 1. Where are you with…High Quality Core Instruction and Assessment? • Are the core material and activities you plan matched to your population… this year? • How much consistency and integrity of delivery do you have within a grade-level? • How consistent are your assessment instruments? Do they furnish you with the data you need to make decisions on moving to the next level? • What strategies and tools do you utilize to remediate and/or prevent failure in the classroom? • How is assessment used as part of the instructional process throughout each lesson, unit, standard of instruction, etc…? • All Students

8. Professional Development Focused on Quality Core Instruction Tier I (Universal Access) All Students / All Settings • Active Participation & Engagement Strategies Preventative and Proactive Vocabulary Development Strategies Research Based Instructional Strategies Strategies for Monitoring Progress and Adjusting Instruction Strategies for Differentiating Instruction and Compacting Grade Level Standards-Based Instruction Effective Classroom Management and Relationship Building

10. Balance Classrooms: • Performance Data • Behavior • Academic Proficiency (Reading/Math) • Parent Support • Learning Style • Demographic Profile • GATE • EL • Gender

13. 2. Where are you with…Universal and Diagnostic Assessment • State Assessment (Universal) • STAR • District Assessment (Universal) • Benchmarks (DIBELS, SRI, Math, Writing, BPST) • CELDT • Unit & Grade-level Assessments • Site Assessments (Diagnostic) • VADS • VMI • Motivational Survey • Time on Task • Student Assessment Folders (Monitoring)

14. Student Data Boards

15. Teacher _______________ Date ________ Reading ADVANCEDPROFICIENT Report Card = 4 Exceeding trimester Report Card = 3 Met trimester benchmark in all areas benchmark in all areas BASICBELOW BASIC Report Card = 2Benchmark not met inReport Card = 1 All areas below benchmark both fluency and comprehension

16. Bubble

17. Benchmarks

18. CELDT

19. 3. Where are you with… Differentiation? Questions How can we provide students with what they need, when they need it? How can we have a 3-tiered educational system for ALL, Some, & Few while maintaining equal access?

20. We Build it in by Planning for Change Master Schedule ~ Maximizing Resources • Uninterrupted Blocks of Core Instruction • Extended Guided Practice • Walk-2-Learn (School-Wide Differentiation) for ALL • Workshop (classroom Differentiation) • Kindergarten Extension • Rotation • Collaboration

22. Differentiated Intervention • Extended Guided Practice: Push-in and/or pull-out support is offered to students after direct instruction of new learning occurs in math and reading. This is an opportunity for GATE and/or high achieving students to receive extension activities in order to challenge higher level thinking. It is also an opportunity for students needing additional assistance to receive support in order to be success. • Workshop: Workshop is a time of classroom differentiation built in for every teacher and student. Every teacher receives 30 minutes of daily support during Workshop so that the needs of all students can be met through differentiation. Students work on Focus or Must Do activities in an effort to solidify concepts and facilitate independent learning skills. They are also able to work on supplemental assessment and May Do activities that strengthen existing skills and standards. It is also a perfect time for small groups of students to receive targeted and/or intensive intervention.

23. Differentiated Intervention • Walk 2 Learn: Walk to Learn is … a 30-minute block of instruction when ALL students receive differentiation based on skill need. Students receive extension, re-teach, or reinforcement of specific skill areas related to the grade level standards. Groups are made by the classroom teachers, based on district benchmark and ongoing classroom assessment data. Sessions correlate with grade level planning days and reporting periods. Standards recently addressed include: fluency, comprehension, phonics, writing, study skills, listening and speaking. • Kindergarten Extension Program: Although this program is implemented by the kindergarten classroom teachers, it is made possible through the additional support of learning center staff during the regular kindergarten day. The learning center staff support in each classroom for one and a half hours per day enables all kindergarten teachers to instruct in the morning, and offer an extended day for identified students.

24. Kindergarten Intervention: • Goals: • Create a Level “Playing Field” • Prevent Academic Achievement Gap From Starting • Keep All Kindergartners in Their Language-Rich Classrooms During the Entire Kindergarten Instructional Day. • Provide Double-Dosing Opportunities for Our English Language Learners and Struggling Learners.

26. View from the Top! Few Some ALL

27. Quote “Our choice is not between sending them down the hall or doing nothing… We can differentiate in the regular classroom.” ~ Carol Ann Tomlinson ~

28. Translation “Our choice is not between new learning and remediation… We can design a system that effectively addresses both without the stigma of being sent down the hall or increasing the achievement gap.” ~ Lori Thomas-Hicks ~

29. 4. Where are you with… Progress Monitoring? • How do you determine strategic points for assessment between benchmarks? • Do you utilize a Progress Monitoring System for ALL students, or just underperforming students? • Are you taking advantage of informal assessment opportunities throughout the day? • Is student assessment data the most integral part of your dialog with colleagues, and does it inform teaching to improve student outcomes?

30. Progress Monitoring Data Based Decision Making • Example: Fluency Deficit ~ Benchmark Level Desired 70 wpm Current Performance 30 wpm Peer Average 40 wpm Difference (GAP) 10 wpm Time Until Next Benchmark 10 weeks What decisions would you make based on this data?

31. Progress Monitoring Data Based Decision Making • Example: Fluency Deficit ~ Benchmark Level Desired 70 wpm Current Performance 12 wpm Peer Average 60 wpm Difference (GAP) 48 wpm Time Until Next Benchmark 10 weeks

32. Progress Monitoring Data Based Decision Making Cont’ Goal Intensive PEER 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 WCPM Supplemental Instruction Needed Baseline 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 WEEKS

33. 5. Where are you in your Decision Making Process? • Are you implementing programs and interventions based on labels? • Are all decisions top down? • Does collaboration only happen when there is a crisis? • Are decisions based on adult preference verses student need?

34. Elements of an Effective Decision Making System • Site Leadership Team • FST (Family Support Team) Comprehensive Team • Strengths, Concerns, Interventions, Desired Outcome, Action Plan, Time-line, Follow-up • Concern for Kids • Every Child! • Weekly Learning Center Meeting • Scheduled Grade-level Planning • Weekly Management • Strong ELAC, SSC, and PTA Be a Professional Learning Community!

37. Concern for Kids Spreadsheet

38. 6. Where are you in Changing Beliefs…? Do you believe… • We should treat Every Child “as if” rather than “as is” • It is our obligation to educate every child • Our job is to pave the way for future happy, health, productive adults that contribute to their community • Response to Intervention is a system to support All children • Collaboration is no longer optional • “Assessment leads us to the next beginning, it does not conclude our last effort” ~ Lori Thomas-Hicks

39. “Real learning does not happen until students are brought into relationship with the teacher, with each other, and with the subject. We cannot learn deeply and well until a community of learning is created in the classroom.” ~ Parker Palmer ~

40. Or,Is this just the beginning for you? The End