Module 5 of 6 Work it Across - Instructional Alignment to the Standards

1. Module 5 of 6Work it Across - Instructional Alignment to the Standards Recommended citation: Assessing Special Education Students SCASS (AA-AAS Study Group), 2008.Work it across: Instructional alignment to the standards. Washington, D.C., Council of Chief State School Officers

2. Modules developed by Special Education Research Consultants under the direction of Lynn Ahlgrim-Delzell, Ph.D. with contributions by: • Tracie-Lynn Zakas, M.Ed. • Shawnee Wakeman, Ph.D. • Pamela Mims, M.Ed. • Katherine Trela, ABD • Ella Glass and • ASES SCASS AA-AAS Study Group Members

3. Purpose of Module 5 • The purpose of this module is to help teachers understand issues around instructional alignment. • Outline of what instructional alignment means • Resources for instructional alignment • One process for promoting instructional alignment • We learn to do something by doing it. There really is no other way. • John Holt, Educator

4. Definition of Instructional Alignment Browder, Wakeman, Flowers, Rickelman, Pugalee, & Karvonen, 2007. In a well-aligned educational program, SSCD have opportunities for learning academic content that is well matched to what their peers at that grade level are learning Amount of material to be learned, method of responding, or overall depth of knowledge to be demonstrated may be adapted Alignment asks: “How well does instruction match the standard it purports to address?”

5. Definition of Instructional Alignment (con’t.) Browder, Spooner, Wakeman, Trela, & Baker, 2006; Browder, Wakeman, Spooner, Ahlgrim-Delzell, & Algozzine, 2006. • Critical piece - opportunities for learning by both teachers and students • Do special education teachers know • What the content standards mean? • What are the academic priorities in their state for students with significant cognitive disabilities? • How to link instruction to grade level standards?

6. Instructional Alignment • Resources: • State standards • Extended standards (if applicable) • Collaboration with grade-level general education teacher peers • Research on evidence best practices • Research on instruction that links to academic content standards

7. Alternate or Extended Standards • May be additional level of support provided by the state for translation of content standards vary by state: • Some state work with grade level standards for students who participate in AA-AAS • Other states have prioritized and/or provided alternate or extended standards

8. Resources for Translating Standards • Once familiar with the content standards and priorities set by the state, teachers must begin to translate those standards into meaningful instructional activities. • Resources: • Browder, Spooner, Wakeman, Trela, & Baker, 2006 • Clayton, Burdge, Denham, Kleinert, & Kearns, 2006

9. Work it Across • A process that helps us create instruction for SSCD aligned to grade level general curriculum standards • See Handout • Outlined by a student’s symbol use • Always begin with the expectations of typical students • Include student performance expectations and activities

10. Biographies Example Completed • Work It Across moves from descriptions for students with the highest level of symbolic communication to the lowest levels • Columns • Types of symbolic communication • Last column reflects activities that no longer resemble the standard

11. Biographies Example Completed (con’t.) • Rows • First row is levels of communication • Second row describes the student symbol use • Third row related to the format for how the information will be presented to the student • Fourth row is what performance is being expected from students • Fifth row is what would the instruction look like

12. Biographies - Grade Level Expectation Content is Biographies Performance is compare/contrast elements of biographies- and compose biography Activities include silent reading of biography; answering questions about comparisons of elements made; and compose biography with elements

13. Biographies- Abstract Symbolic: Going Far with Symbols Content is adapted text of biography Performance is compare life stories (elements) with same/different using sight words Activities include read sight words, pictures, or repeated story lines in adapted text; use Venn diagram on several occasions for same different (maybe with characters within a book or character and self)

14. Biographies- Concrete Symbolic-Moving Forward with Symbols Content is adapted text of biography read aloud Performance is compare life stories (elements) with same/different using pictures and/or objects Activities include after hearing story read aloud (may include student use of AAC to hear repeated story line), use pictures to complete Venn diagram of same and different elements using characters in story or character and self.

15. Biographies- Presymbolic-Beginning with Symbols • Content is adapted biographies read aloud with familiar objects to supplement text. Biographies may be of familiar people (family). • Performance is selecting objects for elements of biography to display, compare displayed objects • Activities include: • listening to read aloud, touching objects; • begin with self/family biography, compare objects to character biography • identify objects that are the same or match

16. Off the Chart • Off the Chart describes examples for instruction not aligned to content standard. • Walk through each symbolic level rather than skip to the presymbolic level. • Skipping columns tends to result in skills not aligned with the standard • Student should be engaged in the activity whenever possible • Meaningful alignment is not simply a functional skill forced into a standard

17. Activity See Work It Across Biographies See Blank Work It Across Template

18. References Browder, D. M., Spooner, F., Wakeman, S. L., Trela, K., & Baker, J. N. (2006). Aligning instruction with academic content standards: Finding the link. Research and Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities, 31, 309-321. Browder, D. M., Wakeman, S. Y., Flowers, C., Rickelman, R. J., Pugalee, D., & Karvonen, M. (2007). Creating access to the general curriculum with links to grade level content for students with significant cognitive disabilities: An explication of the concept. Journal of Special Education, 41, 2-16.

19. References (con’t.) Browder, D. M., Wakeman, S. Y., Spooner, F., Ahlgrim-Delzell, L., & Algozzine, B. (2006). Research on reading instruction for individuals with significant cognitive disabilities. Exceptional Children, 72, 392-408. Clayton, J., Burdge, M., Denham, A., Kleinert, H. L., & Kearns, J. (2006). A four-step process for accessing the general curriculum for students with significant cognitive disabilities. Teaching Exceptional Children, 38(5), 20-27.

20. End of Module 5