Spring Conference Final ROL/AR

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B4Q2R0WMHZ2wZFMwWU5pRmNSbU9yem1PQ0F4Y05KQQ/edit

ROL/AR Seeking Comments

I am looking for places where my paper may be confusing or omits information that a reader may want.   Looking for any comments that will help me to polish this piece

Thanks,

Tim

Tim Prescott

ROL/AR

Revised

As I began to think about the upcoming school year, I thought about all of the changes that would be happening.  One of the changes that I will encounter this year is that I will be teaching a 5/6 split.  In order for me to meet the needs of all my students this year, it will be extremely important for me to differentiate my instruction.   In October my school received funds to hire two new teachers, my split classroom has now become a 5^th grade self-contained class.

Within my classroom I have students that have abilities that range from 2^nd grade to 6^th grade, it is going to be necessary to differentiate instruction.  I hope that by differentiating I will see an increase in both student involvement in math as well as an increase in the MAP and MCA test scores.

When I talk about involvement I do not mean just going through the motions and completing assignments.  With differentiation I want to see students take the lead in their learning.  I want them to have choice in what they do and how they do it.  I want them to be able to experience success early on and go through the rest of the year with confidence. 

My overall goal is that by using differentiation I am able to offer the kids truly what they need.  I want to be able to offer enriched activities to those who need it and at the same time offer extra help on concepts to others. 

How will differentiation impact student achievement?

I teach at John A. Johnson Achievement Plus Elementary School, which is part of District 625, St. Paul Public Schools.  Johnson is located on the East side of St. Paul.  Johnson’s enrollment is 266 students, 95% of them qualify for free and reduced lunch.

Johnson’s demographics show, students who identify themselves as American Indian 4%, Asian American 23%, African American 39%, Hispanic American 20%, and Caucasian American 14%. Students who are English Language Learners make up 38% of the population and 14% qualify for Special Education services.

Johnson is a very unique neighborhood school.  We have many partners in the building, which help us in being a one-stop shop for our neighborhood.  Some examples of our many partners are the YMCA, which provides the gym space for our school, East Side Family Center, which provides everything from clothing to housing, Sisters of Notre Dame, which provide reading tutoring to the primary grades, and Student Dental Services, which provide dental services to our students during school.

This coming school year there are many changes that will be happening at Johnson.  We are adding an extra hour to the school day, increasing our bussing zone, and because of numbers we will have several split classrooms.  It is the last change that really got me thinking about differentiation and how it will impact achievement.  To meet the academic needs of my students I have to move away from the whole class instruction method and move to differentiation.

As I began my research I soon discovered that there are several things involved in differentiation in the classroom.  Differentiation is not just changing an assignment around for all of the students in your classroom.  The way I see it, to be able to differentiate in your classroom, there are three things that you need to address.  The first thing that you need to consider is the needs of your students.  This can be very tricky because so many things play a part in this section.  Two, Multiple Intelligences need to be thought about when addressing the needs of the students.  Finally, one of the most important things is assessment.  Assessment is the key to knowing what my students already know and what they need to learn.

Addressing the needs in the classroom starts with creating community.  What does that word community mean?  Community is getting to know one another.  It is the sharing of things so that we can better understand one another and develops trust over time.  Take a minute and think about what makes you comfortable in a group setting.  Do you feel more comfortable when you already know someone?  This is the same thing that our students need to feel.  “Teachers need to cultivate a classroom that is safe, inviting, and reduces anxiety (Wormeli, 2007).  Muir (2001), also supports this research by saying, “Relationships, trust, and respect are critical motivators to students.”  If we are unable to create an environment such as these, we will never be able to successfully engage the students in the curriculum.

“A sense of community needs to be instilled in staff, students, and parents (Campbell, & Campbell, 2009).  The research shows that we need to involve everyone in activities that build community.  When a student sees that everyone around them is working towards the same goal they become more engaged and take an active role in their learning.

As educators we want to create lifelong learners.  Wolk (2007), states in his article, “If we want lifelong learners, we must allow them ownership of learning.”  To do this, “We need to switch our teaching practices from a remedial paradigm to an enrichment one.” (Beecher, 2008).  We need to move away from the whole class instruction approach and accept differences in learning styles.  We need to provide challenging problems to students so that they have multiple options for taking in information, making sense of ideas, and expressing what they learn.  When students are able to take the lead in their learning and connect their learning to global awareness and the real world they take more interest and push themselves to learn more.

“Differentiation can’t happen 100% of the time.” (Tomlinson, 2001).  To provide enriching experiences we need to look for opportunities throughout our lessons to meet the different learning styles of the students.  It goes back to the necessity of knowing our students.  I need to know what their interests, strengths, and weaknesses are.  I need to be organized and prepared to provide these experiences.  Tomlinson (2001), supports this thinking by saying; “A teacher must organize and focus the curriculum and essential information for the student.”

If there is going to be a shift in thinking, teachers need time to plan and prepare so that they provide rigor in the curriculum.  “Staff development is essential to the success of a new initiative.” (Beecher, 2008).  When students walk into my classroom, I know that each of them is different.  I know that each of them has different strengths and weaknesses.  To provide experiences for each of the students, I need time.  I need the time to get to know them.  I need the time to plan for them.  I need to be able to create meaningful learning experiences that meet the needs of the content standard as well as the individual students.  Teachers needing time is supported by Tobin’s thinking, “To ensure success for all students, teachers need time to become knowledgeable of the curriculum and familiarity with students and their understanding of skills.” (Tobin, 2008).

Addressing the social and personal needs of the students is an area where I can definitely improve.  I generally build a sense of community within my classroom.  I need to create more opportunities to involve families.  I need to personally invite them into the classroom and events at the school, not just a general newsletter home.  I need to create an environment that is inviting to all.

I have already switched my thinking from remedial to enrichment for all.  I need to really continue this thinking.  The research shows that by challenging all students and giving them different opportunities to use their strengths, they take more interest in learning. 

This research fits with my beliefs because I do believe in creating a safe, caring, and inviting classroom.  I believe in spending time other than instructional time with my kids to get to know them.  I know that students have different strengths and weaknesses and it is up to me to help them develop their strengths.  For me to provide my students different learning opportunities I need to know them beyond the classroom.

When the needs of the students have been addressed, you can truly begin to think about differentiation.  The thought of differentiating in the classroom really began with Howard Gardner and his 1983 publication, Frames of Mind.  Gardner’s thinking was that each person possessed different intelligences. 

As teachers we need to recognize these different learning styles.  According to Gardner the intelligences are, verbal/linguistic, logical/mathematical, visual/spatial, bodily/kinesthetic, musical/rhythmic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalist.  When we have thoughtfully planned lessons that reach these intelligences we are differentiating (Campbell, & Campbell, 2009).  Differentiation is providing choice in how and what a student does for an assignment.  Humans gravitate towards their strengths, so, why not spend more time teaching to student’s strengths?

In thinking about multiple intelligences, it is a good idea to put together a toolbox of different strategies and activities to help your lessons reach the multiple intelligences.  In Lazear’s book he offers several different templates that teachers can use help student realize what they are strong at and what they need to work on. 

The great thing about multiple intelligences is that we are not stuck in using just one.  There are four stages in teaching multiple intelligences, they are awaken, amplify, teach for/with, and transfer (Lazear, 1999).

Each of the intelligences is related to the five senses (Lazear, 1999).  We must be aware that students possess multiple ways of knowing and learning, and we must teach using various techniques that will trigger intelligence within a student.  When we do this we are awakening the intelligence within the student.

To amplify intelligence we must know how each one works.  We must know what the skills are.  Amplifying involves practicing and strengthening the intelligence through various exercises.  Just as humans get stronger through exercise, our intelligences can get stronger by exercise too.

“To teach with and for intelligence, we must be of the mindset that all students can learn” (Lazear, 1999).  This thought really connects to Wormeli’s (2007) research that says, “Differentiation is a mindset”.   It also supports Campbell, and Campbell’s (2009) research where they say, “Lessons that reach the multiple intelligences are differentiation.” 

Teachers that do not differentiate usually use the excuse that differentiation takes too much time to plan and implement in the classroom.  Although planning up front may take a little more time in the beginning, in the end the teacher should be teaching more new concepts instead of re-teaching the same material.

To teach to the multiple intelligences teachers must learn how to use the intelligences in the teaching and learning process.  “Planning MI lessons takes time (Campbell, & Campbell, 2009).  Teachers need time to get to know their students and plan to their strengths.  This is also supported by Scott Chamberlin’s (2010), research where he states; “Educators need to invest significant time in differentiation of curriculum with students so that they can be challenged”.

In looking at the research that I have read, I can definitely see where it will impact my instruction.  I need to take the time to understand each of the intelligences.  I need to take the time to understand what my strengths are and what my weaknesses are.  In doing this I will better understand my students and be able to offer them true differentiated experiences. 

In offering differentiation to students I will have to be flexible with both my environment and my assessment.  I need to be able to move my room around to offer different learning opportunities.  I need to have group space, quiet space, and fun space.  I also need to offer different opportunities to show what they know.   I  cannot stick to just a book test.  I need to continue to find new ways for students to express and show what they know.

In learning about multiple intelligences and how it relates to differentiation, I have been able to make a couple of connections to what I believe as an educator.  I believe that all students can learn and that they learn in different ways.  You can see this in my classroom on a daily basis in the activities that we do.  You will see kids working alone, in groups with other students, and groups with me.  While this is happening kids will move around.  They may be in a group and then work alone.  You can also see this in the resources that are in the room.  Students have access to different books, computers, rulers, manipulatives, and other things.  They are able to explore different activities by using these supplies alone or with others.  This exploration really helps students work with what they are comfortable with; it also lets students become peer leaders.  Students can show their peers different ways of doing things. This supports the concept of amplifying both their own intelligences and those of others.

How does assessment fit into differentiation?  Assessment is the driving force in teachers being able to differentiate.  To truly know where our students are academically we must assess them.  Assessment comes in many different forms.  It isn’t just the test at the end of a chapter that many of us grew up with.  Assessment can be formative (formal and informal and summative (independent and teacher facilitated).  “No matter what form of assessment that is used, it must be practical and doable (Heacox, 2009). 

Formative assessments are the tools that teachers use to gather information about student learning progress.  It helps to inform instructional planning for the teacher.  Formative assessments help to determine who has reached learning goals and who still needs additional practice.  This kind of assessment lets teachers guide instruction in response to learning differences, which is central to differentiation (Heacox, 2009).  It helps to determine when strategies such as tiered assignments and flexible instructional groups might be needed.

Teachers in the classroom use many formal formative assessments such as quizzes, journals, and daily work quite frequently.  The thing to remember is that the purpose of the work is not to get a grade but to critically reflect on the individual student and decide if you should move on, reinforce, or re-teach something.

The difference between informal formative assessment and formal formative assessment is the time involved by teachers.  They still gather information about the student but do it very quickly.  Informal formative assessments include things such as thumbs up, homework scans, and exit slips.  Giving the student a grade is not the purpose of these assessments; it is to guide instruction.

Summative assessments on the other hand are used to determine if the students have met the goals of the unit.  According to Heacox (2009), “In differentiated classrooms, it means that we critically reflect on the results, both as a class and individuals.”  Independent assessments can consist of things such as paper and pencil tests, standardized tests, and projects.  Teacher facilitated assessments consist of interviews, conferences, and oral examines.

The overall purpose of assessment is to collect data on our students and instruction.  “Accurate and timely data on the desk of everyone is necessary” (Olson, 2004).  As we think of our assessments and what we are going to have students do to show what they know, we need to keep differentiation in the front of our minds.  This is reinforced in Tomlinson’s (2001) statement, “Students should be given a choice in how and what they do for an assignment.”

It does not matter what subject area you teach.  You must use assessment to help drive that instruction.  Assessment lets you know where you are going to begin.  Assessment let’s you know if your students understand your instruction and whether you need to change or skip something.  Assessment lets you know if your goals have been met.  Without assessment you cannot have differentiation.  Assessment is the driving force behind differentiation.  “Differentiation focuses on the whom, where, and how we teach (Tomlinson, & McTighe, 2006).  How can you determine this in a meaningful well thought out way without assessment?

When I first started teaching I looked at assessment as summative only.  Assessment was a way for me to get a grade.  Over the years I have switched from using only summative to using both summative and formative assessments.  You can see this in my room by the way I use tests and homework.

In math class students take a pre-test and a post-test.  The test is the same in the beginning and at the end.  It gives me a place to start with my flexible groups.  As we progress through the unit I use homework and adjust my groups.  In the end students take the test again.  I am able to see if they have met the goals for the unit and they are able to see their growth from the start to the finish.

As I go forward with my action research I want to truly differentiate in my math classroom so that my students enjoy learning, are engaged, and grow academically.  To do this I am going to have to get to know my students as people.  I have to be able to create an environment where they are safe and feel free to share.

I also have to get to know them as learners.  I have to know what their strengths and weaknesses are.  To truly offer them engaging opportunities I need assessment.  I need to know as much about them as I can.  If I am going to offer different opportunities to learn and show what you have learned then I need to collect that formal and informal data through personal surveys, tests, homework, daily work, and exit slips.

 AR Implementation

I plan on differentiating during my math flexible group time.  After reading many different articles and books on differentiation I was able think about and change some of the ways that I teach to benefit my students.  One of the things that I want to change is the amount of choice that my students have in completing assignments and homework.  Student interests, choice, learning style, and assessment were the key areas that I was able to come away with from my research.

My first steps to implementing this plan will be to read through their CUM folders and take an individual learning survey of the students.  Throughout my research multiple authors discussed the importance of knowing your students.  I believe that by reading the CUM folders I will be able to get a quick look at who the student is.  There might be other information such as and IEP that would be useful to know before school started. 

Secondly, I would like to take a community/learning survey of each student before I begin teaching any math unit.  The survey would consist of questions about how they learn best, what distracts them from learning, what are they interested in, what would they like to improve, etc.  I would then like to follow up with an individual conference with each student to discuss the survey.  The purpose of this is to get to know them better.  The information will help me give students different opportunities as we go forward.

I am going to try and use a tic-tac-toe board approach to completing assignments during my flexible group time. I am going to create a tic-tac-toe board for each chapter that I teach during the year.  The plan is for the students to work on completing them during their individual work time in the classroom.  The idea would be that a student would work to complete three in a row.  Once three in a row was achieved they would have the choice to complete other activities on the board or other enrichment activities based upon the skills that were being taught.

Along with the tic-tac-toe boards I am going to offer tiered homework assignments based on homework reviews and observations that will be made during their flexible group time.  Offering tiered homework is something that I began to do towards the end of last year.  I had some success with it.  The idea behind the tiered homework is that it is meeting them where they are at academically.  I would like to offer the students the choice of what homework that they take.  I may have to rethink this as the first assignments are done due to a student picking something that is either to hard or to easy for them.

The last thing that I am going to do to implement differentiation into my classroom is to have different workspaces available for students to use.  I currently have tables in my room.  During work time I want to split my room into three different areas.  I want to be able to offer space for group work, individual work, and then my break out room for listening/computer area.  I want to do this because the research discussed how different learning styles might require different work areas.  Students need to be able to work in an area where they feel comfortable and anxiety free.

My time frame is fairly simple.

August 29 to September 2         Reading of the CUM folders.

September 6 to September 9         Give students personal learning survey.

September 12 to September 16         Introduce first tic-tac-toe board.

September 12 to September 16         Introduce different learning spaces.

September 19 to September 23         Introduce tiered homework assignments.

Unit Test Schedule for Pre/Post and RTI

Unit 1 Pre September 7 (13 Lessons) Post September26

Unit 2 Pre September 28 (12 Lessons) Post October 14

Unit 3 Pre October 17 (13 Lessons) Post November 3

Unit 4 Pre November 4 (12 Lessons) Post November 22

Unit 5 Pre November 28 (12 Lessons) Post December 14

Unit 6 Pre December 15 (11 Lessons) Post January 9

Unit 7 Pre January 10 (9 Lessons) Post January 23

Unit 8 Pre January 24 (13 Lessons) February 10

Unit 9 Pre February 13 (14 Lessons) March 2

Unit 10 Pre March 5 (6 Lessons) March 13

I want to use the week long unveil process so that students have time to adjust as well as to make sure that students who are gone have a chance to catch up.  Along the way I will have to give constant reminders and review the processes with everyone.

I will be using different data collection methods along the way to see if my differentiation strategies are making a difference in student achievement.

The first data collection method that I will be using is pre and post-test of each new unit that I will teach.  This will let me see where to begin with flexible grouping as well as provide information on growth over time.

Secondly, I am going to give the original personal learning survey each month.  The purpose of this is to see if the student’s views about learning are changing.  This will be helpful in determining if the tic-tac-toe boards, learning areas, and tiered homework are helping or do I need to make additional changes.

I plan on using exit slip two days a week to see if I have students in the right groups and to gage whether the tic-tac-toe boards, work spaces, and tiered homework are helping or do adjustments need to be made.

Tiered homework will be collected daily and scored three days a week and scanned for understanding and completion.  Scoring the homework will let me know if the students are getting work that matches their needs.

My last data collection technique will be to use the Spring and Winter NWEA MAP data.  Students take the MAP test three times a year.  It provides me information on skills that they are secure at as well as places where they need to improve.  The great thing about the MAP test is that it is administered on the computer and results are available immediately after the student finishes.

        

New Technology

When I read the e-mail about creating a blog, I thought oh no!  As usual the initial thoughts of despair vanished and I went ahead and read about the sites. 
It really was easy to set up the initial blog.  I am looking forward to playing around with it now and customizing it.  I see this as a great place to share ideas and thoughts on teaching.

I am old fashioned in the sense that if I am going to talk to someone I prefer to do it face to face.  However,  in the current world where we seem to rush from one place to another, maybe it is time for me to join the tech world.  I guess I just have.