RUNNING START: AN ONGOING COMPREHENSIVE INDUCTION PROGRAM FOR BRAND NEW UNLICENSED SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS AND THEIR INSTRUCTIONAL COACHES UTAH STATE PERSONNEL DEVELOPMENT GRANT 2010 OSEP PROJECT DIRECTORS’ CONFERENCE WASHINGTON, D.C. JULY 19-21, 2010

UTAH’S BIG PROBLEM: TEACHER SHORTAGES 50% of new special education teachers hired in Utah are unlicensed. It’s been that way for most of the 21st century.

THE INEVITABLE DILEMNA SINKSWIM

Running Start Ready to Teach on Day 1 A PRACTICAL RESPONSE

THE PURPOSE OF RUNNING START Evidence-based instructional delivery practices Behavior management essentials FOCUSED TRAINING ON VITAL TEACHING BEHAVIORS Instructional Coach training and support University coursework Social networking and web-based supports SETS THE STAGE FOR ONGOING SUPPORT THROUGHOUT THE SCHOOL YEAR Impact assessed through observation, self- reports, ratings, and retention tracking ENHANCED SKILLS, JOB SATISFACTION, AND RETENTION

THE FOUR PHASES OF RUNNING START SUMMER TRAINING BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS THE FIRST 30 DAYS THE REST OF THE YEAR!

RUNNING START’S REACH

A LOT OF COLLABORATIVE PLANNING Planning is continuous throughout the year School districts, IHEs, SEA, SPDG are all at the table

PLANNING IN A CIRCUS ATMOSPHERE!

FOCUS ON VITAL BEHAVIORS? High leverage behaviors that make a big difference “Discover a few vital behaviors, change those, and problems— no matter their size, topple.”

RUNNING START’S VITAL BEHAVIORS For Teachers – Reinforce appropriate behavior and correct responses – Use signals to gain and maintain student attention – Elicit student response opportunities – Correct/re-teach – Model/demonstrate/guide d practice – Monitor student progress For Coaches – Observe teacher – Collaboratively explore the data collected – Demonstrate/teach instructional behaviors – Provide feedback – Develop positive relationship with teacher – Provide emotional support and encouragement

VITAL BEHAVIORS MANTRA FOR TEACHERS AND COACHES “To make sure the goal is achieved, I created eight laws of learning: explanation, demonstration, imitation, repetition, repetition, repetition, repetition, repetition.” Coach John Wooden

INSTRUCTIONAL COACHING AS PARTNERSHIP LEARNING* The Partnership Principles Equality Choice Voice Dialogue Reflection Praxis Reciprocity * University of Kansas, Center for Research on Learning, Instructional Coaching Institute

Virtual Teach Me Developed at the University of Central Florida Lisa Dieker and colleagues from education, engineering, computer science, mathematics, and theater departments Utah State Personnel Development Grant (Running Start) and Utah State University’s Alternative Teacher Preparation Program have served as a field test site for the past year

Meet the Kids Running Start Ready to Teach on Day 1

TeachMe™ During Running Start New teachers practiced vital teaching behaviors – Meet and greet students – Taught pre-written lesson for a academic skills – Taught rules Coaches practiced vital coaching behaviors – Observations – Modeling – Data collection – Feedback Running Start Ready to Teach on Day 1

Current Uses of TeachMe Running Start – Instructional Coach training – Continued BSN training USU Alternative Teacher Preparation Program – Severe disabilities – Mild/moderate disabilities Running Start Ready to Teach on Day 1

BASIC EVALUATION QUESTIONS Do Running Start BSNs – Demonstrate core vital teaching behaviors – Report high levels of job satisfaction – Receive high performance ratings from supervisors – Report positive levels of support from coaches – Have positive perceptions of the RS training experience – Remain in teaching (i.e., retention) Do coaches… Implement vital coaching behaviors with fidelity Positively influence student achievement

Running Start Ready to Teach on Day 1

JOB SATISFACTION Running StartNon-RSRunning StartNon-RS I get a lot of joy from my job 95%93%92% (70)91% (58) My school is a good place to work 86%92%86%92% Overall level of job satisfaction 91% (52)89% (38)86% (53)86% (44)

RETENTION One year retention rates for 08/09 Utah BSN cohort – Overall: 90.2% – For licensed BSNs:91% – For unlicensed BSNs:90% – For BSNs who attended Running Start:94%

COACH FIDELITY OF IMPLEMENTATION Observe new teacher using a structured observation system64% Have a conversation with new teacher about what was observed70% Offer specific suggestions to improve teacher performance88% Offer encouragement and emotional support98% Review student progress data with new teacher66% Provide verbal feedback92% Provide written feedback56% Demonstrate an instructional procedure by modeling it36% Communicate with your new teacher via or text message92%

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS How do you get brand new unlicensed special education teachers ready to teach on Day One? What type of supports do new unlicensed special education teachers and their instructional coaches need at various points during the school year? What’s the best evidence of success?