1. Response to Instruction (RtI) Pilot School Training
Welcome to the Indiana
Response to Instruction (RtI) Pilot School Training
July 23, 2010
Indianapolis, Indiana
Center. Please add your name, title, contact information. Please also add the IDOE, GLECC, NCRTI Logos to the first slide – you can do so along the bottom or wherever you like
Dawn Miller, Ph.D.
(913) 1 1

2. Goals for Session
Demonstrate Data-Based Decision Making using a Problem-Solving Model
Building Level
Grade Level
Individual Student Level
Provide tools for consideration or tasks to assist with problem solving efforts
using a Problem Solving Model 2 2

3. Problem-Solving Model
I just added a title – we also have some guiding questions for this process on page 18 of the document if you could refer them to that page, it would be great! 3

4. Apollo 11…..
What’s the Famous Quote? 4

5. Apollo 13
What’s the Famous Quote? 5

6. Let’s Revisit the Big Messages from Apollo 13…….6

7. Big Messages Unwavering Commitment to a Goal
Nontraditional Approaches as Options
What Will Our “Finest Hour” Be?

8. “We believe all kids can learn . . . based on their ability.”
The Charles Darwin
Belief
The Pontius Pilate
Belief
“We believe all kids can learn if they take advantage of their opportunity we give them to learn.”
“We believe all kids can learn based on their ability.”
In the 2004 book WHATEVER IT TAKES, How PLCs Respond When Kids Don’t Learn, DuFour, Eaker and others point out that different schools respond in different ways when students experience difficulties. The specific responses (or non-responses) of various school staffs are determined by their beliefs and assumptions about students and learning.
Let’s look at the guiding philosophies at these four different schools.
At the Charles Darwin School, the staff believes that the ability that students walk in the door with already predetermines the learning that they are going to graduate with or dropout with.
At the Pontius Pilate School, the staff does the minimum requirements to educate the students in their classes and then at the end of the year, “washes their hands” of any responsibility.
They main role is to get these kids out of school – one way or another.
At the Chicago Cub Fan School, the staff dreams of playing in the world series (i.e. making AYP for all sub groups consistently), but they usually lack the commitment or execution to make the dream a reality. They still glow with that warm & fuzzy feeling, but it is always “Wait ‘til next year!”
At the Henry Higgins School, the staff, like Professor Higgins of My Fair Lady, believes that they can perform miracles. They never give up and are willing to do Whatever It Takes in regard to time and support to help students reach high standards of achievement.
You -- as a principal have to truthfully answer one very important question.
Does your staff really believe that all students can succeed?
The Chicago Cub Fan
Belief
The Henry Higgins
Belief
“We believe all kids can learn something, and we will help all students experience academic growth in a warm and nurturing environment.”
“We believe all kids can learn and we will work to help all students achieve high standards of learning.” 8

9. What Would Each “School” Say About This Student’s Progress?

10. What Would Each School Say About This Student’s Progress?

11. A MYSTERY TO SOLVE
…NOT A…
CASE TO DEFEND

12. Is Our Goal Clear?
Agreement that we have a collective responsibility to make a change when the data indicate a change is warranted
In order to operate collectively as a Henry Higgins school, how can we capitalize on the years of experience in our building?
10 min. 12

13. Problem-Solving at the Building and Grade Level

15. Defining the Problem We examine data centered around three questions:
Are we making adequate progress toward our goal?
How are we doing with the Big Ideas?
How are we doing with our Core Curriculum and Supplemental Supports?
We examine the data at three levels
District
Building
Class 15

16. Please reference page 18 from the guidance document as this will be hard to read on the screen

17. First Grade Example

18. Question 1: Are We Making Adequate Progress Toward Our Goal?
Intensive
Strategic
Benchmark
Fall
12 %
10 %
78 %
Winter
Spring
We are attempting to demonstrate how to look across multiple measures to start shaping how a district/school/grade level team starts to understand the needs of their students as a group. 18

19. Unless you are at 100%…
If your percentages are going up and at a strong level, celebrate and talk about what is contributing to this positive direction…
If your percentages are not at 100%, let’s go further with the data to help clarify where to go next.
You will want to address the high ability students who may be at 100% - they can refer to the decision making flowchart on page 12 of the guidance document and also each tier reference page on pages 7,9 and 11 19

20. Question 2: How are we doing with the Big Ideas?
If I were to color code these:
> 85% = Green
70-85% = Yellow
< 70% = Red 20

21. Grade Level 21

22. Building Level 22

23. Question 3: How are we doing with our CORE and Supplemental Supports?
Yo may need to use the Core definition from the guidance document – there is a great graphic of what a core is and what it is not on page 20 23

24. IMPORTANT CAVEAT…. This question addresses:
For students who were on-track in the fall, is our core keeping them on track?
For students who were not on-track in the fall, is our system getting them on track?
This question DOES NOT address:
Do we have an adequate number of students on-track? 24

25. 25

26. Another Piece to the Puzzle…
Another Piece to the Puzzle…. Incorporating your Progress Monitoring Data
This is hard to read on the screen – will you be providing a copy? 26

27. For Students Not On Track - What Percent are Demonstrating Adequate Progress?
Jerome
Rocky
Delonda
Jesus
Michael
Owen
Travis

28. What about the remaining 18%?
Lizbeth
Alia
Marcus
Teyrone

29. Tools We Have Found Helpful

30. Facilitation Table Tent
Group Data Review
Structure
Master Calendar
3x a year
Grade-Level Meetings
Tools
Facilitation Table Tent
Worksheet

32. Analyzing the Learning Problem
We develop plausible causes by thinking about the following variables:
Instruction
Curriculum
Environment
Learner
We stay focused on things within our control 32

33. Please reference on page 18 – again – too small to see

34. Please reference page 7 in the guidance document – hard to read again

35. Tools We Have Found Helpful
Walk Throughs
Fidelity Checklists
Needs Assessments
Progress Monitoring Reflection Sheets

36. Open Court Walk Through

37. Intervention Fidelity Checklists

38. Open Court Needs Assessment
Principal has copies 

39. Organization and Planning General Features of Instruction
Survey of Teacher Needs
Area of Reading or General Feature of Instruction
High Priority
Medium Priority
Low Priority
Big Ideas of Reading
Teaching Phonemic Awareness 3 2 1
Effective Phonics Instruction
Teaching for Fluent Reading
Teaching Vocabulary
Teaching Comprehension Strategies
Organization and Planning
Effective Instruction for Struggling Readers
Organizing and Managing Small-Group Reading Instruction
Using the Results of Assessments to Plan Effective Instruction
Getting the Most Out of the Core Reading Program
General Features of Instruction
Modeling of Instructional Tasks
Providing Explicit Instruction
Engaging Students in Meaningful Interactions with Language
Providing Multiple Opportunities for Students to Practice
Providing Corrective Feedback
Encouraging Student Effort
Engaging Students in the Lesson During Teacher-Led Instruction
Engaging Students in the Lesson During Independent Work
Facilitating Students’ Successful Completion of Lesson Activities
Adapted from Hasbrouck and Denton (2005). The Reading Coach: A How-To Manual for Success. Longmont, CO: Sopris West Education Services.

40. Progress Monitoring Review
Tools
Progress Monitoring Facilitation Table Tent
Core Curriculum Reflection Sheet
Intervention Reflection Sheet
Adaptation Framework
Hard to read
Structure
Master Calendar
At least every
6 weeks

43. Determining What To Do
As a team, stay current with research for guidance
Stay focused on your hypothesis
When making selections, consider:
What do you think has the best chance of impacting performance?
Is it manageable?
What support is needed? 43

44. Again – please reference the guidance document

45. What Will Our Finest Hour Be?45

46. MEET JAMARI

47. What Does Effective Problem Solving Require?
What Did We Know?
What Did We Do?
Looked at historical data to understand current performance
Screening data indicated need for support beginning of 2nd grade
Teacher verified

48. Phonemic Awareness
Jamari has been with us at Rising Star since Kindergarten. He has received ELL support since K.
He entered K indicating the need for support with phonemic awareness.
No specific intervention in records.
At the April benchmark, Jamari’s phonemic awareness skills indicated he was on track. This was confirmed by teacher records.
Jamari’s first grade DIBELS indicates phonemic awareness skills have remained on track. This is confirmed by teacher records.

49. Alphabetic Principle
Jamari’s DIBELS benchmark indicated a need for support in the area of alphabetic principle in January of Kindergarten.
No specific intervention in records.
At the April benchmark, Jamari’s early phonics skills indicated he was on track. The teacher noted that he is still not solid with the sounds covered to date and frequently misses common sight words.
Jamari’s second grade DIBELS indicates his basic alphabetic principle skills have remained on track. This is confirmed by teacher notes.

50. What Does Effective Problem Solving Require?
What Did We Know?
What Did We Do?
Looked at historical data to understand current performance.
Big ideas of concern: Phonics, Fluency, Comprehension
Teacher recommends a more structured program for Jamari to insure explicit instruction and review.
EIR 45 min./5 days a week
Changes during Open Court include explicit teaching of tiered vocab.
Screening data indicated need for support beginning of 2nd grade
Teacher verified.

51. What Did We Think Was Going On?
What Did We Know?
Good progress in EIR.
Structure and review good matches for Jamari
Carrying over the skills to connected text.
What Did We Think Was Going On?
What Did We Do?
Added desktop review of sight
words in classroom.
Still needs frequent review and practice with sight words.
Needs more opportunities to read connected text at his independent level – practice with previously taught phonics skills.
Paired reading daily with
decodables or leveled readers.
Sending home decodables and
recommending he read them
using different “voices” and record
in powerpoint.

52. What Did We Think Was Going On?
What Did We Know?
Still progressing in EIR, but error rate is going up and he has difficulty with the comprehension skills.
Teacher reports Jamari struggles during core to keep up and contribute.
What Did We Think Was Going On?
What Did We Do?
Errorless reading strategy
As Jamari’s classmates continue to strengthen their skills, Jamari is becoming increasingly anxious about reading and making more errors.
Decodables cut up with Jamari having to sequence story and read to 5 adults during the day with no errors.
Practice with Fluency
Utilize same comprehension think sheets during Open Court
and EIR
Comprehension scaffolds

53. How Do We Share What We Know and Recommendations For Next Year?
Jamari’s Strengths?
Jamari’s Needs?

54. Thank you for your time and attention
I hope your efforts prove productive and empowering ~ Stay in touch
Dawn Miller, Ph.D. (913)