Presented by Christie Leigan

Prairie Lands Writing Project

June 2011

Take a few minutes at your tables to discuss this questions – jot down some notes

Choose a spokesperson to read your thoughts to the SI

Discussion/Questions

My goal was to ensure that the work I do with teachers and students would not only increase teacher’s knowledge of best teaching practices, but that it would also have a positive impact on student achievement.

No problem, right?

Early in the year, I realized that while I assumed the work I was doing was making a difference, it was difficult to document the effect that my work was having on teaching practices.

More importantly, I wasn’t sure if the work was having a positive impact on student achievement.

And I had no idea how to find out!

In October of 2009 the SJSD Instructional Coaches received coaching training from Diane Sweeney

Diane introduced us to the idea of student centered coaching

Rather than focusing on “fixing” the teacher, the focus shifts to making an impact on student learning (Whew! – less pressure)

“Student centered coaching is about (1) setting specific targets for students that are rooted in standards and curriculum and (2) working collaboratively to ensure the targets are met. Rather than focusing on how teachers feel or the acquisition of a few simple skills, we measure our impact based on student learning.”

~Diane Sweeney Student Centered Coaching, page 7

How does a teacher’s participation in an instructional coaching cycle impact student achievement?

Teacher “opts in” – asks for a coaching cycle

Initial conversation – look at curriculum objectives – plan for pre-test

Pre-test Examination of student work to determine

focus objectives Lessons are taught – weekly, collaborative

planning sessions to examine student work, conference notes, and then to plan instruction

Post –test Scoring Final conversation - analyzing results –

completion of the RBI

After examining the pre-tests we consulted the curriculum and chose our targeted objective:Uses organization that is easy to follow

After further discussion we broke the objective down into manageable goals:writing an effective lead and ending staying on topic paragraphing with a topic sentence and

supporting details

Teaching Techniques used: Exploring professional read-alouds Teacher modeling (think aloud writing) Examining “outside” student samples Making revisions to student samples Examining “inside” student samples to

provide feedback and revision ideas Creation of pre-writing plan that emphasized

organization and paragraphing with detail Anchor chart of what we have learned about

organization – used to create scoring guides

Spend the next ten minutes studying the leads in the books at your table

Jot down some notes about what makes these leads “good” leads

Be prepared to share

Two veteran instructional coaches from the St. Joseph School District scored the writing.

The pre and post writings were mixed together and contained no marks to indicate whether they were a pre or post sample.

The scoring guide was modified from the St. Joseph School District third and fourth grade 4 point holistic scoring guide.

The scoring guide was modified to reflect the objectives that were explicitly taught during the coaching cycle.

Score each of the three papers at your table individually using the scoring guide provided(no talking)

Write your score on the back of the paper on a sticky note

After all table members have scored each piece, check the back of the paper to see if the scores matched.

If the scores do not match, discuss why each person scored the paper as they did. What is the group consensus?

Let’s talk about itWhat worked?What didn’t work?Postives?Drawbacks?Did you all agree on the scores? How did

the discussion help determine an actual score?

A note about anchor papers

Pre Test Results (Number of students)

4 Points 3 Points 2 Points 1 Point

1 7 12 2

The pre-test results showed that only 36% of the third graders were proficient in organizing their writing. In order to be proficient, their writing must have scored a 3 or a 4 on the scoring guide.

Post Test Results (Number of Students)

4 Points 3 Points 2 Points 1 Point

6 8 8 0

After 22 days of explicit instruction about how to organize a story using effective leads and endings as well as how to write paragraphs with supporting details, the post test results showed that 64% of students were proficient in organizing their writing. This was an increase of 28%.

10 of the 22 students increased one or more levels from the pre to post-test.

Comparison of Pre and Post Test Results (Number of Students)

+3 Points +2 Points +1 Point +0 Points

1 1 8 12

Of the 12 students whose level did not increase, none of them went down a level; their score remained consistent from the pre to post-test. While these 12 students did not go up a level using the holistic scoring guide, their writing did show improvement. The following excerpts are examples of leads and endings written by students whose score remained the same from the pre to the post-test:

Pre test ending: “I want to be the best soccer player…EVER.”

Post test ending: “After the ride, I told my Grandma, “Hey, maybe you should try it next time we come!” Ha! Ha! Ha!”

Pre test lead: “I signed up for on Thursday, February 25, 2010.”

Post test lead: “Kick! Uhh! I missed the goal!”

Pre test ending: “I really, really, really miss Pat.”

Post test ending: “I went upstairs, plopped down and said, “Whew! I’m glad that’s over!”

Pre test lead: “My Grandpa Nelson’s dog Pat died in 2008”

Post test lead: “That cage smells!’ said mom!”

Clearly identifying student learning objectives

Creating lessons that addressed the objectives

Collaborative conversations Planning sessions Examination of student work Model lessons using a variety of texts

(professional, student, teacher) Co-teaching

“I found the collaborative planning helpful. We put our minds together to create effective lesson plans.”

“Model lessons were helpful. I enjoyed watching my class learn and having time to reflect on how to present important writing topics.”

“My students writing really improved. More importantly, they have become much more reflective and strategic about their writing.”

As an Instructional Coach for the SJSD, I am expected to use student achievement data to drive my work

The use of the RBI and the student centered coaching process must continue to be at the center of my work

Instructional coaching DOES have a positive impact on student achievement when the coaching is focused, direct, and driven by the needs of the students.

Look at your thoughts your table wrote down earlier:

After participating in this demonstration are there any revisions you would make? Has your thinking changed?

Let’s talk…

Learning Along the Way by Diane Sweeney

Student Centered Coaching by Diane Sweeney