Continuous Improvement in the Middle School Classroom

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Continuous Improvement in the Middle School
Classroom
Ann BuckleyCI Trainer Paul HayesStudent
ServicesFacilitator Becky MartinContinuous
Improvement Facilitator Steph StulkenCI Trainer

• NQEC
• Reno, Nevada
• November 16, 2008

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Quick Facts

• 2,805 employees
• 17,840 students
• 21 Minority enrollment
• 38 Free/Reduced
• 33 attendance sites
• 23 elementary
• 6 middle school
• 4 high schools
• 179 million budget
• 35 formal school/business partnerships
• Iowas second largest school district

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• Essential Outcomes
• The components of our MS Continuous Improvement
  Model
• Understanding of how the components engage middle
  school students

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Video Clip
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• Deciding to enter into a quality process in
  education is not because good things are not
  happening but because of a desire to have good
  things happen regularly, consistently, and
  predictable at every level of the school system.
  Random acts of excellence have little effect on
  the desired strategic results.
• Margaret Byrnes

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Strategic Plan
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School Plan on Page
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Classroom Plan on a Page
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Alignment
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Quality Levels
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What is Quality?
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MS Team Structure

• 5 teachers per team
• Language Arts
• Science
• Social Studies
• Math
• Special Education
• Grouped by ability, gender, ethnicity, SES

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Ground Rules
Team Standards for Behavior

• Student ownership responsibility
• Reduce behavior problems
• Build a climate of trust and comfort

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Ground Rules Process

• Question to ask
• How will we treat each other?
• Climate
• Comfort
• Cooperation
• Creating a Culture for Learning

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Team-Process Options

• Large Group
• The whole team is together and uses the process
• By Class
• Each teacher uses the process during a given
  period
• By Subject
• One teacher uses the process each period on a
  given day

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Tools to Use

• Brainstorming
• silent method all respond
• Generate ideas on sticky notes
• Affinity Diagram
• Put together like ideas/themes
• Nominal Group Technique -
• Narrow the list to the most important

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Brainstorming
What suggestions and ideas do you have that would
help improve this issue?
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Affinity Diagram
Combine like ideas/themes
Theme 4
Theme 1
Theme 2
Theme 3
Theme 5
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Nominal Group Technique
What suggestions and ideas do you have that would
help improve this issue?
Theme 4
Theme 1
Theme 2
Theme 3
Theme 5
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Team Ground Rules
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Ground Rules
Engage Students

• Student created
• All students have a voice
• Ownership Responsibility
• Students self-monitor

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Mission Statement
Defining the Purpose

• Focuses students, parents and teacher on the
  learning goals
• Aligns district, school, class and students

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Classroom/Team Mission Statements

• Written at the beginning of the year
• Include both academic social/emotional
• Review often at first and then as needed
• Directs focus to classroom expectations

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Mission Statement Process Tools

• Silently brainstorm
• Who are we?
• Why are we here?
• What will we accomplish?
• How will we know we are there?

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Team Mission Statements
Engage Students

• Student created
• Common focus
• Create a culture of acceptance
• Communicate what is important

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Crucial Questions
What do we want each student to know or be able
to do?
What evidence do we have of the learning?
How will do we respond when some students
struggle or dont learn?
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Student Crucial Questions

• What do I need to know?
• Where am I now?
• How do I get there?
• What happens if I struggle?

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Class Student Goals
Set the target

• Focus on learning achievement
• Aligned to
• School Improvement Plan
• Curricular standards
• Clear Understandable Vision of the Target

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Why SMART Goals?

• Clear Understandable Vision of the Target
• SMART Goals are
• Specific, Measurable, Attainable,
  Results-Oriented Time Bound
• SMART goals provide focus
• SMART goals define the future state how it
  will be measured.

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Goal Process
Classroom Student

• Identify the Learning Expectation
• Deconstruct it to enabling targets
• Transform to student friendly version
• Create formative classroom assessments
• Use w/students to chart growth
• Data center
• Data folder

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SMART Goal - SIP to Classroom

• Original During the 2007-08 school year, SAMPLE
  school will increase students proficiency in
  vocabulary skills in the non-proficient student
  subgroups as measured by the ITBS vocabulary sub
  test assessment

• Kid Friendly This year, Mr. Marinos 6th grade
  class

will have a better understanding of words as
measured by a 10 reduction of errors in
vocabulary on weekly writing assignments.
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Classroom to Student

• Classroom SMART Goal (Kid Friendly) This year,
  Mr. Marinos 6th grade class will have a better
  understanding of words as measured by a 10
  reduction in vocabulary errors in weekly writing
  assignments.

• Student Goal (in data folder) This year, I will
  focus on getting better at learning the meaning
  of words. I will measure how Im doing by
  keeping track of the number of errors I have in
  vocabulary usage on the weekly writing prompts we
  do in class.

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What do we want each student to learn?
Defined by Student Learning Expectations
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What Are The Goals of

• the school district?
• your school?
• your classroom?
• your students?

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PLC Critical Questions

• What do we want students to know and be able to
  do?
• Standards/Benchmarks (Learning Outcomes)
• Classroom SMART goals
• How will we know if they can do it?
• Formative assessments
• Multiple data sets
• How will we respond when they cant?
• Differentiated Instruction
• Systems of intervention (supplemental to
  intensive)

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District Goal
SMART Goal Alignment
SIP Goal
Classroom / Curriculum Goal
Learning/ Scaffold Target
Success.
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What is your classroom focus?
Learning OR Points Assignments

• Is this a Paradigm Shift?

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• What we choose to evaluate and how we choose to
  evaluate delivers powerful messages to students
  about those things we value. Students view their
  learning and their sense of worth through the
  lens we help them construct unless they cannot
  bear to look through it. Staytor and Johnson,
  1990

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Goals /Learning Targets
Engage Students

• Common focus
• Target for achievement
• Communicate what is important
• Build community culture for success

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Classroom Data Center
Representation of student achievement

• Displays district, building, team alignment
• Demonstrates progress toward goals
• Includes Charts Graphs
• Plots class and team progress
• Displays comparative data

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What Gets Measured Gets Done

• When you measure progress,
• have a powerful influence on student achievement
• you stay on track,
• reach your target dates,
• experience the excitement of achievement . . .
• . . .which spurs you on to continued effort
  required to reach your goals.

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Classroom Data Center
Math Computation During the 2007-2008 school
year, the percentage of students scoring in the
high and intermediate math total proficiency
levels will increase by 5 as measured by the
district math assessments and ITBS.
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Data Centers
Engage Students

• Graphical representation of class goal
  achievement
• Foster a sense of accomplishment and motivation
• Build culture by celebrating learning for all

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Data Folder
Evidence of student achievement

• Aligned with class/curricular goals
• Student focus
• 1) What is my goal?
• 2) What is my action plan?
• 3) When will I monitor my progress?
• 4) What tool will I use?

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Data Folders Contents

• Information
• Student parent
• Mission
• Ground Rules
• Learning Goals
• Charts
• Graphs

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http//quality.cr.k12.ia.us/
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Data Folders
Engage Students
As Rick Stiggins states The PRIME motivator
for self monitoring is to build success and
confidence.

• Graphical representation of individual goal
  achievement
• Build responsibility for own learning
• Foster a sense of accomplishment motivation
• Create self-efficacy

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In my Classroom System

• Question What will I do to establish and
  communicate learning goals, track student
  progress and celebrate success?
• Are the learning targets clear?

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Student-Led Conferences
Reporting of Progress

• Students-
• lead the discussion
• using data folder
• Teacher acts as facilitator

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Student Led Conferences Process and Tools
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Student-led Conferences
Engage Students

• Ownership/responsibility for their learning
• Reflection on progress over time
• Pride in accomplishments
• Celebrate Success

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Class Meetings
Communication forum

• Facilitated by students
• Focus on problem solving
• Feedback tools
• Discuss progress toward goals

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CLASS MEETINGS
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Class Meetings
Engage Students

• Involve students in a problem-solving process
• Students have a voice
• Create a culture of acceptance
• Focus on achievement, resolution of issues
  CELEBRATIONS!!!!

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PDSA
Process for Improvement

• PLAN
• A change based on current practice
• DO
• Carry it out on a small scale
• STUDY
• The results
• ACT
• On what you find

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PDSA
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• Pre Planning Identification of Need
• 1. Develop/Review Student Learning Expectations
• 2. Examine alignment of learning expectations
  with assessments
• 3. Review assessment data
• 4. Identify areas of need based on assessment

• Plan
• 1. Describe the current process for addressing
  the identified area of need (flow chart)
• 2. Review data to determine baseline performance
  in the specific area identified
• (Run Chart/Pareto Diagram)
• 3. Identify potential root causes contributing
  to the identified area of need
• (Cause Effect Diagram, 5 Whys,
  Relations Diagram)
• 4. Study research-based best practice/improvement
  theory addressing areas of need

• DO
• 1. Plan for implementation of improvement theory
  (Force Field Analysis, Action Plan)
• 2. Implement research-based best practices
  improvement theory based on root causes
  according to the Action Plan
• 3. Monitor the implementation of research-based
  best practice/improvement theory to insure
  integrity and fidelity4. Assess student learning

• Act
• 1. Standardize the implementation of
  research-based best practice (improvement theory)
  that improved student learning (revise the flow
  chart to reflect changes made to the system)
• 2. If improvement theory was unsuccessful
  continue the PDSA cycle (try another improvement
  theory based on the next identified root causes)

Action Research Overview
Study 1. Examine student assessment results
(compare to baseline) 2. Assess the impact of
research-based best practice/improvement theory
on student achievement
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Classroom PDSA
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Student PDSA
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The PDSA Process
Engage Students

• Students generate an action plan/improvement
  theory
• Involves student in problem solving
• Focus on improvement

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Video Clip
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Questions
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Want more information?
Cedar Rapids Community Schools Continuous
Improvement Web Site http//quality.cr.k12.ia.us/

• Ann Buckley
• CI Trainer
• abuckley_at_cr.k12.ia.us
• Paul Hayes
• Student Services Facilitator
• phayes_at_cr.k12.ia.us
• Becky Martin
• CI Facilitator
• rmartin_at_cr.k12.ia.us

• Jay Marino
• Assoc. Superintendent
• jmarino_at_cr.k12.ia.us
• Steph Stulken
• CI Trainer
• sstulken_at_cr.k12.ia.us