DRAFT ACTION RESEARCH PLAN
Goal: Improving the reading achievement of our lowest quartile students in 3rd and 4th grades.
Action Step 1:
Curriculum Development
Investigate alignment between the state standards of student learning (TEKS) and the assessments used to measure the learning.
Actioned by: Principal and 3rd and 4th grade lead teachers
Timeline:
Aug to Oct
Needed resources:
Analysis by lead teachers and principal of educational research on the topic of achieving alignment to determine which curriculum changes must be made for the 3rd and 4th Grades reading programs.
Principal will take field notes and conduct interviews with teachers and other principals to determine the new curriculum resources that are required to achieve alignment of standards and assessment.
Monies will be used to purchase the new curriculum materials these resources may include:
Michael Eaton reading program;
My Skills Tutor computer software;
TAKS preparation materials.
Evaluation:
Continual evaluation of student achievement based on benchmark tests, TASK reading scores, and other student work.
Interview teachers to provide feedback on how well the new curriculum is aligned with state standards.
Action Step 2:
Staff Development Sessions
Help teachers to achieve effective delivery of new Curriculum Materials.
Actioned by:
Principal and 3rd and 4th grade lead teachers
Timeline:
2 PD sessions held in Oct.
Needed resources:
Principal and lead teachers will take field notes and interview experts from other campuses to find strategies to best teach the new curriculum to students.
In collaboration with the principal, lead teachers will conduct a staff training program detailing the proper delivery of the new curriculum materials.
Equipment and materials for successful delivery of PD sessions
Evaluation:
Principal will use field notes and interviews to assess the effective delivery of instruction by teaching staff.
Principal and lead teachers will analyze reading benchmark test results from Jan and Apr assessment periods to see if students are making progress and using new strategies for academic success.
Action Step 3:
Implementation of tutoring program before and after school
Actioned by:
3rd and 4th grade teachers;
Spec. Ed. Staff;
CMC teacher;
Educational
Assistants.
Timeline:
Oct to Apr
Needed resources:
Analysis by lead teachers and principal of performance indicators to determine which students may qualify for tutoring(TAKS scores, report cards, TPRI scores and benchmark test);
Field notes and interviews by principal to evaluate which students need tutoring.
Monies and materials to support improved tutoring groups
Evaluation:
Benchmark tests in Jan and Apr to determine progress made of students performance;
Field notes and interviews by principal to judge effectiveness of tutoring program;
Monitoring Improvement Actions – In order to evaluate the school improvement plan for increased reading achievement, the principal will conduct quarterly meetings with lead teachers to discuss student achievement on benchmark tests, the tutoring program, and delivery of instruction by teachers. As well, progress reports on these three aspects of the plan will be delivered by email to staff from the each subcommittee. The progress reports will contain information on how well the tutoring program, delivery of instruction, and testing results are being executed. As well, discussions of timelines, personnel, and materials that need changing will be discussed in these reports.
Evaluating the Action Plan – At the end of the school year, when the TAKS scores for Reading arrive, an evaluation of the action plan will be conducted by the principal. The principal will evaluate what worked and what did not work in the plan. He will use quantitative and qualitative data to determine success of the action plan. The principal will share his evaluation of the action plan with staff and other stakeholders. This evaluation will be used as a instrument to implement further improvements for the next school year.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Friday, July 23, 2010
Lessons Learned - Week 2
The video interviews with leading Texas educators was of benefit to me. From Dr. Briseno, I learned that a leader must make decisions based on quantitative data. In other words, numbers don’t lie, and data must be the most important information from which to make decisions. As well, I came to know that teachers training other teachers is the most palatable way for faculty members to receive staff development. Dr. Briseno insisted that most teachers do not want to learn about teaching methods from administrators or principals. And, finally, I learned that if one has an area of interest for action research, it is important to tap into the wealth of information available and read up on the topic. The Internet and educational journals are a great place to generate ideas to help solve one’s own problems.
From Dr. Lewis, I have come to understand that a hot topic for action research is in the area of staff development. He stated that changing the delivery of instruction was the most important change necessary in his district. As well, I learned that making the core curriculum more rigorous and relevant for students is of utmost importance. Students require a curriculum that will help them to gain a deeper understanding of the world around them, and, an improved curriculum must have as its goal the development of students’ critical thinking skills. Finally, I learned that reading research that others have provided about specific topics is important when one is thinking about one’s own areas of concern. However, Dr. Lewis maintained that, in order to truly increase student achievement, one must find and apply the practical information from action research that will be useful to one’s district, school or classroom.
From Dr. Lewis, I have come to understand that a hot topic for action research is in the area of staff development. He stated that changing the delivery of instruction was the most important change necessary in his district. As well, I learned that making the core curriculum more rigorous and relevant for students is of utmost importance. Students require a curriculum that will help them to gain a deeper understanding of the world around them, and, an improved curriculum must have as its goal the development of students’ critical thinking skills. Finally, I learned that reading research that others have provided about specific topics is important when one is thinking about one’s own areas of concern. However, Dr. Lewis maintained that, in order to truly increase student achievement, one must find and apply the practical information from action research that will be useful to one’s district, school or classroom.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
My Introduction to Action Research
I have learned that action research is an important tool for school improvement in the 21st Century. Administrators, as well as teachers, can use action research to turn around failing schools and to enhance the learning of students in successful school settings. Action research can be defined as the study of one’s own administrative, or teaching practice, and, taking action for change based on the study that one has been engaged. Practitioners of action research look for worthwhile change to make in the school setting, engage in reflection , pose questions, collect data, analyze data, read relevant literature, and make important changes in teaching and learning.
I have also learned that, unlike traditional educational research, action research is an excellent way for educators to tackle the immediate concerns in one's own school. Action research engages administrators and teachers to design, collect data and interpret data around their own questions. And, unlike traditional research, theories and knowledge are grounded in the realities of the school situation.
Action research is a practical tool for administrators and teachers to use to address the problems in their own schools. These concerns can include, but are not limited to, curriculum standards, achievement benchmarks, questions of cultural background and immigration status, income disparities, physical and mental disabilities and students with learning disabilities. These challenging problems can be solved with action research.
Blogs create the opportunity for administrators and teachers to discuss topics of concern. With a blog, educators are able to share their thoughts and opinions about school issues. Through blogs, educators have time to be reflective professionals. Also, blogs can help administrators and teachers work together for a given action research study topic by allowing them to network and conference.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Chris Hannay 5352 Week 5 Assignment
The course title was misleading and made me think that the course was about instruction of curriculum in a school setting. On the homepage it only stated “Instructional Leadership”, yet when copying the assignment pages those stated “Instructional Leadership: The Technology Link.” I was pleasantly surprised to find that it encompassed information and communication systems on a campus level. I feel the course covered the full spectrum of technology issues that are arising into today’s classrooms. After realizing what the course covered I now feel that I am more up to date with what is expected for technology and its growth on today’s campuses.
As a Principal, I have learned about gathering data such as, the AEIS report, for analyzing student progress as it pertains to their academic achievement. I have also found how to use the data from the STaR Chart summary to identify both strengths and weaknesses in teacher proficiency with technology tools. The STaR Chart summary also shows me where professional development adjustments need to be made for my campus. This information is then catalogued into the following year’s Campus Improvement Plan for future needs adjustments, as well; it shows me what professional development areas and courses I should be scheduling for our school needs.
On the Long Range Plan for Technology 2006-2020, I still feel a little less confident in my interpretation of the many areas that will have to be met in my leadership role. The overwhelming amount of information to be digested in The Plan is a factor in my feelings of apprehension. There are numerous stakeholders involved in The Plan that I am not completely familiar with. There are many persons dependent on the accurate and efficient interpretation by me of The Plan and the recommendations I would make along with the actions that will be required of me as an educational leader.
My abilities of adjusting to the technology requirements of this online course were successful and I feel more confident and proficient in using software programs such as Power Point Presentation, Excel Spreadsheets and Word Processing. And, to top it off, as a “digital immigrant,” I created my own blog with information and data, and I inserted my Power Point Presentation with the help of a Web Sharing Site. This is a technology tool I had never even heard of let along use it. I was amazed at what can be accomplished with these astonishing Web based sites if you know what you are looking for.
I feel I have broadened my knowledge base in the area of technology, yet I know I have a long way to go. With the continual and rapid growth in information and communications technologies, staying abreast with this growth will always be a priority in my professional career. I know to be an effective educational leader I will have to model proficiency in technology. My expectations will be high for my faculty and staff in the area of implementing the Technology TEKS. It will be crucial to demonstrate a positive attitude toward the use of technology at school for both teachers and students to succeed in the 21st century.
Blogs in the 21st Century classroom will be a voluble tool to use when teachers and students become more in tune with their use. Blogs make it easy to get valuable information from expert in a certain academic area. For instance, in “Blogging RSS” a Language Arts teacher decided to use a Weblog to carry on a conversation about a book outside of the class between students and the book’s author. This is an exciting sounding tool to get students interested in reading literature. In “Blog Revolution” it states that students and teachers can create and publish content online without knowing technical formatting language required to build a web page. These all seem to be revolutionary trends in 21st Century learning.
There are numerous valid concerns when it comes to blogging in a school environment. Social networking sites pose hazards to students because of naivety of adolescents when it comes to trust and honesty of those they are giving information to. All persons online are not always what they pretend to be. There are numerous stories about online predators that prey on the innocent. Our jobs as educators and parents are to monitor student use of blogs and make them aware of the dangers on the Web that lay in wait. Using the Web as a learning tool is a priority in today’s students’ academic life, and we as educators must model ethical use for the learners to get the educational value that blogs provide.
Blogs provide excellent interactive opportunities among school stakeholders on issues involving the district, campus, or community. An example of the blogs importance would be getting stakeholders input on a bond proposal for a district’s upgrading of its’ facilities. The district could post a proposal of needs, and request timely feedback from the community about its’ thoughts and concerns on the matter of the bond proposal. A Principal could have an idea for improving campus culture and would post a blog on the school campus web page and survey the faculty and staff for their impressions on the subject. Blogs can be an excellent reflection tool on a variety of issues and subjects.
As a Principal, I have learned about gathering data such as, the AEIS report, for analyzing student progress as it pertains to their academic achievement. I have also found how to use the data from the STaR Chart summary to identify both strengths and weaknesses in teacher proficiency with technology tools. The STaR Chart summary also shows me where professional development adjustments need to be made for my campus. This information is then catalogued into the following year’s Campus Improvement Plan for future needs adjustments, as well; it shows me what professional development areas and courses I should be scheduling for our school needs.
On the Long Range Plan for Technology 2006-2020, I still feel a little less confident in my interpretation of the many areas that will have to be met in my leadership role. The overwhelming amount of information to be digested in The Plan is a factor in my feelings of apprehension. There are numerous stakeholders involved in The Plan that I am not completely familiar with. There are many persons dependent on the accurate and efficient interpretation by me of The Plan and the recommendations I would make along with the actions that will be required of me as an educational leader.
My abilities of adjusting to the technology requirements of this online course were successful and I feel more confident and proficient in using software programs such as Power Point Presentation, Excel Spreadsheets and Word Processing. And, to top it off, as a “digital immigrant,” I created my own blog with information and data, and I inserted my Power Point Presentation with the help of a Web Sharing Site. This is a technology tool I had never even heard of let along use it. I was amazed at what can be accomplished with these astonishing Web based sites if you know what you are looking for.
I feel I have broadened my knowledge base in the area of technology, yet I know I have a long way to go. With the continual and rapid growth in information and communications technologies, staying abreast with this growth will always be a priority in my professional career. I know to be an effective educational leader I will have to model proficiency in technology. My expectations will be high for my faculty and staff in the area of implementing the Technology TEKS. It will be crucial to demonstrate a positive attitude toward the use of technology at school for both teachers and students to succeed in the 21st century.
Blogs in the 21st Century classroom will be a voluble tool to use when teachers and students become more in tune with their use. Blogs make it easy to get valuable information from expert in a certain academic area. For instance, in “Blogging RSS” a Language Arts teacher decided to use a Weblog to carry on a conversation about a book outside of the class between students and the book’s author. This is an exciting sounding tool to get students interested in reading literature. In “Blog Revolution” it states that students and teachers can create and publish content online without knowing technical formatting language required to build a web page. These all seem to be revolutionary trends in 21st Century learning.
There are numerous valid concerns when it comes to blogging in a school environment. Social networking sites pose hazards to students because of naivety of adolescents when it comes to trust and honesty of those they are giving information to. All persons online are not always what they pretend to be. There are numerous stories about online predators that prey on the innocent. Our jobs as educators and parents are to monitor student use of blogs and make them aware of the dangers on the Web that lay in wait. Using the Web as a learning tool is a priority in today’s students’ academic life, and we as educators must model ethical use for the learners to get the educational value that blogs provide.
Blogs provide excellent interactive opportunities among school stakeholders on issues involving the district, campus, or community. An example of the blogs importance would be getting stakeholders input on a bond proposal for a district’s upgrading of its’ facilities. The district could post a proposal of needs, and request timely feedback from the community about its’ thoughts and concerns on the matter of the bond proposal. A Principal could have an idea for improving campus culture and would post a blog on the school campus web page and survey the faculty and staff for their impressions on the subject. Blogs can be an excellent reflection tool on a variety of issues and subjects.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Week 4 Part 3
Evaluation Planning for Action Plan
With the data retrieval and analysis tools at our disposal from the state and district sources, we have the tools to identify our students learning needs. These data can be obtained from AEIS, STaR reports, District and Campus Improvement Plans, and TAKS scores. This data identifies students’ weaknesses and where additional instruction is needed for improvement. The monitoring of programs to benefit at risk students should be ongoing and frequent to ensure students’ needs are being met.
The Principal will organize professional development sessions for teachers to help analyze the state and district reports and other data. The purpose of these P. D. sessions is to focus our attention on the weak areas of the curriculum including technology applications. The Principal will monitor the decisions based on the data analysis in monthly faculty meetings with the purpose of identifying the students’ academic progress. For example the Principal, in consultation with teachers will monitor tutoring logs to verify that students are attending tutorials and making progress in their areas of instructional need. The data can also identify students who are in need of extra instructional support through small group pull out programs in addition to tutorials. As well, data can be used to monitor technology infrastructure and its usage on campus. The Principal can use his or her Technology Plan to visually inspect the campus to ensure there is adequate equipment and that is being used by teachers and students.
The monitoring and evaluation of technology learned at professional development sessions can be performed in a number of ways. For instance, walk –throughs, viewing lesson plans, Formal Evaluations, and conversations with staff are excellent ways of staying abreast of teachers’ integration of technology tools into their daily lessons. All campuses have and will use Technology Integration Faculty (TIF) to assist with technology integration and evaluate our progress in this area.
With the fast and ever-changing face of technology as it pertains to the classroom we will have to continue to grow as it does in order to prepare our students for a global world.
Evaluation Planning for Action Plan
With the data retrieval and analysis tools at our disposal from the state and district sources, we have the tools to identify our students learning needs. These data can be obtained from AEIS, STaR reports, District and Campus Improvement Plans, and TAKS scores. This data identifies students’ weaknesses and where additional instruction is needed for improvement. The monitoring of programs to benefit at risk students should be ongoing and frequent to ensure students’ needs are being met.
The Principal will organize professional development sessions for teachers to help analyze the state and district reports and other data. The purpose of these P. D. sessions is to focus our attention on the weak areas of the curriculum including technology applications. The Principal will monitor the decisions based on the data analysis in monthly faculty meetings with the purpose of identifying the students’ academic progress. For example the Principal, in consultation with teachers will monitor tutoring logs to verify that students are attending tutorials and making progress in their areas of instructional need. The data can also identify students who are in need of extra instructional support through small group pull out programs in addition to tutorials. As well, data can be used to monitor technology infrastructure and its usage on campus. The Principal can use his or her Technology Plan to visually inspect the campus to ensure there is adequate equipment and that is being used by teachers and students.
The monitoring and evaluation of technology learned at professional development sessions can be performed in a number of ways. For instance, walk –throughs, viewing lesson plans, Formal Evaluations, and conversations with staff are excellent ways of staying abreast of teachers’ integration of technology tools into their daily lessons. All campuses have and will use Technology Integration Faculty (TIF) to assist with technology integration and evaluate our progress in this area.
With the fast and ever-changing face of technology as it pertains to the classroom we will have to continue to grow as it does in order to prepare our students for a global world.
Week 4 Part 2
Professional Development Planning
My district is extremely conscious of the ongoing need for development of students’ and teachers’ mastery of technology in a global world. The district understands teachers need for continuous professional development in order to stay current in the classroom with the growing number of technologies and their applications. The district and campus leaders must use professional development to be able to access and use data to improve student learning. I have selected two professional development sessions to target student needs in the classroom.
Professional Development 1:
Building Teachers’ Technology Integration Skills
(This will be a yearly analysis)
The campus STaR chart summary is distributed on an annual basis and will be analyzed by the Principal, then the information will be delivered to the faculty for a discussion of areas of strengths and weaknesses. After analysis of the chart a determination is made that shows our campus weakness is Key Area 1- Teaching and Learning.
Teachers will break into small groups with a Mentor teacher for the purpose of helping teachers integrate the Technology TEKS for a student-centered learning environment.
Teachers will be assigned to rooms with their Mentor teachers that have adequate computer access for the facilitation of activities to integrate curriculum into daily learning experiences that use technology.
This professional development activity will be ongoing and follow up will be on a monthly basis for the purpose of building a greater comfort level in the daily use of technology in the classroom as well as building a solid knowledge base as it pertains to technology integration in a student-centered learning environment.
Professional Development 2
Empowering Teachers with Power Point Presentations
Focus of this Professional Development is to help teachers to feel more at ease with the use of Power Point for integration and teaching to students in their daily work.
The P.D. session will begin with a review of the Technology TEKS as it pertains to each grade level. Through this review activity the teachers will become aware of how a Power Point presentation project can cover many of the Technology TEKS.
During the P.D. session a Power Point presentation will be shown to show the teachers the many applications that can be incorporated within a Power Point. Some of these applications are, word processing, spreadsheets, graphs, audio, and video.
Grade levels will break into groups at work stations where each teacher will be guided to prepare a Power Point Presentation based on their grade level TEKS requirements. Grade levels will select a finished product to share at the end of the P.D. session.
Each teacher will select a Power Point presentation from a student to place on the District server for sharing with District stakeholders to ensure this technology is being implemented into the curriculum.
Professional Development Planning
My district is extremely conscious of the ongoing need for development of students’ and teachers’ mastery of technology in a global world. The district understands teachers need for continuous professional development in order to stay current in the classroom with the growing number of technologies and their applications. The district and campus leaders must use professional development to be able to access and use data to improve student learning. I have selected two professional development sessions to target student needs in the classroom.
Professional Development 1:
Building Teachers’ Technology Integration Skills
(This will be a yearly analysis)
The campus STaR chart summary is distributed on an annual basis and will be analyzed by the Principal, then the information will be delivered to the faculty for a discussion of areas of strengths and weaknesses. After analysis of the chart a determination is made that shows our campus weakness is Key Area 1- Teaching and Learning.
Teachers will break into small groups with a Mentor teacher for the purpose of helping teachers integrate the Technology TEKS for a student-centered learning environment.
Teachers will be assigned to rooms with their Mentor teachers that have adequate computer access for the facilitation of activities to integrate curriculum into daily learning experiences that use technology.
This professional development activity will be ongoing and follow up will be on a monthly basis for the purpose of building a greater comfort level in the daily use of technology in the classroom as well as building a solid knowledge base as it pertains to technology integration in a student-centered learning environment.
Professional Development 2
Empowering Teachers with Power Point Presentations
Focus of this Professional Development is to help teachers to feel more at ease with the use of Power Point for integration and teaching to students in their daily work.
The P.D. session will begin with a review of the Technology TEKS as it pertains to each grade level. Through this review activity the teachers will become aware of how a Power Point presentation project can cover many of the Technology TEKS.
During the P.D. session a Power Point presentation will be shown to show the teachers the many applications that can be incorporated within a Power Point. Some of these applications are, word processing, spreadsheets, graphs, audio, and video.
Grade levels will break into groups at work stations where each teacher will be guided to prepare a Power Point Presentation based on their grade level TEKS requirements. Grade levels will select a finished product to share at the end of the P.D. session.
Each teacher will select a Power Point presentation from a student to place on the District server for sharing with District stakeholders to ensure this technology is being implemented into the curriculum.
Week 4 Part 1
Organizational Chart for Integration of Technology
Stakeholder
Role / Responsibilities
Superintendent
The Superintendent will use all means available to provide a technology rich environment aligned with state standards to empower students for a global and digital world of information.
Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum
The Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum has the responsibility of aligning campus and district’s written curriculum with the Texas Long Range Plan for Technology and the Technology Applications TEKS.
District Technology Coordinator
The District Technology Coordinator’s focus is to provide technology resources that promote integration of appropriate technologies, and then assist teachers in this integration and prepare students for the future. This person also oversees technology budget management and maintenance of equipment.
Assistant Technology Coordinator
The Assistant Technology Coordinator facilitates training for teachers and staff on the effective use of technology tools. These tools include computers, hardware, and software for an educational environment. This person helps coordinate the acquisition of funds for our technology programs.
Principal
The Principal’s responsibilities for technogy integration on campus include, bugetting of funds for acquisition of technology tools, developing both short and long range plans for technology integration with the CPOC committee, and evaluating teachers’ use and integration of technology tools within the classroom.
Teacher
The Teachers’ responsibility is to effectively use and integrate the Technology TEKS into daily lessons. The teacher must engage students in a wide array of multimedia tools. Teachers must actively pursue professional development training to stay current with information technologies.
Technology Aide
The technology aide’s responsibilities include maintaining the computer labs for both skills and internet access. The technology Aide provides technical support to teachers and helps introduce and train teachers on new software programs. This person helps in the selection of software programs.
Organizational Chart for Integration of Technology
Stakeholder
Role / Responsibilities
Superintendent
The Superintendent will use all means available to provide a technology rich environment aligned with state standards to empower students for a global and digital world of information.
Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum
The Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum has the responsibility of aligning campus and district’s written curriculum with the Texas Long Range Plan for Technology and the Technology Applications TEKS.
District Technology Coordinator
The District Technology Coordinator’s focus is to provide technology resources that promote integration of appropriate technologies, and then assist teachers in this integration and prepare students for the future. This person also oversees technology budget management and maintenance of equipment.
Assistant Technology Coordinator
The Assistant Technology Coordinator facilitates training for teachers and staff on the effective use of technology tools. These tools include computers, hardware, and software for an educational environment. This person helps coordinate the acquisition of funds for our technology programs.
Principal
The Principal’s responsibilities for technogy integration on campus include, bugetting of funds for acquisition of technology tools, developing both short and long range plans for technology integration with the CPOC committee, and evaluating teachers’ use and integration of technology tools within the classroom.
Teacher
The Teachers’ responsibility is to effectively use and integrate the Technology TEKS into daily lessons. The teacher must engage students in a wide array of multimedia tools. Teachers must actively pursue professional development training to stay current with information technologies.
Technology Aide
The technology aide’s responsibilities include maintaining the computer labs for both skills and internet access. The technology Aide provides technical support to teachers and helps introduce and train teachers on new software programs. This person helps in the selection of software programs.
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