Professional Learning TeamsOctober 2010

Recap The PLT meeting 1 Data

Morning tea

Developing a learning log The PLT in action

Leading a PLT Role play

9.00

10.30

11.00 – 1.00

NMR - School Improvement Model

Complex change ….

Change in the way teachers operate De-privatised practice

Collaboration and challenge Joint planning Peer observation

Personalisation Evidence based practice /goal setting Strategies for differentiation

Pedagogical teaching and content knowledge Teaching frameworks/concepts Literacy and numeracy teaching strategies Standards and continuums of learning

Assessment practices Technology

Teachers’ beliefs and attitudes about students’ capacity to learn

Challenges & barriers to change

Low Expectations!

“The biggest resistance to improving high schools is the deep-seated belief that many of our students cannot learn much for a range of reasons including social class and language background.”

Prof Patrick Griffin 2009

Activity: Think, pair, share

‘Communities that undermine learning’….. and change

Discuss article by Platt & Tripp at tablesThink about the different teams you have worked

in. Identify one effective team and one low performing team – what was the difference? How would you define a high functioning, accountable PLT?

The genius of ‘AND’…………….. The tyranny of ‘OR’

Must we be A or B, not both??? High performing organisations seek to be both

A and B Not a question of balance – implies going to

the mid point (50-50) Create a culture that is simultaneously loose

and tight Concept of

‘directed empowerment’ ‘defined autonomy’

AiZ Structure

Teams of teachers (PLTs and Triads)Team leaders (PLT leaders)Learning leaders

School improvement team (SIT)NMR

PLT PLT PLT

Triad Triad Triad Triad TriadTriad

PROFESSIONAL LEARNINGAiZ (Learning Leaders, PLT leaders)

Coaches

School Improvement Team/Leadership Team

School readiness

What’s your story?? Implementation stage

Building awareness Common understanding

Planning Piloting Full implementation

Planning Where do you want to be in 2011 What do you need to do What will be your challenges What will you do when you get back to your school

Action plan

Goal: Clarity and alignment

Review structures, frameworks Teaching and learning – what and how Assessments Role and responsibilities Teams Student voice School organisation

Year levels Timetable Meetings

Develop 2011 implementation plan Consider change strategy

Action learning with existing teams

Activity – table talk

Your storyWhere are PLTs in your school at now?Where would you like them to be in a year’s

time?What will you do to get there?

‘Connect peers with purpose’ … …. Fullen

‘Create a sense of urgency’ …………Kotter

Professional Learning Teams

Key characteristics, core work …………..

PLTs – look like?

Size Ideally no more than 6

Composition Mix of experienced and beginning Mix of expertise (eg numeracy/literacy/disciplines)

Primary Usually year level

Secondary Year level Discipline

AiZ PLTs a new team work approach

Evidence not inference Challenge not share Group responsibility

From ‘my class’ to our studentsYour problem to our solution

Developmental not deficit approach Peer accountability rather than system reporting Expectations of ALL students

Patrick Griffin

Effective PLTS

Shared norms and values

Collaboration

Collective focus on student learning

Reflective dialogue

De-privatisation of practice

Sharon Kruse (Building Professional Learning Communities) 1995

Meetings follow set protocols

A developmental approach to learning

Students & teachers

Engage in process of evidence based inquiry to plan for teaching interventions

Members accountable to the group

Prof Patrick Griffin

Shared values, goals

Collaborative culture

Collective inquiry (and challenge)

Action orientation (learning by doing)

Commitment to continuous improvement

Results orientation

DuFour and Eaker (1998)

Ticking the effective team boxes

TEAMS

Four critical questions for learning:

What is it we expect our students to learn?

How will we know when they have learned it?

How will we respond when they don’t learn?

How will we respond when they already know it?

The PLT meeting

What does is it look like, feel like, sound like …………..

Featuring: Lena Clark Lorraine Edwards Patricia Quan

Activity: Observation and table discussion

What is the PLT leader doing? What are PLT members doing? Nature of conversation, questioning? How does this align with student centred

meetings at your school?The main outcome of the meeting was the

development of the learning log. From the PLT discussion you have just observed identify what you think should be the key elements of a student learning log?

Using data … to improve student learning

Developmental learning and evidence based practice

Our data collection is evidence-based monitoring of student performance.

The data: Paints a picture of every student and class A profile of results which tells a story..... Is evidence of what students can do...a

formative, forward looking model Informs us about what we want students to learn Tells us when a student has achieved to a

certain level

The Patrick Griffin model

Use of data based onTheory of the Zone of Proximal

Development (ZPD) – scaffolding of instruction/learning

Developmental continuums or “learning pathway maps”

Underpinning Theories

Glaser – stages of increasing competence

Rasch – identifying the stages

Vygotsky – scaffolding instruction

Patrick Griffin model cont...

Based on the belief that, by knowing where students sit along the continuum, teachers can target the teaching strategies and interventions to scaffold the students to the next level

Goal: to monitor, promote and accelerate students along a developmental continuum (eg VELs) by focusing the teaching to where they ARE, rather than where they SHOULD BE.

Deficit v Developmental learning approach

Prof Patrick Griffin

Deficit approach to learning:

•Focus on what students cannot do

•Outcome is a ‘fix-it’ approach.

Developmental approach:

•Build on and scaffold the existing knowledge bases of every student.

•Focus on student readiness to learn.

A developmental approach to learning

Develop culture of looking at learning goals from a developmental perspective

PLTs require clarity around:

1. Guaranteed curriculum/essential learning:

What it is we want our students to learn at each year level - aligned with VELs

Does it have endurance? Does it have leverage? Does it prepare students for next level of learning?

(Douglas Reeves 2002 – assessing significance of standards)

A developmental approach to learning

2. Knowing when each student has learned it

What will students know and be able to do as a result of unit of work

How will students demonstrate their learning What will it look like in terms of students work How will we monitor students’ learning?

Types of assessment, Purposeful, Focused, Diagnostic, Timely

Making reliable judgements

Teachers need to have 3 sets of data in order for a reliable judgement to be made for each student in the school

Tests should be reliable and accurate i.e. calibrated and not subject to opinion

Where possible use departmental resources -they are free, well researched and developed

Tests should have an aspect of literacy or numeracy as a focus Tests should have data that provides detailed information about

skill levels Tests should be able to indicate where the student needs to go

next. For example have a developmental continuum Test results should be able to indicate student growth once the

test is repeated Test results should help teachers develop groupings in their

classes

Closing the gap???

Idea of closing gap will not be addressed because all kids should move; in fact the gap may widen in some instances.

It’s about identifying where students are ready to learn rather than where they are expected to be.

Teaching concepts, not just skills will enable students to perform better in future tests.

Activity - Think, pair, share

Do you believe that schools should be expected to deliver a guaranteed curriculum at each year level What does a guaranteed curriculum mean to you How does it impact on the 4 critical questions for learning?

To what extent is the use of learning continuums embedded in the practice of your school? What is the value of a continuum for teachers, for students Do you have concerns about the use of a continuum

Share these with the person next to you.

Developing a learning log

Professional Learning Team Log Literacy Date:Student Code: ABC12

Level: Low

Review Date: 3 week program review on 2/7/10

1. Is the level on the pathway what was expected in relation the evidence collected in the classroom? If not, what level does the evidence suggest.

Student Y has developed his reading fluency. He is able to recall an increasing amount of detail, but still overlooks important points, even when stated directly.

2. What specific learning goals are set to support this student’s development and progress?

• Locate directly stated information in both fiction & non fiction text.

• Answer questions where the information is directly stated. Oral & written.

• Retell what he has read with increased detail, including main idea

• Self monitor reading by reading on/back & S/C to clarify meaning or to answer questions

3a. What specific teaching strategies will you use used to achieve these goals?

• Model answering oral questions based on directly stated information. Indicate where in text this information is located

• Model answering questions based on directly stated information in written form. Discuss & justify answers from recall/understanding.

• Identify key words during reading. Regularly practice this procedure

• Articulate the main idea of a text linked to title or chapter headings or subtitles

4. What evidence (make, say, write, do) would show goals are met?

• Student work samples x 3 of written questions answered.

• Teacher small group observation notes re directly stated information located & explained x2

• Work samples: key words independently identified during reading. Underline highlight, post its

• Analysed running records x2 indicating re reading & S/C for meaning & structure

• Retell text to a partner including main ideas

Professional Learning Team Student LogNumeracy Low

School Code xxxx Date Started: 21st July 2010

Students Name:

Year Level: 5

Group : 2

1. Is the student’s level what you expected? No

What makes you say that? Because he is hesitant to participate in fraction activities, finds it difficult to explain his understandings & is working on accurately solving fraction problems using a variety of materials

2. Learning Goals 3a. Strategies 3b. Resources 4a. Evidence

Triangulated Data

5. Date reviewed

Confidently & independently identify and compare equivalent fractions

Improve ability to understand how and why fractions can be equivalent

Work with hands on materials to explore how fractions can be equal. Represent this visually using models & explain models & what they represents.

Physically cut up a variety of models to see how the quantity does not change, just the size of the pieces.

Relate this to numerical values

A3 paper

Maths book

Plasticine/blu tac

Fraction wall

Fraction blocks

Plastic straws

Oranges/apples

Look for & record observations:

Ability to mentally find difference between numbers quickly

Ability to discuss strategies being used

Explanation of equivalence

4th August

The PLT in action

Leading the change …………

Leading the change …………

Leadership

The principal and team leader are key to the redesign process.

“A neutral principal or team leader is an undermining force.”

The work of the PLT leader

Lead the team Understand change Model behaviours Develop culture of challenge – questioning

Develop the capacity of the team Pedagogical knowledge Assessment practices Use of data Goal setting and strategy selection

Support collaboration Regular, focused meetings Establish protocols Develop structure and processes

PLT Meetings

Develop agreed protocols/normsSet agenda/proformasRegular timeKeep to timeHave a focusShare facilitationEncourage participation and group

The process

TEAMS of teachers take responsibility for the cohort

LEADERS take teams of teachers through the following cycle:

REVIEW where the students are at. What is their Zone of proximal development? Look at evidence of what students can DO, SAY, MAKE or

WRITE What evidence have we used to determine this?

What learning GOALS are appropriate? PLAN STRATEGIES/ INTERVENTIONS to move them forward

IDENTIFY THE RESOURCES needed

STIPULATE THE EVIDENCE required to say that kids have moved

The Process ……Patrick Griffin

Review students’ progress. Discussion based on evidence of

do, say, make and write. All inferences of learning challenged and defended.

Identify the resources that are needed

Stipulate the evidence that will be required to establish

that movement has occurred and the timeframe

for the review

Plan strategy for intervention to take the

students to the next level on the

developmental continuum.

The Process

Set Goals

Identify strategies(Identify teacher learning

needs?)

Act/ Implement

Observe/give feedback/Reflect

Analyse ClassroomData

Teacher Inquiry

Knowledge Building

cycle

Hume Central SC

PLT agenda and timingTopic Details Timing

1a Sharing Use of data 10 min

1b Select students

Highest, lowest and middle common levels + 1 student from whom data/assessments were used from each class (if applicable)

5 min

1c Middle level

Selection of students from common levels from each class by individual teachers

5 min

1d Each teacher to give background on each selected student from this level to be discussed

2 min per student

2a Look for commonalities b/ween students and decide goals

3a Strategies/resources

Discuss possible interventions/strategies/resources in general

10 min per stud

3b Decide on interventions

4 Evidence Decide on evidence that goals will be met

5 Review Decide review date and fill out learning for selected students

Activity: Producing a learning log

Task: complete a learning log for a student or a cohort of students

Grade 5: Inference

Data

- 2009 Y5 Spa/Naplan diagnostic data (sample)

- 2009 Y5 Naplan questions and source material

Steps

- Analyse data 10 min

- Select cohorts/student 5 min

- Identify/develop learning goals 10 min

- Identify teaching strategies to achieve learning goals 10 min - Identify evidence to show learning goals have been

met 10 min

Activity: Producing a learning log

Groups of 5 – 6 teachers

Nominate: Team leader and observer

Team Leader: lead meeting

Observer: note type of questioning, level of challenge, use and focus on data, team participation, use of protocols to engage team member in discussion

Reflection: 5 mins Observer reports back to team about observations.

Group reflects 2 key positives and 2 key challenges for doing the work in their schools.