EDLD 5399 Week 3 Part 1 & 2

Week Three Assignment, Part 1 – CARE Model Analysis of District/Campus Improvement Initiatives or Action Research Plans

Please review your intern plan. In the first course, students were encouraged to engage in some action research, or participate in district or campus improvement initiatives. Each of you has had some experiences with such initiatives or action plans. Please review those experiences and complete the following analysis:

Concerns – Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in action research, and list at least three concerns that you have identified from these experiences – a concern may be any matter that engages your attention or interest.

1. Budget cuts limit new initiatives and eliminate current ones.
2. Reconfigurations of campuses shift personnel and initiatives move with personnel.
3. Teachers are unaware of data of sub-groups that need targeted programs when district is rated Recognized.

Affirmations - Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in action research, and affirm or identify at least 3 actions that must be sustained and supported to achieve the District/Campus improvement initiatives.

1. Superintendent Support with financial backing
2. Community Support
3. Teacher and staff buy-in

Recommendations - Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in action research and describe at least 3 recommendations you would make regarding the District/Campus Improvement plans or action research plans.

1. Develop a pull-out tutorial and mentoring program for At-Risk students who have failed TAKS previously in Math and Science. Nix’s Six Mentoring Program to Close the Gap.
2. My CSCOPE Professional Development Plan has been sent to district leaders and they are considering using parts of my format for implementation in August.
3. Set up a profile form for all teachers to monitor student gains and losses on CSCOPE Assessments by STAAR/EOC Reporting Categories.

Evaluate - Review your participation in improvement initiatives or efforts to engage in action research and identify at least 3 strategies for evaluating the improvement plans or recommendations.

1. Increase in passing scores 80 percent in TAKS and increase in EOC assessments (passing rates have not been established) among African American and Hispanic subgroups.
2. Implementation of elements of the Professional Development Proposal which may include having the different departments on different campuses with Region 10 and district specialists and administrators facilitating in their areas of certification.
3. Profiling system implementation and improvement in CSCOPE assessments by Reporting Categories.

Week Three Assignment, Part 2 – Part C of the Comprehensive Final Report

Describing Recommendations and District/Campus Improvement Initiative/Action Research Lessons Learned

Review the above analysis, and write at least one page thoroughly describing recommendations and lessons learned from experiences with the improvement initiatives or action research plans.

The Nix’s Six Mentoring Program will begin at the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year with students identified from the EOC student reports and TAKS results with priority given to students who struggled with both assessments. Teachers will volunteer to mentor and training will be provided the first month of school. Parent letters will sent with permission slips and notification of first parent meeting. Phone contacts initiated by Mentors to parents will be made at least once per six weeks to provide updates on academics, behavior and attendance. Meetings between Mentors and Mentees will take place before school on Mondays (M3: Monday Mentor Meetings). Tutorials will be mandated and Mentors will also serve as tutors for any Nix’s Six students. The two weeks prior to testing students will be pulled from their elective classes for additional tutorials. Students will maintain their own profiles, in addition to teachers profiling, for use in targeted tutorials. Funding for Mid-Year Banquet and End of the Year Picnic will be provided through donations.

Professional Development will include having the different departments on different campuses with Region 10 and district specialists and administrators facilitating in their areas of certification. CSCOPE Professional Development will continue with STAAR Updates, Planning for each six weeks and PLC’s designed to modify and adjust lessons based on student needs and monitor implementation within the department.

STAAR/EOC and TAKS profiling systems will be used to track gains and losses in Reporting Categories and TAKS Objectives respectively. Teachers will update profiles after scanning results into Eduphoria after the unit assessments. PLC’s will include lesson demonstrations and discussions of alternate methods of teaching the Student Expectations from the TEKS as listed in CSCOPE. Teachers will have a professional dialogue about Readiness and Supporting Standards and how they scaffold the learning. Students who are identified as struggling with a unit will be encouraged to attend tutoring and parents will be notified, Students will also be taught how to profile their own progress and articulate their academic needs.

Improvement Initiatives must be presented with academic achievement data by a person that is passionate about the success of all students. Research based strategies will provide the answers and support needed to convince teachers, parents and the community that the initiative is needed and can achieve the purpose for which it was designed. Being able to prove that the research has been done and that we must do something to meet the needs of all students is the key to eliciting the support needed for any initiative. Students must be the focus. Some initiatives will require that adults be inconvenienced for the good of the children. However those of us that truly see education as a calling from God will get the job done in spite of naysayers, absent parents and budget cuts. It is our moral responsibility to educate ALL.