Supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. EHR-0315060

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Learning Community Forum
Where are we headed and why?
Supported by the National Science Foundation
under Grant No. EHR-0315060
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4 Guiding Questions

• What have we learned and why?
• How does all that fit in with the idea of
  professional learning communities?
• How can our learning communities focus on
  improving instruction?
• How can we learn more through our K12- Higher
  education partnership?

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Today

• Teacher Leader Development
• Science Content Knowledge
• Instructional Strategies
• Leadership Practices
• Professional Learning Community Development
• Data Driven Planning
• Building PLCs

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Process

• Rationale What does research support?
• Response What strategies did NCOSP apply?
• Evidence What does the data say?
• Personal Connection How does that fit with my
  personal reflections?

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Science Content Knowledge
Research

• Why does science content knowledge matter?

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Science Content Knowledge
Research

• It is a truism that teachers must know the
  content that they are to teach.
• Taking Science to School, NRC, 2006

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Science Content Knowledge
Research
Teacher knowledge influences instructional
practice and, in particular, classroom discourse
an integral component of science learning
environments is sensitive to teachers
knowledge of science. Taking Science to School,
NRC, 2006
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Science Content Knowledge
Research
"Teachers who know the content and how the
content builds from understanding of many topics
are better able to diagnose and address
confusions. They know the next best question to
ask when students are engaged in inquiry."
Keeley, P. Corwin, 2005
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Science Content Knowledge
Research
Higher levels of teacher subject matter
knowledge contribute to higher student
achievement. Taking Science to School, NRC,
2006
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Science Content Knowledge
Research

• Teachers need opportunities to be involved in
  sustained learning, through teaching that models
  the methods that they are being urged to adopt.
• How People Learn, NRC,1999

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Science Content Knowledge
Strategies

• Summer Academy Content Immersions

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TLs Science Content Knowledge
Data
Denotes statistically significant increase from
pre-test to post-test at p lt 0.05 Denotes
statistically significant increase from pre-test
to one-year follow-up at p lt0.05
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Science Content Knowledge
Reflection

• 1) Describe an example from one of the Summer
  Academies where you distinctly remember
  learning a new science concept.
• 2) Describe an example of where the content
  knowledge examined during one of the Summer
  Academies contributed to your teaching.
• 3) What strategies do you use to develop your
  content knowledge outside of formal courses and
  workshops?

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Instruction
Research

• What strategies support student learning?

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Instruction
Research

• A critical feature of effective teaching is
  that it elicits from student their preexisting
  understanding of the subject matter and provides
  opportunities to build on or challenge the
  initial understanding.
• How People Learn, NRC, 1999

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Instruction
Research
Effective instruction helps students develop
both a deep knowledge base and a conceptual
framework for that knowledge. How People Learn,
NRC, 1999
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Instruction
Research
Integration of metacognitive instruction with
discipline-based learning can enhance student
achievement and develop in students the ability
to learn independently. How People Learn, NRC,
1999
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Instruction
Strategies

• Modeling the incorporation of the three key
  findings from How People Learn in immersion
  experiences
• Debriefing the use of those strategies
• Whiteboarding, questioning strategies, inquiry
  boards, science notebooks, formative assessments,
  etc.

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TLs Instructional Strategies and Metacognitive
Skills
Data
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Impact of NCOSP PD on TLs Classroom Practices
Data

• N Response
• 2004 SA Impact Survey 61 41
• 2005 SA Impact Survey 88 52
• 98 reported positive lasting effects
• 87 and 89 felt more confident teaching science

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Impact of NCOSP PD on TLs Classroom Practices
Data

• By the spring of 2005
• 84 had been working to identify students
  preconceptions and address students
  misconceptions in their classrooms
• 72 of teachers increased discussion and dialogue
  through questioning strategies to help reveal
  students thinking
• I experienced first-hand the difficulty of
  overcoming the misconceptions of oneself and
  others, and really appreciate the need to draw
  them out before trying to teach new content.
  Teacher Leader

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Impact of NCOSP PD on TLs Classroom Practices
Data

• Specific Instructional Strategies
• Whiteboarding
• Notebooking
• Science notebooking has made a world of
  difference in my ability to assess their prior
  knowledge, their current understanding and to
  integrate literacy and math instruction.
  Teacher Leader

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Instruction
Reflection

• 1) Describe how the recommendations from How
  People Learn influenced your thinking about
  teaching and learning?
• 2) Describe a specific instructional strategy you
  have incorporated into your teaching as a
  consequence of participating in NCOSP and how
  that practice has helped you address the
  recommendations from How People Learn.

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Its Lunchtime!

• Lunch will be served in VU 565

Well start again at 100
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Do you.......
........facilitate others

• doing lesson study
• Curriculum Topic Study (CTS)
• Looking at Student Work (LASW)
• writing assessments
• implementing kits
• such as your building team
• such as your district team
• in a regional, state, or national group
• by arranging extracurricular science such as a
  science fair/club or off-site field studies

...?
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Do you.......
........make presentations to

• teachers on topics such as kit training,
  notebooks, How People Learn, etc.
• your school board or other district-level groups
• PTA or parent groups
• community groups
• regional, state, or national groups or
  conferences

...?
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Do you.......
........coach or consult with

• colleagues
• a student teacher
• a new teacher
• a teacher new to your school or grade level
• your principal or district administrator
• building team members
• district team members
• colleagues around the region, state, or beyond

...?
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Surprise!
...you are a leader!
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Leadership Practices
Research

• What contributions can teacher leaders make
  toward the shared goal of school improvement?

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Leadership Practices
Research

• In adaptive schools all players -
  administrators, teachers, support staff, students
  - must have the knowledge and skills to manage
  themselves and influence and lead others.
• Garmston and Wellman, Christopher Gordan,1999

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Leadership Practices
Research

• The key notion in the definition of teacher
  leadership is that leadership is about learning
  together, and constructing meaning and knowledge
  collectively and collaboratively.
• Linda Lambert, ASCD,1998

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Leadership Practices
Research

• Effective leaders know how to select and execute
  the right role for the right group and when and
  how to switch roles within a group.
• Kaser, Mundry, Stiles, Loucks-Horsley, Corwin,
  2006

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Leadership Practices
Research

• Teacher leaders, with their mastery of content
  and instructional practices, credibility with
  colleagues, and proximity to students, offer
  valuable expertise central to school improvement
  efforts.

Landel and Miller, 2007
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Strategies
Facilitating
Coaching
4 Hats of Leadership
Consulting
Presenting
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Leadership Practices
Strategies

• Leadership Inventory
• Seven Norms of Collaboration
• Non-verbal communication

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Leadership
Data

• Did the Summer Academy prepare you to take on
  more of a leadership role in your school? How?
• Yes (N109)
• Training in Facilitation Skills (41)
• NCOSP Facilitation of District Action Plans (24)
• Protocols as tools to implement change (16)
• Collaboration with teachers admin (9)
• Increased Content Knowledge (5)
• Needs- more admin support, more practice with
  facilitation
• 2006 SA Week 2 Survey

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Leadership Knowledge and Skills
Data
LCF Month/Topic Question Mean SD Total
October 2006 4 Hats of Shared Leadership Increased Understanding? 3.92 0.69 51
December 2006 Presentation Increased Understanding? 3.90 0.66 28
January 2007 Coaching and Consulting Increased Understanding? 3.68 0.48 25
Scale of 1-5 with 1 being Not at all and 5
being To a great extent.
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Leadership Practices
Reflection

• 1) Complete the Four Hats Likert scale post-test
• 2) Describe an example from your work in your
  district or building this year when you were a
  facilitator, presenter, coach, or
  consultant.
• 3) What leadership opportunities will you pursue
  next year?

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Professional Learning Communities
Research

• What is the impact of teacher collaboration on
  teacher retention and student learning?

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Professional Learning Communities
Research

• Professional development for teachers can have a
  positive impact on student achievement if it is
  sustained over time focuses on specific content
  areas supports the collective learning of most,
  if not all, teachers in a school aligns with
  school and teacher goals and provides
  opportunities for teachers to practice and apply
  new knowledge.
• Professional Development Analysis, Mid-continent
  Research for Education and Learning

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Professional Learning Communities
Research

• Meaningful changes to the teaching and learning
  environment can increase teacher retention and
  encourage teachers to return to the profession.
  Those who planned to stay said that having
  meaningful input in the decision making process
  and collaborative relationships with their
  colleagues were reasons to remain.
• Center for Teacher Quality at Sacramento State

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Professional Learning Communities
Strategies

• Lesson Study
• Curriculum Topic Study
• Looking at Student Work Protocols
• Developing Formative Assessment Probes

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Collaboration among Teachers
Data
Collaboration has been a key component of the
NCOSP partnership

• Across Partnership Surveys, LCF surveys, and SA
  surveys, teachers consistently report that
• The development of collaborative relationships
  with other teachers has been one of the most
  important aspects of the partnership
• Discussions with other teachers have been one of
  the most important components within the NCOSP PD
  activities that has helped develop their
  understanding

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Lesson Study
Data
Please rate each of the following Mean
Participation in a lesson study group has increased my connectedness and collegiality with my group members. 4.4
Participation in a lesson study group has increased my knowledge of how students learn. 3.8
The work of our lesson study group has helped me improve my teaching practices. 3.7
5 to a great extent 3 somewhat and 1
not at all source TL Partnership Profile
2006 (N90)
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Curriculum Topic Study
Data
Question Mean SD N
How knowledgeable do you feel you are in the use of CTS? 3.52 0.77 77
To what extent do you think CTS can help teachers strengthen their content knowledge? 4.28 0.68 78
To what extent do you think CTS can help teachers strengthen their pedagogical knowledge? 4.07 0.81 72
Participants responded using a scale of 1-5, with
1 being Not at all, and 5 being To a great
extent on the 2006 LCF Impact Survey
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Looking at Student Work Protocols
Data

• 28 of TLs coming into the 2006 Summer Academy
  had a clear understanding of the use of protocols
  and how they can improve teaching and student
  learning.
• 93 of TLs left the Summer Academy with a clear
  understanding of the use of protocols and how
  they can improve teaching and student learning.
• 25 of TLs responded that the use of protocols
  for looking at student work was the most relevant
  topic to their classroom practice that they
  learned about during the 2006 SA.

Week 2 Survey at 2006 SA (N 130)
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Professional Learning Communities
Reflection

• Describe how your participation in a
  collaborative group deepened your knowledge of
• 1) Science content relevant to your teaching
• 2) Instructional practices that support student
  learning
• 3) Collaborative practice that support effective
  groups

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Professional Learning Communities
Strategies

• District Action Planning

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District Action Plans
Data

• Impact Cross-grade level collaboration on
  activities in DAPs
• Most Common Activities in DAPs
• Creating assessments (53)
• Aligning teaching with GLEs (53)
• Working on a scope and sequence (42)
• Most Common Strategies in DAPs
• Science notebooking (47)
• Looking at student work (42)
• Most Common Feedback on DAPs
• Goals too broad or ambitious
• Need to make objectives more measurable and
  define data collection strategies

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Professional Learning Communities
Reflection

• How did the DAP process influence your thinking
  about data-driven decision-making and
  collaborative planning?
• How will the work you completed this year through
  your DAP influence the work you will initiate
  this summer?

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Moving Forward to Summer 2007 and beyond
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Supporting Professional Learning Communities in
Your Building
Research

• "Teachers in successful schools are undeniably
  interdependent. Professionals working in concert
  produce cumulative effects in student learning.
  As more schools, districts, states, and provinces
  develop and attempt to implement clear standards
  and high expectations, the need for collaborative
  energy becomes increasingly clear.
• Garmston and Wellman, Christopher Gordan, 1999

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Supporting Professional Learning Communities in
Your Building
Research

• School capacity is the key to success. This
  capacity consists of five components (1)
  teachers knowledge, skills and dispositions (2)
  professional community (3) program coherence
  (4) technical resources (5) principal
  leadership.
• Fullan, Leading in a Culture of Change

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Supporting Professional Learning Communities in
Your Building
Strategies

• Engaging Principals and Teacher Leaders in
  supporting a Professional Learning Community

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Future Directions for NCOSP
Data Sources

• 1) Focus Group Discussion Feb. 2006 LCF (n 94
  TLs, HEI faculty, and administrators)
• 2) Focus Group Discussion during 2006 SA (n 6
  TLs)
• 3) SA 2006 Week 2 TL Survey (n 130 TLs)
• 4) SA 2006 Administrator Survey (n 30
  administrators)
• 5) SA 2006 Facilitator Survey (n 25 SA
  facilitators)
• 6) May 2006 LCF Impact Survey (n 79 TLs)
• 7) Teacher Leader Partnership Profile Spring 2006
  (n 88 TLs)
• 8) NCOSP Internal Evaluation Report 2005-2006
• 9) SA 2006 Report

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Future Directions for NCOSP
Data

• Continued focus on Teacher Leaders
• Develop facilitation and leadership skills
  through practice
• Impact on greater number of teachers
• Teacher leaders rated teachers at their school as
  their most important resource in their work with
  science reform
• Increase the participation of school and district
  administrators
• Administrators indicated a need for better
  understanding of quality science instruction and
  how to best support teacher leaders

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Professional Learning Communities
Reflection

• Thinking about what you have learned in terms of
  (a) science content (b) instructional
  strategies, and (c) leadership skills
• Identify 2-3 areas that will help you in your
  work in the next year and why?

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Summer 2007

• Applications submitted May 7
• Applications reviewed May 10
• Intent of reviews
• Process of review and feedback
• Actions required
• Feedback will be distributed today

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Themes observed in applications
Strengths

• High expectations
• Valuable and effective strategies
• Teachers of different grades and non-science
  teachers (e.g. reading specialists, math teacher,
  special education specialists, etc)
• Well-articulated rational for the team members
• Evidence of commitment to and alignment with
  standards and grade-level expectations
• Strong reflection of NCOSP tools, strategies, and
  resources

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Themes observed in applications
Areas for improvement

• Need for clearer learning targets and more
  manageable scope of work
• Need for better definition of roles and
  responsibilities for principals, teacher leaders,
  and participating teachers
• Need for inclusion of more sources of data and
  for continuous use of data as part of the work of
  the professional learning community

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Closing

• Complete the end of year LCF Impact Survey
• Exchange your survey for your summer PD
  application and feedback
• Join us tomorrow for a day at the movies!

See you tomorrow at 830 AM