Instructional Strategies to Increase Student Achievement

1. Instructional Strategies to Increase Student Achievement “Best Practice Makes Perfect”

2. Hello! • Thank you for your time during this Early Dismissal! • Introductions (if needed) • Time frame for the afternoon

3. Thinking about vocabulary • Take 2 minutes and write your thoughts on teaching direct vocabulary instruction • Think-Pair-Share with a partner

4. What is Best Practice? • “Good Practice” • Solid, reputable, state-of-the-art work in a field • Current research, consistently offering the benefits of the latest knowledge, technology, and procedures • Leading of our field • Serious, thoughtful, informed, responsible, state-of-the-art-teaching Based on the work of Zemelman, Daniels, and Hyde Best Practice – Today’s Standards for Teaching and Learning in America’s Schools

5. Vocabulary • Direct teaching of vocabulary may be one of the most underused instructional activities in K-12 education. • Student directed NOT teacher directed • Teacher does not recite definitions and students record and memorize them. • Students must encounter words multiple times before they learn them.

6. “Teaching specific terms in a specific way is probably the strongest action a teacher can take to ensure that students have the academic background knowledge they need to understand the content they will encounter in school.” Robert Marzano

7. Making the case… “Given the relationship between academic background knowledge and academic achievement, one can make the case that it should be at the top of any list of interventions intended to increase student achievement.” Robert Marzano, Building Background Knowledge for Academic Achievement

8. Making another case… • Only 1.67 minutes are devoted to direct vocabulary among 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers observed by Roser and Juel (1982).

9. Making yet another case…PovertyandEthnicity • There is a direct relationship between access to academic background experiences and family income. • Black and Hispanic children are much more likely to be poor, and for longer periods of time, than white children are.

10. Okay, one more case! • In-depth data analysis was conducted by the AYP Team in regards to the MCA-II • Data indicates a deficiency in vocabulary development • Vocabulary development can easily be incorporated in any subject; this is not a subject specific approach

11. Two Approaches to Building Background Knowledge • DIRECT Field Trips Mentoring • INDIRECT Sustained Silent Reading (SSR) Direct Vocabulary Instruction (DVI)

12. Effect Size The effect size is the unit of measure that expresses the increase or decrease in achievement of the experimental group in standard deviation units.

13. Impact of Effect Size • Large .80 (Just about 1 Standard Deviation of growth!) • Medium .50 • Small .20 Based upon the work of J. Cohen, StatisticalPower Analysis forthe BehavioralSciences

14. Impact of Direct Vocabulary Instruction Effect Size: .97

15. The Effect Size of Direct Vocabulary Instruction: .97 • If there is not direct vocabulary instruction the student is at the 50th percentile in terms of ability to comprehend the subject matter taught.

16. Teaching Direct Vocabulary involves… • Descriptions as opposed to definitions • Use of linguistic and nonlinguistic representations • Gradual shaping of words • Teaching and using word parts • Different types of instruction for different types of words • Students interacting about the words they are learning • Use of games • Focus on terms important to academic subjects

17. Putting it into practice

18. How to set up Vocabulary Cards wave Step 1 Write the word Step 2 Add a visual Step 3 Write a definition A big curl of water Step 4 Create a sentence Hawaii has the best surfing waves.

19. Vocabulary Cards • Step 1 Write the word • Step 2 Add a visual • Step 3 Write a definition • Step 4 Create a sentence • Step 5 Write the vocabulary word on the reverse side of the card

20. How to set up Vocabulary Cards Write vocabulary word on reverse side of card wave

21. Putting it into practice - activity • Set up Vocabulary cards using the 8 Portuguese words. • Facilitator will allow each participant 10 seconds to look at each card. • Participants Think-Pair-Share how they chose the picture/icon for the vocabulary along with any other ideas relating to the creation of the card. • The facilitator says the vocabulary word out loud – participants echo the same. • Facilitator quizzes the group on their newly acquired vocabulary words.

22. Vocabulary Cards – Scoring Rubric

23. Steps to Effective Vocabulary • Teacher gives description, explanation and or example of the new term. • Students restate in their own words. • Students create a nonlinguistic representation • Periodic activities that add to knowledge of the terms. • Students periodically discuss the terms with one another. • Periodic games to play with the terms.

24. Short Video Clip Expanding Vocabulary – PD 360 Expanding Vocabulary – 1402S-9

25. Vocabulary Games • Jeopardy • I Have, Who Has • Pictionary - Picture This (Vocabulictionary?) • Analogies • Pantomime • Charades • Memory • Vocabulary Cards

26. Change

27. Short video clip Non Linguistic Representations Non Linguistic Representations 1305S-6

28. Dialogue • How can you use these strategies in your classroom? • Which strategies really have possibilities for you right now based upon what you have learned today, the data you have from your students, and your building’s school improvement goals? • What would be an easy, not-so-burdensome method of determining a) the effectiveness in the classroom, and b) if direct vocabulary is being taught throughout the district?

29. Putting it all together Professional Development AYP Plan Strategic Plan

30. So… “The idea that learning is not a matter of telling, and being told, but an active and constructive process, is an idea which is as widely accepted in theory as it is neglected in practice.” John Dewey

31. Translation

32. Just Do It!

33. Electronic Resources • Helpful Links

34. Instructional Strategies to Increase Student Achievement “Best Practice Makes Perfect”