In one building I work closely with, we decided to alter the way in which the assessment wall was presented. Previously, it had been a neglected corner in the basement and hadn't been attended to in years--a complex system with every level of assessment. We tried walls within walls last year, establishing a column for each grade and division within to refer to our end of year benchmark goals for below basic, basic, proficient and advanced. A cap has been placed on testing at each grade level, so attaining proficiency means no more testing (not no more teaching). In the below basic column, we ordered the cards from those just missing basic to those off the mark by oodles and oodles. The system worked better for some teachers than others, with some making some distinct and measurable progress and others not so much. We did not tie the progress monitoring to teacher, but it is a very small school, so anonymity really is a pipe dream. However, this year we are looking closely at why students in one room may make much more progress than students in another and trying hard to do so in a way that is not personal. Obviously class rosters have much to do with it, so an effort was made to balance classes in terms of student ability this year. We are also examining peer practice closely to learn from one another.
These conversations are not always within our comfort zone, but ours is a district that struggles. We are having the same conversations at the district level. Over the past six years, one school has made consistent and steady progress increasing reading scores by 24% with no backsliding. Still, this school did not always make AYP. Other schools have been up, down and all over--sometimes good, sometimes not. So what is it that has allowed one school to maintain this consistent, positive trajectory? It is time to start asking questions, even though as a former teacher at this school I feel I have some theories. Lori On 9/7/08 2:56 PM, "Laura Cannon" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > As a teacher I didn't like the one we tried. It took a long time to post > data on my kid's cards--first I had to find them mixed in with 8 other third > grades. Second, the board was high and I'm short so it I had to climb a > ladder to post the data for some children. Third, I could have used that > time to plan lessons--I knew who needed what in my class, I didn't need to > see it on a wall. > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Carmen Matsuura > Sent: Saturday, September 06, 2008 10:04 PM > To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Email Group > Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] RtI_Attention Debbie > > I would love to hear more about this assessment wall. Sounds like a great > tool to keep everyone focused on the school's goals. > >> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: mosaic@literacyworkshop.org> Date: Sat, 6 > Sep 2008 18:14:29 -0400> Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] RtI_Attention Debbie> > > Debbie Wrote:> > We keep an assessment wall in our conference room that does > not show > teacher or student names on the front of each card, but it is a > great visual > for keeping us all tuned in to how many kids are having > trouble and how much > trouble they are having. > _________________________________________________________________ > Get more out of the Web. Learn 10 hidden secrets of Windows Live. > http://windowslive.com/connect/post/jamiethomson.spaces.live.com-Blog-cns!55 > 0F681DAD532637!5295.entry?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_domore_092008 > _______________________________________________ > Mosaic mailing list > Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org > To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to > http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. > > Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive. > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Mosaic mailing list > Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org > To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to > http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. > > Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive. > -- Lori Jackson District Literacy Coach & Mentor Todd County School District Box 87 Mission SD 57555 http:www.tcsdk12.org ph. 605.856.2211 Literacies for All Summer Institute July 17-20. 2008 Tucson, Arizona _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive.
