Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in …32 Home Environment Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Student-Level Factors How Are You Helping Your

Introduction ....................................................................................1

Factor: Home Environment ..........................................................7

Parent Training and Support ..................................................................11

Factor: Learned Intelligence and Background Knowledge ............................................................39

Increase in Life Experiences ................................................................43

Schoolwide Reading Programs..............................................................67

Direct Instruction in Vocabulary ............................................................77

Factor: Student Motivation ........................................................97

Feedback on Knowledge Gain ............................................................101

Simulation Games and Engaging Activities ........................................125

Long-Term Projects ..............................................................................143

Student Training in the Dynamics of Motivation..................................159

Factors

Making School Improvement Happenwith What Works in Schools

Factor: Home Environment

Parent Training and Support ....................................................................11

Agenda and Handouts for Parent Reading Workshop....................15

Additional Topics for Parent Workshops ........................................29

“Learning Strengths and Needs” Audit for Parents: How Are You Helping Your Children to Succeed and Improve Their Learning? ..................................................................31

Resources for Parent Training and Support ....................................34

Putting It All Together ................................................................................36

Factors


7

“Learning Strengths and Needs” Audit for Parents: How Are YouHelping Your Children to Succeedand Improve Their Learning?

H O W T O U S E :

This audit can be given to parents as part of a parent workshop or as part

of a broader school improvement planning initiative. Ideally, staff members

can collect and analyze data at the beginning and the end of the initiative

to determine changes in parents’ perceptions about themselves as facilita-

tors of their children’s academic success.

T I P S / V A R I A T I O N S :

• Analyze the results of this audit to identify themes and focus areas for

parent training and outreach initiatives.

• Integrate audit results into your school improvement process to

improve overall student motivation and achievement.

• Share this information with staff members, enlisting their suggestions

for how the school can help parents to understand the power of their

influence on their children’s learning.

© 2005 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED®

Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Student-Level Factors 31



Directions: Use the following rating scale to assess how well you demonstrate the followingbehaviors proven effective in helping children to be successful learners.

5 = I consistently do this.4 = I do this most of the time.3 = I sometimes do this.2 = I do this only once in a while.1 = I rarely do this.0 = I never do this.

_____ 1. I demonstrate respect for the value of education and emphasize its significancein the life of my child.

_____ 2. I play an active role in monitoring my child’s progress in school, making certainthat I keep informed about what and how he or she is doing.

_____ 3. I model effective reading and writing practices for my child, demonstrating theimportance of reading and writing in my professional and personal life.

_____ 4. I encourage family literacy, finding many occasions for family members to sharewriting, reading, and discussion experiences.

_____ 5. I make certain that my child is developing effective study habits, including pro-viding tips and encouragement on such issues as planning, time management,self-evaluation, organization, and note taking.

_____ 6. I ensure that my child has a quiet place to study and read, minimizing distrac-tions and interference whenever possible.

_____ 7. I monitor how much my child watches television and ensure that she or he has abalanced, healthy approach to leisure-time activities.

_____ 8. I take advantage of back-to-school nights, other opportunities for parent-teachermeetings, and other school-sponsored events to keep myself informed about mychild’s school and the education it is providing.

Home Environment32

Making School Improvement Happenwith What Works in Schools: Student-Level Factors

How Are You Helping Your Children toSucceed and Improve Their Learning?

_____ 9. I support my child’s decision-making and problem-solving processes, playing anactive but supportive role when significant issues and events arise (selectingcourses, dealing with emergent problems).

_____10. I understand and take advantage of the range of services (counseling, tutorials,health and social services) that my child’s school offers in order to maximize his or her success.

_____11. I monitor my child’s homework, ensuring that he or she completes it successfullyand responding to questions without inappropriate interference or excessiveinvolvement.

_____12. I am striving to help my child become technology literate, using electronic toolssuch as the computer, the Internet, and related resources to maximize his or heracademic performance.

_____13. I understand stages and patterns associated with a child’s natural developmentprocess, watching out for inevitable issues and problems that may emerge andproviding encouragement and support as needed.

_____14. I model and support my child’s demonstration of self-regulation (being aware ofyour own thinking; planning; taking advantage of necessary resources; beingresponsive to feedback; evaluating the effectiveness of your own actions).

_____15. I model and support my child’s demonstration of critical thinking (being accurateand seeking accuracy; being clear and seeking clarity; being open-minded;restraining impulsivity; taking a position when the situations warrants; being sen-sitive to the feelings and level of knowledge of others).

_____16. I model and support my child’s demonstration of creative thinking (engagingintensely in tasks even when answers or solutions are not immediately apparent;pushing the limits of your own knowledge; generating, trusting, and maintainingyour own standards of evaluation; and creating new ways of seeing things out-side of standard conventions).

_____17. I maintain ongoing communication with my child’s teachers, ensuring that emer-gent problems or needs are addressed early and appropriately.



Continued: How Are You Helping Your Children to Succeed and Improve Their Learning?

Home Environment34

ReferenceMarzano, R. J. (2003). What works in schools: Translating research into action. Alexandria, VA: Association

for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Resources for Parent Training and SupportGraue, M. E., Weinstein, T., & Walberg, H. J. (1983, April). School-based home instruction and learning: A

quantitative synthesis. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational ResearchAssociation, Montreal, Canada.

Hydrick, J. (1996). Parents’ guide to literacy for the 21st Century: Pre-K through grade 5. Urbana, IL: NationalCouncil of Teachers of English.

Lawrence, L. (1998). Montessori read & write: A parents’ guide to literacy for children. New York: ThreeRivers Press.

Marzano, R. J. (2003). What works in schools: Translating research into action. Alexandria, VA: Associationfor Supervision and Curriculum.

Marzano, R. J., Pickering, D. J., & Pollock, J. E. (2001). Classroom instruction that works: Research-basedstrategies for increasing student achievement. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curricu-lum Development.

Marzano, R. J., Pickering, D. J., Arredondo, D. E., Blackburn, G. J., Brandt, R. S., Moffett, C. A., Paynter, D.E., Pollock, J. E., & Whisler, J. S. (1997). Dimensions of learning trainer’s manual (2nd ed.). Alexandria,VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Onikama, D. L., Hammond, O. W., & Koki, S. (1998). Family involvement in education: A synthesis ofresearch for Pacific educators. Honolulu, HI: Pacific Regional Educational Laboratory.

Rosenau, J. S. (1998). Familial influences on academic risk in high school: A multi-ethnic study. Doctoraldissertation, Temple University. (UMI No. 9911056)

Swick, K. (1991). A rural teacher-parent partnership for the enhancement of school success: An executivesummary. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED336205)

Tangri, S., & Moles, O. (1987). Parents and the community. In V. Richardson-Koehler (Ed.), Educators’handbook: A research perspective (2nd ed., pp. 519–550). New York: Longman.

Tankersley, K. (2003). The threads of reading: Strategies for literacy development. Alexandria, VA: Associa-tion for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Williams, B. (Ed.). Closing the achievement gap: A vision for changing beliefs and practices (2nd ed.).Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Recommended ASCD ResourcesThe Brain and Reading. This three-tape series with accompanying users’ guide offers useful resourcesconcerning (1) how the brain processes incoming visual and auditory signals while reading and trans-lates them into understanding by making connections to prior knowledge; (2) why a balanced combina-tion of strategies blending phonics and literature experiences can meet the needs of most students; and(3) which strategies are appropriate for different stages of reading development.

Literacy Across the Curriculum: An ASCD Professional Development Planner and Resource Package. Thiscomprehensive resource package, which includes a professional development planner, provides every-thing you need to create an effective professional development program on teaching literacy across the curriculum. Included are detailed instructions for using the ASCD resources on literacy across thecurriculum plus all the plans and guidance you need to deliver a top-quality professional developmentprogram.

Reading in the Content Area Video Series. This series and gives teachers a variety of strategies they canuse with middle and secondary students to help them read for information and retrieve knowledge fromtextbooks and other materials. See how reading-to-learn strategies engage students’ interest in content,maintain their focus, and improve their understanding of what they’ve read.

The Brain and Reading. Introduce your learning community to the research-based evidence of how peoplelearn to read and what educators can do to improve reading programs. Show this video program at yournext faculty or school improvement meeting to explore fundamental principles of reading development.

Reading Strategies for the Content Area: An ASCD Action Tool. Whenever teachers observe students hav-ing trouble with connecting prior knowledge to new reading assignments, making predictions about their reading, or deciphering text they do not understand, they can quickly select a reading tool that willaddress the problem effectively in a time-efficient way. ASCD action tools provide all the materials youneed to begin using these resources immediately. Each tool includes complete how-to-use instructions,teacher materials for classroom use, classroom examples, and a template for student assignments.

Teaching Reading in the Content Areas: If Not Me, Then Who? (2nd ed.). Make teaching reading a practicalgoal in every subject with the principles and strategies from this book. You’ll find 40 strategies that helpstudents in every grade level develop their vocabularies, comprehend informational and narrative texts,and engage in meaningful discussions of what they read.

Teaching Reading in Mathematics (2nd ed.). Integrate the teaching of literacy in mathematics classes at every grade level with the tips and advice from this expert, expanded guide, which includes currentresearch on reading, classroom climate, and the role of text features in mathematics; math-specificstrategies that teachers can use in their classes right away; and tips to help students become more pro-ficient in reading and communicating in mathematics.

Teaching Reading in Science. It’s hard for students to “do” science when they have difficulty readingscience textbooks. You can improve their abilities to decipher complex readings, learn new vocabulary,and apply what they’ve read with the guidelines and strategies in this practical guide.

Teaching Reading in Social Studies. Help students at all levels overcome the challenges of reading theconcept- and information-rich content of social studies with the guidelines and strategies from thissupplement to the best-seller, Teaching Reading in the Content Areas: If Not Me, Then Who? Explore 32strategies that help improve social studies learning and achievement, including vocabulary strategies,narrative text strategies, informational text strategies, and reflection strategies.

Reading and Writing in the Content Areas (Educational Leadership, November 2002). This edition of EL is devoted to sharing strategies for making reading and writing an integral part of each content area.

Parents as Partners in Schooling: An ASCD PD Online Course. Build a better partnership betweenschools, families, and community members by following the six standards for parent involvementrecently published by the National Parent Teacher Association.

Reading in the Content Areas. Tape 1: Prereading Strategies; Tape 2: During-Reading Strategies; Tape 3:Postreading Strategies. These videos provide teachers with strategies they can use with middle and sec-ondary students to help them read for information and retrieve knowledge from textbooks and othermaterials. Discover how “reading to learn” strategies engage students’ interest in content, maintain theirfocus, and improve their understanding of what they’ve read.


Factor: Learned Intelligence and Background Knowledge

Increase in Life Experiences ....................................................................43

Profiles of Exemplary Programs for Increasing Students’ Life Experiences (with Accompanying Study Questions)................47

Self-Assessment Questionnaire for Students:How Well Do You Monitor Your Learning? ......................................61

Resources for Increase in Life Experiences ....................................64

Schoolwide Reading Programs ................................................................67

A Self-Assessment Questionnaire: To What Extent Do Your Schoolwide Reading Programs Address Students’ Vocabulary Development? ..............................................................71

Resources for Schoolwide Reading Programs EmphasizingVocabulary Development ................................................................74

Direct Instruction in Vocabulary................................................................77

Self-Assessment Questionnaire: To What Extent Does Your School Emphasize Direct Instruction in Subject Matter Vocabulary? ............................................................81

Note-Taking Strategies to Improve Student’s VocabularyDevelopment and Concept Attainment ..........................................83

Models for Teaching Word Categories, Patterns, and Semantic Features at the Secondary Level ............................85

Resources for Direct Instruction in Vocabulary ..............................93

Putting It All Together ................................................................................94

Factors


39

Factor: Learned Intelligence and Background Knowledge

SectionSchoolwide Reading ProgramsStudents are involved in a schoolwide program of wide reading that empha-

sizes vocabulary development.

Marzano powerfully reinforces the value of schoolwide reading pro-

grams, emphasizing vocabulary instruction as an essential element of stu-

dents’ success. Specifically, Marzano recommends that schools implement

a variety of reading experiences that emphasize content-specific vocabu-

lary. This priority, he suggests, must include emphasis on construction of

meaning and active use of vocabulary in a variety of settings.

Associated Problems

Schoolwide reading and vocabulary development programs need to be

implemented to address problems such as the following:

• Reading assessment data confirm students’ underachievement in

the reading process, including word-attack skills, finding main

ideas, drawing inferences, using textual evidence, and prediction.

• Reading assessment data confirm students’ lack of critical reading

strategies within a variety of content areas.

• Assessment data confirm students’ lack of appropriate mastery of

grade-level vocabulary.

67

Factors


Suggested Goals and Data Sources

Based on one or more of these problems, potential school improvement goals and data

sources might include those shown in the following chart:

Learned Intelligence and Background Knowledge68

Goals Results Data Sources

To increase student readinglevels

To increase use of readingstrategies by students in allgrade levels and populationsubgroups

To increase levels ofvocabulary mastery bystudents at all grade levels

Reading achievement gains onstandardized and classroomassessments

Reading achievement gains onstandardized and classroomassessments

Higher scores on vocabulary testsat all grade levels

Pre- and post-analysis ofstudent achievement on statereading tests, district-mandatedreading assessments, formalreading inventories, and text-book reading assessments

Teacher and administratorobservations of student use of reading strategies

Pre- and post-analysis of datafrom district testing of students’application of key contentvocabulary; related individualand grade-level assessments of students’ vocabulary acqui-sition as part of the curriculumfor each grade level

Suggested Strategies

� Engage staff members in a study group or inquiry team responsible for analyzing the

research on the connection between vocabulary development and crystallized, or

learned, intelligence. See, for example, John Anderson (1995), whose contention is

that information is represented in permanent memory through organization in “modu-

lar form,” and Alan Paivio (1990), whose “dual coding” theory suggests that as stu-

dents have new experiences, they store those experiences as “memory records,” with

fully formed records having an associated tag or label. In effect, the more records we

have with accompanying tags, the greater our level of crystallized intelligence.

� Investigate what the research reveals about the effects of economic status on stu-

dents’ vocabulary development and acquisition: the huge variations in vocabulary

size between students from different economic backgrounds, with those who have

a lot of access to various life and enrichment experiences generally having larger

vocabularies than those with little access to such experiences.

� Provide ongoing professional development to staff to ensure that they provide direct

instruction in reading strategies, processes, and habits of mind within specific grade

levels and for specific content areas. Focus on questions such as these: How can stu-

dents be taught to access, read, and interpret complex scientific articles and related

literature? What are the universal reading strategies and processes that all staff will

use, regardless of the content they are teaching, versus specific-to-content strategies

necessary for a particular type of reading selection?

� Ensure that all staff model and reinforce the importance of reading for different pur-

poses (to be informed, for personal enjoyment, to complete specific procedural tasks)

via different approaches (discerning key ideas and themes, applying technical

schema, critical analysis).

� Develop and implement schoolwide reading programs for a variety of purposes in a

variety of settings. Marzano (2002) cites such successful “wide reading” programs as

the following:

1. Sustained Silent Reading

2. Free Voluntary Reading

3. Uninterrupted Sustained Silent Reading

4. Positive Outcomes While Employing Reading (POWER)

� Integrate into schoolwide reading programs specific strategies that reinforce students’

ability to internalize the meanings of new vocabulary. Such strategies and processes

include context clues, use of affixes, and Greek and Latin roots.


� Develop and implement wide reading programs organized around the following

guidelines:

1. A period of time is set aside during the school day for silent reading by all

students and staff.

2. Students are expected to bring their own appropriate choice of book and

read silently.

3. Selection of reading material takes place outside the reading time unless

teachers take their classes to the library for this purpose.

4. Teachers are encouraged to set aside a secure location in their room where

students can leave books.

5. Students are not allowed to sleep or do homework during reading time.

6. Reading time should not create extra work for teachers in terms of grading

or record keeping.

� As part of wide reading programs, ask students to identify interesting words and try

to determine their meanings. Have students write these words in a personal vocabu-

lary notebook. As part of this process, when students finish reading, they should try

to figure out the meanings of these words using the information and clues surround-

ing the word.

� Encourage teachers to integrate these student-selected words with words taught

directly as part of formal vocabulary development activities.

� Dignify and celebrate the significance of student-identified vocabulary discovered dur-

ing schoolwide reading activities and programs through such means as the following:

1. Word walls and bulletin board displays

2. Published student writing assignments using student-identified vocabulary

3. Oral activities involving one-on-one and small-group discussions, interactions,

simulations, and role playing in which students use and teach one another

vocabulary they have learned from wide reading programs

4. Electronic “celebrations” and acknowledgments of student-identified vocabu-

lary, including announcements, in-school television and related video produc-

tions, and computer postings

Action Tools

The following action tool is included for this item:

A Self-Assessment Questionnaire: To What Extent Do Your Schoolwide Reading

Programs Address Students’ Vocabulary Development?


A Self-Assessment Questionnaire:To What Extent Do Your Schoolwide ReadingPrograms Address Students’Vocabulary Development?

H O W T O U S E :

This questionnaire can help staff members determine whether their

schoolwide reading programs sufficiently integrate vocabulary develop-

ment, a factor that Marzano suggests is essential to student success in

reading and academics.


• Have teachers take the survey and discuss their reactions with fellow

department and grade-level instructors.

• Analyze the results from a facultywide administration of this survey to

assess staff perceptions about the quality of existing reading programs.





Directions: Use the following rating scale to assess how well your schoolwide reading pro-grams address students’ vocabulary development.

4 = I do this all the time. 3 = I do this most of the time.2 = I do this some of the time. 1 = I never do this.

_____ 1. I have investigated the research on vocabulary development.

_____ 2. I incorporate the strategies and processes confirmed by research to reinforcestudents’ vocabulary development.

_____ 3. I avoid overreliance on presenting students with a definition outright and empha-size descriptions rather than formal definitions.

_____ 4. I avoid overreliance on having students look up a definition, write a formal defini-tion, and then use the word in a sentence to demonstrate understanding.

_____ 5. When students are learning new vocabulary, I require them to represent theirknowledge of words in both linguistic and nonlinguistic ways (such as picto-graphs, visual representations, graphic organizers).

_____ 6. As students learn to acquire and integrate new vocabulary, they shape theirknowledge of word meanings through multiple exposures in a variety of settingsusing a variety of learning strategies (such as creating metaphors and analogies)and learning modalities.

_____ 7. To reinforce students’ understanding of key terms, I encourage them to applytheir knowledge of word parts by analyzing roots and affixes.



A Self-Assessment Questionnaire: To What Extent Do Your SchoolwideReading Programs Address Students’Vocabulary Development?



Continued: A Self-Assessment Questionnaire: To What Extent Do Your Schoolwide ReadingPrograms Address Students’ Vocabulary Development?

_____ 8. I use different types of instruction to teach different types of words depending on their grammatical features and levels of abstraction.

_____ 9. I regularly engage students in discussions and other forms of interactions toreinforce their understanding of the terms they are learning.

_____10. I encourage all students to “play” with words through various activities includinggames, simulations, and other student-centered strategies.

_____11. I work with my grade-level and content-area colleagues to identify and empha-size in instruction the terms that have a high probability of enhancing students’academic success.

ReferencesAnderson, J. (1995). Learning and memory: An integrated approach. New York: John Wiley & Sons.Marzano, R. J. (2002). Identifying the primary structural concepts in mathematics: A linguistic approach.

Englewood, CO: Marzano & Associates.Paivio, A. (1990). Mental representations: A dual coding approach. New York: Oxford University Press.

Resources for Schoolwide Reading Programs EmphasizingVocabulary DevelopmentAnderson, J. (1995). Learning and memory: An integrated approach. New York: John Wiley & Sons.Cole, R. W. (Ed.). (1995). Educating everybody’s children: Diverse teaching strategies for diverse learners.

Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Cole, R. W. (Ed.). (2001). More strategies for educating everybody’s children. Alexandria, VA: Association

for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Herrell, A., & Jordan, M. (2003). Fifty strategies for teaching English language learners (2nd ed.). Alexan-

dria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Lessow-Hurley, J. (2003). Meeting the needs of second language learners: An educator’s guide. Alexandria,

VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Marzano, R. J. (2002). Identifying the primary structural concepts in mathematics: A linguistic approach.

Englewood, CO: Marzano & Associates.Paivio, A. (1990). Mental representations: A dual coding approach. New York: Oxford University Press.Williams, B. (Ed.). (2003). Closing the achievement gap: A vision for changing beliefs and practices

(2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Recommended ASCD ResourcesBuilding Background Knowledge for Academic Achievement: Research on What Works in Schoolsby Robert J. Marzano. Learn why insufficient background knowledge is a chronic cause of lowachievement and discover how a carefully structured combination of two approaches—sustained silent reading and instruction in subject-specific vocabulary—can help rescue low achievers and boost the academic performance of all students.

Literacy Across the Curriculum: An ASCD Professional Development Planner and Package. This resourceincludes print and nonprint materials emphasizing key aspects of vocabulary acquisition within andacross content areas.

Maximizing Learning for English Language Learners. Tape 1: Models for Teaching; Tape 2: Teaching Strate-gies; Tape 3: Ensuring Success in All Classrooms. This video program provides your school a commonpoint of understanding for English as a second language (ELL) students and the various models cur-rently used. Visit four successful schools to explore how each model works in practice and hear experi-enced ELL educators explain the strengths of each.

Reading Strategies for the Content Areas: An ASCD PD Online Course. This course enables teachers tolocate, select, and use a wide range of instructional tools to enhance students’ use of strategies thatincrease reading comprehension of assignments across the curriculum.


Factor: Student Motivation

Feedback on Knowledge Gain ................................................................101

Twenty Suggestions for Providing Effective Student Feedback....105

Faculty Questionnaire: How Balanced Is Your Assessment Approach? ................................................................109

Samples of Tasks Representing a “Photo Album”Approach to Assessment ..............................................................113

Student Questionnaire: Reflecting on the Feedback You Receive....................................................................................117

Resources for Feedback on Knowledge Gain ..............................120

Simulation Games and Engaging Activities ..........................................125

Guidelines and Strategies for Reinforcing Student Engagement ..................................................................................129

Faculty Questionnaire: How Engaging Are Your Classrooms? ....137

Resources for Simulation Games and Engaging Activities ..........140

Long-Term Projects ..................................................................................143

A Planner for Creating and Monitoring Long-TermCulminating Projects......................................................................147

A Summary of Models for Effective Project Planning ..................151

Resources for Long-Term Projects................................................155

Student Training in the Dynamics of Motivation ..................................159

Overhead Tranparencies: What Do We Know AboutMotivation and Learning? ..............................................................163

Student Questionnaire: How Motivated Are You to Succeed? ....177

Strategies You Can Use to Increase Your Motivation:A Resource for Students................................................................179

Resources for Student Training in the Dynamics of Motivation....181

Putting It All Together ..............................................................................183

Factors


97

Factor: Student Motivation

SectionLong-Term ProjectsStudents are provided with opportunities to construct and work on long-term

projects of their own design.

A clear and recurring goal in education should be to ensure that learn-

ers develop a capacity for independent application of what they have

learned. Marzano suggests that educational research reinforces the need

for students to engage in culminating, performance-based projects that

require their use of such habits of mind as self-regulated, critical, and cre-

ative thinking. Long-term projects designed by students—with the instruc-

tor serving as facilitator and coach—can function as climactic juncture

points in students’ study of the curriculum. Through such projects,

Marzano suggests, students are engaged in what they are learning and pro-

vide invaluable evidence of their growing proficiency in fulfilling curricu-

lum standards and performance targets.

Associated Problems

Emphasizing student-designed projects as part of your instructional pro-

gram may help you to address problems such as the following:

• Student achievement data confirm that students do not understand

the curriculum content they study.

• Student performance data, including observations by teachers and

administrators, suggest the absence of student behaviors associ-

143

Factors


ated with the six facets of understanding identified by Wiggins and McTighe

(2000): explanation, interpretation, application, perspective, empathy, and

self-knowledge.

• Observations by teachers and administrators confirm a passivity and lack of own-

ership of the learning process among many learners, with students performing

poorly on tasks requiring independence and self-regulation.

Suggested Goals and Data Sources

Based on one or more of these problems, potential school improvement goals and data

sources might include those shown in the following chart:

Student Motivation144

Goals Results Data Sources

To increase studentunderstanding of corecurriculum content

To increase student curiosityand creativity in independentprojects and relatedperformance tasks

Gains in student understanding ofthe core curriculum, includingevidence of students’ ability toexplain, apply, interpret, analyzeperspectives, express empathy,and exhibit self-knowledge

Increases in the number andquality of student projects andtasks that demonstrate creativityand curiosity in the disciplines

Pre- and post-analysis ofstandardized test and otherassessments to determinelevels of acquisition of basicknowledge and skills versusstudents’ demonstration ofunderstanding and criticalthinking behaviors

Observation data confirminglevels of student performanceon independent culminatingprojects, including longitudinaltrends found in studentportfolios

Suggested Strategies

� Introduce the concept developed by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe in Understanding

by Design (2000) of the six facets of understanding—six “metabehaviors” that students

demonstrate when they are exhibiting some level of independent understanding

of what they are learning. These facets are (1) explanation: supporting claims and

assertions with evidence; (2) interpretation: drawing inferences, making predictions,

and “reading between the lines” to generate new products, processes, and insights;

(3) application: using what you have learned with some level of independence, partic-

ularly in relationship to new or unanticipated situations and settings; (4) perspective:

analyzing and evaluating differing points of view related to a controversial issue or

topic; (5) empathy: walking in the shoes of another by attempting to describe and

experience events through their eyes or point of view; and (6) self-knowledge: self-

regulation, self-examination, self-evaluation, and metacognitive processing.

� Encourage staff to design and implement projects and culminating performance tasks

that reinforce students’ demonstration of self-actualization—that is, that elicit stu-

dents’ desire to become more effective as a person and to perform tasks for reasons

of intrinsic, rather than extrinsic, motivation. This process involves tasks that stu-

dents perceive as personally relevant and aligned with their individual long-term aspi-

rations (professional, social, personal, academic).

� Investigate Carol Ann Tomlinson’s (1999) concept of “differentiated instruction,” in

which staff use formative and summative assessment data to modify learning activi-

ties to accommodate student strengths and needs. Strategies include tiered assign-

ments, contract-based learning, and curriculum compacting.

� Provide training in Wiggins and McTighe’s (2000) concept of G.R.A.S.P.S., real-world

performances that act as the climax for instructional units and contain: G = real-world

goals; R = real-world roles; A = audience(s); S = scenarios and complex real-world set-

tings; P = complex products and performances; and S = standards for evaluating prod-

ucts and performances.

Action Tools

The following action tools are included for this item:

• A Planner for Creating and Monitoring Long-Term Culminating Projects

• A Summary of Models for Effective Project Planning





A Planner for Creating andMonitoring Long-TermCulminating Projects

H O W T O U S E :

This template incorporates elements of four models for effective project

planning (see the following tool, A Summary of Models for Effective Project

Planning, for a description of the models). It identifies planning responsi-

bilities for the instructor as well as the learner. By applying this template—

or adapting it—educators can expand their use of long-range performance

tasks and projects while eliminating many of the problems often associ-

ated with them (such as lack of student involvement and input into design

elements; lack of student responsibility for completion by the deadline;

and management of time and resources).


• In a study group, examine the models presented in the next tool (see

p. 151) and begin to design departmental or grade-level protocols for

culminating projects.

• Individually or in small teams, develop and implement long-term culmi-

nating projects using this template (or a variation you create).

• Engage in variations of “lesson study” by sharing experiences with indi-

vidual and team-generated projects and related implementation, allow-

ing peers to provide feedback to improve later use of these projects.

• Develop a staff (or grade-level or departmental) portfolio, collecting

exemplary culminating projects and related student work products

(including photographs or videos of performance-based activities).




A Planner for Creating and MonitoringLong-Term Culminating Projects

Required Time Line andInstructor Student

Resources Deadlines

What are the standards in thisunit or grading periodimportant enough to requirestudents’ independentapplications via a long-termculminating project?

Based on these standards,what are the big ideas, con-ceptual themes, and essentialquestions that should guidethe long-term project?

What specific declarativeknowledge (facts, concepts,generalizations, rules, princi-ples) and procedural knowl-edge (skills, procedures, pro-cesses) should students berequired to know as part ofthis project?

Now that I have determineddesired results for this long-term project, how will I assessstudent progress and summa-tive achievement?

How will students receivesupport to understand theseidentified standards and theirsignificance in their lives?

How will students receiveinstruction to support theirunderstanding and revisiting ofthese big ideas and essentialquestions?

How will students be coachedto ensure that each of themachieves independent masteryof this requisite enablingknowledge?

How will students learn abouteach of the required assess-ments for this project? How willthey be encouraged to take anactive role in self-assessmentand self-evaluation?

How will I communicatethis information?

What resources arenecessary to help allstudents achieve con-ceptual understanding?

What resources arenecessary to coach alllearners to achievemastery?

What resources arerequired for each of theidentified assessments?

By what dateshould thisstep becompleted?

By whenshould thisoccur?

By whenshould thisoccur?

When shouldeach assess-ment beadministered?

(continued on next page)



Continued: A Planner for Creating and Monitoring Long-Term Projects

Required Time Line andInstructor Student

Resources Deadlines

How will the learning activitiesfor this long-term project bedesigned and implemented?For example, how will I com-municate to my students eachof the following: (a) generaland specific long-term goalsfor each learner; (b) real-worldroles students will assume; (c) real-world audiences towhich key project elements willbe addressed and presented;(d) real-world scenarios orsituations students mustaddress as part of this project(e.g., decisions, problems,investigations, work products,analyses); (e) culminatingproducts; (f) culminatingpresentations; (g) evaluationstandards for each of theabove design elements?

What are the deadlines forcompletion of each of theindividual, small-group, andwhole-group activities asso-ciated with this project?

What additional issues should I consider as I introduce,implement, and evaluate thisproject?

To what extent will studentshave some individual choice or role in decision making onthese project elements?

How will each student receivesupport and coaching tomonitor and address each ofthese deadlines?

What additional issues will Ineed to address to ensure stu-dent success on this project?

What resources will berequired to reinforceeach of these designelements?

What resources will benecessary for eachdeadline benchmark?

What additional issuesmight arise withrequired resources?

What deadlinesare necessaryfor each?

How will Icommunicatethesedeadlines?

What timemanagementissues mightalso arise?

A Planner for Creating and Monitoring Long-Term CulminatingProjects




A Summary of Models for Effective Project PlanningH O W T O U S E :

This summary of models for project planning highlights areas of similarity

and difference among four frameworks for instructional planning: Dimen-

sions of Learning, the Pathfinder Project, Differentiated Instruction, and

Understanding by Design. Staff members can examine the design principles

advocated in each framework as well as examples for each of the frame-

works’ approaches to encouraging student input and ownership of long-

term projects.


• Examine these models in staff meetings and discuss the extent to

which similar projects are used regularly in your school.

• Create a synthesis model for your school, department, or grade level,

combining elements of two or more of the frameworks that your staff

finds particularly useful.




Dimensions of Learning Meaningful-Use Tasks

Meaningful-use tasks ask students to demonstrate their level of independent application,interpretation, and explanation of the curriculum they are studying. Such tasks serve as cli-mactic culminating points for one or more units within an instructional sequence and focuson students’ use of such higher-level thinking processes as decision making, problem solv-ing, and investigation.

Examples:

1. After studying the Pythagorean theorem, students assume the role of architecturaldesigners responsible for creating accurate blueprints for an elementary schoolplayground. They are responsible for ensuring that the playground accurately andcreatively reflects the key principles of the Pythagorean theorem and various ways it might be evident in an architectural situation or context.

2. In a unit on the hero in folk literature, students form work groups to design ananthology of folk literature that they both write and illustrate. The publication shouldinclude examples of legends, myths, and fables. As part of their responsibility aswriters, editors, and publishers, students will read examples of their anthology toyounger students in a local elementary school.

The Pathfinder Project

The Pathfinder Project represents a powerful extension of Robert Marzano’s concept of aDimensions of Learning meaningful-use task. In a Pathfinder Project, the learner first identi-fies a significant personal goal, then elicits support to achieve that goal and begins togather information concerning strategies and processes to support its attainment. Funda-mental to the personal project is an ongoing process of discrepancy analysis, in which thestudent continues to compare his or her “current self” and the projected “future self” thatwill develop as project goals are achieved. This process continues with the learner creatingan action plan, moving into action, and evaluating the effectiveness of those actions as thegoals of the personal project are attained—or modified.

Examples:

1. As part of an after-school arts enrichment program, a student decides to determine how viable and realistic a career in the theater might be for him. He establishes ashis personal goal to discover what it would be like to become a professional actor.

A Summary of Models for Effective Project Planning

To gather information about attaining this goal, he visits several local amateur andprofessional theater groups to interview actors, directors, and crew about their indi-vidual career paths and experiences. In addition, he reads biographies and autobio-graphies of famous actors who succeeded in the theater, using quotes from thosetexts as inspiration. As part of his discrepancy-analysis process, he compares whathe has learned about educational requirements and personal qualities associatedwith pursuing a successful career on the stage to his current education and lifeexperiences. Based on this gap analysis, he develops an action plan for deciding if he should follow a career path in acting or modify his aspirations to make hiscareer goals more comprehensive and less focused on acting as a career target.

2. A student in a high school service-learning class decides to find a way to make adifference in the lives of children of poverty in her community. She frames as herpersonal goal the development of some form of tutorial program for children in anafter-school day-care facility in a local housing project. She develops a written pro-posal for her service-learning teacher, who encourages her to submit the proposalto the leaders of the day-care facility. As part of this process, the student enlists theaid of other members of her service-learning class to help her implement her plan.Specifically, she and her peers offer after-school reading assistance to students on a weekly basis. Her project also involves a great deal of self-reflection and self-analysis as she interacts with the students and learns about their life experiences.Throughout the project she engages in a discrepancy-analysis process, comparingher expectations about working with children in poverty to her actual experiencesand internal reactions as she provides her tutoring services. At the end of the firstyear of her program, she uses her experiences to determine if a career in teaching is appropriate for her.

Differentiated Instruction Orbital Projects

In Carol Ann Tomlinson’s model of differentiated instruction, orbital studies are independentinvestigations lasting three to six weeks. Students select their own topics to expand theirunderstanding of the curriculum around which their project “orbits.” The goal is to help stu-dents become independent investigators into areas of interest related to the core curriculum.

Examples:

1. During a science unit on ecosystems, each student creates an “I-Search” questionto investigate an aspect of an ecosystem they find interesting or intriguing. Afterposing the question to peers and their teacher, students revise the question and useit as a basis for finding the answer or answers to it via an independent researchprocess using both print and nonprint sources.

2. Students enhance their understanding of a unit on romanticism in American litera-ture by selecting an author viewed by critics as reflecting “romantic elements” in his



Continued: A Summary of Models for Effective Project Planning

or her body of writing. Each student reads as many works as possible by the authorand writes a culminating essay or research paper synthesizing the romantic tradi-tions and principles evident (or absent) in the works they read.

Understanding by Design G.R.A.S.P.S. Culminating Performance Tasks

These projects allow students to demonstrate independent levels of understanding via self-generated extensions of their curriculum. Such tasks always identify goals, real-world roles,audiences, real-world scenarios and situations, culminating products and performances,and evaluation standards.

Examples:

1. Students assume the role of biologists exploring the Amazon rain forest and theeffects of deforestation and human settlement on it. As a team, they are responsiblefor creating a synthesis report and presentation for members of the United NationsEnvironmental Subcommittee. Their report should include a variety of resources(including print and nonprint sources), an analysis of trends, a presentation of cur-rent and projected problems, and an elaborated series of recommendations toaddress these issues. Their presentation should use PowerPoint and should rein-force visually the oral presentation they make to members of the subcommittee.Students will be evaluated on the basis of their accuracy, completeness, range andappropriateness of supporting resources and evidence, and sensitivity to the back-ground and needs of their audience.

2. Students will assume the role of “reporter time travelers” from a major local news-paper. Each time-traveling team will identify a period in world history it wishes toreport on. Based on their travels back to this period, each team will create a news-paper supplement that includes news articles, visuals with captions, editorials, andhuman interest stories profiling life during the era they have explored. At the conclu-sion of this process, students will serve as docents for students from other classeswho will visit their newsroom to read and experience these historical supplementsfor themselves. Students will be evaluated on the basis of their thoroughness ofresearch, balanced coverage, range and quality of print and nonprint materials, andcommunication with their audience.



Continued: A Summary of Models for Effective Project Planning

ReferencesTomlinson, C. A. (1999). The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Alexandria,

VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2000). Understanding by design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision

and Curriculum Development.

Resources for Long-Term ProjectsBarrell, J. (2003). Developing more curious minds. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Cur-

riculum Development.Brooks, J. G., & Brooks, M. G. (1999). In search of understanding: The case for constructivist classrooms.

Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Costa, A. (Ed.). (2001). Developing minds: A resource book for teaching thinking (3rd ed.). Alexandria, VA:

Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Erlauer, L. (2003). The brain-compatible classroom: Using what we know about learning to improve teach-

ing. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Harmin, M. (1994). Inspiring active learning: A handbook for teachers. Alexandria, VA: Association for

Supervision and Curriculum Development.Marzano, R. J. (1992). A different kind of classroom: Teaching with dimensions of learning. Alexandria, VA:

Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Rose, D. H., & Meyer, A. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning.

Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Silver, H. F., Strong, R. W., & Perini, M. J. (2000). So each may learn: Integrating learning styles and multiple

intelligences. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Tomlinson, C. A. (1999). The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Alexandria,

VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding by design (2nd ed., expanded). Alexandria, VA: Associa-

tion for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Recommended ASCD Video ResourcesThe Brain and Early Childhood. This two-tape series explores the strategies and practices that can helpyoung children, from birth to 8 years old, grow and learn, with an emphasis on brain-based, developmen-tally appropriate learning activities.

How to Create an Active Learning Environment. This one-tape exploration of proven ideas and techniquesthat teachers can use to create exciting learning environments includes establishing routines and proce-dures, encouraging students to take ownership of their own learning, and building trust with students.

Learning and the Brain: An ASCD Professional Development Planner and Resource Package. This combina-tion of video and print resources includes a professional development planner, multiple video series andinquiry kits, and topic packs, all related to the connection between the brain and the teaching and learn-ing process.


Documents

Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in …32 Home Environment Making School Improvement Happen with What Works in Schools: Student-Level Factors How Are You Helping Your