With Growing Pains Come Opportunities:

Curriculum Planning, Assessment, and Student Support at the

Twin Cities German Immersion School (K-8)

Lead Presenter: Dr. Gesa ZinnMichael Mullins, Kirsten Newell,

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Overview• TCGIS: German Immersion in Como Park• Response to Intervention (RtI)• Curriculum Development• Targeted Intervention (Tier II)• Data Management and Analysis

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About TCGIS

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TCGIS: 2005-2007• BEGINNINGS:• 2 teachers• 43 students

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TCGIS: 2007-2013• The MIDDLE YEARS• 161 students

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TCGIS: 2013-2016• Today:• 522 students• 17 staff & adm

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Response to Intervention

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TerminologyMulti-tiered Systems of Support

Response to Intervention Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports

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RtI

www.rti4success.org

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Screening• Universal• All students

• Purpose• Verify core curriculum or teaching is working for most students• Identify students who might be at risk

• Typically 3 times per year• Assessment:• Reliable, valid, efficient/feasible

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Progress Monitoring• Monitor a student’s progress• Focus on students receiving a particular intervention

• Purpose• Provide data for decision-making, problem solving

• Often once per week or every other week• Assessment:• Reliable, valid, efficient/feasible, and sensitive to growth over time

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Tier 3

Tier 2

Tier 1

Multi-level prevention systemIn

crea

singl

y in

tens

ive

inte

rven

tions

Core curriculum

Intervention

Intensive Intervention

~80%

~15%

~5%

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Data-Based Decision Making• Data is useless unless we use it!• Decision-making rules should be specified for

screening and progress monitoring decisions• Movement up and down the “triangle” or

between tiers requires data-based decision making• This includes special education eligibility decisions

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Curriculum Development

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State Assessment Results - Reading

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State Assessment Results - Math

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State Assessment Results - Science

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German Proficiency - SOPA

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German Proficiency – A2

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German Proficiency – DSD I

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We aren’t in the super chicken business

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Collaboration: More than meets the eye

http://blog.pgi.com/2013/05/collaboration-at-work-is-the-new-competition/

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24Best Practices in School Psychology V: Chapter 65Niebling, Roach, & Rahn-Blakeslee

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The importance of…

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Targeted Intervention (Tier II)

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ASSESSMENT: How we decide when to intervene• Behavior• Math• Literacy

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Struggling Learners“A struggling learner is a student who has attracted the attention of teacher(s) for an extended period of time, approximately six weeks to a few months, depending on the grade level. This student struggles relative to the average performance of classroom peers, and the struggles may involve academic, linguistic, social-emotional, and/or behavioral issues. The primary emphasis within the arena of exceptionalities has been on those individuals who experience challenges with language and learning.”

(Fortune, T. & Menke, M., 2010)

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Literacy• Screeners• Targeted interventions

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Sample Screener

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Sample Screener

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Literacy: Screeners• Fall 2015• 9 classes screened • (grade levels K, 1, 3)

• Winter/Spring 2015/2016: • 14 classes screened • (grade levels K, 1, 2, 3, 4)

• Fall 2016: • 14 classes screened (1-4)

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Assessments• German Screeners• reading of high frequency words• decoding and blending (syllables/words)• reading of passages (words per minute)• comprehension

• FastBridgeLearning Screeners

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Inte

rven

tion

Exam

ple

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Inte

rven

tion

Exam

ple

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Inte

rven

tion

Exam

ple

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Date Language Task Percent Correct

10/20 German Letter recognition 100%

Syllable reading 50%

Combination letters 50%

10/23 English (FAST) Concepts of print 100%

Onset sounds 98%

Letter names 98%

Letter sounds 63%

11/2 German Onset sounds 50%

Syllable reading 50%

Sight words 25%

1/6 German Au sounds 90%

Ei sounds 90%

U sounds 100%

1/13 German Letter sounds All correct but q, v, w

Inte

rven

tion

Exam

ple

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Inte

rven

tion

Exam

ple

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Data-based decision makingData management

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Data Management

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Relationship between German and English Screeners

German Screener Fall English Screener Composite Winter English Screener Composite

Fall Letter Sounds .39 .3

Fall Syllables* .39 .33

Winter Letter Sounds .52 .46

Winter Syllables .57 .59

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Decision Making – who received support?• Students referred by concerned teachers• Students who performed poorly on screeners• Never just a single data point as a decider

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Number of Students Served

Reading Math Behavior0

5

10

15

20

25

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40

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Student Progress

Reading Math Behavior0

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4

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10

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Number of Students at Each Progress Level

Sig. Decline Some Decline Same Some Improvement Sig. Improvement

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Stakeholder Surveys - Satisfaction

Staff Parents Students0

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High Medium Low

Developing Local Norms• Norms are based on peer comparison, so definition of the peer group

is key• Include special education students, gifted students, the whole distribution

• Common errors• Garbage in-garbage out, poor administration and inaccurate scoring• Improper norm sample• Data management issues, including not accessible, violations of privacy• Data admired and not used

Christ & Silberglitt, 2007Stewart & Silberglitt, 2008

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Next steps• Reading

• Expand screening and progress monitoring to more grades• Develop local norms• Develop data collection assessment teams OR embedding?

• Math• Expand beyond teacher nomination• Systematic math intervention aligned with curriculum• Assessments and norms under development

• Behavior• Systematic behavior interventions under PBIS system

• Including data collection tools• Teacher nomination and rating scales

• Continue horizontal and vertical articulation work• Finding adequate collaboration time!!