The Principal’s Role in the Reading Program

1. The Principal’s Role in the Reading Program Michael C. McKenna University of Virginia Sharon Walpole University of Delaware

2. What’s the GARF PD Plan?

3. What’s the GARF PD Plan?

4. Specific Strengths of GARF Alignment of GPS with SBRR Adequate time for both Tier 1 and Tier 2 instruction State funding for classroom libraries linked to GPS

5. Specific Strengths of GARF Wide access to Teacher Academies, Struggling Reader Academies and Preservice opportunities Extensive online support High-quality state and regional infrastructure

6. CRCT Data • Trends in CRCT, for all grades, are positive! • Fewer students each year do not meet standards • More students each year exceed standards

10. Our kindergarteners enter school with very weak oral vocabulary, but they make gains against the national sample during the kindergarten year.

11. Our kindergarteners enter school with very weak oral vocabulary, but they make gains against the national sample during the kindergarten year.

12. And, Most Recently September 25, 2007 – Georgia’s 4th graders are scoring at the national level in reading, according to results of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) released today. Georgia students scored at all-time highs on the NAEP in math and reading. The biggest gains, however, were seen in reading, providing further evidence that Georgia's new curriculum -- the Georgia Performance Standards -- is having a big impact. "This is the latest in a series of results showing higher achievement in Georgia schools. For the first time, Georgia's fourth graders are on par with fourth graders across the nation in reading and we can note increases in all other grades and subjects,” Governor Perdue said. “I am proud of what our students, teachers and parents have accomplished, and I look forward to even more increased achievement in the next round of NAEP testing in 2009." Aside from the curriculum, the Superintendent credited the federal Reading First program, which has given more than $100 million to 118 schools over the past four years. That money is used to help assure that students in early grades are learning to read. Superintendent Cox also credited the No Child Left Behind Act and the state's promotion and retention policy for bringing a new focus to reading education. http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/pdf/stt2007/2007497GA4.pdf

14. Key Challenges in GARF • Full implementation of flexible, differentiated instruction in all grade levels (Tier 2) • Full implementation of intensive interventions in all grade levels (Tier 3) • Creative, flexible use of personnel and grouping strategies to facilitate teaching and learning • Identification of and support for teachers who are struggling • Better understanding and use of diagnostic data, formal and informal, and of outcome data (CRCT, ITBS, and PPVT)

15. Now let’s look at the ITBS.

16. Points to Remember • The ITBS is required for all schools at grades 3, 5 and 8 (and RF uses it in 1 and 2). • There is no statewide testing window (but RF is at the end). • The ITBS is not used to determine AYP. • Cohort tracking is not possible unless a school elects to give the ITBS in non-required grades or a third-to-fifth-grade cohort is tracked. • The ITBS permits national comparisons but does not gauge mastery of the Georgia Performance Standards.

17. Which norms shall we use? Percentile Ranks • Give a fairly precise estimate of standing compared with national age peers. • Cannot be averaged, subtracted, or easily compared.

18. Percentiles and Football G 50 G Avoid differences in percentile ranks. Use NCEs or stanines instead.

19. Which norms shall we use? Stanines • Give a gross estimate of standing compared with national age peers. • Cannot be averaged. • Are not well suited to groups.

20. Interpreting Stanines { 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Above Average Stanines 7-9 Borderline Stanine 6 Average Stanine 5 Borderline Stanine 4 Below Average Stanines 1-3 {

21. Which norms shall we use? Normal Curve Equivalents • Were developed to permit comparisons. • Can be subtracted and averaged. • Are statistically equivalent.

22. How NCEs are made NCEs “flatten” the normal curve so that differences are statistically equivalent.

23. Which norms shall we use? Grade Equivalents • Involve shaky estimates. • Compare students of different ages. • Have been condemned by IRA.

24. Three-Year ITBS Cohort Model A comparison can be made on the basis of those students present at both testings. But this would take time! UGA uses a “modified” cohort model, which includes anyone tested.

25. Three-Year ITBS Cohort Model Any comparison should focus on normal curve equivalents.

27. On a nationally-normed test, our students are scoring close the average but are losing some ground against the sample over time in some areas.

28. Our focus on decoding is having long-term effects by third grade. We can see this in the Word Analysis and Spelling subtest results.

29. We must find ways of helping children build their vocabulary and comprehension. Our children are largely maintaining their position relative to the national norming group, but they are not making up ground.

31. NCE = 46.6

32. Why focus on Tier 2 this year? Our DIBELS data indicate that we are very successful with the children who start out at least at benchmark achievement. Our DIBELS data indicate that we are doing increasingly better with children who start out at intensive – and we also know that implementation of intervention is varied. Our DIBELS data indicate that our success rate for children who begin at strategic is relatively stable. There is room to improve.

33. Benchmark to Benchmark

34. Effectiveness of Core Instruction In both Cohort 1 and Cohort 2, we are nearing our goal of 90% of beginning-of-year benchmark students maintaining that status at the end of the year. Our basic program of whole-group and small-group instruction is working for them.

35. Intensive to Strategic or Benchmark

36. Effectiveness of Interventions For children who begin the year with intensive needs, Cohort 1 schools have made small improvements towards our goal of 50% moving out of that category. Cohort 2 schools will be able to focus more attention this year. Our basic program of whole-group, small-group, and intensive intervention instruction is beginning to work for them.

37. Strategic to Benchmark

38. Effectiveness of Differentiated Instruction For our students starting the year at the strategic level of achievement, we have had fairly stable results across years in Cohort 1 and in the first year of Cohort 2. We had hoped for 75% success for them. Our basic program of whole-group and small-group instruction is not yet working for enough of them.

39. Things for you to consider • These data are aggregated across the grade levels. • In your school, you will find grade-level scores that are very different from the state trends; use them to focus your attention. • Remember that these data only include children who were present at both fall and spring; your own data will also include children who were there at any one point in time.

40. Remember the ECI/EDI/EI Reports? We have provided you with reports that track progress for groups of students Fall Benchmark Spring Status Fall Strategic Spring Status Fall Intensive Spring Status But you can get even more specific!

41. Not all of your teachers are the same!

42. How can I find my most effective teachers?

43. You can track student progress by classroom Log on to Mclass Direct https://www.mclassdirect.com/

46. T1 T2 T3 T4

47. Which of these teachers was most effective?

48. T1 T2 T3 T4

50. But did the initial status of the children influence the results? There is a way to track progress for each of the three groups of children across time.