Research-Based Best Practices for teachers

Research-Based Best Practices for teachers Welcome to

Thanks for being on time and for being prepared.

Vocabulary: • dimensions: broad descriptions of the sections of the rubric • elements: explanations of the various sections of the dimensions • indicators: explains elements in more detail while outlining the differences between the ratings • ratings: distinguished, proficient, professional support needed, unsatisfactory

RUBRIC HUNT 1. How many dimensions are there? 2. How many of the dimensions are observable? 3. What are the observable dimensions? 4. Which dimension has the most elements? 5. Which element has the most indicators? 6. How many rating categories are there? 7. Compare and contrast the “distinguished” and “professional” rankings for Dimension 1, Element 1.

ANSWER KEY • 7 • 4 • #’s 2, 3,4, & 6 • #7 (1o elements) • 2.1, 4.1, and 5.4 (all have 5 indicators) • 4

Desired Outcome By the end of today’s sessions, participants will have a better understanding of the importance of building relationships with students and parents, the value of organizing the learning environment, and the benefits of empowering students in the classroom.

Schedule for the day • 8:00-8:30 Opening/sign in/preview • 8:30-10:10 1st session • 10:10-10:20 break • 10:20-Noon 2nd session • Noon-1:00 lunch • 1:00-2:00 3rd session • 2:00-2:10 break • 2:10-2:50 3rd session (cont.) • 2:50- wrap up/paperwork

3 sessions “Building Relationships with Students and with Parents” – John Hays “Empowering Students” – Jenifer Born “Organizing the Learning Environment” – Kara Turey

Dimensions John - #’s 6 & 7 Jenifer - #’s 2, 3, 4, & 5 Kara - #2

Agreements • Everyone participates • No one dominates • Be positive • Be responsible for your own learning • Use technology politely

Announcements Workshop follow-up sheets must be completed today. Electronic Opinion Survey (EOS) Credit for the workshop will not be given/displayed until the EOS is completed.

PD Evaluation Protocol review team Week of Oct. 29, 2012-Nov. 2, 2012 • PD training attended; pertaining to PGP • Delivery method of the training • How new learning is implemented • Process used to evaluate student learning

District Peer Mentor Teacher website: All power point presentations and links to sites will be posted on our website. http://humanresources.brevardschools.org/ProfDev/peermentors/default.aspx

Welcome to Building Relationships with Students and with Parents” John Hays-presenter/facilitator

Icebreaker Take out your partial song lyric. Get up and find the “rest of your song” by talking with other participants Stand together and…. wait The best is yet to come!

Let’s have some fun!

Brevard’s Got Talent!

Thank you, thank you, thank you very much! Index Card: write down three things you learned about members of your singing group.

Were you able to identify… Potential leaders People who appear shy Potential class clowns Folks who “thrive on movement” Task oriented people

Research says… “…teachers’ actions in their classrooms have twice as much impact on student achievement as assessment policies, community involvement or staff collegiality…” (Marzano & Marzano, 2003)

During middle school years “…students may be more likely to experience declines in academic motivation and self-esteem.” (Anderman, Maehr, & Midgley, 1999) “…these declines can be linked … particularly to teacher-student relationships.” (Furrer & Skinner, 2003)

Don’t leave relationships to chance! “Teacher-student relationships should not be left to chance or dictated by the personalities of those involved. Instead, by using strategies supported by research, teachers can influence the dynamics of their classroom and build strong teacher-student relationships that will support student learning.” (Marzano, 2003)

“Building Classroom Relationships”, 2003 Robert & Jana Marzano – 100 studies “the quality of teacher-student relationships is the keystone for all other aspects of classroom management. On average, teachers who had high-quality relationships with their students had 31 % fewer discipline problems…”

Harvard Education Newsletter, Vol. 27, Number 1, Jan./Feb. 2011 H. Richard Milner, IV “At its root, building relationships is about meeting students where they are, attempting to understand them, and developing connections with them.” “…it requires that teachers are willing to find the good and worth in students…”

Milner continues… “…teachers may have to refocus and sharpen their lenses for thinking about students…” “Am I prepared to recognize talent, potential talent, intellect, skill, excellence, and ability when they emerge…”

Milner’s suggestions Interview students Assignments based on student experiences and interests “Rap” sessions Extra-curricular activity visits Familiarity with student’s community “takes time and planning”

Harvard Education Newsletter Vol. 27, Number 1 Jan./Feb., 2011 H. Richard Milner, IV

“Building Positive Relationships” – D.E. Campbell, 2006 Safety and Security Self-Worth Sense of Belonging Sense of Direction Sense of Purpose STOP demeaning comments.

Burke’s “Dirty Dozen” Sarcasm Negative Tone Negative Body language *Inconsistency Favoritism Put-Downs Teacher Outbursts Public Reprimands *Unfairness Apathy Inflexibility *Lack of humor

Interest Survey • What grade or subject do you teach? • When it comes to college sports, what is your favorite team? • What authors do you enjoy? • What is the name of one of your favorite songs? • What is your favorite color?

Problem of the Day Kevin likes following the University of Alabama football team. In football, each touchdown and extra point is worth 7pts. If, during a game, the U of A football team scores all of its 42 points by scoring touchdowns and extra points, how many times did they score?

Writing Assignment Frieda spent the summer on St. Croix. She enjoyed it very much. Write three sentences that might describe how Frieda felt on the day she had to leave St. Croix.

Counting/Colors Teacher says, “John’s favorite color is blue. Please, look at the other students in this class. How many of them are wearing something blue today?”

“Try to remember…” …the name of a teacher who had a positive impact on you. Can you remember a certain moment when they demonstrated that you were not just a “nameless face”?

Ways to get to know your students Interest Surveys “All About Me” posters/newspaper format “Student of the Week” displays Conferencing/setting student goals Make a “family tree” Draw a map of your neighborhood Design a t-shirt

Time to share: On the other side of your index card: Write down, in detail, a tool/strategy/activity that you will utilize in your classroom to enhance relationship building between you and your students. What are some of the things that will indicate that this renewed focus on relationship building has had a positive impact?

What in the world is a “Goodwill Sandwich”? The essence of thoughtful communication is that you make sure the other person knows you value them and can empathize with their needs. You couple that with a fair and non-judgmental description of the issue you are trying to resolve. By starting and ending your communication with two pieces of “bread” (statements that underline your regard and goodwill for the other person),you increase the likelihood that the other person will digest the filling (possible resolution of the issue).

Goodwill Sandwich #1 Bread: Dave, I loved the ideas behind your story. Filling: I had to go back a few times to re-read parts of it, in order to make sense of the story. Bread: Some readers might not have the patience to do that. You’ll notice I made a few suggestions in the paper. See what you think of my ideas; do they allow you to tell your story while at the same time making it easier to read?

Goodwill Sandwich #2 Bread: Juan, I want to work something out with you. Filling: I noticed you were out of your seat a few times today. Usually, you stay in your seat so I was wondering if something was wrong. Bread: No? You just wanted to talk with your friend on the other side of the room. Ok, I get that. However, during this activity, we all need to stay in our seats so that everyone has an opportunity to learn and to succeed. What can you do next time to communicate with your friend and still follow our classroom rules?

Building relationships with parents: “Influence of Parent Teacher Relationships on Engagement and Achievement”, 2007 (Jan Hughes & Ol-man Kwck) Southeast and central Texas 443 students/families 1 urban school, 2 rural schools

Findings “Positive relations with teachers in the classroom and between home and school appear to be less common for low-income and racial minority children than for higher income white students.” “Similarly, minority and low-income parents engage in fewer school involvement activities.”

This makes me think… “Teachers and principals tend to attribute lower levels of parent involvement to a lack of motivation, a lack of concern, a lack of value placed on education.” This same study found that while teachers felt parent involvement in some groups was low, those same parents felt they were adequately or very involved in their child’s school.

Hmmmm…? Additional studies show that low income, ethnic households put a high value on education comparable to or higher than other groups. (Chavkin & Williams, 1993) The study also found that “parent’s beliefs about appropriate parenting practices and ways to interact with the school vary according to ethnic identity and social class.”

Professional chatter: Why do you think we have these diverse perceptions and different beliefs? Why do these differences “raise their heads” in the educational setting? What can we do about it?

Goodwill Sandwich #3 Bread: I’m really glad you were able to come in today, Mrs. Hays. I am enjoying getting to know your son, John. Filling: I need some insight from you about the best way to work with John. He has a wonderful, outgoing personality, and most of the time adds a lot to our class, but there are times when he gets a little too wound up and it is hard to keep him focused.

Sandwich #3 continued Bread: If we can help John to time his talking a little better, it will keep him from getting a lot of correction from teachers and he can still keep his friends entertained. Do you think this Goodwill Sandwich resolved the issue of John’s talking at inappropriate times? Talk about the fine line between facing an issue respectfully and “dancing around” the problem.

Communicating with Parents Newsletters (bi-monthly/monthly) Phone calls (positive and “not so positive”) Notes Conferences Extra-curricular activities Visiting the neighborhood What else?

De-Escalation Tips Stay cool, calm, and on center Give the other person some space Listen to the other person Set your limits with non-blaming statements Lighten things up Admit your part

Tying it to the dimensions: Icebreaker Sharing research about Teacher-student relationships Ways to get to know your students Study about Parent-Teacher relationships Ways to communicate with parents What else?

In case you didn’t get it the first time… This is the link to the District Peer Mentor website: http://humanresources.brevardschools.org/ProfDev/peermentors/default.aspx

Research-Based Best Practices for teachers