Academic Learning Time A.L.T. 2006 Professional Development Program

1. Academic Learning TimeA.L.T.2006 Professional Development Program Springfield Public Schools Springfield, Massachusetts

2. Logistics • Attendance • Professional Development Points (PDPs) • Payroll • Start & End Time • Location of training information • Expectations of A.L.T. Information

3. Academic Learning Time (A.L.T.) A working definition: Academic Learning Time (ALT) is the amount of time and the quality of education time a student spends attending to relevant academic tasks while performing those tasks with a high rate of success. (Caldwell, Huitt, and Berliner)

4. Academic Learning Time • ALT is that precise period when an instructional activity is perfectly aligned with the student’s readiness and learning occurs.

5. Overview and Goals • To explore Academic Learning Time in relation to our curricular demands • To distinguish between “academic day” and “school day” • To plan to reclaim time for academic instruction • To contrast quantity of time vs. quality time, i.e., evidence of learning.

6. Part I: The Context for A.L.T. is • The Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for your content area “If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up somewhere else.” Yogi Berra

7. ALT and the Curriculum The Curriculum: • Focuses what teachers do. • Connects what teachers do. • Is necessary because all learning is cumulative. The effective teacher knows the grade level and content specific learning outcomes and appropriate instructional strategies and assessments to provide student with the opportunity to learn the knowledge they are expected to acquire.

8. Three elements of curricular quality control in schools: A Written Curriculum that can be translated into the work of teachers in classrooms; A taught curriculum shaped by the written curriculum; and A tested curriculum consisting of the assessment tools of pupil learning which are linked to both taught & written curriculum.

9. Curriculum Alignment The context for ALT is the curriculum framework for your content area.

10. In the School and Classroom • Teaching is the work. • Learning is the result of the work. • Instruction is focused teaching.

11. Part II: The A.L.T. Theory “Effective instruction maximizes the amount of time a student is both focused on learning at an appropriate difficulty level, and experiencing a high level of success. “ALT” is the portion of engaged time during which students are not only actively learning, but are learning successfully.

12. It’s About TIME! Despite our obsession with time, little attention is paid to HOW time is used.

13. School Year = 180 Days

14. School Year = 180 Days Attendance (Time in the seats) This varies with each individual student. Tameka180 Days Jose 140 Days Sue110 Days

15. School Year = 180 Days Attendance School Day Length 5 hours Tameka 180 Days Jose 140 Days Sue 110 Days

16. Constant School Year = 180 Days Little Control Attendance ConstantSchool Day Length Little Control Allocated Time

17. Allocated TIME Allocated time is that which the state, the district, school, or teacher provides the student for instruction. Sometimes it is called scheduled time.

18. ConstantSchool Year = 180 Days Little Control Attendance ConstantSchool Day Length Little Control Allocated Time Allocated Time Instructional Time

19. Instructional Time Instructional time is actual time spent on instruction. Activity: What are the variables that impact instructional time? (Variables are not excuses.)

20. Huitt, Caldwell, Traver & Graeber found that student unengaged student behaviors could be classified as: • management/transition • socializing • discipline • unoccupied/observing, and • out of the room.

21. Management/Transition • Daily, routine classroom activities or “in-between” activities: • Distributing, setting up, or gathering equipment, supplies, materials, etc. • Taking roll • Students standing in line • Waiting for teacher’s help • Listening to nonacademic directions • Waiting for next activity to begin

22. Socializing • Two or more persons are interacting socially: • Whispering nonacademic comment to neighbor • Passing notes • Watching someone else whispering

23. Unoccupied/Observing • Sitting or standing alone, wandering about with no evident purpose or goal, watching other people or unassigned activities, or playing with materials • Staring out the window • Aimless behaviors • Watching another student do a different assignment

24. Out of the Room • Gone to the: Bathroom Nurse Library Principal’s Office Guidance Office

25. Discipline • Adult is reprimanding a student, a student is being punished, or student is watching other student being scolded. • One student is being scolded and other students are listening • Head on desk as punishment

26. Two of the five categories accounted foralmost 90% of the unengaged behaviors: • management/transition • socializing • discipline • unoccupied/observing, and • out of the room.

27. Decreasing Time Off-task Management/Transition Unoccupied/Observing Reference: Caldwell, J., Huitt, W., & French, V. Leader’s guide for student engaged time. Philadelphia: Research for Better Schools, Inc.

28. Part III: Application Since Total Allocated Time (set) = Time On-task + Time Off-task, we can adopt the perspective to focus on decreasing time off-task. “Self-audit” Huitt, W., Caldwell, J., Traver, P. & Graeber A. (1981) Collecting information on student engaged time. 60 min. Allocated 15 min. Instructional Time 15 min. Engaged Time 30 min. Behavior, prep, regroup, intercom, etc.

29. Table Discussion (Optional Activity) • Discuss the necessary reasons, if any, for time off-task during the school day and explain how you would decrease time off-task to increase Academic Learning Time and, thus, student achievement.

30. School Year = 180 Days Attendance School Day Length Allocated Time Allocated Time Instructional Time Engaged Time

31. Engaged Time Engaged time is the time that students appear to be paying attention to materials/presentations that have instructional goals. A synonym for engaged time is “attention.” This implies a mental attitude in which concentration is given voluntarily and steadily by all during the entire instruction.

32. School Year = 180 Days Attendance School Day Length Allocated Time Allocated Time Instructional Time Engaged Time Constant Planning & Checking

33. School Year = 180 Days Attendance School Day Length Allocated Time Allocated Time Instructional Time Engaged Time A.L.T.

34. Recap • You know the context: curriculum. • You know the theory of A.L.T. • You know that you have to effectively use instruction by matching your instruction to your learners, being mindful of their needs. • You know to constantly assess engaged time to increase academic learning.

35. Academic Learning TIME • Academic Learning Time is the only time when students are learning.

36. Definition of ALT • “ALT” is that part of allocated time in any subject-matter area in which a student is engaged successfully in the activities or with the materials to which he/she is exposed and in which those activities and materials are related to educational outcomes.

37. Reclaiming TIME • ALT is a complex concept made up of time on task, success rate, & allocated time; however, it is NOT simply a time-based concept. These are interdependent qualifiers. • Any increase in any one yields a dramatic effect in ALT.

39. Recap You know the context of A.L.T. - Curriculum You know the theory of A.L.T. and which constructs you can and cannot control. You know that you increase Academic Learning Time (A.L.T.) by decreasing interference with those things over which you do have control.

40. Baseball Example • Read Aloud • Discuss at table

41. A High Level of Academic Learning Time • Students are covering important (tested/evaluated) content; • Students are “on-task” most of the class period; and • Students are successful on most of the assignments they complete.

42. Activity • What specific strategies enhance learning? Direction: On the list provided, order the strategies in impact value on Academic Learning Time, beginning with the one that most promotes A.L.T. and ending with the one that least promotes A.L.T.

43. What specific strategies enhance learning? • Tutorial Instruction • Reinforcement • Corrective Feedback • Cues and Explanations • Student Class Participation • Student Time On-task • Improved Reading/ Study Skills • Cooperative Learning • Homework (Graded) • Classroom Morale • Initial Cognitive Prerequisites • Home Environment Intervention • Peer & Cross-age Remedial Tutoring • Homework (Assigned) • Higher Order Questions • New Sci. & Math Curricula • Teacher Expectancy • Peer Group Influence • Advance Organizers • Socioeconomic Status (Not alterable by Teacher)

44. Academic Learning Time • 3 things you have learned • 2 things that surprised you • 1 thing you will include in your training in August 3 2 1

45. Discussion Question • Discuss the difference between focusing on increasing on-task behavior in students and what you have learned about Academic Learning Time. Give specific, original examples, as opposed to generalizations, in your response.

46. How does a teacher’s classroom management plan, or lack thereof, affect Academic Learning Time.

47. The Theory • Research data that informs our practices: Berliner, D. (1991). What’s all the fuss about instructional time? In M. Ben-Peretz & R. Bromme (Eds.), The nature of time in schools: Theoretical concepts, practitioner perceptions. New York: Teachers College Press. Retrieved March 2006, from http://courses.ed.asu.edu/berliner/readings/fuss/fuss.htm Caldwell, J., Huitt, W., & French, V. Leader’s guide for student engaged time. Philadelphia: Research for Better Schools, Inc. English, F. (1995). Developing, aligning, and auditing curriculum. Salt Lake City: The Video Journal of Education. Huitt, W., Caldwell, J., Traver, P., & Graeber, A. (1981). Collecting information on student engaged time. In D. Helms, A. Graeber, J. Caldwell, & W. Huitt (Eds.). Leader’s guide for student engaged time. Philadelphia: Research for Better Schools, Inc. Wang, M., Haertel, G., & Walberg, H. What helps students learn? Educational Leadership, 1993. Retrieved April 2006, from http://www.ascd.org/readingroom/edlead/9312/wang.html