brownsville isd plan for action for english language arts...

Brownsville ISD

Plan of Action for English Language Arts and Reading for 2017-2018

Prepared by the BISD Department of Curriculum and InstructionAugust 2017

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Executive Summary

This document describes the components of the Brownsville ISD Plan of Action for ELA and Reading for 2017-2018 prepared by the BISD Department of Curriculum and Instruction. This plan is designed to be used in conjunction with the BISD PK-12 Literacy Plan developed in 2016-2017 to assist campuses in improving instruction and student achievement, especially in the areas of reading and writing.

The most important resource for any instructional effort in the district is the people

involved with educating our students. With this in mind, the district will support

administrators, teachers and support staff with high quality professional development. The

district is committed to ensuring our district personnel are well versed in effective

research-based strategies which will yield balanced and blended learning.

The Plan of Action for ELA and Reading for campuses has been organized to support

continuous improvement with guidelines for implementation categorized around:

• Instructional Expectations,

• Professional Learning and

• Progress Monitoring

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Executive Summary (continued)

To help support delivery of rigorous and differentiated student-centered instruction, the

Plan of Action for ELA and Reading section for campus administrators has been organized

around the four Texas Teacher Evaluation Systems and Supports (T-TESS) domains of

Planning, Instruction, Learning Environment, Professional Practices and Responsibilities.

Additional resources below are for campuses to use for guiding the creation of plans of

action strategies and working on continuous improvement: • The Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk (2017) at https://www.meadowscenter.org/ including – Implementing 10 Key Practices and Policies for All Schools with strong evidence of effectiveness from high-

quality research – 10 Key Reading Practices for All Middle and High Schools with strong evidence of effectiveness from high-

quality research

• PK-12 Literacy Plan for 2016-2017 linked at the BISD Curriculum website:

• Texas Accountability Intervention System (TAIS) – at www.taisresources.net

• T-TESS Teach for Texas – at www.teachfortexas.org

• Texas Student Learning Objectives – at https://texasslo.org/

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https://www.meadowscenter.org/

http://www.taisresources.net/

http://www.teachfortexas.org/

https://texasslo.org/

RationaleThe preliminary data for the 2017 STAAR reading and writing and the End-of-Course English Language Arts assessments indicate that, although progress has been made, student performance on the grades sixth through eighth and EOC ELA I and II are below state passing rates. Data analysis using preliminary district data also indicates that student performance dropped from 2016 to 2017 for grades four, six, eight and ELA II.

BISD Baseline Data and Goals for ELAR for 2017-2018

Content Area Baseline

2017

Performance

Goals

Elementary Reading (Grades 3-5) 78% 85%

Elementary Writing (Grade 4) 75% 85%

Middle School Reading (Grades 6-8) 70% 75%

Middle School Writing (Grade 7) 69% 80%

High School English I and II 56% 70%

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Baseline data based on BISD Preliminary scores from April and June 2017 district reports

TANGO Trends Data for STAAR/EOC 2015 to 2017

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A review of the available three-year data indicates that BISD trends in performance gains and losses are similar to those experienced state-wide.

Components of Continuous Improvement

TAIS Model 2017-2018 Timeline SBDM identifies or adds Campus

Improvement Plan strategies aligned

to the district Plan of Action for ELAR

August: Dr. K. Wijekumar’s

presentations and other ELAR

professional development

September: Beginning of the Year

(BOY) testing

September: Tier 2 and 3 accelerated

instruction begins

September 30th: Literacy Conference

November / December: District

Benchmarks

January: Middle of the Year (MOY)

testing

February to May: Accelerated small

group instruction continues

March: Countdown Plans

April: State Assessments & SSI

accelerated instruction

May: State Assessments (EOY)

Evaluation

Collect, analyze, and use available assessment data to answer:

To what extent did the interventions effectively address the underlying factors impeding student success and equity?

To what extent did the interventions increase student progress?

What modifications to instruction will be made based on evaluation results?

How do we extend opportunities for rigor if the student is demonstrating academic progress?

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The Texas Accountability Intervention System focuses efforts on the continuous improvement process: Data Analysis, Needs Assessment, Targeted Planning, and Implementation and Monitoring

Sustaining Effective PracticesThe practices to be sustained district-wide include:

Texas Literacy Initiative (TLI)

Each campus will conduct data analysis meetings for beginning of the year (BOY),

middle of the year (MOY) and the end of the year (EOY) data checkpoints.

Teachers will use explicit instruction with Texas Literacy Initiative (TLI) cognitive routines

/ strategies, fluency routines, reading comprehension, and RtI small group instruction.

Instruction will focus on academic vocabulary/ terms to support fluency.

Curriculum Feedback Documents/walkthroughs will continue to be used to monitor the

observation of TLI routines and protocols:

Asking Questions

CPQ

Determining Importance/Summarizing

Making Connections

Creating Mental Images

Making Inferences

Monitoring and Clarifying

Think-Turn-Talk7

Sustaining Effective Practices (continued)

I3 Early College High School Common Instructional Framework (CIF) to be sustained

Strategies will be sustained across all content areas and monitored for effective

implementation and impact on academic progress.

The following CIF strategies will be used to increase rigor and literacy in the classroom:

Classroom Talks

Collaborative Group Work

Writing To Learn

Scaffolding

Questioning

Literacy Groups

The goal is to see the students actively use strategies to activate prior knowledge and

internalize new content.

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Sustaining Effective Practices (continued)

Framework for Accelerated Strategies for Comprehension of Text

Dr. Kay Wijekumar, Professor and Director of the Center for Urban School Partnerships At

Texas A & M University, will continue to support BISD educators regarding the methods

and guidelines for text structure instruction.

She will expand the number of school to whom she provides:

Professional development,

Classroom support materials,

Coaching and

Extended implementation support for the effective teaching of content.

Text Structure Instruction will not only provide scaffolded instruction to improve the

students’ abilities to answer STAAR questions, but will also improve use of text structures

to improve writing.

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Fall 2017 ImplementationInstructional Expectations

ELA/Reading teachers will all follow the ELA/Reading 80-day STAAR plan and this will be part of the teacher’s Student Learning Objectives (SLO) planning process.

Students in all content areas will reply to journal prompts twice a week.

Instructional planning will focus on the TELPAS reading and writing results for the basis for selecting interventions for English language learners (ELL).

Professional Learning

Student Learning Objectives (SLOs) will be developed using multiple sources of data working collaboratively with their grade level/ strand or content area peers.

Monthly ELA/Reading Content Clinics will be held to support implementation of the 80-day STAAR Plan, effective instructional practices (including use of novel and text structures), and data analysis.

Progress Monitoring

2017 State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR) and End-of-Course (EOC) test results will be used for intentional grouping and provide the basis for initial interventions.

Beginning of the year (BOY) Testing for Circle Progress Monitoring (CPM), Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI), Tejas Lee (TJL), Texas Middle School Fluency Assessment (TMSFA), Learning Inventory Of Needs (LION) will occur, and the data will drive instructional adjustments.

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Fall 2017 Implementation (continued)

Instructional Expectations

Teachers will provide one-to-one feedback to Tier II and Tier III students at least weekly to monitor progressand adjust instruction.

Digital literacy will be integrated into all content areas and use computer assisted instruction including Istation, Compass Learning, Empowering Writers, Google Lit Trips, Learning A-Z, NewsELA, PEG Writing, Ellevation In Class, and other district supported software and applications.


Each grade level/strand and/or ELA-related department (including special education), will have representation at all Content Clinics.

All ELA/reading teachers will be required to attend at least one of the district literacy conferences.

Dr. Kay Wijekumar will conduct trainings for middle and high school ELAR teachers and special subpopulation teachers.

Progress Monitoring

Weekly fluency data will document ongoing progress.

Fluency Tracker documents will be analyzed by each campus literacy team to identify appropriate academic supports and will be available for district administrative review.

ELA district frameworks have embedded content check-ups every three- and six-weeks to be used as formative assessments to gauge student progress and adjust for re-teaching as needed.

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All content area teachers will be expected to implement instructional activities that support reading and writing.

Novel reading will be embedded in elementary and middle school frameworks.

Second through eighth grade students will be required to read one novel bi-monthly and complete an instructional activity for each novel.


Appraiser will discuss walkthrough and observation data in post-conferences to better align with SLOs and allow for coaching and mentoring.

Neuhaus will deliver professional development on Language Enrichment (LE), Developing Metacognitive Skills (DMS) and Esperanza for elementary teachers and ELAR middle school teachers.

Progress Monitoring

Administrators will regularly monitor student literacy journals.

Classroom walkthroughs will be entered in EduphoriaAppraise and will be used to monitor the individual and aggregated implementation of effective routines/ literacy strategies.

Campus administrators will monitor implementation of appropriate strategies and routines through lesson plans and walkthroughs.

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Accelerated instruction (tutorials) will have prescriptive plans with research-based instructional materials in all content areas that support improved reading and writing.

Elementary prescribed “extended day” lessons will focus on effective literacy routines and strategies across all content areas.

Special education students will receive additional support through district supplemental reading programs.


Staff development will be focused on literacy, effective routines and strategies to ensure TLI and i3/CIF practices are sustained and continue to meet students’ needs.

Vertical and horizontal alignment meetings will focus on intentional lesson planning using differentiated instruction including all subpopulations and be supported by regional and state consultants.

Progress Monitoring

Ongoing data will be posted in the Data Rooms and used to adjust instructional plans.

Campus administrators will submit fluency tracker summary reports and end of six-weeks content check-up data (from Tango) to the campus district administrator overseeing their campus.

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Spring 2018 Implementation


Each campus will follow an updated 90-day STAAR plan using assessment data for the Spring, and it will be connected to Student Learning Objectives (SLOs).

5th and 8th grade Student Success Initiative (SSI) needs will be addressed through strategic small group accelerated instruction.


Staff development will continue to be focused on literacy, effective routines and strategies to ensure TLI and i3 (CIF) practices are sustained and continue to meet students’ needs.

Campuses grade level/ strand/ content meetings and trainings will be scheduled to include the participation of district curriculum specialists and/or other program area staff.

Progress Monitoring

Intensive reading interventions for RtI Tier II and III students in elementary and middle school will increase fluency by 10 words per minute each marking period and improve reading comprehension skills.

The district’s reading progress monitoring programs (i.e., LION and Mindplay) will be required for all students in Grades 1 and 2 at schools not meeting 80%, as well as for all students identified for RtI Tier II or Tier III, Special Education and/or bilingual services at every campus.

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Spring 2018 Implementation (continued)


Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI), Tejas Lee (TJL) and Texas Middle School Fluency Assessment (TMSFA) MOY and EOY test data will be used for selecting prescriptive interventions.

All students in middle and high school will participate in the Texas Success Initiative (TSI) testing preparation, which will focus on English Language Arts using resources.


Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) will focus on data analysis and prescribing appropriate interventions for all struggling readers and writers across all subpopulations.

Additional supports, such as specialized training and coaching, will be provided to teachers to improve quality and impact of instruction.

Progress Monitoring

Ongoing data should be posted and monitored in the Data Rooms and discussed during Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) sessions.

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Campus administration supports for implementation

Planning

Weekly, campuses will organize and support collaborative grade level teacher meetings to discuss the use of the district reading program, develop action plans for interventions and plan additional professional development based on needsidentified in the CIP.

Instruction

Monitor and support full implementation of the district’s reading instructional program.

Protect the daily reading scheduled instructional time from disruptions for a minimum of 90 minutes for elementary and secondary as scheduled.

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Learning Environment

Promote commitment to the belief that all students can read at grade level, if adequately taught.

Conduct weekly observations to look for actively engaged students in collaborative settings with clear expectations.

Professional Practices

Support professional development for Deans based on campus needs for implementing the BISD reading program.

Hold regular meetings with the dean to discuss/ reflect on classroom observations, assessment data, and plan campus professional development.

Campus administration supports for implementation (continued)

Planning

Verify that the Dean and teachers are maintaining and planning instruction based on appropriate documentation of assessment data.

Ensure that the campus Bilingual /ESL, Title I, and Special education programs support the Plan of Action for English Language Arts and Reading.

Instruction

Allocate additional time for instruction based on TEKS in writing, spelling, and language.

Be involved in and knowledgeable about the instructional delivery of the district reading program and Tier II/III interventions.

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Ensure that supplemental materials, technology programs, or staff development programs are in alignment with the scientific, research-based district reading program and interventions.


Require participation of all teachers, including Dyslexia and Special Education teachers, in training on the use of reading instruments, analysis of data, and effective strategies/ routines.

Campus administration supports for implementation (continued)

Planning

Ensure accelerated instructed (tutorials) have prescriptive plans with research-based instructional materials in all content areas that support improved reading and writing.

Instruction

Accompany the dean to observe teachers implementing key components of the reading program and the implementation of RtI interventions for Tier II and Tier III students.

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Promote a positive behavior “can do” attitude and collaborative learning culture on the campus supporting reading and writing in every classroom.

Promote accelerated instruction as “academic practice” to improve participation.


Require participation of all teachers, including Dyslexia and Special Education teachers in reading instruments training and effective strategies/routines trainings.

Campus Dean supports for implementationPlanning

Help campus faculty and staff to analyze data from screening, diagnostic, progress monitoring and outcome assessments to make adjustments in program implementation and professional development.

Instruction

Assist teachers in planning for instruction and the pacing for that instruction.

Assist teachers in building an interactive classroom environment focused on the delivery of the district’s reading program.

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Meet regularly to review assessment data and to assess outcomes of goals established by grade level teams.

Articulate and oversee the implementation of the 3-Tier Reading/RtI model.


Provide on-site staff development to ensure that teachers, including special education teachers, are knowledgeable about the district’s reading program components, the alignment of the program with TEKS, and appropriate reading instruments.

Campus Dean supports for implementation (continued)

Planning

Guide all PK-12 teachers, including special education teachers, in the use of screening, diagnostic, and progress monitoring assessments.

Assist teachers in using data to identify students for Tier II and Tier III instruction.

Instruction

Demonstrate/ co-teach research-based instructional strategies from the reading program to ensure that all teachers have been trained to an advanced level of delivery and are using the instructional materials as designed.

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Assist teachers in using classroom data to plan classroom instruction.

Establish effective time periods for reading instruction—90 minutes with an additional 30-60 minutes for intervention for elementary and secondary as scheduled.


Attend meetings/ trainings to increase/ update knowledge of the components of a Scientifically Based Research Reading (SBRR) program.

Assist in the presentation of the campus overview to inform the whole staff about Scientifically Based Research Reading.


Planning

Assist PK-12 regular classroom and special population teachers in continuous progress monitoring and reporting student performance during the year.

Assist teachers in assessment and placement of students throughout the year.

Instruction

Demonstrate/ co-teach research-based instructional strategies for Tier II and III interventions.

Observe instruction and provide constructive feedback and “next-steps” support.

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Establish and monitor pacing guidelines for the district’s reading program.

Communicate guidelines for appropriate assessment administration.

Use assessment data to plan professional development.


Participate in collaborative grade level meetings (PLCs) to help analyze and utilize assessment data to improve student achievement.

Based on classroom observations, assist grade level (including Special Education teachers) teams in setting goals for improved instruction.


Planning

Assist teachers in assessment and placement of students throughout the year.

Instruction

Serve as a resource in identifying appropriate instructional strategies to improve student achievement for all students, including English language learners, students enrolled in special education programs, and students with diverse learning needs.

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Demonstrate/ co-teach research-based instructional strategies for ensuring engagement of all students in learning activities, especially for reading and writing.


Provide professional development on the use of reading assessments to guide classroom instruction.

District supports for implementationPlanning

Ensure that all school sites will support regular, collaborative grade level meetings to discuss use of the district reading program.

Instruction

Fully initiate the district’s adopted PK-12 reading programs and RtITier II and Tier III intervention plans by all teachers.

Protect the daily reading instructional time from disruptions for a minimum of 90 minutes at elementary and as scheduled for secondary.

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Promote commitment to the belief that all students can read at grade level if adequately taught.

Develop and conduct an internal evaluation of the effectiveness of the district’s reading program.


Require participation of all teachers (PK-12, Dyslexia, and Special Education) in reading instruments training and effective strategies/routines.

Provide deans with sufficient time for training and supports to increase their knowledge and experience.

District supports for implementation (continued)

Planning

Ensure that the district’s Bilingual education/ESL, Title 1, school improvement, and Special Education programs support the implementation the district’s Plan of Action for English Language Arts and Reading.

Instruction

Ensure allocation of additional time for instruction for TEKS in writing, spelling, and language.

Ensure the 3-tier reading model is fully implemented with 90 minutes of reading instruction and additional 30-60 minutes for Tier II/III interventions.

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Make regular site visits to monitor the level of implementation of the BISD reading programs and continue to support literacy development.


Use and support only those supplemental materials, technology programs, or staff development programs that support the district’s scientific, research-based reading program and interventions.

District supports for implementation (continued)

Planning

Curriculum and programmatic departments will support the development of campus action plans for interventions.

Instruction

Monitor walkthrough reports in EduphoriaAppraise and/or program observation documentation.

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Monitor RtI progress reports for reading and discipline and/or program observation documentation.


Curriculum and programmatic departments willprovide additional professional development based on student assessment data and classroom observations.

Contributors to Plan of Action for ELAR • Bertha A. Pena, Assistant

Superintendent for C&I

• Maria Velarde, ECH Specialist

• Diana Gomez, ELA Specialist

• Melissa Garza, ELA Specialist

• Sandra Garcia, ELA Specialist

• Kathy Allala-Mikula, ELA Specialist

• Martha Delgado, ELA Specialist

• Allicia Saldana, Curriculum Alignment

Specialist

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• Maria V. Gonzales, C&I Administrator

Overseeing Elementary Campuses

• Alma C. Rubio, Administrator for

Bilingual Programs

• Dr. Sandra Rodriguez, Administrator

for Special Services

• Julie Salinas, Administrator for

Dyslexia/ 504/ Title IX

• Dr. Roni Louise Rentfro, District

Coordinator of School Improvement

Reviewed by Area Assistant Superintendents with campus assignments

Appendices for Plan of Action for English Language Arts and Reading for 2017-2018• Campus Letter of Assurance• Building RtI Capacity Monitoring

Document• T-TESS Domains• T-TESS Student Learning Objectives• Sample Six-weeks Fluency Tracker

documents• PK-12 Literacy Plan 2016-2017 and

Overview and links to documents27

Plan of Action for ELAR Letter of Assurance

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The document can be located on BISD Curriculum website and the BISD School Improvement webpage for Improving Literacy.

Campuses will need to include the review of this plan and the PK-12 Literacy Plan for 2016-2017 with the schools first SBDM meeting.

Campuses need to assure that the Campus Improvement Plan includes strategies that support the implementation and monitoring of this plan of action to improve reading and writing for all students.

For additional information contact your Curriculum Specialist for ELA.

Building RtI Capacity Monitoring Document

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The document can be located on BISD Dyslexia website, the BISD Curriculum website and in the RtIhandbook.

School SBDM and/or RtI Committees will monitor the campus implementation of RtI at BOY, MOY, and EOY checkpoints.

Contact Julie Salinas, Administrator for Dyslexia/ 504/ Title IX for additional information at [email protected] or 956-548-8679

mailto:[email protected]

T-TESS Domains

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Visit https://teachfortexas.org for more information

T-TESS Student Learning Objectives (SLOs)

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Student Learning Objectives provide an effective process for improving instructional practices by encouraging thoughtful, deliberate, and evidence-based decisions that should ultimately result in improved student learning.

Visit https://texasSLO.org for more information

BISD Sample of Six Weeks Fluency Tracker

Campus administrators will submit fluency tracker summary reports and end-of-six-weeks content check-up data (from Tango) to the campus district administrator overseeing their campus.

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BISD PK-12 Literacy Plan overview and plan documents for 2016-2017

More specific reading program guidelines are imbedded in the BISD Grading Procedures.Links to the 2016-2017 plan can be found at the BISD School Improvement website: http://bisdschoolimprovement.weebly.com/school-improvement.html on the BISD Improving Literacy page and on the C&I website.

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http://bisdschoolimprovement.weebly.com/school-improvement.html