Needs assessment & Strategic plan
I conducted a Needs Assessment with my kindergarten team on the literacy instruction needed for students who are performing above grade level, but not showing adequate growth. After reviewing our mid-year common DIBELS and NWEA assessment data it was clear that even though the majority of our kindergarten students were performing at or above grade level they were not meeting expected growth. My goal was to increase knowledge, understanding, and the ability to differentiate literacy instruction to provide learning opportunities that support the growth of student performance who are currently scoring above grade level norms. The needs assessment specifically identified the strategies the staff feels comfortable in using during literacy instruction, as well as identifying opportunities for needed professional development.
To meet our goal I lead vertical grade level team meetings where we discussed how differentiation looks in various grade levels. It is important for teams to discuss how they determine student needs. “Teachers often ‘do their own thing’ with little understanding or even knowledge of what other teachers are doing and how the literacy curriculum, instruction, and materials need to align both horizontally-across classrooms in the same grade, and vertically from one grade to the next.” (Bean & Dagen, 2012, p.148) Understanding the expectations of both grades is a necessary start this process of change. We continued to work towards our goal as we met weekly during grade level Professional Learning Communities (PLCs). Below is the final report on the successful implementation of the Needs Assessment an Strategic Plan I conducted.
To meet our goal I lead vertical grade level team meetings where we discussed how differentiation looks in various grade levels. It is important for teams to discuss how they determine student needs. “Teachers often ‘do their own thing’ with little understanding or even knowledge of what other teachers are doing and how the literacy curriculum, instruction, and materials need to align both horizontally-across classrooms in the same grade, and vertically from one grade to the next.” (Bean & Dagen, 2012, p.148) Understanding the expectations of both grades is a necessary start this process of change. We continued to work towards our goal as we met weekly during grade level Professional Learning Communities (PLCs). Below is the final report on the successful implementation of the Needs Assessment an Strategic Plan I conducted.
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Coaching
In the video below I highlight a peer coaching experience for instructional problem solving. This framework can be used to help teachers identify a specific area to focus on. The first and most important step is to truly understand what the problem is. Reflecting on student performance and what strategies have proven to be effective and not as effective in the past will help when determining step to solving the problem. Educators should constantly reflect on their teaching and participate in coaching experiences to best help meet the diverse needs of the students within their classrooms.