Park Day!

Reviewing Correlates of Effective Schools

I was reviewing the correlates of effective schools, as developed by Lawrence W. Lezotte. And for fun, I came up with an acronym that I am hoping will help me remember the seven correlates of highly effective schools. Here goes it:

I nstructional Leadership
'
M ission that is clear and focused

S tudent monitoring that is frequent
H ome-school relations that are positive
E xpectations that are high
E nvironment that is safe and orderly
T ime on task and opportunities to learn

So, the seven correlates of highly effective schools have been found consistently in, well of course, schools that are considered highly effective.

Instructional leadership: Leaders are found spread among the faculty. Teacher-leaders abound. Principals grow and inspire others to lead. Expertise is not centralized but distributed among the professionals.

Clear and focused mission: the mission of the school must be learning for ALL. It must also focus on the balance between higher-level learning and basic prerequisite skills.

Frequent monitoring of student progress: Assessments for learning will be common place. Assessments will be used to drive instruction. There will be more connection among the written, taught, and tested curriculum.

Positive home to school relationships: Parents and teachers work as true collaborative partners to ensure optimal student learning.

High expectations for ALL: Reteaching and regrouping are pinnacle to achieve this correlate. The cycle of planning a lesson, teaching a lesson, and testing the students is no longer satisfactory. High expectations of student success means that teachers are now sensitive to the individualized needs of each student based on formative and ongoing assessments.

Safe and orderly environment: Children are working together and helping each other learn and grow as students. Teamwork is an evident expectation school wide.

Opportunity to learn and time on task: In this world of high expectations, it is critical for teachers to closely evaluate what instructional practices are essential to students and which ones are unnecessary.


So, next time you wonder what a great school does differently, think "I'M SHEET"!

I have developed an action plan to help me stay focused and grow as a professional and as an educator. The objectives listed in my action plan or specifically designed to help me grow in critical areas. I put the action plan in a central and visible location to remind me to stay focused and constantly goal oriented.

My overall desire is to learn, use, and share things that I have learned to colleagues, parents, and a broader community of educators. The action plan lays out specific ways that will help me achieve this goal.

Here are some clips from our February Conference presentation of "The Kinesthetic Connection: Spicing Up Your Instructional Recipes". We really had fun with this, and we think the audience did too! Enjoy!

"Youre Going to Love This Kid" by Paula Kluth

I have started reading a new book on autism from Paula Kluth, an expert in the field of inclusive practices and autism. I had the opportunity to hear her speak at Inclusion Works last year, and I couldn't resist purchasing her book.

Defining Autism:
I love what she does at the beginning of the book. She uses the definition of autism from an individual with autism...but she does caution, "If you know one person with autism, you know ONE person with autism." (p. 2). She goes on to say that individuals with autism have more differences than similarities.

This makes me think about the several times I have been approached by individuals asking me general or vague questions about how to better manage and teach particular students with autism. The first thing I want to do is get to know THAT particular student. Yes, it is good for me to know that the student has autism. That probably means they struggle in social interactions, have unique physical movements, enjoy routines and structure, and struggle with communication. But, it doesn't tell me their strengths or how they will respond to certain behavioral interventions. My observations and interactions are crucial in establishing proper management and teaching techniques.

A student's label should never outline that student's supports and services. These should be developed and established based on the individual student, regardless of label. The label is just a good place to start.

Autism is a way of existing. It is a way of interacting with and interpreting the world. The person, according to Kluth, cannot be separated from the autism. It is the lens through which those with autism live.

Uh, interesting fact: Apparently, autism is the third most common developmental disability (MR and CP are first and second). AND, it is 4-5x more likely in boys than girls. This is definitely confirmed by my current situation. It affects social interactions, communications, and patterns of behavior.

Well, more to write letter. Happy reading and learning everyone!

David

Natural talent or dedicated improver?

(The individual in this video is Murray Perahia. He has been playing piano since the age of four! That is a lot of practice! He also studied music in college. So, obviously, Mr. Perahia has an undying dedication to his craft! This one glorious moment is backed by countless hours of blood, sweat, and tears that this man has poured into his craft.)

So, yes, there are some folks out there who have some amount of natural talent. They, for some physiological reason, are better at certain things than others.

Say, you gave two kids a football for the very first time and asked each to throw it, catch it, or run with it. One of the kids will more likely be a better thrower, catcher, or runner. Maybe we can call this natural talent.

But, there is more to the story than that. What if the kid who was initially better at football activities had no interest, but the other kid did? Eventually, the other "unnatural talent" would become better than the "natural talent".

The point is simple, the starting point of ability for any activity is not nearly as important has the dedication one has to improving above current baseline in that activity. The starting point is not as important as the amount of time it takes to perfect the art or sport.

I believe it is the 10,000 hour rule. Most professional musicians or athletes have practiced their craft for 10,000 hours. Amazing piano players may start out better than the average person (though they may not), but they also dedicate countless hours to practice and perfection. The efforts to improve are what leads them to these levels of performance. Athletes don't just pick up the ball on game day and start playing. They practice and practice until it's perfect.

But, what we don't see is all that preparation. We only see the amazing performance or that one amazing moment. What we have to remember is this: that one amazing touchdown, catch, or performance is backed by countless hours of practice.


Effort supersedes ability.

Connected

I'm reading a fantastic book titled Connected, by Nicholas A. Christakis and James H. Fowler.

Basically, it's about how we are connected through social networks, digital or otherwise.

Interesting points to consider:

Number one...

The story goes that we have 3 degrees of influence. That is, we can influence our friends, our friends' friends, and our friends' friends' friends. Imagine, you have twenty close contacts (friends and family members). And those twenty contacts have twenty close contacts each, as well. And those twenty close contacts each have twenty close contacts. That is 8,000 people! So, we essentially have influence and are influenced by 8,000 closely connected individuals. We can influence weight gain, happiness, politic views, and much more.

Number two...

To a large degree, the peanut allergy scare in schools is caused by irrational "emotional stampede" spread through social contacts. The authors are not saying that peanut allergies are not a serious concern...but what they are saying is that only 150 people die each year from allergic reactions. Compare this to the 100 that die each year from lightning strikes. Even more alarming is the ten thousand students who are sent to the hospital due to traumatic brain injuries occurring during sport activities. Schools are declaring themselves entirely nut free, but are they declaring themselves entirely sports free? After all, sports injuries seem to be of greater statistical concern than allergic reactions to peanuts. (obviously playing devil's advocate here).

Number three...

A person is 15% more likely to be happy if a "directly connected" person is happy. If a person is connected to a happy person within two degrees that drops to a 10% increase in the likelihood of being happy. It drops to 6% with three degrees of separation. So, if you want to be happy, hang with happy people! Or, at least, hang with people who hang with happy people. Or, at the very least, hang with people who hang with people who hang with happy people!

Number four...

We are likely to be partnered with someone who is within three degrees of separation from ourselves. Oh, and friends are more likely to hook us up with short term partners. Family members are more likely to hook us up with long term ones (maybe duh...)!

Number five...

We respond to others' emotional reactions as if they are our own. Most believe this has biological roots, which makes sense. Think about this: If you see someone in your group open his eyes wide and flair his nostrils- both of which will help with stimulus intake, and are both physical reactions toward feeling "terrified"- then you will innately follow suit. This will help you deal with the possible impending threat. Another interesting fact is that when we are disgusted we tend to squint and narrow our nostrils. This helps us minimize the disgusting stimulus. We also imitate this if we observe it in others to avoid exposure.