June 25, 2014
NEW THIS WEEK
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GTN Kicks Off Next Week!
From the Field: New Videos Online Show Home Base, RttT impact
K-3 Formative Assessment Matters - Guidelines for DAP
New Guilford Principal Is PTLA Graduate
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
● District and School Transformation to be Featured in Upcoming RttT
Videos
● K-3 Formative Assessment Matters - 3 Core Considerations
NEW THIS WEEK
GTN Kicks Off Next Week!
Approximately 450 outstanding teachers from across North Carolina will convene in the
Triangle next week to kick off training for the Governor’s Teacher Network (GTN). The
selected teachers will gather for a two-day training on June 30 and July 1.
The GTN, funded by the state’s Race to the Top grant, will provide a statewide platform
for teachers to share their best work around instruction and professional development
and to help advance RttT-funded educational remodeling efforts across the state. Each
participating teacher will be paid a total of $10,000 over the course of their work.
More than 1,500 teachers applied to participate, offering proposals to develop
instructional activities that centered around one of two Pathways, described as follows:
Pathway 1: Professional Development
Teachers will create professional development sessions and materials (face-to-face,
webinars and online modules) to address classroom instructional needs and increase the
PD offerings in the state-wide Professional Development system in Home Base.
Pathway 2: Instructional Resources
Teachers will create instructional sequences for Home Base that are aligned to the NC
Standard Course of study and that consist of unit plans, lesson plans that seamlessly
integrate the formative assessment process in daily practice, at least one benchmark
assessment/quiz and a final classroom summative assessment.
After next week’s training, the teachers will spend spend the next year developing their
instructional and PD activities, which will then be available for sharing with their colleagues
across the state via Home Base.
Visit www.ncpublicschools.org/rttt/gtn for details.
MORE INFO: Theresa Perry, Educator Effectiveness, theresa.perry@dpi.nc.gov
From the Field: New Videos Online Show Home Base, RttT impact
There is great teaching and learning going on all across North Carolina. To help showcase
how local school districts are using Race to the Top (RttT) funding to support school
improvements and elevate instruction, the NCDPI Communications team is compiling a
series of short video clips from the field on new Home Base and READY playlists on the
NC Department of Public Instruction's YouTube Channel
(https://www.youtube.com/user/ncpublicschools).
We invite you to check out what some of your colleagues are up to with Home Base and
RttT:
● Buncombe County Schools - Instructional Coaches Marta Garcia and Millie Stubbs
share how a healthy infusion of Professional Development supported by RttT has
been replicated for 1,800 teachers across their district. View their discussion
here:http://bit.ly/1iHnNfo.
● Greene County Schools - Carrie Ann Miller is a STEM teacher who ignites
excitement among her students interested in careers in science, math and/or
engineering, thanks to RttT support. View her clip here: http://bit.ly/1iHnEsh.
● Brunswick County Schools - First-year social studies teacher Quan Stewart is using
Schoolnet data to more quickly locate resources and then customize his
instructional practices. Hear from him here: http://bit.ly/1oHusxU.
● Brunswick County Schools - Could you build a birdhouse by reading instructional
text at the age of 5? Stephanie Boehmer's kindergarten class can. Boehmer
shows that the new standards foster creativity in the classroom via various
methods. See it athttp://bit.ly/1piNfMa.
More videos will be posted periodically from now through the end of July. We will send
you reminders, but feel free to keep checking the YouTube channel!
MORE INFO: Michael Yarbrough, Communication and Information Services,
michael.yarbrough@dpi.nc.gov
K-3 Formative Assessment Matters - Guidelines for DAP
The Kindergarten Entry Assessment (KEA) and the K-3 Formative Assessment currently in
development will assess the five essential domains of learning. For assessment to be a
seamless process of assessing -- and instructing -- best teaching practices must be
implemented in the classroom. This month we will unpack the National Association for
the Education of Young Children’s Five Guidelines for Effective Teaching of
developmentally appropriate practice (DAP).
Developmentally appropriate practices are critical in promoting optimal learning and
development in children birth through age eight. There are Five Guidelines for Effective
Teaching:
1.
2.
3.
Creating a caring community of learners
· Each member of the community is valued by the others.
· Relationships (with adults and peers) are important.
· The environment is safe and conducive to learning.
Teaching to enhance development and learning
· Teachers learn about each child’s strengths and needs.
· Teachers collect data about children through a variety of means (what children
say, do, make or write).
· Teachers use a variety of learning formats (large group, small group, etc.).
Planning curriculum to achieve important goals
· Teachers have an understanding of what children should know and be able to
·
·
4.
5.
do across domains.
The curriculum includes foundational skills for later learning.
Teachers adapt published curriculum programs for specific students’ learning
needs.
Assessing children’s development and learning
· Assessment is ongoing and intentional.
· Teachers assess what children can do with assistance from peers and adults
as well as individually.
· Labeling is never dependent on a single screening or assessment.
Establishing reciprocal relationships with families
· Families are welcomed into the classroom learning community.
· Two-way communication is a necessary component.
· Teachers need to respect family choices without compromising
developmentally appropriate practices.
DAP in Kindergarten (age 5)?
·
Kindergarteners learn through free play and intentional play. In intentional play
the environment is set up to scaffold learning (e.g., dramatic play center is
set up as a veterinarian’s office).
·
Kindergarteners make huge cognitive shifts. The shifts are across all domains:
more personal responsibility, increased self-direction and deeper logical
thinking.
DAP in the Primary Grades (ages 6-8)?
·
Primary grade children need to make connections. They need to be given
time to strengthen and apply new connections with hands-on experiences.
o Children connect their new learning to their background knowledge.
o Strong emotional connections (e.g., cooperative learning) enhance
learning, problem-solving and other cognitive skills.
· An integrated curriculum appeals to children’s interests and promotes greater
learning.
Additional information on the Five Guidelines for Effective Teaching and DAP may be
found at http://www.naeyc.org/dap/5-guidelines-for-effective-teaching.
MORE INFO: Please visit the K-3 Formative Assessment wiki:
rtt-elc-k3assessment.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/
Join the Office of Early Learning Listserv:
1. Send an email to the Office of Early Learning PreK-Grade 3 Listserv by cutting and
pasting the following address into your "To" box within your email application:
join-office_of_early_learning_pre-k-grade-3@lists.dpi.state.nc.us
2. Leave the subject line and the body of the message blank.
3. Once you have successfully subscribed, you will receive a confirmation email.
New Guilford Principal Is PTLA Graduate
Weaver Walden, a Piedmont Triad Leadership Academy (PTLA) graduate, has been named
principal of Oak Hill Elementary School. Weaver is the fifth principal to be named from the
PTLA since the principal preparation program began in 2011.
Following Weaver's completion of the PTLA, he continued with his course work to earn
his MSA from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He has been serving as an
assistant principal at Ferndale Middle School the past two years.
MORE INFO: Freda Lee, Educator Effectiveness, freda.lee@dpi.nc.gov
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
District and School Transformation to be Featured in Upcoming RttT Videos
“The role of a school transformation coach really varies quite a bit,” said Laurie Carr
recently at Spring Valley Elementary School in Durham. “The primary function is
supporting the school principal and the administrative team and that takes a bunch of
different approaches.”
Those approaches have paid off for Carr and her colleagues. She is a consultant provided
by Race to the Top to work with instructional coaches and teams in Durham Public
Schools. Spring Valley is but one of many schools across the state that were formerly
low-achieving schools. Instructional coaching teams have worked with administrators and
teachers to turn Spring Valley and many others around toward high achievement.
Spring Valley will be featured beginning this summer in a series of videos being produced
by the NCDPI. These informative vignettes will outline the progress of the Race to the
Top initiative, including the components of Home Base. We’ll let you know when they are
available!
K-3 Formative Assessment Matters - 3 Core Considerations
The Kindergarten Entry Assessment (KEA) and the K-3 Formative Assessment currently in
development will assess the five essential domains of learning. For assessment to be a
seamless process of assessing-and-instructing, best teaching practices must be
implemented in the classroom. This month we will unpack the National Association for
the Education of Young Children’s Three Core Considerations of developmentally
appropriate practice (DAP).
Developmentally appropriate practices are critical in promoting optimal learning and
development in children from birth through 8 years old. DAP means teaching children
where they are and helping each child to reach both developmental and learning goals.
NAEYC’s Three Core Considerations of developmentally appropriate practices are:
1. Knowing about child development and learning. Teachers know child
development and age-appropriate milestones, and these are a starting point for
instruction. Teachers know what strategies and approaches will most likely support
children in their development.
2. Knowing what is individually appropriate. Teachers must know each child well.
Teachers observe (formally and informally) and are able to make adjustments to meet a
child’s learning and developmental differences.
3. Knowing what is culturally important. Teachers learn about a child’s social and
cultural context in a variety of ways (talking with family, home visits, etc.) to help
promote meaningful and respectful learning experiences.
The teacher makes decisions based on these core considerations to plan activities,
routines, interactions and data collection. When teachers understand DAP, the methods
used in assessment match the child’s development.
Developmentally appropriate practice aligns with the vision for K-3 Formative
Assessment: formative in nature, embedded in daily instruction, addresses all five
domains, collects data in multiple ways, and guides teaching and learning.
Additional information on the Three Core Considerations and DAP can be found at
www.naeyc.org.
MORE INFO: Please visit our wiki: rtt-elc-k3assessment.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/
RACE TO THE TOP WEEKLY UPDATE INFO
If you know someone who would like to be on this list, please send their email
address(es) to Michael.Yarbrough@dpi.nc.gov.
***LINKS: PC users might need to press the CTRL button when clicking on a
hyperlink in this document.
Archived Race to the Top Weekly Updates are available online at:
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/rttt/reports/weekly