Keystones to Opportunity
Pennsylvania District Comprehensive
Local Literacy Plan (CLLP)
Woodland Hills School District
2430 Greensburg Pike
Pittsburgh, PA 15221
Lead Writers
 Heather Moschetta
 Heidi Balas
 Laura Dentel
 Jack Howell
 Joanne Krett
Date: April 12, 2013
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Keystones to Opportunity
Acknowledgements
The Comprehensive Local Literacy Plan for the Woodland Hills School District is the
product of a team of teachers, administrators, district residents, parents, and early childhood
education center partners. Following the Comprehensive Literacy Plan for Pennsylvania
under the Keystones to Opportunity (Striving Readers) grant, the team recommends the
vision and mission for literacy, literacy goals, and goal action plans set forth in this
document. The Woodland Hills School District Comprehensive Local Literacy Plan was
written to provide guidance to all district-level and building-level administrators, teachers,
instructional coaches, educational specialists, early childhood education centers within the
district, parents, and community partners about their roles in developing an integrated,
aligned, and comprehensive set of literacy experiences for children from birth to grade 12
within our district.
The Literacy Plan team acknowledges the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the grant
funding that makes our efforts possible; the superintendent of the Woodland Hills School
District, Mr. Alan Johnson, the Director of Curriculum for the Woodland Hills School
District, Mr. Norman Catalano; and the Woodland Hills School District board of directors.
Most important in the literacy efforts for the district are the school personnel, who work
tirelessly to increase achievement for every child, and especially the students they serve.
The following individuals contributed time and talent to the development of the
Comprehensive Local Literacy Plan:
Heather Moschetta (Chair)
Heidi Balas (Lead Writer)
Laura Dentel (Lead Writer)
Jack Howell (Lead Writer)
Allison Kline
Joanne Krett (Lead Writer)
Emily Kunkle
Marcia Murello
Rochelle Pristera
Marty Sharp
Roxanne Simon
Katie Twichell
Dina Veltre Miller
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Keystones to Opportunity
Table of Contents
Section I:
Literacy Plan Team Members
………..…..…………….…………….4
Section II
Mission and Vision Statements
………..…..………..…..……………..5
Section III:
Guiding Principles
………...…..…………..…..………….7
Section IV:
Needs Assessment Review
………...…..…………………………13
Section V:
Setting and Prioritizing Goals
………..…...……………..………..…26
Section VI:
Dissemination of Plan
………..…...…………………………39
Section VII:
Assessing and Reporting Progress
………..…...…………………………41
Appendix A: Literacy Needs Assessment
………..…..…………….……………48
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Keystones to Opportunity
Section I: Literacy Plan Team
Membership
Heidi Balas
High School Teacher, Woodland Hills Resident
Laura Dentel
Early Childhood Community Partner (Heritage Services)
Jack Howell
Elementary Teacher
Allison Kline
Elementary Administrator
Joanne Krett
Middle School Literacy Coach
Emily Kunkle
Elementary Teacher, Woodland Hills Resident
Heather Moschetta
High School Literacy Coach
Marcia Murello
Elementary Teacher, Woodland Hills Resident, Parent
Rochelle Pristera
Elementary Teacher, Woodland Hills Resident, Parent
Marty Sharp
Elementary School Technology Coach
Roxanne Simon
Elementary Teacher
Katie Twichell
Elementary Teacher, Woodland Hills Resident, Parent
Dina Veltre Miller
Elementary Teacher
Timeline
The team met twice a month on Wednesdays from 4:00-5:30 pm from October 2012 until
March 2013.
Each month, the team focused on completing one section of the Literacy Plan. The general
outline of sections to complete included:
 October 2012: Sections I & II: Literacy Plan Team Members; Section II: Mission
and Vision Statements
 November 2012: Section III: Guiding Principles
 December 2012: (one meeting): Section IV: Needs Assessment Review
 January 2013: Section IV: Needs Assessment Review
 February 2013: Section V: Setting and Prioritizing Goals
 March 2013: Section VI: Dissemination of Plan; Section VII: Assessing and
Reporting Progress
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Keystones to Opportunity
Section II: Mission and Vision Statements
Woodland Hills School District Vision Statement:
We envision the Woodland Hills School District as a dynamic, adaptable and united
educational community in which you will see:
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Rigorous curricula built upon strong content and performance standards challenging
each student to achieve at high levels.
All students embracing the importance of their own educational experience and
accepting the challenges.
Highly trained and motivated staff focusing on each student’s education and character
development while constantly encouraging each student to set and achieve short and
long-term goals.
Active celebration of the individuality and diverse backgrounds of our community.
A community of learners, that includes students, teachers, administrators, parents and
community members, providing opportunities for students to acquire the knowledge
and skills to be productive and valued citizens of the local and global communities.
Technology integrated throughout the curricula and across all grade levels.
Woodland Hills School District Mission Statement:
The mission of the Woodland Hills School District is to make students its first priority. The
District provides each student with an excellent educational experience that is driven by the
highest expectations and prepares students for meaningful participation in all facets of
society.
Woodland Hills School District achieves its mission by:
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Developing intellectual skills, interpersonal understanding and respect for diversity;
Setting high standards of achievement for every student;
Fostering a challenging, creative, encouraging and safe environment;
Relying on shared responsibility among staff, students, families and communities.
Woodland Hills School District Comprehensive Local Literacy Plan Vision Statement:
The Woodland Hills School District will empower all of its students birth through 12th grade
with the literacy skills to be successful in the dynamic world of the 21st century. It will also
ensure that all of those providing instruction - teachers, parents, guardians, and child care
providers - be well-versed in evidence-based literacy instructional strategies.
Woodland Hills School District Comprehensive Local Literacy Plan Mission Statement:
To help students meet the dynamic literacy demands of post-secondary education and 21st
century professions, the Woodland Hills School District local comprehensive literacy plan
will:
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Create a culture of literacy in our community.
Provide differentiated, targeted professional development in evidence-based
instructional strategies to teachers, parents, guardians, and child care workers.
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Keystones to Opportunity
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Cultivate an environment where literacy is the foundation for student success.
Provide a myriad of educational opportunities that accommodate individual learning
styles in order to improve literacy and develop the necessary skills of an independent
and self-sufficient adult.
Foster a breadth of literacies to develop competent and fluent readers, writers,
speakers, listeners, and media consumers.
Develop a collaborative partnership with students, families, staff, community
members, and outside service providers to promote literacy and to develop and
disseminate effective literacy strategies.
Broaden our students’ world view through literacy.
The Woodland Hills School District Comprehensive Local Literacy Plan mission and vision
were written to align with the school district’s and the Pennsylvania Comprehensive Literacy
Plan’s mission and vision statements. Our Comprehensive Local Literacy Plan vision and
mission reflect the need to increase literacy from birth to grade 12, and to build shared
responsibility among stakeholders. In order to achieve this goal, the literacy plan must
address certain commonalities among the district’s, the PCLP’s, and the Comprehensive
Local Literacy Plan’s vision and mission:
 Preparing students for the future
 Staff professional development
 Technology
 Rigorous differentiated education
 Family and community partnerships
 Integrated educational/literacy experiences
 High performance standards
 Diverse experiences
 Responsibility for student learning shared among schools, families, and the
community
We recognize that literacy is the foundation of all learning. Because the Comprehensive
Local Literacy Plan’s vision and mission are closely aligned with the district’s vision and
mission, the literacy plan’s success in increasing literacy will support the district’s initiatives
set forth in its vision and mission.
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Keystones to Opportunity
Section III: Guiding Principles
1. Literacy is a critical foundation for all learning and serves as a “keystone” for
opportunity and success. The Standards for literacy must promote high level
learning for all students to ensure that they are prepared to meet the challenges
of the 21st century. Because literacy is an important skill in itself and serves as a
tool for learning, it is an essential at all levels (Birth-Grades 12). Moreover, to
enhance literacy learning of students, there must be shared responsibility of
educators, parents and caretakers, and the broader community.
In the Woodland Hills School District, all members of the community agree that literacy
is critical for students’ success. It is considered a tool for learning and thinking across
disciplines.
Our elementary schools have developed and maintained a culture of primacy for literacy
instruction. They hold the 90-minute reading block sacred. Skilled reading specialists
provide intensive and strategic interventions for students in grades K – 3. We have
developed partnerships with early childhood providers to align curricular outcomes to
ensure Kindergarten literacy readiness. The core reading curriculum at this level,
Storytown, is a comprehensive approach to total literacy. There are leveled readers in
every classroom that support comprehension strategies and vocabulary development.
Teachers at the secondary level agree that literacy skills are paramount for learning
content. Currently there is a shift in thinking among secondary teachers regarding shared
responsibility for literacy instruction. Not only are the teachers at this level in agreement
that strong literacy skills will result in stronger mastery of their content, they are learning
strategies to develop those skills. The core textbook series at the secondary level,
Glencoe, focuses on task-based literacy strategies that can be implemented across the
curriculum. Selections include more informational text than has been used in previous
curricula. With the introduction of new instructional strategies, such as literature circles,
teachers have begun to offer students more choices regarding their reading material.
Teachers are utilizing a multitude of resources to supplement core texts, including webbased resources from PDE, in order to provide students with increasingly challenging
texts as well as performance tasks. Lessons are differentiated to challenge students at all
levels. Additionally, teams of teachers are working in professional learning communities
to investigate and implement new, research-based literacy strategies.
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Keystones to Opportunity
2. Student learning, motivation, and access to educational opportunities are
increased when linguistic, cultural, and personal experiences are valued,
understood, represented in the curriculum and classroom practice, and used to
help students make connections between what they know and what they are
learning. Multiple perspectives and experiences provide opportunities for
students to learn about their own as well as the culture of others.
Prior knowledge and linguistic background in the cultural and personal experiences of
Woodland Hills School District families are recognized, understood, and represented in the
literacy program. Part of the district’s literacy plan is to identify and recognize these
linguistic differences. All students entering kindergarten are screened for speech and
language. The district intends to expand this screening to all incoming students in the
primary grade levels.
The district recognizes that there is a basic foundation for literacy development, regardless of
cultural differences, which must be addressed through educating parents of infants and
toddlers. Children’s literacy skills can be greatly enhanced by talking and reading with their
parents. Prior to entering school, children should gain an awareness of verbal and auditory
literacy, know their alphabet, and have a substantial vocabulary. Through partnerships with
childcare providers, early learning centers, and social service providers, as well as parent
information given at registration, orientation, and on the district’s website, we plan to offer
resources for building literacy skills students need to enter kindergarten.
Once students are in our schools, we provide numerous opportunities for students to connect
to linguistic, cultural, and personal experiences, including:
 ELL program
 Cultural fairs
 Projects at each building and statutory level
 Ethnic diversity in reading curriculum (characters, cultural themes)
 High school elective courses
Similar to mainstreaming special needs students, students of all cultural backgrounds are
included in the general population and all activities. Accommodations for overcoming
language barriers include translators for parent meetings and assessments in other languages,
as necessary.
In order to prepare our students for global awareness, we teach our students about the
appropriate language for school and for home, and while respecting their home language we
teach them the skills to switch successfully among environments. Students need awareness of
cultural customs and norms different from their own in order to be prepared to work in a
global society. We will increase their global awareness through:
 Multiple perspectives and experiences exposure through the curriculum and
extracurricular activities/events
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Keystones to Opportunity
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
Authentic student research projects and performance tasks, including group projects
Engaging diverse family and community resources for school events and to
complement the curriculum
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Keystones to Opportunity
3. There must be high expectations for all learners and a belief that all are capable
of gaining literacy skills that enable them to be successful as adults. Instruction
must address the full range of learners, must be differentiated to meet each
child’s needs, and requires a well-integrated system connecting general,
compensatory, gifted, and special education.
High expectations are one influential element that can contribute to high levels of literacy for
all children, from birth through grade 12. In order to achieve the desired levels of literacy, the
Woodland Hills community must capitalize on its current best practices. For instance, certain
constituents believe that all children can learn; as a result, those constituents embrace the
programs and pedagogy to support this notion. Yet, it is of paramount importance that the
Woodland Hills community develops and sustains a shared belief that all students have the
ability and capacity to meet and surpass expectations:
 The Woodland Hills community’s expectations for its children
 The students’ expectations for themselves
 The Woodland Hills School District staff’s expectations for their students and their
community
This development and sustainability is contingent on several factors:
 Supportive and positive relationships between all constituents
 Highly qualified teachers who are adept at providing differentiated and engaging
literacy instruction, recognizing individual literacy needs, and intervening with
appropriate supports
 Ongoing professional development for all constituents
 An aligned and congruent curriculum
 Duly tiered, cohesive, and coordinated specialized support programs (general,
compensatory, gifted, special education, etc.) from birth through grade 12
 Using technology to collaborate with students and classes around the world
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Keystones to Opportunity
4. Evidence-based decision-making must be at the heart of all instructional
decisions related to literacy development.
Instructional decisions are made using summative, formative, benchmark, and diagnostic
assessments. Teachers collect data to determine instructional needs for class and small
group instruction. Currently, a data liaison is available to instruct teachers in basic dataliteracy skills. The liaison gave instruction in the use of EdInsight data tools for decisionmaking purposes. Data includes DIBELs Next (K-3), GRADE (PK-12), CDT (from PDE 712), ITERS (infant and toddler age), ECERS (early childhood level), Keystone exams,
curriculum based assessments, and PSSAs. Teachers have developed both informal and
formal assessments for classroom use.
Teachers must continually collect analyze, and make instructional decisions based on data
collected. Dedicated time for teachers to analyze data and match evidence-based strategies to
instructional should be a priority. Teachers should have dedicated time at regular intervals
for evidence-based instructional decision-making. This can include staff meeting time,
professional development time, and assigned duty periods.
Each school has at least one instructional coach who can assist in determining the greatest
areas of need, finding and modeling research-based strategies, and determining effectiveness.
There are also technology coaches available to assist in the use of technology as a tool for
assessment, data analysis, and instructional delivery.
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Keystones to Opportunity
5. Educators must be prepared to teach effectively in the schools of the 21st
century and be provided with continuing professional development support that
enables them to be lifelong learners.
The Woodland Hills School District has always afforded its staff ample professional
development opportunities, but has adhered to the one-size-fits-all model of delivery.
Although based generally on broad and general assessment data, most professional
development sessions were offered to all classroom professionals despite correlating
relevance or need.
With the guidance and financial assistance provided by the Keystones to Opportunity Grant,
the Woodland Hills School District has begun to dramatically alter its overarching
philosophy and approach to professional development. Some of the most important current
and future shifts are:

An extended two-year mentoring program for all novice teachers with mentor
teachers of different experience levels. Special attention and time will be devoted to
effective literacy instruction.

Devoted focused sessions for all affected teachers on the HEAT and LoTi observation
models and philosophies.
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Ongoing job embedded professional development will be provided to all teachers
PreK-12.

Professional development will be differentiated and based on a bank of student and
anecdotal data sources.
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Woodland Hills will take advantage of technologically assisted delivery and distance
learning strategies when providing access to professional development concepts.
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Professional collaborations with community partners including early childhood
development centers will be fostered and encouraged.

Organic professional learning communities will become valuable assets across
disciplines and grade levels in all buildings in order to encourage teachers to become
lifelong learners.

The District’s professional development plan will be implemented with fidelity and
reviewed annually by teachers, parents, and administrators, so that it can be adjusted
according to teacher and student need.
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Keystones to Opportunity
Section IV: Needs Assessment Review
Standards and Curriculum
Factual Statements:
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The district has a standards-based curriculum in place but has not yet transitioned to
the Common Core.
Elementary buildings have a published series (Storytown), but the curriculum has not
been updated to reflect the Common Core.
High school curriculum maps are updated yearly and are in the initial stages of
Common Core transition.
Elementary has some curriculum maps in place, but they are not updated regularly.
Elementary does not have an evidence-based tier three intervention program to
address the needs of students who are not responding to the regular education
curriculum and interventions.
One ELC partner’s preschool program uses the Harcourt series for literacy and
creative curriculum. Their birth to age two uses creative curriculum.
Conclusion:
Although published series have been purchased for all statutory categories, formal curricula
need to be aligned and transitioned to the Pennsylvania Common Core and reflect the needs
of our diverse student population. Although Storytown at the elementary level is not a
curriculum, in recent years it has served as a scope and sequence to drive classroom
instruction. It has aided in moving a majority of our population to grade-level reading
performance as measured by the DIBELS-Next. The district needs to take steps to write and
revise literacy curricula from birth to grade 12 aligned to the Common Core, with special
attention paid to vertical alignment to assure mastery.
The remnants of a tertiary program exist to varying degrees throughout the district; however,
an evidence-based program needs to be implemented.
To accomplish our literacy mission/vision, a coordinated effort between the district and its
ELC partners should focus on ensuring that an evidence-based curriculum is implemented
with fidelity and consistency. We will develop a curriculum map to align our curriculum with
the Common Core standards from birth to grade 12.
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Keystones to Opportunity
Standards &
Curriculum
Birth – 5yrs.
K-5th grade
6th – 8th grade
9th – 12th grade
In Place
Not in Place
KtO Content
Area Modules
that would assist
Other
Professional
Development
/Resources that
would assist
X
X
X
X
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Keystones to Opportunity
Assessment
Factual Statements:
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Teachers can access data from EdInsight (i.e. DIBELS, PSSA, GRADE, etc.).
Teachers need professional development on how to use data to make instructional
decisions.
Teachers can interpret findings for each student, but need time to make instructional
decisions and plan for data-driven instruction.
Schools who serve children from birth to age 5 use work sampling and ageappropriate benchmarks as assessment tools. There is not an assessment specifically
for literacy.
Many teachers in schools that serve children from birth to age 5 do not meet about
findings or use the assessment tools to create activities for learning.
Conclusion:
The district does utilize formative (DIBELS-Next and GRADE), diagnostic (CDT), and
summative (PSSA, Keystone, PVAAS) assessments. However, the 4Sight Benchmarks are
no longer used and there are no assessment tools for literacy for the birth to age five group.
The teachers do have access to the data, which is to be utilized to plan whole class and
individual instruction. Time for data analysis and planning instruction varies widely from
school to school.
There should be consistent specific times set at each building for data analysis and planning
for grade level instruction and for individual students’ needs. The LADL needs to be better
utilized by school administrators for training the teachers on accessing and analyzing the
assessment data, and instructional coaches need to be included consistently on the planning
meetings. The district needs to team with the community ELC providers to provide training
on the use of assessment in their instruction. Data should be utilized to plan and differentiate
professional development for teachers.
In conclusion, the assessment tools are available, the data is available, and the expertise is
available. What is needed in this area is consistency across all buildings and time to
incorporate the assessments and data in instructional planning.
Assessment
Birth – 5yrs.
K-5th grade
6th – 8th grade
9th – 12th grade
In Place
Not in Place
KtO Content
Area Modules
that would assist
Professional
Development
that would assist
X
X
X
X
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Keystones to Opportunity
Instruction
Factual Statements:
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K-5 has guided reading groups addressing student needs as below, on level or above
level.
Strategic Intervention is scheduled for 30 minutes daily at the elementary level.
90 minute reading block is in place at the elementary level.
Connections to literacy are offered in preschool levels; however, it is the child’s
choice to engage in the materials. Teachers can suggest activities and ways to use the
materials.
The secondary buildings need to establish a culture of literacy across the curriculum.
Currently, many teachers see themselves only as content area experts and do not
recognize their role in increasing literacy skills.
The junior high has a reading enrichment course for Tier II literacy interventions and
a more intensive program (Language! and Wilson Reading) for Tier III interventions.
The high school has reading and writing workshop courses for Tier II interventions.
Special needs students who are reading well below grade level are in the Language!
program in pull-out special education English/Reading classes.
Not all teachers or administrators have an adequate understanding of the essential
elements of literacy.
Conclusion:
Literacy instruction is in place in all buildings and all levels. However, the amount of time
devoted to literacy instruction varies. The birth to five years and K-5 levels have a reading
block and the majority of the day devoted to literacy. In addition, these teachers have access
to a language arts series devoted to meeting students below, on, and above grade. All leveled
materials align with the skill being taught with an emphasis on small group instruction. In
grades 6-12, the literacy culture is weak in that many teachers focus on content only and do
not incorporate literacy instruction. Students at the secondary level do have the opportunity
for support classes if they are identified as a Tier II candidate. In the junior high, they are
placed in support courses if they do not score an advanced on the PSSA. Nearly 80% of the
junior high student population is in these remedial classes, but not all sections are taught by
language arts instructors. High school students identified as reading below grade level take
workshop classes. Beginning in the 2013-14 school year, GRADE data will determine
student placement into high school workshop classes.
To accomplish our mission/vision in literacy, staff development needs to emphasize reading
instruction. All teachers need to learn reading strategies, which in turn help students in each
content area. Reading Specialists are needed to increase literacy at all levels.
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Keystones to Opportunity
Instruction
In Place
Not in Place
Birth – 5yrs.
K-5th grade
6th – 8th grade
9th – 12th grade
X
X
X
X
KtO Content
Area Modules
that would
assist
Professional
Development
that would
assist
UDL, Building
Blocks
Evidence-based
instructional
approaches from
experts
UDL, Transitions,
Special Needs,
Family
Engagement,
ELLs, Data
Data, UDL
Data, UDL,
Reading
Apprenticeship
Content literacy
Content literacy,
cooperative
learning
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Keystones to Opportunity
Professional Learning and Practice
Factual Statements:
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A majority of the staff has not been trained in all the KtO modules offered by the
AIU.
Currently, professional development is delivered in a “one size fits all” model with
little differentiation or consistency among buildings.
Staff members have identified a lack of relevance to some professional development.
At all levels, there are multiple professional development initiatives every year but
few are sustained.
The coaching model to support teachers as they implement new initiatives varies from
building to building.
Although the structure for a job-embedded professional development model is in
place, little time is devoted to collaboration and planning for implementation of
initiatives.
Building administrators and most faculty members have not been given adequate
training in current literacy research.
PLCs are in beginning stages, but they operate differently in each building.
Conclusion:
Professional development needs to be strengthened and differentiated in all statutory areas,
from birth to grade 12. There is a need for more coordination of professional development as
it relates to best-practice literacy strategies. The KtO modules, which were intended to create
a district-wide understanding of literacy instruction, need to be offered again in the second
year so that more staff members get basic level training. An invitation should be extended to
community ELC partners to attend KtO trainings. Our professional development days need to
accommodate and prioritize literacy. All secondary faculty members should participate in
the Penn Literacy Network training about adolescent literacy. There should be a concerted
effort to find a comparable program for all elementary teachers in the district; teachers in our
ELC partner programs should be invited to this training as well. New employees of the
district should be sent to a one-week “boot camp” as part of their orientation program in the
summer to be trained in these literacy initiatives. Additionally, the mentoring program for
new teachers should be extended to two years, with emphasis on literacy instruction. Once a
clear plan is in place for literacy instruction in Woodland Hills, teachers must be given time
to collaborate with colleagues and instructional coaches to fully develop competent
implementation of these practices.
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Keystones to Opportunity
Professional
Learning and
Practice
In Place
Not in Place
Birth – 5yrs.
K-5th grade
6th – 8th grade
X
X
X
9th – 12th grade
X
KtO Content
Area Modules
that would
assist
Professional
Development
that would
assist
Data
UDL, Special
Needs, LDC
Reading
Apprenticeship,
LDC
Long-range vision
for PD
Long-range vision
for PD
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Keystones to Opportunity
Literacy Leadership, Goals, and Sustainability
Factual Statements:
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Districtwide, schools lack specific literacy goals, and there are no consistent goals
across buildings.
Coaches in nearly every statutory area assist in literacy leadership throughout the
district:
o Literacy coaches are not available in the birth to age five setting.
o Each elementary school has a coach who is responsible for reading and also
math, beginning in the 2012-13 school year.
o The junior high has a math and a literacy coach. This practice has been in
place since 2010.
o Under the Keystones to Opportunity grant, the high school has two literacy
coaches.
Literacy coaches attend monthly professional development training and meetings
through the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, but PaTTAN resources are underutilized
across the district.
In all Woodland Hills School District buildings, data-driven instruction is
inconsistently implemented.
Significant turnover of junior high and high school administrators has led to a lack of
sustainability of any initiatives. It has only been in the past three years that there has
been any consistency in building principals.
One of the WHSD superintendent’s goals is to empower and equip principals to be
instructional leaders.
Parent and community involvement in literacy achievement, goals, and initiatives is
lacking.
Conclusion:
Literacy coaches, reading specialists, and teacher-leaders direct much of the literacy effort
throughout the school district and in the early childhood centers. Instructional leadership in
literacy depends on each building administrator’s expertise, and the early literacy knowledge
and background varies from one elementary building administrator to the next. To improve
literacy leadership, professional development in specific literacy strategies for each statutory
area is needed, and administrators as well as teachers should attend the sessions. Professional
development for early elementary educators should include teachers from our community’s
ELC partners to align literacy instruction as students transition into kindergarten. Such
district-wide professional development will begin to create a culture of literacy across the
district in alignment with our mission and vision. Currently, we utilize the Allegheny
Intermediate Unit’s literacy expert and coach mentor for professional development a few
times a year. A percentage of staff members are being trained in the Keystones to
Opportunity professional development modules, but the training needs to be disseminated to
all staff members. Administrators should attend the sessions and follow through with staff to
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Keystones to Opportunity
ensure that the professional development initiatives are sustained. We should make better use
of PaTTAN and other AIU professional development offerings as well.
Literacy,
Leadership,
Goals, and
Sustainability
Birth – 5yrs.
In Place
Not in Place
KtO Content
Area Modules
that would
assist
Professional
Development
that would
assist
X
Transitions,
Building Blocks
How to
coordinate goals,
assessment, &
instruction
K-5th grade
6th – 8th grade
X
X
9th – 12th grade
X
Transitions
Transitions,
Family
Engagement,
Reading
Apprenticeship
Transitions,
Family
Engagement,
Reading
Apprenticeship
PLN, IU,
PaTTAN
trainings for all
teachers
PLN, IU,
PaTTAN
trainings for all
teachers
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Keystones to Opportunity
Transition
Factual Statements:
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There is no transition process in place when students move to our district from other
school districts. The district experiences difficulty in getting records from other
schools in a timely manner.
Although some of our buildings have high transiency rates, with students transferring
from one school to another within the district, there is no transition process across
elementary buildings.
There is not a consistent communication process between ELC partners and
kindergarten teachers before pre-k students graduate.
Some ELC providers do not have formal transition meetings within their centers
when children move from one room to the next (infant room to the one-year-old
room, etc.)
There is no formal transition plan from elementary school to junior high.
From the junior high to the high school, there is a “transition day” where 8th grade
students from our junior high school and some local private schools tour the building
and learn about the high school curriculum, code of conduct, graduation
requirements, and student activities.
Curricula are not vertically aligned from the elementary to junior high to the high
school.
For the past two years, secondary teachers have participated in combined 7-12
professional development for an attempt at aiding in transitions.
Secondary coaches are working on student learning profiles to be updated yearly and
travel with students from one building/grade to the next, posted in Edinsight. It is
planned to be implemented in 2013-14.
Conclusion:
Undoubtedly, WHSD has work to do regarding transitions from birth through high school
graduation. While individual buildings may have timely, well-kept records documenting
retentions, graduation rates, and other measures that influence student success, the Woodland
Hills School District does not have a uniformly consistent information-sharing system or a
consistent procedure to utilize such records. However, the district has an accessible recordkeeping system in place that would aid in the monitoring and improvement of the transition
process: EdInsight. Currently, individual teachers have access to their students’ records, and
administrators have access to all students’ records. There is a critical need for individual
teachers to access their future students’ files to aid in planning and preparing for transitions.
In addition, records from partnering early childhood programs should be uniform and shared
(within FERPA regulations). Vertically aligned curricula, especially across the transition
years (preschool to kindergarten, sixth grade to seventh grade, and eighth grade to ninth) are
necessary to smooth academic transitions as well.
To date, the Woodland HIlls School District does not provide professional development to
22
Keystones to Opportunity
help staff ensure successful transitions for students. To help reach our literacy goals, the
district must address this immediate need with professional development for all staff
regarding transitions. The KtO process is the starting point, but sustainability must be the
main focus.
Transition
In Place
Not in Place
KtO Content
Area Modules
that would
assist
Professional
Development
that would
assist
Creating
portfolios
Birth – 5yrs.
X
Transitions
K-5th grade
6th – 8th grade
X
X
Transitions
Transitions
9th – 12th grade
X
Transitions
Common
planning time,
elementarymiddle school
shared PD,
vertical alignment
of curriculum
Common
planning time,
middle-high
school shared PD,
vertical alignment
of curriculum
23
Keystones to Opportunity
Partnerships






A PTO is in each elementary building but consists of a very small group of involved
parents. Edgewood Elementary initiated a parent involvement program this school
year. PIES (Parents Involved in Educational Success) has monthly meetings (at the
school and in the community) with a focus on academic success. Some of the topics
included communicating with the teacher, celebrating academic success, and
technology.
Many parents report being unable to attend school activities because they do not live
in close proximity to the school and lack transportation.
Many of the ELC providers do not have parent committees, but they involve parents
in activities their child has participated in for the day and also some learning
experiences they can try at home.
In one of the district’s ELC partner schools, students have taken a field trip to the
library. The library will bring their programs to the 4Kids Learning Center on a biweekly basis.
At the secondary level, the junior high has a PTO, but the high school does not.
There is strong parent/community support for extracurricular activities, but less for
academics.
Conclusion:
It is evident that there is a great need to improve partnerships between community members
and our schools. There is also a need to increase parental involvement in our schools. With
the exception of WHHS, individual buildings have parental support through PTOs, but they
often contain a small group of involved parents. In one of our buildings, Edgewood, two staff
members took the initiative to start the PIES (Parents Involved in Educational Success)
Program. More programs like this should be extended to other buildings. At the high school
level, there is great parental and community support for extracurricular activities, but
academic support is lacking. There are also isolated activities that involve the community,
but the district lacks a wholesale community partnership effort. Since the Woodland Hills
School District supports the Swissvale Library financially, this would be a great place to
start.
In order to accomplish our mission/vision in literacy, the partnerships must be better
developed. The schools need to offer more enticing opportunities for the parents to become
partners in their child’s learning. If the partnerships are better developed in the early stages,
they will continue to grow in the future school years. We feel having an outreach
coordinator to encourage community involvement within the schools would be beneficial.
24
Keystones to Opportunity
Partnerships
In Place
Not in Place
KtO Content
Area Modules
that would
assist
Professional
Development
that would
assist
PD partnerships
with elementary
schools
Birth – 5yrs.
X
Family
Engagement
K-5th grade
X
6th – 8th grade
X
Family
Engagement, ELL
Family
Engagement, ELL
9th – 12th grade
X
Family
Engagement, ELL
Schoolcommunity
relations
workshops,
partnerships with
local libraries for
PD
Schoolcommunity
relations
workshops,
partnerships with
local libraries for
PD
25
Keystones to Opportunity
Section V: Setting and Prioritizing Goals
Goal Setting
Title of Section
Goal
Standards and The Woodland Hills School District
will transition all content area
Curriculum
curricula, from birth to grade 12, to
the Common Core and Pennsylvania
Early Learning Standards.
Assessment
Instruction
Professional
Learning and
Practice
Literacy
Leadership,
Goals, and
Sustainability
Transitions
Partnerships
The Woodland Hills School District
will increase the use of data-driven
instruction in all classrooms from
birth to grade 12 through data
meetings and training.
The Woodland Hills School District
will increase literacy instruction in
all content areas from birth to grade
12 through evidence-based
professional development.
The Woodland Hills School District
will implement professional
development based on best practices
in literacy instruction for all
teachers and administrators from
birth to grade 12.
The Woodland Hills School District
will implement sustainable literacy
initiatives district-wide, from birth
to grade 12.
The Woodland Hills School District
will develop and put in place a
transition plan to address the
developmentally appropriate
academic needs of all students from
birth to grade 12.
The Woodland Hills School District
will increase parental and
community involvement in all
schools, from birth to grade 12.
Rationale
With the transition at the state level to the
Common Core, it is necessary for our
current standards-based curricula to be
updated, and it is necessary for the ELC
partners to align to PA Early Learning
Standards in order to increase our students’
achievement from birth through grade 12.
Although we have access to plentiful data,
many teachers still lack training and
expertise on using data to make
instructional decisions.
Many teachers do not understand their role
and/or best practices in literacy instruction.
Professional development in evidencebased literacy instructional techniques is
needed to increase student literacy.
Professional development in literacy is
necessary for both teachers and
administrators. Administrators’ literacy
expertise varies among buildings, and
literacy PD will allow both teachers and
building principals to implement effective
literacy practices from birth through grade
12.
Too many initiatives are introduced but not
sustained, but literacy initiatives need to
become the focus of all academic decisions.
Literacy is the foundation of all content, so
sustainable initiatives are necessary.
A transition plan is necessary because our
achievement levels decrease during the
transition years (grades 7 and 9), and we
have a transient population. A plan to
address transitions across buildings and
grade levels will increase student success.
Parental and community partnerships with
public schools have been shown to
positively impact student achievement. We
currently have low parental involvement
and very few community partners.
26
Keystones to Opportunity
Prioritizing Goals
The goal priorities for the Woodland Hills School District align with our Needs Assessment
priority areas. When we wrote the Keystones to Opportunity grant, we prioritized goals that
would build upon and maximize our current efforts to advance student achievement. We also
considered greatest areas of need based on the Needs Assessment. Since we have prioritized
goals based on current need and efforts, the Keystones to Opportunity resources (training
modules), will maximize our ability to reach these goals and increase student achievement in
literacy. Although the area of Transition was a lower priority on the original Needs
Assessment, we have moved the Transition goal higher on our list because the
Superintendent’s plan to reorganize the district aims to address our decreased student
achievement during the transition years (grades 7 and 9), making it an actionable goal for the
2013-14 school year. Additional goals that are actionable at this time include those for
Professional Learning and Practice, Instruction, Assessment, and Standards and Curriculum.
In order of priority, the following are the goals of the Woodland Hills School District:
1. Professional Learning and Practice: The Woodland Hills School District will
implement professional development based on best practices in literacy instruction
for all teachers and administrators from birth to grade 12. (Prerequisite for goals 5
and 6)
2. Literacy Leadership, Goals, and Sustainability: The Woodland Hills School District
will implement sustainable literacy initiatives district-wide, from birth to grade 12.
(All goals build sustainability)
3. Transition: The Woodland Hills School District will develop and put in place a
transition plan to address the developmentally appropriate academic needs of all
students from birth to grade 12. (Prerequisite for goal 4)
4. Standards and Curriculum: The Woodland Hills School District will transition all
content area curricula, from birth to grade 12, to the Common Core and Pennsylvania
Early Learning Standards. (Builds on goal 3)
5. Assessment: The Woodland Hills School District will increase the use of data-driven
instruction in all classrooms from birth to grade 12 through data meetings and
training. (Builds on goal 1; prerequisite for goal 6)
6. Instruction: The Woodland Hills School District will increase literacy instruction in
all content areas from birth to grade 12 through evidence-based professional
development. (Builds on goals 1 and 5)
7. Partnerships: The Woodland Hills School District will increase parental and
community involvement in all schools, from birth to grade 12.
27
Keystones to Opportunity
Goal Action Map
Goal Statement: The Woodland Hills School District will implement professional development based on best practices in literacy
instruction for all teachers and administrators from birth to grade 12.
››Action Step
Time Line
Lead Person/s
Resources
Needed
Action Step 1
Action Step 2
Action Step 3
Define and/or identify effective
evidence-based instructional literacy
strategies to be included in a
professional development plan and
calendar.
Present to August 2013.
Disseminate literacy-specific
evidence-based instructional
strategies through a consistent
implementation of professional
development and the coaching cycle.
August 2013-June 2015.
Monitor the rate of implementation of
research-based best practices in
literacy in all content areas through
the use of observations and walk
through tools.
Ongoing following each professional
development session.
Superintendent, instructional
coaches, reading specialists,
Curriculum Director.
Instructional coaches, teacherleaders, literacy experts, recent
professional journals, web sites,
International Reading Association
literature and reports, current issues
of The Reading Teacher.
Curriculum Director, instructional
coaches, teacher leaders, building
administrators.
PD resources from AIU, KtO training
module resources, PaTTAN, Penn
Literacy Network and/or contracted
consultants.
Teachers, instructional coaches,
building administrators.
Instructional coaches, literacy
resources and lesson plans, digital
repository or professional library of
relevant materials, HEAT, ITERS,
ECERS, as well as locally developed
observation tools deployed on
portable devices. Audio/video
recording equipment.
28
Keystones to Opportunity
Specifics of
information
Identify areas of need. Seek out
relevant professional development in
reading and writing, in-house
expertise, literacy experts.
Disseminate KtO training module
information to all staff.
Measure of
Success
A professional develop plan and
calendar that reflects the most
current evidence-based instructional
literacy strategies.
Emphasize professional development
that leads to better literacy practices
in every content area from birth to
grade 12. In-house experts,
instructional coaches, and outside
experts will develop and deliver
engaging, relevant, and
implementable professional
development. Accountable time will
be given for teachers to plan their
lessons around the professional
development. A full implementation
of the coaching cycle will facilitate
job-embedded professional
development.
Teacher Act 48 evaluation surveys.
Lesson plans will reflect
implementation of strategies.
Teachers will plan their lessons from
best-practices delivered in PD
modules. With the support of
instructional coaches, teachers will
implement those lessons. Building
administrators will evaluate
effectiveness of implementation and
LADL will measure impact on student
achievement data.
Systemic implementation as evidenced
by teacher portfolios and the PDE
Teacher Effectiveness System
(PVAAS data and school profile
score), evidence of working with
coaches, coaching logs, observation
documentation, video demonstrations
for flipped professional development,
data meeting documentation,
anecdotal information.
Review Date
29
Keystones to Opportunity
Goal Action Map
Goal Statement: The Woodland Hills School District will implement sustainable literacy initiatives district-wide, from birth to grade
12.
Action Step 1
Action Step 2
Action Step 3
››Action Step
Literacy PD for administrators.
Long-term implementation of
Common Core aligned curricula.
Time Line
2013-2014 school year.
Relevant PD for content area teachers
to create a sustained culture of
literacy across the district.
August 2013-June 2015.
Lead Person/s
Superintendent and Curriculum
Director.
Resources
Needed
Specifics of
information
Curriculum Director, instructional
coaches, teacher leaders, building
administrators.
PD resources from AIU, KtO
PD resources from AIU, KtO training
training module resources, PaTTAN, module resources, PaTTAN, Penn
Penn Literacy Network.
Literacy Network.
Because literacy expertise and
experience varies from one
administrator to the next, all
administrators will receive
professional development in
research-based best practices in
literacy.
Ongoing from August 2014.
Teachers, instructional coaches,
building administrators.
Digital repository of literacy
resources, curriculum documents and
materials. HEAT, ITERS, ECERS, as
well as locally developed observation
tools.
In-house experts, instructional coaches, Teams of teachers will reflect on
and outside experts will develop and
what is working and what they need
deliver engaging, relevant, and
to change as part of their portfolios.
implementable professional
Teachers will participate in PLCs to
development. Accountable time will be collaborate on curriculum
given for teachers to plan their lessons implementation. Administrator
around the professional development.
observations will ensure that the
Curriculum director, administrators,
curricula are being implemented.
and instructional coaches will develop Teachers will continue to develop
systemic tools and resources (graphic
and share their own resources and
organizers, notemaking templates,
best practices to build sustainability.
writing rubrics) and make them
accessible in a digital repository.
30
Keystones to Opportunity
Measure of
Success
Administrator evaluations.
Teacher evaluations, teacher
portfolios, longitudinal student
achievement data.
Sustainability surveys - teacher
implementation of literacy curricula.
Long-term student achievement data.
Teacher evaluations.
Review Date
31
Keystones to Opportunity
Goal Action Map
Goal Statement: The Woodland Hills School District will develop and put in place a transition plan to address the developmentally
appropriate academic needs of all students from birth to grade 12.
››Action Step
Time Line
Lead Person/s
Resources
Needed
Specifics of
information
Action Step 1
Action Step 2
Action Step 3
Form a transition team with teachers
of key transitional grades and
administrators. The transition team
will analyze and specifically target
the literacy needs at key transitional
levels (as per any district
realignment and enrollment).
Present to December 2013
Monthly transition team meetings to
analyze and specifically target [new]
literacy needs at key transitional
levels (as per any district realignment
and enrollment).
Staff will implement the use of a
standardized or norm/criterion
reference test in assessing the
growth/level of the students before
making the transition to the next
level.
January 2014-June 2015.
Ongoing from August 2015
Superintendent, Curriculum
Director, Early Learning Program
Directors, Instructional Coaches,
Literacy Assessment Data Liaison.
Transition team members; common
meeting time at the building level.
Curriculum Director, Early Learning
Program Directors.
Curriculum Director, Early Learning
Program Directors.
The transition team will begin to
collect and analyze existing data to
determine transitional needs.
Transition team members; assessment Teachers; instructional coaches;
tools; curriculum tools; common
transition team members; assessment
meeting time at the building level.
tools; curriculum tools; ELC literacy
coach; common meeting time at the
building level.
The transition team will determine
The transition team will determine
the literacy goals that are appropriate the literacy goals that are appropriate
at each key transitional level and
at each key transitional level and
determine the steps necessary to help determine the steps necessary to help
the child be successful as they
the child be successful as they
transition to the next level.
transition to the next level.
32
Keystones to Opportunity
Measure of
Success
Formation of transition team,
meeting agendas and minutes.
Consistency and growth from one
key transitional level to another
(grades in core classes, PSSA and
Keystone scores, ITERS, ECERS,
DIBELS-Next, kindergarten
readiness assessment, etc.)
Consistency and growth from one key
transitional level to another (grades in
core classes, PSSA and Keystone
scores, ITERS, ECERS, DIBELSNext, kindergarten readiness
assessment, etc.)
Review Date
33
Keystones to Opportunity
Goal Action Map
Goal Statement: The Woodland Hills School District will transition all content area curricula, from birth to grade 12, to the Common
Core and Pennsylvania Early Learning Standards.
Cross-section of teachers from
Measure of
preschool
through
Action Step
1 12th grade with
Success
varying degrees of experience and
Establish Common Core and Early
››Action Step expertise.
Learning Standards Curriculum
Review Date
Planning Teams and calendar of
meetings.
Present-September 2013
Time Line
Lead Person/s
Curriculum Director.
Resources
Needed
Google Doc, Google Calendar,
WHSD, and ELC partner staff.
Specifics of
information
Teams will be solicited from
interested staff members, teacher
leaders, curriculum experts, and
administrators. The team will plan
the schedule of meetings. Ensure
representatives from all levels,
especially at the transition grade
levels.
Alignment of curriculum to Common
Core.
Action Step 2
Monthly Curriculum Team meetings.
Teacher elective data from Teacher
Effectiveness
lesson plans,
Action StepSystem,
3
observations.
Implement, evaluate and adapt
aligned curricula throughout
implementation.
September 2013-June 2014.
Ongoing from September 2014.
Curriculum team leaders,
instructional coaches, reading
specialists, Curriculum Director.
Existing curriculum documents and
materials, PA Common Core and
Early Learning Standards, SAS, other
states' aligned curricula.
Teachers, building administrators,
instructional coaches
Meet monthly to evaluate strengths
and weaknesses of current curricula,
align content and skills to Common
Core and PA Early Learning
standards.
Standards-aligned curriculum
documents, teaching materials,
contracted consultants, evaluation
materials (HEAT, ITERS, ECERS,
locally developed observation tools.).
All stakeholders will implement the
standards-aligned curricula and
reflect upon its effectiveness in
increasing student achievement.
Administrators will ensure its
implementation through observations
and lesson plan review.
34
Keystones to Opportunity
Goal Action Map
Goal Statement: The Woodland Hills School District will increase the use of data-driven instruction in all classrooms from birth to
grade 12 through data meetings and training.
Action Step 1
Action Step 2
Action Step 3
Time Line
Develop a district data meeting
protocol and calendar.
Present to August 2013
Conduct professional development
training.
August 2013-October 2013
Conduct the district mandated data
meetings.
November 2013-August 2017.
Lead Person/s
Literacy Assessment Data Liaison.
LADL, instructional coaches,
building administrators.
Resources
Needed
Calendar and a district directive.
LADL, administrators, instructional
coaches, and AIU instructional
coaching mentor.
Data from a variety of sources
(PSSA, Keystone, GRADE,
DIBELS-Next).
Specifics of
information
The district will develop a
mandatory data meeting protocol
and require monthly team meetings
at every building.
Training on extracting, analyzing,
reporting, and utilizing the data for
instructional decision making.
Measure of
Success
Data meeting form and policy.
Act 48 surveys.
Conduct the district mandated data
meetings with all stakeholders, i.e.
teachers, specialists, coaches,
building administrators, and/or
parents.
Data driven instructional plans, data
meeting agendas and minutes.
››Action Step
District data forms, agendas,
schedules, sign-in sheets, and data.
Review Date
35
Keystones to Opportunity
Goal Action Map
Goal Statement: The Woodland Hills School District will increase literacy instruction in all content areas from birth to grade 12
through evidence-based professional development.
Action Step 1
Action Step 2
Action Step 3
Professional development training on
evidence-based literacy instructional
strategies.
Teachers will consistently utilize
evidence-based instructional
strategies to improve literacy
proficiency.
Time Line
Conduct a Teacher Professional
Development Needs Assessment and
plan the specific professional
development training based on the
Needs Assessment feedback.
August 2013.
Ongoing from September 2013.
Ongoing from September 2013.
Lead Person/s
LADL and Curriculum Director.
Instructional coaches, administrators,
and teachers.
Resources
Needed
Needs Assessment.
Instructional coaches, administrators,
and outside experts (AIU , PaTTAN,
and Penn Literacy Network)
consultants.
Results of the Needs Assessment,
KTO Modules, and research-based
strategy training sessions.
Specifics of
information
The data received from needs
assessment will be used to create a
professional development calendar
and list of specific agendas and
topics.
››Action Step
Repertoire of instructional strategies,
materials, and standards-aligned
curriculum in digital repository.
Evaluation materials (HEAT, ITERS,
ECERS, locally developed
observation tools.).
Teachers will be required to
Teachers will implement the
participate in professional
research-based strategies in their
development opportunities on
lesson planning and instruction.
research-based instructional strategies Administrators will monitor
needed to increase student
implementation through
achievement.
walkthroughs and teacher
evaluations.
36
Keystones to Opportunity
Measure of
Success
Teacher feedback from Needs
Assessment.
Teacher feedback on Act 48 surveys
and student data.
Observations and student data.
Review Date
37
Keystones to Opportunity
Goal Action Map
Goal Statement: The Woodland Hills School District will increase parental and community involvement in all schools, from birth to
grade 12.
››Action Step
Time Line
Lead Person/s
Resources
Needed
Specifics of
information
Measure of
Success
Action Step 1
Action Step 2
Action Step 3
Develop and conduct
parent/community survey to
evaluate current parent/education
partnerships and programs.
Present to June 2013. Survey
completed by August 2013.
Conduct a planning meeting with all
potential community partners.
Implement actions developed by
community partners.
September 2013.
Ongoing from October 2013.
Curriculum Coordinator/Early
Learning Program Manager.
Online Survey.
Curriculum Coordinator/Early
Learning Program Manager
Community partners. School district
personnel who volunteer for parent/
community involvement team.
Curriculum Coordinator/Early
Learning Program Manager
Community partners and school
personnel.
Develop an online survey to assess
current parent/education
partnerships and programs. Promote
survey on local cable access
channel, school website, and school/
PTO newsletters
Completion of online survey.
The community partners will create a
prioritized list of goals to increase
community involvement and develop
an action plan.
The community partners will work in
the schools and community in an
effort to increase literacy instruction.
Planning meeting agenda and
minutes. List of goals and action plan
from planning meeting.
Increased community partnerships, as
assessed by ongoing
community/parental surveys.
Review Date
38
Keystones to Opportunity
Section VI: Dissemination of Plan
Once the LCLP has been approved, it will be disseminated in a multi-modal approach to all
stakeholders. The plan will be shared according to the timeline detailed below:
April, 2013: The final draft of the plan will be presented by the team leader, Heather
Moschetta, to the district KtO Coordinator, Norm Catalano.
August, 2013: Norm Catalano will outline the comprehensive literacy plan during a formal
presentation to the Board of Education and upper administration.
August, 2013: Members of the LCLP writing team will present an overview of the plan to all
faculty members at the Opening Day in-service programs in each of the district’s buildings.
This same team will present the overview to staff of our ELC partners. After each
presentation, there will be a question/answer session to check for understanding of the plan.
September, 2013: Building administrators will solicit volunteers for building literacy
leadership teams. The team members will be responsible for encouraging implementation of
the LCLP components.
October, 2013: Representatives of the building literacy leadership teams will attend a PTO
meeting to share the details of the LCLP with parents.
October, 2013: Members of the district literacy leadership team will produce a tri-fold
brochure highlighting the major components of the LCLP. Copies will be placed in the
offices of each building.
December, 2013: The technology integration specialists, in collaboration with the LCLP
team, will produce a video slideshow with voiceover outlining the goals of the LCLP. This
video presentation will be aired on both commercial access channels and will be posted on a
dedicated page of the district’s website.
39
Keystones to Opportunity
January, 2014: Parents of incoming students will be given a DVD copy of the video
slideshow when they register. Local public libraries will also be given copies. The DVD
will provide a link to an online survey that viewers can access upon completion of their
viewing.
40
Keystones to Opportunity
Section VII: Assessing and Reporting Progress
1. Professional Learning and Practice: The Woodland Hills School District will
implement professional development based on best practices in literacy instruction for
all teachers and administrators from birth to grade 12.
The first step in this goal’s action plan is to form a professional development calendar
that is rooted in instructional literacy strategies. The Woodland Hills School District’s
professional development committee will generate the calendar by August 2013, and
progress toward the goal will be measured by the Keystones to Opportunity team’s
assessment of the calendar for its value in literacy professional development in line
with the grant’s goals. Next, over the next two school years (August 2013 through
June 2015), in-house and contracted experts (instructional coaches, teacher leaders,
district and building-level administrators, AIU and PaTTAN experts, and Penn
Literacy Network consultants) will deliver literacy-specific, evidence-based
professional development. Effectiveness of the professional development will be
assessed though post-training Act 48 surveys given by the district. By monitoring
teacher lesson plans and conducting walkthrough observations and evaluations,
administrators will monitor the ongoing implementation of the professional
development strategies after each session. Using multiple measures of teacher
observation, including HEAT, ECERS, ITERS, PDE evaluation forms, and locally
developed observation tools, administrators will provide feedback, and teachers will
continue to work on their literacy strategies through additional literacy professional
development.
41
Keystones to Opportunity
2. Literacy Leadership, Goals, and Sustainability: The Woodland Hills School District
will implement sustainable literacy initiatives district-wide, from birth to grade 12.
Sustainability is crucial for all literacy efforts through the Keystones to Opportunity
grant, and sustainability comes from literacy leadership. Thus, the first step toward
reaching this goal is to have all administrators trained in literacy strategies from the
AIU, PaTTAN, and Penn Literacy Network during the 2013-2014 school year. This
step will be assessed through post-professional development surveys and
administrator observations. The second step will be to train all staff on literacyspecific, evidence-based instructional strategies in an effort to create a sustained
culture of literacy across the district. As teachers develop lesson plans and literacy
resources for use in their classrooms, they will share these materials in a digital
repository, which will be accessible to all teachers. Ongoing assessment from
administrator walkthroughs, observations, teacher portfolios, and longitudinal student
achievement data on DIBELS-Next, GRADE, PSSA, and Keystone exams will
determine the sustainability of the professional development. Finally, long-term
implementation of Common Core aligned curricula (which will be written to meet the
Standards and Curriculum goal), beginning in the 2014-15 school year will be the
third action step. This will be assessed through sustainability surveys, long-term
student achievement data, and teacher evaluations and walkthroughs using the HEAT,
ECERS, ITERS, PDE evaluation forms, and locally developed observation tools.
42
Keystones to Opportunity
3. Transition: The Woodland Hills School District will develop and put in place a
transition plan to address the developmentally appropriate academic needs of all
students from birth to grade 12.
The Woodland Hills School District has begun the first steps in forming a transition
team. The Superintendent visited each building during the spring of 2013 to discuss
his proposed reorganization plan, which is intended in part to address weaknesses in
student achievement during the transition years (6th to 7th grade, 8th to 9th grade).
Additionally the transition team will include representatives from local early learning
centers to address kindergarten transition. During the first step in this goal’s action
plan, beginning during the last few months of the 2012-13 school year and continuing
until December 2012, the transition team will collect and analyze existing data to
determine transitional needs, as assessed by transition team meeting agendas and
minutes. The second step will be for transition team members to meet to analyze any
new literacy needs at key transitional grades (as per district realignment during the
2013-14 school year). This step will also be assessed by transition team meeting
agendas and minutes. Finally, the district and ELC partner staffs will implement
assessment measures to determine the growth and levels of students before
transitioning them to the next level. Student achievement data will be used to assess
the teachers’ consistency in preparing students for the next level, as well as to
determine student growth between transitional levels.
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4. Standards and Curriculum: The Woodland Hills School District will transition all
content area curricula, from birth to grade 12, to the Common Core and Pennsylvania
Early Learning Standards.
The first step towards reaching this goal will be to develop planning teams to
transition content area curricula to the Pennsylvania Early Learning Standards and
Common Core Standards. Teams will be formed by fall 2013 so that these teams can
fulfill the second action step during the 2013-2014 school year, which will be to meet
monthly and revise curricula to align to the Common Core and Pennsylvania Early
Learning Standards. Monthly progress will be evaluated through meeting agendas and
minutes, as well as curriculum maps and other curriculum documents that evidence
alignment to Common Core and Pennsylvania Early Learning Standards. Once the
curricula have been revised, the third action step will be for teachers, building
administrators, and instructional coaches to implement, evaluate, and adapt the
aligned curricula beginning in the 2014-15 school year. This ongoing implementation
and revision will be assessed by teachers and instructional coaches, as they reflect
upon the curricula’s effectiveness in increasing student achievement (using data from
DIBELS-Next, GRADE, PSSA, and Keystone). Administrators will use walkthrough
observations, evaluations, and teacher elective data from Teacher Effectiveness
System to assess the ongoing implementation and adaptation of the standards-aligned
curricula.
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5. Assessment: The Woodland Hills School District will increase the use of data-driven
instruction in all classrooms from birth to grade 12 through data meetings and
training.
The KtO Literacy Assessment Data Liaison (LADL) will be integral in increasing
teachers’ abilities to make instructional decisions based on data. For the remainder of
the 2012-13 school year and during the summer of 2013, a districtwide protocol or
policy for data-driven instruction and a district data meeting calendar will be
developed and in place for implementation during the 2013-14 school year. Next,
teachers will receive professional development on the use of data early in the 2013-14
school year and integrate the training into their instructional procedures. Teachers
will evaluate the training in their Act 48 surveys, and administrators will assess the
use of data in the classrooms by way of walkthroughs and evaluations using the
HEAT, PDE Teacher Effectiveness System, and locally developed observation tools.
Also beginning in the fall of 2013 is the third action step, which will be to conduct
data meetings with teachers, instructional coaches and specialists, building
administrators, and the LADL. Success of the data meetings will be assessed by
meeting agendas and minutes as well as teachers’ data-driven instructional plans.
Professional learning communities (PLCs) focused on data will also support the
efforts to integrate a data culture into the schools.
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6. Instruction: The Woodland Hills School District will increase literacy instruction in
all content areas from birth to grade 12 through evidence-based professional
development.
Professional development is the key to reaching this goal. By August 2013, the
district’s first step in increasing literacy instruction is to conduct a professional
development needs assessment and use the results to plan the professional
development calendar and in-service agendas for the 2013-14 school year and
beyond. Teacher feedback from the needs assessment will be used to assess progress
in this step. Next, instructional coaches, administrators, and outside experts from the
AIU, PaTTAN, Penn Literacy Network, etc. will deliver professional development
training on literacy instructional strategies. Effectiveness of the professional
development will be assessed through Act 48 surveys, and teachers will be expected
to implement these strategies in their classrooms on an ongoing basis. Administrators
will assess the effectiveness of the literacy instruction in walkthroughs and
evaluations using HEAT, ITERS, ECERS, and locally developed observation tools.
Increased literacy achievement from improved instruction will be evident in student
assessment data from GRADE, DIBELS-Next, PSSA, and Keystone exams.
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7. Partnerships: The Woodland Hills School District will increase parental and
community involvement in all schools, from birth to grade 12.
In order to increase parental and community involvement in the schools, it is first
necessary to assess current levels of involvement, as it differs from one school to the
next within the district. Thus, the first action step is to conduct a parent/community
survey to evaluate current parent/education partnerships and programs. Survey
development should be completed by June 2013, and results will be obtained by
August 2013. From the results, potential community partners will be identified; in
September 2013, a planning meeting will be held to prioritize a list of goals and an
action plan to increase community involvement. Progress toward this step will be
assessed by the planning meeting’s product: a list of goals and an action plan. Then,
beginning in October 2013, the schools and community partners will implement the
action plan. This will be an ongoing process involving community partners and
school district personnel. The ultimate measure of success of this goal is whether or
not we have increased involvement from parents and community members and
organizations. This will be assessed on an ongoing basis through periodic community
and parental surveys.
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Appendix A
Literacy Needs Assessment
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