Closing the
Performance Gap with
Research-based
Interventions
Long Island Association of
Special Education Administrators
Don Deshler
January 16-17, 2003
“A doctor can bury his mistakes,
but an architect can only advise
his client to plant vines.”
Frank Lloyd Wright
“What matters
most in the work
that we do?”
CLOSING
THE
PERFORMANCE
GAP
Demands/
Skills
The Performance Gap
Years in School
Current Realities for
SWDs in Our Schools:
A Partial Profile
Descriptive Research
Studying
• School culture
• Instructional methods
• Services
• Attitudes
• Student outcomes
• Satisfaction
Descriptive Year 1 Study
Research Questions
• What is the school climate for SWDs?
• How is instruction provided to SWDs enrolled
in general education high school classes?
• What support services are provided to SWDs
enrolled in general education classes?
• What are the outcomes of the
instruction and the services?
Administrator Interviews
• All administrators state that they want to
help SWDs succeed (17 of 17)
• Administrators do not have method for
evaluating the outcomes of special
education programs (8 of 9 schools)
• Administrators do not have a plan for
the improvement of special
education programs (8 of 9 schools)
Administrator Interviews
• Schools generally don’t have a written policy
related to inclusion (8 of 9)
• Special education administrators aren’t
familiar with standards-based instruction (8 of
8)
• Special education administrators aren’t
familiar with the academic paths
available within general education
(7 of 8)
Administrator Interviews
• General education teachers and special
education teachers are two separate camps (7 of
9 schools)
– Budgets are separate
– Staff development is separate
– General education teachers do not get training related to SWDs
and other at-risk students
– Planning time is separate
– Roles are separate, and responsibilities are not shared related to
SWDs and other at-risk students
– Hostility is apparent bilaterally
Implications
• Schools need written policies and integrated
programs related to inclusion
• Schools need specified outcome goals for
inclusive programs
• Schools need methods and measures for
evaluating the outcomes of inclusive
programs
• Special education services need to
be aligned with general education
standards
Course Options
Type A
Courses taught by
SPED teachers for
SPED students
Type B
Courses for low
achievers and
at-risk students
SWDs
Type C
Rigorous courses
with heterogeneous
groups of students
Type D
Advanced Placement
courses
Type E
Other courses
(e.g., vo tech electives)
Taught
by general
education
teachers
Rigorous General Education
Enrollments for SWDs
High School Teachers Respond
‘Why do Students with Disabilities Fail?’
General education teachers said:
• They generally give up.
• Not motivated to work.
• SPED classification gives them an excuse not to
try.
• Ill-prepared.
• Lack of parental involvement.
• Appropriate accommodations not
made because the disability isn’t understood.
High School Teachers Respond
‘Why do Students with Disabilities Fail?’
Special education teachers said:
• Lack of proper nutrition.
• Previous low expectations from
teachers/district.
• Reading and writing skills.
• Poor work habits and organization.
• Lack of student motivation and caring.
• No or very little accommodations.
Promoting Learning Over
Coverage for ALL Learners
is about
Closing the
Performance Gap
only happens
through
results from
attending to
The “Core”
is promoted
by the
Continuum
of Content
Literacy
Strong
Administrative
Leadership
Promoting Learning Over
Coverage for ALL Learners
is about
Closing the
Performance Gap
only happens
through
results from
attending to
The “Core”
is promoted
by the
Continuum
of Content
Literacy
Strong
Administrative
Leadership
What’s Should be at the
Core?
• Vision
• Efficacy/Beliefs
• Validated instructional
practices
• Administrative Leadership
Vaughn, Gersten, & Chard (2000)
• Interventions that benefit SLD also
benefit average and high achievers
• Instruction that is visible & explicit
• Instruction that is interactive between
students & teacher & between students
• Instruction that controls of task difficulty
• Strategies that guide student learning
Direct Instruction
•
•
•
•
•
Small steps
Probes
Feedback
Diagrams/pictures
Independent practice
Strategy Instruction
• Clear Explanations
• Teacher models
• Reminders to use
strategies
• Step-by-step prompts
• Review the learning
process
Swanson (1999)
Responsive Instruction
• Continuous Assessment
• Instructional
Accommodations
• Elaborated Feedback
Systematic Instruction
• Structured
• Connected
• Scaffolded
• Informative
Intensive Instruction
• Sufficient Time
• High Engagement
My, how time can slip away!!
• 10 minutes lost/block (4 blocks/day)
– 40 minutes lost/day
– 200 minutes (3.3 hours) of lost/week
– 105 hours/year or about
17 days!!!
Promoting Learning Over
Coverage for ALL Learners
is about
Closing the
Performance Gap
only happens
through
results from
attending to
The “Core”
is promoted
by the
Continuum
of Content
Literacy
Strong
Administrative
Leadership
.
A Continuum of Action
Key Components for Content Literacy
Component 1: Ensure mastery of critical content.
Component 2: Weave shared strategies across classes.
Component 3: Support mastery of shared strategies
for targeted strategies.
Component 4: Develop more intensive course
options for those who need it.
Component 5: Develop more intensive clinical
options for those who need it.
.
Component 1: Ensure mastery of critical content.
All students learn critical content
required in the core curriculum
regardless of literacy levels.
all
most
some
Teachers compensate for limited literacy levels
by using explicit teaching routines, adaptations,
and technology to promote content mastery.
For example: The Unit Organizer Routine
Content Enhancement Teaching Routines
Planning and
Leading Learning
Course Organizer
Unit Organizer
Lesson Organizer
Explaining
Text, Topics, and Details
Framing Routine
Survey Routine
Clarifying Routine
Teaching Concepts
Concept Mastery Routine
Concept Anchoring Routine
Concept Comparison Routine
Increasing Performance
Quality Assignment Routine
Question Exploration Routine
Recall Enhancement Routine
Vocabulary Routine
The Unit Organizer
4
NAME
DATE
BIGGER PICTURE
Elida Cordora
1/22
The roots and consequences of civil unrest.
2
LAST UNIT /Experience
Growth of the Nation
8
1/22
UNIT SCHEDULE
Quiz
1/29
Cooperative groups over pp. 210-225
"Influential Personalities"
projectdue
1/30
Quiz
Cooperative groups over pp. 228-234
Review for test
2/7
Review for test
2/6
Test
The Causes of the Civil War
3
NEXT UNIT /Experience
The Civil War
UNIT MAP
was based on
Sectionalism
was influenced by
pp. 201-236
Areas of
the U.S.
emerged because of became greater with
Differences
between
the areas
Events in
the U.S.
What was sectionalism as it existed in the U. S. of 1860?
How did the differences in the sections of the U.S. in 1860 contribute to the
start of the Civil War?
What examples of sectionalism exist in the world today?
Leaders
across the
U.S.
descriptive
compare/contrast
cause/effect
6
UNIT
RELATIONSHIPS
UNIT SELF-TEST
QUESTIONS
2/6
7
CURRENT
UNIT UNIT
CURRENT
Cooperative groups over pp. 201-210
1/28
2/2
5
1
Concept Diagram
3 Key Words
elephant
1
CONVEY CONCEPT
2
OFFER OVERALL
CONCEPT
3
NOTE KEY WORDS
4
CLASSIFY
CHARACTERISTICS:
CONCEPT DIAGRAM
1
Mammal
Always Present
warm-blooded
human
nurse their young
has hair
warm-blooded
Vertebrate
Sometimes Present
+
+
walks on 2 legs
walks on 4 legs
+
swims in water
Never Present
O
cold-blooded
can fly
moves on the ground
nurse their
young
5
EXPLORE EXAMPLES
Examples:
Nonexamples:
whale
human
snake
elephant
alligator
bird
shark
whale
walks on
4 legs
bat
can fly
cold-blooded
6
PRACTICE WITH NEW EXAMPLE
7
TIE DOWN
A DEFINITION
duckbill
platypus
shark
bird
A mammal is a warm-blooded vertebrate that has hair and nurses its young.
2
Concept Mastery Results
80
78%
70
60
50
40
54%
Pre
Post
30
20
10
0
Test scores of students with disabilities on unit tests
Section 1
of the Guide
The Critical Question
The question that will be
the focus of the lesson
Section 2
of the Guide
Key Terms and Explanations
Important words or phrases
that must be understood
in order to answer
the Critical Question
Section 3
of the Guide
Supporting Questions
The smaller questions that need to be answered
in order to answer the Critical Question
Section 4
of the Guide
The Main Idea Answer
A concise answer to the
Critical Question.
Section 5
of the Guide
Use in a Related Area
A question or statement that
prompts students to explore
the Main Idea Answer in
greater depth and demonstrate
their understanding of it in a
related content area.
Section 6
of the Guide
Overall Idea
A generalization
derived from the
main Idea Answer
which can be applied
to the world at large.
Real-World Use
A question or statement
that challenges students
to show how the Main
idea Answer applies
to the real world.
Question Exploration Guide: Generalization Results
Comparison group Experimental group
100
Prejudice Lesson
88
90
81
Percentage Correct
85
83
78
80
70
97
Impetuous Behavior Lesson
93
69
67
64
63
60
60
63
60
56
50
50
40
30
20
10
0
LD
LA
NA
HA
LD
LA
NA
HA
Instructional Methodology
• CUE
• DO
• REVIEW
.
A Continuum of Action
Key Components for Content Literacy
Component 1: Ensure mastery of critical content.
Component 2: Weave shared strategies across classes.
Component 3: Support mastery of shared strategies
for targeted strategies.
Component 4: Develop more intensive course
options for those who need it.
Component 5: Develop more intensive clinical
options for those who need it.
.
Component 2: Weave shared strategies across classes.
Teachers embed selected learning strategies in
core curriculum courses through direct explanation,
modeling, and required application in content
assignments.
For example: Teachers teach the steps of a
paraphrasing strategy (RAP), regularly model its
use, and then embed paraphrasing
activities in course activities through the year to
create a culture of “reading to retell.”
“It’s strange that we
expect students to
learn, yet spend so
little time teaching
them about learning!”
Norman, 1980
“In times of change learners
inherit the earth, while the
learned find themselves
beautifully equipped to deal
with a world that no longer
exists!”
Eric Hoffer
Embedded Strategy
Instruction
Memory Strategy
• Form a word with first letters
• Insert a letter
• Rearrange the letters
• Shape a sentence
• Try combinations
Large Group Instruction
I Do It!
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Review the steps of the strategy
Explain how it will help them learn
Specify what they need to do
Think out loud
Problem solve
Attack the challenge in different ways
Address errors from previous day’s work
Large Group Instruction
We Do It!
• Ask for strategy steps
• Ask students to explain how they’re
thinking
• Shape student responses
• Encourage students with authentic
praise
• Evaluate student understanding
• Re-instruct if necessary
Large Group Instruction
You Do it!
• Let students perform independently
• Give brief, specific, constructive
feedback
• Identify categories of error to identify the
focus for the next day’s session
• Have students record their grade on a
progress chart
Learning Strategies Curriculum
Acquisition
Storage
Word Identification
First-Letter Mnemonic
Paraphrasing
Paired Associates
Self-Questioning
Listening/Notetaking
Visual Imagery
LINCS Vocabulary
Interpreting Visuals
Multipass
Expression of
Competence
Sentences
Paragraphs
Error Monitoring
Themes
Assignment Completion
Test-Taking
Self-Questioning Strategy
• Attend to clues as you read
• Say some questions
• Keep predictions in mind
• Identify the answer
• Talk about the answers
Self-Questioning-2001
n= 133
60
50
40
30
Textbook quiz
20
10
0
comparison
experimental
7th Grade Science Class: Growth Scores
State Writing Assessment
Percentage of Students
Passing the Michigan
State Writing Assessment
State Writing Assessment
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
94
85
74.5
Strategies School Mean of Other
Same-Sized
School
State Average
.
A Continuum of Action
Key Components for Content Literacy
Component 1: Ensure mastery of critical content.
Component 2: Weave shared strategies across classes.
Component 3: Support mastery of shared strategies
for targeted strategies.
Component 4: Develop more intensive course
options for those who need it.
Component 5: Develop more intensive clinical
options for those who need it.
.
Component 3: Support mastery of shared strategies
for targeted strategies.
Students who have difficulty mastering the strategies
presented in courses by content teachers are provided more
instruction in the strategies through specialized, more
intensive instruction delivered by support personnel.
For example: When core curriculum teachers notice students
having difficulty learning and using strategies such as
paraphrasing they work with support personnel to provide
more intensive instruction.
Intensive Strategy
Instruction
Eight Stage Instructional Process
1. Pretest and Make Commitments
2. Describe
3. Model
4. Verbal Practice
5. Controlled Practice
6. Advanced Practice
7. Posttest and Make Commitments
8. Generalization
Daily instruction for 6 to 8 weeks in each strategy.
Word Identification
•
•
•
•
•
Discover the context
Isolate the prefix
Separate the suffix
Say the stem
Examine the stem
• Check with someone
• Try the dictionary
High School Reading (Decoding)
Comparison group Experimental group
10
9.1
9.1
9
8.5
8
6.8
7
6.5
6.4
Grade Level
6.2
5.8
6
5.8
5.7
5.4
5.3
5
4
3
2
1
0
Male African Americans
Male Hispanics
Male Caucasians
.
A Continuum of Action
Key Components for Content Literacy
Component 1: Ensure mastery of critical content.
Component 2: Weave shared strategies across classes.
Component 3: Support mastery of shared strategies
for targeted strategies.
Component 4: Develop more intensive course
options for those who need it.
Component 5: Develop more intensive clinical
options for those who need it.
Component 4: Develop more intensive course options
for those who need it.
Students learn literacy skills and strategies through specialized,
direct, and intensive instruction in listening, speaking, reading,
and writing through carefully designed and delivered courses.
For example: Courses in researched-based reading
Programs such as the SRA Corrective Reading Program
are created for students.
.
A Continuum of Action
Key Components for Content Literacy
Component 1: Ensure mastery of critical content.
Component 2: Weave shared strategies across classes.
Component 3: Support mastery of shared strategies
for targeted strategies.
Component 4: Develop more intensive course
options for those who need it.
Component 5: Develop more intensive clinical
options for those who need it.
Component 5: Develop more intensive clinical options
for those who need it.
Students with underlying language disorders learn the linguistic,
metalinguistic, and metacognitive underpinnings they need to
acquire content literacy skills and strategies.
For example: Speech and language pathologists work with
students whose language disorders to teach the language
skills needed to acquire critical literacy skills and strategies.
Summary of Key Ideas Related to Content literacy
1. The purpose of literacy is to increase the learning of
critical information.
2. Content literacy requires fluent decoding.
3. Common strategies are taught and reinforced by all
teachers.
4. Responsive and systematic instruction is provided
on a continuum of intensity.
5. Students must master critical content regardless of
literacy competence.
Promoting Learning Over
Coverage for ALL Learners
is about
Closing the
Performance Gap
only happens
through
results from
attending to
The “Core”
is promoted
by the
Continuum
of Content
Literacy
Strong
Administrative
Leadership
Administrative
Leadership
• Ensure right conditions are in
place for student success
• Create a professional culture
of “calling,” high expectation,
and success
Validated practices
+
+
+
+
Fidelity implementation
Student
Success
=
Coordinated implementation
Quality Professional Development
Strong Administrative
Leadership
“What matters
most in the work
that we do?”
The answer to that
question will impact
the degree to which
the “performance
gap” is closed.
www.ku-crl.org
Don Deshler
University of Kansas
Center for Research on Learning
ddeshler@ku.edu
The Speech-Language Pathologist
Provides Curriculum-Relevant Therapy
Curriculum-relevant therapy is a kind of
intervention that engages adolescents in
meaningful, relevant, results oriented work,
leading to academic success.
Practice Principles:
1. Intervention provided by the SLP
should be therapeutic, or clinical, in
nature.
2. Intervention should relate directly to
what students have to learn in
school.
What is Strategic Tutoring?
• Usually one-to-one instruction
• With a highly skilled instructor
• Who assesses, constructs, weaves,
and plans for transfer using
• Strategies for learning how to learn
• While helping youth complete class
assignments
Strategic Tutoring Instructional Phases
“I Do”
TEACHING
Assessing
Constructing
Modeling
Checking
Transferring
Supporting
“We Do”
“You Do”
ASSESSING PHASE
Did the tutor:
 Ask about the assignment?
 Review previous performance on similar
assignments?
 Determine the student’s current strategy?
 Ask if the current strategy works?
 Provide rationale for creating a new strategy?
 Gain the student’s commitment?
 Make a commitment to the student?
 Determine if the tutor knows a strategy for the
hand?
 Decide which strategic pathway to follow?
task at
CONSTRUCTING PHASE
If BUILDING a strategy, did the tutor:
 Begin working on the assignment?
 Stand back and analyze what the student and tutor
are doing to complete the task?
 List the steps of the strategy with the student?
 Have the student list the steps of the strategy?
 Compare the new strategy with the old strategy?
TEACHING PHASE
 Did the tutor:













MODEL
(I Do) the strategy for the student
Explain the student’s role during modeling?
Model the steps of the strategy?
Involve the student during the modeling activity?
CHECK
(We Do) the student’s understanding of the strategy
Ask the student to list the steps of the strategy?
Have the student discuss the importance of the strategy and where the strategy
could be used?
Ask the student if they wish to modify the strategy?
SUPPORT
(You Do) the acquisition of the strategy
Cue the student to the use of the strategy?
Ask guiding questions?
Guide the student through assignment completion?
Provide positive and corrective feedback?
TRANSFERRING PHASE
Did the tutor:
 Celebrate strategy mastery with the student?
 Ask the student to compare current performance with
performance before learning the strategy?
 Develop a plan for using the strategy in other settings?




Identify specific settings and classes?
Identify specific assignments and due dates?
Identify dates and times to work on assignments?
Identify dates to review results of independent strategy usage?
 Follow up on student use of the strategy?
 Provide feedback if necessary?
Strategic Tutoring Instructional Phases
SEVERAL WEEKS
2-3 min
3-5 min
TEACHING
Assessing
Constructing
Modeling
Checking
Supporting
3-4 min
Transferring
Student Strategy Knowledge
“Tell me everything you do when you......”
Pre Strategic Tutoring
Andre’: Math Strategy
Oct. 13, 1998
•
•
•
•
I take notes from the
overhead.
I use the notes if I don’t
remember.
Post Strategic Tutoring
Andre’: Math Strategy
Dec. 7, 1998
First, I have a separate folder
for math assignments.
• I read the problem aloud.
• I underline information
• Compare to other
• problems(look at example
• in the book).
• Make up a guess
• Solve parts of the problem.
• Check my work
Student Strategy Knowledge
Pre Strategic Tutoring
Andre’: Organizational Strategy
Nov 2, 1998
Put my papers for class in each
• textbook(science assignment in
• science text).
overhead.
• Also put papers in bottom of
• backpack.
•
Post Strategic Tutoring
Andre’: Organizational
Strategy Dec. 7, 1998
Use a notebook and
• separate folder for each
• subject.
• The tutor checks my weekly/
• daily planner.
• Use a grid for the planner
• and put sports stickers for
• each daily schedule that was
• complete.
• I look at the board each
• class for notes written by the
• teacher.
• Copy the dates and
• assignments from the board
• and due dates.
Strategic Tutoring Model
The Role of the Strategic Tutor:
� Explain Content, Build Knowledge
� Have Extensive Knowledge of Strategies
� Apply Principles of Strategic Instruction
� Mentor and “Connect” Students
Preliminary Data Analysis (1)
• Scores earned in general education tutored
classes on Quizzes and Tests
• N= 32; Chase and Landon
–
–
–
–
1:1 tutoring
1:3 tutoring
HmWk help
Comparison
Pre= 59%
59%
65%
63%
Post= 73%
64%
66%
55%
Preliminary Data Analysis (2)
• GPA for all classes
• N= 32; Chase and Landon
– Chase 1:1 Pre=
– Landon 1:1
– Chase 1:3
– Landon 1:3
– HmWk help
– Comparison
.83
.29
1.10
1.50
.50
2.00
Post= 2.25
1.57
1.65
1.50
.62
1.00
What Can the
Content
Literacy
Continuum Do
for Schools?
Demands/
Skills
The Performance Gap
Years in School
Content:
Rigorous academic
standards
Helps professionals differentiate
complementary roles.
Focuses on change
at the school level.
Addresses, national, state, and
district priorities in literacy.
You want me
to do what?