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Suffolk's Edge Teacher Center
D R A F T
Professional Learning Community Evaluation Report
June, 2002
Background
In 2001, the SETC offered its first Professional
Learning Community grants for the purpose of moving schools toward
job-embedded professional development that would bring about a change in
school culture toward increased collaboration. Teachers applied for the
grants to implement school projects, tangentially using models of
job-embedded professional development. Although school projects were
completed, there were no reported changes in their schools’ cultures.
This year the SETC made a strategic decision
to prompt a shift in school culture through reformed evaluation
procedures. Therefore, evaluation strategies were designed to help make
teachers aware of the effect of their activities on school culture.
In February, 2002, Suffolk’s Edge Teacher Center
awarded three Professional Learning Community grants to applicants from
a local district. Elementary School A requested $4978 to implement the
Literacy Collaborative model, a methodology for studying student work in
order to determine what activities provide meaningful learning
opportunities that are developmentally appropriate and address a
multiplicity of skill levels and incorporate multiple modalities. The
facilitator and staff used Collegial Circle and Peer Review professional
development models. Twenty-eight teachers (80%) of faculty participated
in this project.
Elementary School B requested $1000 in grant funds
to help realize the goal of empowering children to begin to read and
write and to become strategic readers and writers. Outcomes anticipated
were to provide a foundation for students to be successful in the 4th
grade assessments and to gather data for teaching results (5th
grade). Eleven full-time teachers (34% of staff) participated in the
project as trainees in C2C or Compose to Communicate. This model allows
for intensive, on-the-job, theory-into practice training for teachers by
incorporating both seminar and in-class coaching components.
Elementary School C requested $1000 in grant funds
to help implement Phase I of Literacy Collaborative by training a
literacy collaborative team. Seven staff, including the building
principal (23% of total staff) participated in the initial 40 hour
training course, in-class assistance to teachers in the form of
demonstration, coaching, and reflecting on teaching. Planning and
working collaboratively with all teachers in the school, similar to a
faculty study group, this phase takes the first steps to implement a
dramatic culture change within the school.
Purpose
Our Center’s Policy Board was looking to increase
effectiveness in four areas taken from the NYS Teacher Center Evaluation
standards:
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Use
individual program evaluation to assist in the development of new
activities and refine continuing programs.
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Employ
a variety of evaluation strategies to assess the impact of the
Center’s activities and programs.
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Examine
the impact of programs on teacher effectiveness and student
learning.
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Share
evaluation findings broadly to build awareness of Teacher Center
work.
The purpose for our evaluation was to determine the
effectiveness of the Professional Learning Community (PLC) Grant program
and to gather data to improve the program. We felt that topics chosen
for PLC grants in the past did not contribute to significant changes in
the schools’ cultures. We hoped that by directing evaluation questions
and methods to this area, participants would look at their programs
through a broader lens that would include transforming school culture.
We looked at three specific topics on which to
gather data:
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How has student learning been impacted and /or changed?
·
As a result of using job-embedded professional development
models, how has attitude and teacher practice changed?
·
Long-term, how has the building culture and climate
changed with use of job-embedded PD models?
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The data collection strategies we used to gather
feedback for this report were Observation, Focus Groups, Review of
Student Scores/Progress, and Review of Teacher Reflective Writings.
In addition, each program will submit end-of-year reports.
·
Teacher Center staff observed the final session of a
literacy collaborative meeting at Elementary School A. As the
participants conversed, Teacher Center staff took notes on what they
said regarding impact on teacher practice and student learning and
changes in the building’s culture. Eleven teachers and the facilitator
attended this meeting.
·
Teacher Center staff facilitated a focus group at the end
of the grant period attended by three participants from each program and
two central office professional staff members. They recorded
participants’ discussion on eight flip chart pages.
·
Teacher Center staff collected student progress reports in
chart form on 30 students from ten teachers participating in the program
at Elementary School A.
·
Teacher Center staff collected 21 written reflections from
participants in two of the programs. The reflective prompts were
tailored for each program.
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All three programs will submit end-of-grant reports.
Results:
Elementary Building A
Student Learning
The
staff implementing the Literacy Collaborative were able to have a direct
influence on student learning. Teachers, during the final meeting of the
group, reported that student enthusiasm for writing increased
dramatically. The Collaborative’s facilitator reported that
standardized test scores for the first graders had increased in
relationship to students’ scores from the previous year.
During
the year, teachers involved in this work kept detailed case records from
a low, middle and high performing student in each of their classes. For
example, first grade teachers kept charted records regarding scores in
the following areas: letter recognition, word test, writing vocabulary,
hearing and recording sounds in words, concepts about print, and
benchmark reading level. All students who were tracked showed an
increase in the scores in the targeted areas for the year.
The
prompt, “As a result of this work, I see students have…” brought
these written reflective comments from the ten Building A teachers that
responded:
“…used
a lot of strategies and principles independently.”
“…grown
more responsible and eager to learn.”
“…taken
ownership as they see success in themselves.”
“…become
lovers of literature.”
Teacher Practice
During
the site visit to Elementary School A, the Teacher Center staff heard
teachers saying they were increasing integrated reading skills, working
with leveled reading, and getting proficient at using running records.
In a written reflection, one teacher said, “Assessing running records
and writing samples has given me much more understanding in how to
directly intervene to help.”
In
this group, teachers spoke with enthusiasm about being able to shift and
improve existing lessons towards the Literacy Collaborative’s model
and better suit student needs. They noted that they were able to refine
teaching to fit the needs of students.
Teachers
also mentioned that they are able to help one another more effectively,
since they are aligned in their goals. The new processes were repeatedly
modeled so teachers felt comfortable trying the procedures on their own.
In
response to the reflective prompt, “As I use this learning, my
teaching has changed because…” teachers in this school responded,
“I facilitate more and let the students’ needs and abilities drive
the lesson,” and “I am able to present skills and strategies in an
individualistic way to develop successful outcomes for each unique
learning style.”
The
teachers were enthusiastic and although they felt it was a challenge to
revise and invent lessons, they were willing to do the work. During the
last meeting, one teacher said, “The payoff is evident every day in my
classroom.”
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School Culture
One
teacher wrote, “This training has done for me what it has done for my
students! It has created a community of support.”
Teachers reported increased cooperation. One teacher was
resistant to arranging desks in her room into the learning centers
necessary for Literacy Collaborative. The other teachers volunteered to
help her move the furniture, and helped her overcome her resistance.
Teachers in the building moved from asking their facilitator/instructor
for help, to asking each other for help. They now report more comfort
with inviting each other into their classrooms to observe and dialogue.
In
Elementary School A, in response to the prompt, “an example of how my
relationship with colleagues has changed as a result of this
project...” teachers wrote:
“…getting
real feedback from colleagues has been a tremendous help.”
“…our
entire grade level has become closer.”
“…we
have a better awareness of the continuum of learning, now knowing what
will carry over from grades before us into our classrooms.”
Results:
Elementary Building B
Student Learning
Teachers
in Elementary School B were involved in training, using the Compose to
Communicate (C2C model). Their grant was not written to directly affect
students this year.
Teacher Practice
During
the focus group, some primary teachers voiced the opinion that the
expectations were too high for their students’ ability. Others, who
believed that high expectations lead to student success, were not
bothered by this proviso.
Teachers
wrote in response to the prompt, “What I got from this program
was…”
“…clarification
of revision versus editing.”
“...
strategies that aided my writing instruction as well as benefited my
students.”
“…organizational
strategies such as clustering.”
“…motivation
to do more writing myself.”
Teachers
in school B were challenged by the fact that they were pulled out of the
classroom for training. The reflective prompt above also sparked the
responses,
“…too
much wasted time out of the classroom.”
“…a
valuable first session and redundant subsequent sessions.”
School Culture
In
the focus group teachers reported that they could envision that once the
program was underway, there would be a positive impact on their
school’s culture.
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Results:
Elementary Building C
Student Learning
Teachers
in Elementary School C were involved in initial Literacy Collaborative
training. Their grant was not written to directly affect students this
year
Teacher Practice
Teachers
reported that the projects have given them a common language to discuss
student work and expertise in examining student work using aligned
criteria. They were delighted to be able to be “on the same page” in
their discussions of student achievement
School Culture
The
principal was a member of the fledgling Literacy Collaborative team. The
teachers from this school who took part in the focus group were
delighted to have the principal be an integral team member, and felt
that this was a strength in the new program they were undertaking. In
the focus group teachers also reported that they could envision that
once the program was underway, there would be a positive impact on their
school’s culture
Further
Feedback
During
the focus group with Schools A, B and C, participants reported that
their school environment was energized by the new learning. “We have
shared our creativity, and now have a thirst to do more.” All reported
that they valued working together, whether it was to create a philosophy
or to solve a student learning problem
Central
office staff were eager to support these teacher requested programs.
They had deemed them valuable, but were waiting for grass roots support.
“Buy-in happens when people have a say in the growth and direction of
the process
All
focus group members acknowledged that the new programs took time and
energy to implement. They were willing because they saw long-term
benefits. The teachers have a sense that this is just the start of some
exciting changes. They understand that they have to continue to grow it.
They don’t want to lose the momentum they’ve created
Reflections
Our
most ambitious expectation for our PLC grants was to provoke a positive
change in school culture. In Elementary Schools B and C, the seeds have
been sown and will be nurtured toward growth next year. They have
sprouted in Elementary School A, and the positive energy has led the
administration to begin Literacy Collaborative in all the district’s
elementary schools. We understand that changes in culture don’t happen
overnight, usually taking between three and five years. We were
surprised by the speed with which this model has taken hold. We conclude
that what happened in their individual classrooms was what led the
teachers involved to change their practice. The three objectives are so
intertwined, that separating one from the other would decrease the
effect of PLC program
We believe the data collected gives evidence that
there has been an increase in student learning with the implementation
of the Literacy Collaborative in Elementary School A. Time and again,
Teacher Center staff read and heard that the evidence of increased
student learning and enthusiasm in their classrooms spurred the
participants to work harder and longer on the program. We believe that
when teachers can see daily evidence of the efficacy of their efforts,
they are more likely to stick with their plan. Therefore, it is
imperative that we continue to request evidence of student learning
We also conclude that teacher attitude and practice
were positively impacted through participation in all three programs.
Compose to Communicate training in Elementary School B gave participants
strategies that aided their writing instruction and benefited their
students. They also gained clarification of revision versus editing and
motivation to do more writing themselves.
In Elementary School C, where teachers received training in the
Literacy Collaborative, they were not yet able to report specific
changes in practice, and were eager to implement the program in the next
school year. Attitude was upbeat, excited, forward-looking and
energized. The most dramatic change could be seen in Elementary School
A, where 80% of the faculty were already implementing the Literacy
Collaborative model. Much evidence has been cited earlier in this
report. Their enthusiasm was contagious. Being conscious of their
practice has brought a new level of awareness to their daily work in the
classroom. We will continue to foster this metacognition.
As
a result of collaborating with her colleagues, one teacher reported,
“I have a new sense of the importance and seriousness of our
profession.” This type of change in school culture comes about by
teachers sharing, leading to a thirst to do more. When they started, the
participating teachers were the “outsider group” embarking on
significant change. Now, after a year of successes, the non-participants
are the “outsiders looking to get in.”
Our most valuable learning was that generating this kind of
commitment and whole-faculty interest stems from classroom successes.
Therefore we will continue to encourage all three objectives through our
evaluation strategies
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Implications for Future Work
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Continue
the evaluation of PLC grants and collection of data focused on the
three areas of student learning, teacher practice and school
culture.
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Use
the evaluation process to guide participants toward program
outcomes.
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Utilize
information collected this year to anticipate areas of challenge and
to provide support.
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Continue
to stress the importance of looking at student work as evidence of
learning.
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Support
future grant winners through evaluation procedures that will push
them toward reflection and refinement of their process.
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