ucla leadership institute addressing barriers to learning & teaching and re-engaging...

Leadership Institute

Addressing Barriers to Learning & Teaching and Re-engaging

Disconnected Students

We just missed the school bus. \ Don’t worry. I heard the principal say

\ no child will be left behind. /

In the accompanying handouts we have included more than we cover in the power point slides. Our hope is that you will look the handouts over when you have time.

Feel free to use any handout as is or by adapting them.

Topics to be Covered

I. Why is a System of Learning Supports Imperative

for School Improvement?

II. What is a System of Learning Supports?

Rethinking Intervention

III. What is a System of Learning Supports? (cont.)

Reworking Infrastructure

Topics

IV. Intrinsic Motivation: Engaging and Re-engaging

Students, Families, & Staff

V. What’s involved in Getting From Here to There

VI. Planning Next Steps

I. Why is a System of

Learning Supports Imperative for

School Improvement?

<><><><><><><><><>

The current focus of school

improvement policy and practice

is too limited to ensure that all

students have an equal

opportunity to succeed at school.

<><><><><><><><><>

The limited focus contributes to:

– High Student Dropout Rates

– High Teacher Dropout Rates

– Continuing Achievement Gap

– So Many Schools Designated as Low Performing

– High Stakes Testing Taking its Toll on Students

– Plateau Effect

Some of the data:

The dropout rate for our nation remains unacceptably high. In 2006, the Education Trust reported that nearly 25 percent of the ninth grade population will not end up graduating from high school.

Some of the data:

Take reading levels as an example.

Despite reports of small recent gains, most American students, across grade levels, are reading at the most basic levels and “only about 30 percent of high school students read proficiently and more than a quarter read below grade level.”

Data from the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) clearly shows the plateau effect

related to academic achievement.

Three Lenses for Viewing

School Improvement Efforts

Lens #1 = All Students

Not some --

ALL youngsters

are to have an equal

opportunity to succeed at school

Lens #1 = ALL Students

Range of Learners

Motivationally ready and able

Not verymotivated/lackingprerequisite

skills/different rates& styles/minorvulnerabilities

Avoidant/ very deficient in capabilities

Lens #2 = Barriers to Learning and School Improvement

Range of Learners

I = Motivationally ready and able

II = skills/different rates& styles/minorvulnerabilities

III = Avoidant/very deficientin capabilities

No barriers

BarriersTo

Learning,Developmen

t, Teaching

InstructionalComponent

ClassroomTeaching

+Enrichment

Activity

DesiredOutcomes

(High Expectations& Accountability)

(High Standards)

For most students, it’s more about Environmental Conditions

Neighborhood Family School and Peers

than about Individual deficits

And, of course, a holistic approach emphasizes

>Protective Buffers (strengths, resiliency)

>Promoting Full Development

Appreciating the Full Range ofBarriers to Learning and School Improvement –

Examples of Environmental Conditions

• extreme economic deprivation

• community disorganization, including high levels of mobility

• violence, drugs, etc.

• minority and/or immigrant status

Examples of Family Conditions

• chronic poverty

• conflict/disruptions/violence

• substance abuse

• models problem behavior

• abusive caretaking

• inadequate provision for quality child care

Examples of School & Peer Conditions

• poor quality school

• negative encounters with teachers

• negative encounters with peers

• inappropriate peer models

Examples of Individual Conditions

• medical problems

• low birth weight/neurodevelopmental delay

• psychophysiological problems

• difficult temperament & adjustment problems

• inadequate nutrition

Caution: Don’t let anyonemisinterpret the term

>Barriers to learning It encompasses much more than a

deficit model of students.

And, it is part of a holistic approach that emphasizes the importance of

>Protective Buffers

(e.g., strengths, assets, resiliency, accommodations)

>Promoting Full Development

Lens # 3 = Engagement & Disengagement

Source of Motivation

Extrinsics Intrinsics Intrinsics/ Extrinsics

Engagement

InterventionConcerns

Disengagement(psychological

reactance)

Avoiding Over-reliance on Extrinsics,

Maximizing Intrinsic Motivation,

Minimizing Behavioral Control Strategies

Engaging & Re-engaging Students in Classroom Learning

It’s time to pay greater attention to how schools

>maximize Intrinsic Motivation

>minimize Behavior Control Strategies

>re-engage Disconnected Students

>sustain Teacher Motivation

Motivation,

and especially Intrinsic Motivation

are fundamental intervention

concerns related to student

(and staff) problems

• First Concern – Enhancing understanding of intrinsic motivation as related to academic achievement and the achievement gap

• Second Concern – Reducing overemphasis on behavior/social control & enhancing appreciation of the impact of psychological reactance

• Third Concern – Re-engaging students who have become actively disengaged from classroom instruction

• Fourth Concern – Teacher motivation

<><><><><><><><><><><>

From the perspective provided by these three lenses, schools need to revisit their school improvement plans with an eye to what’s missing.

<><><><><><><><><><><>

Brief Activity

• Think about how your school improvement plan addresses students who do not come to school motivated and ready to learn.

• Using the three lenses, jot down what’s being done to:

(1) Address barriers to learning

(2) Re-engage disconnected students

I. Why is a System of Learning Supports

Imperative for School Improvement? (cont.)

School Improvement Planning:

What’s Being Done &

What’s Missing?

What we see around the country

Talk about fragmented!!!

Psychological Testing

Violence & Crime

Prevention

Special Education

After-School Programs

HIV/Aids PreventionPupil Services

District

Juvenile Court Services

Community-Based Organizations

Mental Health Services Social

Services

HIV/AIDS Services Child

Protective Services

Pregnancy Prevention

Counseling

Codes of Discipline

Physical Education

HealthEducation

Clinic

Health Services

Nutrition Education

School Lunch Program

Drug Prevention

Drug Services

Smoking Cessation For Staff

Why the fragmentation?

Current situation at all levels in the educational systemwith respect to student/learning supports is that the efforts are

Marginalized in school improvementpolicy and practice

Fragmentation is one result and isn’t solved by focusing solely on improving coordination

Poor cost-effectiveness is another result (up to 25% of a school budget used in too limited and often redundant ways)

So is counterproductive competition for sparse resources (among school support staff and with community-based professionals who link with schools)

Why the Marginalization?

How school improvement planning addresses barriersto learning and teaching

Direct Facilitation of Learning & Development

Instructional / Developmental Component

Management Component

Governance and Resource Management

Safe schools &

Some Student & Family Assistance

Besides offering a small amount of school-owned student "support” services, schools outreach to the community to add a few school-based / linked services.

• Clearly, there are some supports; what’s missing is a dedicated, unified, and comprehensive component focused on:

(1) addressing barriers to learning and teaching

(2) re-engaging students who have become

disconnected from classroom instruction

The missing component becomes evident when school improvement plans are analyzed with respect to what is planned for those students who do not come to school every day motivated and ready to learn.

The need is to move from the prevailing two-component framework to a three-component framework in order to develop

a Comprehensive System of Learning Supports

Direct Facilitation of Learning & Development

Instructional/ Developmental Component

Management Component

Learning Supports Component

Addressing Barriers to Learning

Governance and Resource Management

Governance and Resource Management (Management Component)

Unifying Policy & Practice for Addressing Barriers to Learning

Addressing Barriers to Learning/Teaching (Enabling or Learning Supports Component)

Direct Facilitation of Learning (Instructional Component)

Examples of Initiatives, programs and services that belong under the umbrella >positive behavioral supports

>programs for safe and drug free schools

>bi-lingual, cultural, and other diversity programs

>compensatory education programs

>family engagement programs

>special education programs

>mandates stemming from the No Child Left Behind Act & other federal programs

Activity:

Discuss what you think teachers at your school would answer if asked what proportion of their students show up each day motivationally ready and able to do what the teacher has planned to teach that day.

Why are so many students not motivationally ready and able?

After your discussion, enjoy a break.

With all the budget problems, We have to do everything on a shoestring.

\ Are you saying you

\ still have a shoestring?

What’s the

community doing?

AGENCY REFORM

Restructuring and Reforming

Community Health and Human Services

The intent of current agency reform policy –

>end fragmentation

>enhance access to clientele

The focus –

>interagency collaboration

>school-linked services, sometimes based (co-located) at a school

Problems –

>doesn’t integrate with school’s efforts to address barriers to learning

>limits the focus to current agency work

As a result, current agency policy produces –

>an additional form of fragmentation

>counterproductive competition

>greater marginalization

It is important to remember that

Community Agency Reform is not the same thing as

Strengthening Communities

• The major intent of agency reform is to restructure services to reduce fragmentation.

• The emphasis is mainly on interagency collaboration.

• The major intent of agency reform is to restructure services to reduce fragmentation.

• The emphasis is mainly on interagency collaboration.

• Schools have been included since they offer better access to agency clients. Thus, the concept of school linked services, and the idea of community agencies co-locating services on a school site.

Because the focus is on services, little attention is paid to

»integrating community resources with existing school programs and services designed to address barriers to learning;

»including a full range of community

resources;

»strengthening families and neighborhoods by improving economic status and enhancing other fundamental supports.

School

Police Day care Center

Faith-based Institutions

Higher Education Institutions

Local Residents

Businesses

Restaurants

Health & Social Services AgenciesCommunity

Based Orgs.; Civic Assn.

Artist & Cultural

Institutions

Library

Senior Citizens

From Kretzmann & McKnight -- Communities have many resources!

To Recap:

School improvement policy and planning have not addressed barriers to development, learning, and teaching as a primary and essential component of what must be done if schools are to minimize behavior problems, close the achievement gap, and reduce the rate of dropouts

To Recap:

As a result, current efforts are marginalized, fragmented, often

redundant and off track, and they have resulted in counterproductive competition

for sparse resources

To Recap: The need is for a comprehensive system of learning supports that

(1) addresses barriers to development, learning, and teaching &

(2) (re-)engages students in classroom learning

In the handout, material , we have put some key questions we hope you are thinking about at this point.

For discussion:

• What are the many external and internal barriers interfering with your students learning and your teachers teaching and how does all this affect your schools?

Some matters that work against dealing

effectively with addressing barriers

to learning and teaching

We turn to four fundamental, interrelated concerns involved in moving forward to develop

a Comprehensive

System of Learning Supports

Toward developing , implementing, & sustaining a unified and comprehensive component

Four Fundamental and Interrelated Concerns

Framing Interventions to Address

Barriers to Learning and Teaching into

Policy a Comprehensive System

Revision of Interventions

Rethinking

Developing Systemic Organizational &Change Mechanisms for Operational

Effective Implementation, Infrastructure

Sustainability, &

Replication to Scale

Also, counter the overemphasis on extrinsic reinforcers by reintroducing a focus on intrinsic motivation.

We begin discussing thesefundamental concerns by

clarifying a way toframe interventions as

a comprehensive system for addressing barriers to

learning and teaching and re-engaging

disconnected students

II. What is a System of Learning Supports?

Rethinking Intervention

Overview• A Sequential Approach• Defining Learning Supports• Framing a Comprehensive System of

Learning Supports

>Continuum

>Content

>Major examples of intervention activity

in each content arena• Combined Continuum and Content Arenas

Promoting learning & Healthy Development

Prevention of Problems (System of Prevention) Intervening as early after onset of

problems as is feasible

(System of Early Intervention)

Specialized assistance for those with severe, pervasive, or chronic

problems (System of Care)

as necessary

Needed: An Integrated Sequence of Interventions that Includes a Comprehensive System of Learning Supports

Defining Learning Supports

Learning supports are the resources, strategies, and practices that provide physical, social, emotional, and intellectual supports to enable all pupils to have an equal opportunity for success at school by directly addressing barriers to learning and teaching and re-engaging disconnected students.

A comprehensive, multifaceted, and cohesive learning

supports system provides supportive interventions in

classrooms and school-wide and is fully integrated

with efforts to improve instruction and management

at a school.

Framing a Comprehensive

System of Learning Supports to

Address Barriers to Learning

Meeting the needs of all students requires

>promoting assets

>preventing problems &

>dealing with problems

And doing so in keeping with the principle of providing what is needed in the least disruptive and restrictive manner

A system of learning supports

frames both an

intervention continuum

& delineated arenas of content

Levels of Intervention Continuum—Interconnected Systems for Meeting the Needs of All Students:

One key Facet of a Learning Supports Component

Systems for PromotingHealthy Development &

Preventing Problemsprimary prevention – includes

universal interventions(low end need/low cost

per individual programs)

Systems of Early Interventionearly-after-onset – includes

selective & indicated interventions(moderate need, moderate

cost per individual)

Systems of Caretreatment/indicated

interventions for severe andchronic problems

(High end need/high costper individual programs)

School Resources (facilities, stakeholders, programs, services)

Community Resources (facilities, stakeholders, programs, services)

See examples See examples

Categories of Basic Content Arenas for Learning Supports Intervention

Classroom-BasedApproaches to Enable Learning

Crisis/Emergency

Assistance &Prevention

Crisis/Emergency

Supportfor

Transitions

Crisis/Emergency

Supportfor

Transition

Home involvement &EngagementIn Schooling

Crisis/Emergency

Supportfor

Transition

Home involvement &tEngagementIn Schooling

Community Outreach

Crisis/Emergency

Supportfor

Transition

Student &

FamilyAssistanc

Community Outreach

Crisis/Emergency

Supportfor

Transition

Student &

FamilyAssistanc

Community Outreach

Infrastructure >leadership mechanisms

Major Examples of Activity inEach of the Six Basic

Content Arenas

Classroom-Based Enabling & Re-engaging Students in Classroom Learning

FOCUS:

Classroom based efforts to enable learning

• Prevent problems; intervene as soon as problems appear

• Enhance intrinsic motivation for learning

• Re-engage students who have become disengaged from classroom learning

Classroom-Based Enabling (cont.)

EXAMPLES OF ACTIVITIES

• Opening the classroom door to bring in available supports

• Redesigning classroom approaches to enhance teacher capability to prevent and handle problems and reduce

need for out of class referrals

• Enhancing and personalizing professional development

• Curricular enrichment and adjunct programs

• Classroom and school-wide approaches used to create and maintain a caring and supportive climate

Crisis Assistance and Prevention

School-wide and classroom-based efforts for

>responding to crises

>minimizing the impact of crises

>preventing crises

Crisis Assistance and Prevention

EXAMPLES OF ACTIVITIES • Ensuring immediate assistance in emergencies so students can resume learning

• Providing Follow up care as necessary

• Forming a school-focused Crisis Team to formulate a response plan and take leadership for developing prevention programs

• Mobilizing staff, students, and families to anticipate response plans and recovery efforts

• Creating a caring and safe learning environment

•Working with neighborhood schools and community to integrate planning for response and prevention

Support for Transitions

School-wide and classroom-based efforts to

>enhance acceptance and successful transitions

>prevent transition problems

>use transition periods to reduce alienation

>use transition periods to increase positive attitudes/motivation toward school and learning

Support for Transitions

• Welcoming & social support programs for newcomers

• Daily transition programs (e.g., before/afterschool, lunch)

• Articulation programs

• Summer or intersession programs

• School-to-career/higher education

• Broad involvement of stakeholders in planning for transitions

Home Involvement in Schooling

School-wide & classroom-based efforts to engage the home in

>strengthening the home situation

>enhancing problem solving capabilities

>supporting student development and learning

>strengthening school and community

Home Involvement in Schooling

• Addressing specific support and learning needs of family

• Improving mechanisms for communication & connecting school and home

• Involving homes in student decision making

• Enhancing home support for learning and development

• Recruiting families to strengthen school and community

Community Outreach for Involvementand Support (including Volunteers)

Building linkages and collaborations to strengthen

students, schools, families, and neighborhoods

Community Outreach for Involvementand Support (including Volunteers)

• Planning and Implementing Outreach to Recruit a Wide Range of Community Resources

• Systems to Recruit, Screen, Prepare, and Maintain Community Resource Involvement

• Reaching out to Students and Families Who Don't Come to School Regularly – Including Truants and Dropouts

• Connecting School and Community Efforts to Promote Child and Youth Development and a Sense of Community

School

Police Day care Center

Faith-based Institutions

Higher Education Institutions

Local Residents

Businesses

Restaurants

Health & Social Services AgenciesCommunity

Based Orgs.; Civic Assn.

Artist & Cultural

Institutions

Library

Senior Citizens

From Kretzmann & McKnight -- Communities have many resources!

Student and Family Assistance

Specialized assistance provided through

personalized health and social service

programs

Student and Family Assistance • Providing support as soon as a need is recognized and doing so in the least disruptive ways

• Referral interventions for students & families with problems • Enhancing access to direct interventions for health, mental health, and economic assistance

• Care monitoring, management, information sharing, and follow-up assessment to coordinate individual interventions and check whether referrals and services are adequate and effective

• Mechanisms for resource coordination and integration to avoid duplication, fill gaps, garner economies of scale, and enhance effectiveness • Enhancing stakeholder awareness of programs and services

For more specific examples and mapping and analysis self study surveys for each arena, see the Center’s online resource aid:

Guide to resource mapping and

management to address barriers to

learning:

An intervention for systemic change

Combined Continuum and Content Arenas

Levels of Intervention

Systems for Promoting Healthy Development & Preventing Problems

Systems for Early Intervention (Early after problem onset

Systems of Care

ContentArenas

Classroom-FocusedEnabling

Crisis/ EmergencyAssistance & Prevention

Support for transitionsHomeInvolvement in Schooling

CommunityOutreach/Volunteers

Student & Family Assistance

Activity: Mapping & Analyzing Learning Supports

Systems for PromotingHealthy Development& Preventing Problems

Accommodations fordifferences & disabilities

Specialized Assistance & otherintensive interventions

Systems forEarly Intervention(early-afterproblem onset) Systems

of Care

System of Learning Supports is Designed to Produce a Declining Proportion of Students Needing Special Assistance

InterventionContent Arenas

(a) = Classroom-focused enabling; (b) = Support for transitions(c) = Home involvement in schooling; (d) = Community outreach/volunteers;(e) = Crisis/ emergency assistance and prevention; (f) = Student and family assistance

Levels

The framework is meant to guide development of a comprehensive system of learning supports as a primary and essential component of school

improvement.

Reminder: Such an enabling component is meant to:

(1) address interfering factors

(2) re- engage students in classroom instruction

What’s Missing?

Range of Learners

No barriers

BarriersTo

Learning,Developmen

t, Teaching

ClassroomTeaching

+Enrichment

Activity

DesiredOutcomes

(High Standards)

An Enabling or Learning Supports Component to Address Barriers and Re-engage Students in Classroom Instruction

Range of Learners

No barriers

BarriersTo

Learning,DevelopmentTeaching

ClassroomTeaching

+Enrichment

Activity

DesiredOutcomes

(High Standards)

Enabling Component

(1) Addressing Interfering Factors

(2) Re-engaging Students in Classroom Instruction

To Recap:

School improvement planning for developing a comprehensive system of learning supports to address barriers to learning and teaching requires:

(1) adoption of a umbrella framework that can unify current efforts

(2) expansion of the framework for school

accountability (to account for efforts to enhance social and personal functioning and address barriers to learning and teaching -- we will detail

this later)

To Recap:

Combining a continuum of intervention with a discrete set of content arenas to establish a comprehensive framework to guide development of an enabling/learning supports component. The resulting matrix provides a mapping tool and a planning guide for developing a comprehensive set of learning supports.

Activity Looking at schools you know:

How close are they to having a unified and comprehensive system of learning supports?

To answer this, many schools are using our Center’s tool for mapping & analyzing

Learning Supports – (It’s online as part of a toolkit of aids) Take a few minutes now to do a bit of mapping using this aid.

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