Aldine ISD

★Stephens is one of 32 elementary schools in Aldine ISD (11th largest district in Texas with more than 62,000 students)

★Aldine ISD ranks among the state’s high performing school districts

★2009 Broad Prize Winner for Urban Education

★National Finalist for Broad Prize in 2004, 2005, and 2008

★2008 H-E-B Excellence in Education Award Winner

Stephens Elementary School

★Large urban school serving more than 1,000 students in grades K-4

★71 professional staff members, including 61 classroom teachers

★Music, Physical Education, Technology Applications classes in addition to core curriculum

★Full inclusion- no resource classes

★Full time librarian

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Profile and Demographics of Neighborhood

★Average Home Value- $58,000

★Average Household Income- $40,337

★Median Age- 27

★64% Spanish Speaking

★Unemployment above state and national averages

★4% college graduates

Profile of Stephens Stars(Comparison to State of Texas)

Stephens TexasAfrican American 10% 14%

Hispanic 87% 47%

White 3% 34%

Economically Disadvantaged

87% 56%

Second Language

54% 16%

At Risk 81% 48%

GT 5% 7%

Special Ed 7% 9%

Selected Campus Recognitions

★Exemplary for ten consecutive years (without TPM)

★Gold Performance Acknowledgements in all academic areas: Reading, Math, Writing, CI in Reading and Math

★Title 1 Distinguished School★Featured in US News & World Report★TBEC Honor Roll School in 2007★Named one of 14 winners of National

Excellence in Urban Education by NCUST

Reading Data Comparison(% Meeting Passing Standard)

8799 (+12)05-06

8999 (+10)06-07

9197 (+6)07-08

9197 (+6)08-09

90 96 (+6)09-10

TexasStephensYear

Math Data Comparison(% Meeting Passing Standard)

7599 (+24)05-06

7797 (+20)06-07

8099 (+19)07-08

82 98 (+16)08-09

8397 (+14)09-10

TexasStephensYear

Writing Data Comparison(% Meeting Passing Standard)

9199 (+8)05-06

9298 (+6)06-07

93100 (+7)07-08

9398 (+5)08-09

9397 (+4)09-10

TexasStephensYear

Stephens Students Outperform Texas Peers

★Every subject

★Every grade

★Every student group

★Ten Consecutive years

Commended Performance(Highest Performance Level)

16All Tests 24

3430Writing

3163Math

3442Reading

TexasStephensSubject

Mastery Levels of Performance

Stephens students perform at higher levels of mastery

(not just minimum standards) than their state

peers.

Expenditures Per Student

★School Group (Texas)

$6,456 per student

★Stephens

$6,371 per student

Selected Best Practices

Identified Through Baldridge Based Assessment

(Peer Review)

Alignment and Consistency

Examples

★Classroom Environment Checklists

★Common, aligned homework and checkpoints across grade levels

★Campus-developed curriculum timelines based on state standards and district benchmarks

★Sustained and common staff development (Model Classroom Project)

Focus on Rigor and High Expectations

★Research project completed by every student in building.

★Wonder Books, journals, questions.

★Question of the Week posted outside each classroom.

★Posted TEKS (learning objective) with rubrics.

★Differentiated instruction.

★Higher Order Thinking Skills.

Questions of the Week

Questions of the Week

Posted TEK and Shared Student Work

Research Projects

Sample Questions from Student Journals

★Why are clocks shaped like circles?- Elise 2nd grade

★Why is our thumb short? -Emily 3rd grade★I wonder why they sell guns. –Ruben 3rd

grade★Why do we bleed when we get cut? – Maria

4th grade★Why do we have calendars? –Salvador 3rd

grade★Who invented homework? –Julius 4th grade

Balanced Literacy

★ Addresses Phonics, Phonemic Awareness, Fluency, Comprehension, and Vocabulary.

★ Classroom Instruction Components include word study, shared reading, shared writing, guided reading, independent reading, and literacy work stations.

Gradual Release of Responsibility

Teacher models

Kids try it with teacher support

Kids practice on

own

TO:Modeling-read aloud-modeled writing

WITH:Hand Holding

-shared reading-shared & interactive writing

BY:Independence-independent reading & writing

TeacherMore teacher control

StudentMore student ownership

Gradual Release of Responsibility

-small groups based

on need

Anchor Charts

Guided Reading

Guided Reading

Literacy Work Stations(Big Book Station)

Overhead/Poetry Station

Shared Reading

Stephens Elementary

Building and Sustaining a Collaborative School Culture Focused on Student

Achievement

Selected Practices that Enhance a Collaborative School Culture

★Response to Intervention (RtI)

★Common Vision and Beliefs

★Team Planning

★Peer Observations

★Book Studies

★Common Language and Conversations

★Student Work and Accomplishments Shared and Displayed

Response to Intervention (RtI)

History at Stephens

★At Stephens began more than 5 years ago with IAT (Intervention Assistance Team).

★ IAT provided a set of common beliefs and practices around meeting the needs of all students and closing proficiency gaps.

★Skills specialists, lead teachers, and classroom teachers met regularly as a support to regular classroom teachers and planned “pull outs.”

★A culture of success was created and sustained.

Response to Intervention (RtI)

District Implementation

★Aldine began RtI process, training, and implementation three years ago.

★Aldine utilizes AIMSweb for universal screening and progress monitoring.

★Stephens had built-in capacities, frameworks, and expectations that facilitated the transition.

RtI: What is It?

★High quality instruction and interventions matched to student need.

★Frequent progress monitoring.★Informed, data driven decision-

making about instruction or goals.

RtI: Who is Involved?

Roles and Responsibilities

Classroom Teachers:

★Provide high quality, grade level instruction for ALL students

★Provide Tier I interventions for students identified as Tier I

Intervention Teachers:

★Provide Tier II and Tier III interventions

RtI: Who is Involved?

Roles and Responsibilities:1. Early Intervention Team (EIT): decision-

making team★ Administrator★ Counselor★ Skills Specialists★ Ad-Hoc members including classroom teacher

and parent2. AIMSweb Coordinator: trains staff on

universal screenings, runs reports, and trains staff on administering progress monitoring probes

RtI: How are students identified?

★Universal Screening

★Running Records

★Campus and District Assessments

★Reading Inventories- new students to campus are assessed at time of registration or during first week of instruction

★Fluency and Comprehension Probes

RtI: How are students served?

★Tier I- in classroom

★Tier II and Tier III- with intervention teacher/case manager

★Utilize various technologies to meet needs of students, including My Reaching Coach.

★Selected interventions are targeted and timely based on knowledge of student needs.

RtI: How are students served?

My Reading Coach★One of first campuses to utilize. Started in

Spring, 2008.★Purchased our own server to host programs.★Trained staff and began implementation.★Primarily utilized for Tier 3, Dyslexic, and

Special Education students.★Experienced success and shared success with

other campuses.★District curriculum directors expressed interest

and deployed and purchased for entire district in 2009.

★ Individual success stories.

RtI: How are students served?

Other Computer-Based Programs

★Lexia

★Inicios

★Earobics

★Destination Math

RtI: When are students served?

Challenge of Scheduling Students

★Planning with a purpose- scheduling and placement decisions always begin with consideration of needs of special education and Tier II & Tier III students

★Every decision based on student need- student learning is at core

★Maximize resources, including time

★Zero period and transition times

RtI: When are students served?

★Ownership given to skills specialists, dyslexia teacher, special education staff, and classroom teachers

★Flexibility and creativity★Interventions are not isolated to a certain

time of the day★Skills specialists do not have lunch duty or

paperwork other than EIT case management and other instructional responsibilities

Common Vision and Beliefs

Spend time discussing important questions:

★“What’s important around here?”

★“What does exemplary teaching look like?”

★“What kind of school do we want to create?”

★“What is our vision for Stephens?”

Peer Observations

★Challenges- coordination & planning, focus & purpose, buy-in.

★Structure- Three formal windows of opportunity for all staff members to observe one another across grade and subject.

★New teachers and teachers in need of assistance observe more regularly.

★Peer Dialogues occur after observations (with focus).

Peer Dialogues

Book Studies

★ Over the years the format has varied based on needs of campus- can be optional or required.

★ Selected book studies have included:1. Classroom Instruction that Works (Marzano)2. The Skillful Teacher (Saphier)3. The Fluent Reader (Rasinski)4. A Framework for Understanding Poverty (Payne)5. Reality Checks (Stead)6. The Art of Inquiry (Cecil)7. Learning Words Inside and Out (Frey & Fisher)8. Literacy Work Stations (Diller)9. The Courage to Teach (Palmer)

Book Studies

Common Language and Conversations

Words and Phrases that Shape Conversations:

★Mastery Learning

★Fluency

★Alignment

★Tiers (Interventions)

★Scorecards

★Rigor

★Engagement

★Reflective Practice

★Motivation

Sharing of Student Work

★Print Rich Classrooms and Hallways

★Student Growth Celebrated- Recognition Ceremonies

★Work Displayed with Learning Objective(s) as well as rubrics

Kindergarten Students Share Research Projects

Authentic, Student-Generated Products Based on Literature

Curious George and the Firefighter(1st Grade Bilingual Students)

TEKS and Rubrics

People Make the Difference!

It all comes back to students!