Governor’s Teacher Network Action Research for the K-12 Educator Kris Florea 2014-2015

What is GTN? As part of North Carolina’s Race to the Top initiative, 450 classroom teachers from across the state were selected from among 1,500 applicants to participate in the Governor’s Teacher Network. Teachers applied to one of the following pathways: Pathway 1: Professional Development Teachers will create professional development sessions and materials (face-to-face, webinars and online modules) to address classroom instructional needs and  increase the PD offerings in the state-wide Professional Development system in Home Base. Pathway 2: Instructional Resources Teachers will create instructional sequences for Home Base that are aligned to the N.C. Standard Course of study and that consist of unit plans, lesson plans that seamlessly integrate the formative assessment process in daily practice, and where applicable, assessment items that are aligned to the standards to be taught in the lessons/unit.

My Initiative Pathway 1—Professional Development Create a reading program for students who have been identified as low-level learners. Increase the reading levels of the students to better prepare them for academic success in their high school courses. Share what I have learned about these students in an effort to create a program for them that will be implemented in schools state-wide.

Student Selection Over the summer, I hand-picked students to take part in this program using the following data: EVAAS Reading levels Previous end-of-grade test scores Projected English II end-of-course score PowerSchool Previous grades Modifications on file Dr. Sullivan approved all students before they were placed in the class.

Student Overview Gender Race Males: 10 Females: 11 Race White: 8 Hispanic: 7 Black: 5 Mixed race: 1 Average 8th grade English EOG score: 39 (Level II) Average projected English 2 EOC score: 29.2 (Level II)

Class Structure & Goals Incorporate fundamental reading strategies. Select high-interest material. Build strong relationship with each student. Create positive learning environment.

Reading Strategies Reading comprehension Summarization Making inferences Paraphrasing Fluency Vocabulary

High-Interest Material Use information garnered from surveys to determine student interest. Incorporate current events and news from pop culture. Give students choice in selection of reading material.

Building Relationships Ask students to complete surveys at the beginning of the year in an effort to get to know them better. Incorporate things they like into the curriculum as much as possible. News articles about sports they play, music they like, etc. Add content to “Today in History” activity that centers around the activities they enjoy. Incorporate reflection activities that allow students to share information about themselves.

Creating Positive Environment Establish rules at the beginning of the year and remain consistent. Most important rule… be kind to one another. Create calm physical atmosphere with lighting and class décor. Allow students to have input in seating.

Data Collection Administer pre-assessment to determine reading level. Use qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques.

Assessment—SRI Scholastic Reading Inventory (SRI)—measurement for Lexile/reading level scores Administer to reading class and traditional English I class as comparison. Administer as formative assessment throughout course to gauge growth. Use as summative assessment at end of course.

Qualitative & Quantitative Data Qualitative Data Quantitative Data Field notes Observations Questionnaires Student surveys Student and staff interviews Student work Student demographics Previous test scores Attendance records Incident reports SRI test scores

Pre-Assessment Lexile Scores Reading Class vs. English I Grade 1—100-300 Grade 4—600-900 Grade 7—850-1100 Grade 10—1025-1250 Grade 2—300-600 Grade 5—700-1000 Grade 8—900-1150 Grade 11—1050-1300 Grade 3—500-800 Grade 6—800-1050 Grade 9—1000-1200 Grade 12—1050-1300

Pre-Assessment Lexile Scores Reading Class vs. English I Grade 1—100-300 Grade 4—600-900 Grade 7—850-1100 Grade 10—1025-1250 Grade 2—300-600 Grade 5—700-1000 Grade 8—900-1150 Grade 11—1050-1300 Grade 3—500-800 Grade 6—800-1050 Grade 9—1000-1200 Grade 12—1050-1300

Using the Reading Strategies Introduce each strategy. Model behavior. Focus on one until students have shown mastery. Routinely revisit previous strategies. Read material together, pausing to discuss in order to check for understanding. Incorporate note-taking techniques. Highlighting Annotation

Summarization Start by using a template to break down techniques. Model techniques of good summaries. Using data from surveys, find subjects that matter to students. Pull articles of interest from the news.

Inference Start simple by using photographs. Week in photos from news organization (NBC News, CNN, New York Times, etc.) Students use prior knowledge and context clues in photos to infer what is happening in the image. Incorporates other content areas depending on what types of photos are selected. Can be done with historical photos, artwork, etc. to fit into other curriculum. Advance to paragraph passages. Instruct students to show how they came to the conclusions.

What’s Next? Through January 2015 Through March 2015 Continue teaching strategies in classroom. Continue implementation of action research plan. Complete data collection. Through March 2015 Analyze data. Through April 2015 Interpret data analysis and make recommendations based on findings. Through May 2015 Deliver action research findings in a 90-minute presentation at district, regional, state or national level. June 2015 Final project due.