Gates Literacy Design Collaborative Daviess County Public Schools Implementation

Literacy Design Collaborative… is an initiative supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. utilizes both research and literacy experts to provide teachers a framework to implement the literacy requirements of the Common Core Standards. meets the needs of students for stronger reading and writing skills to be college and career ready. piloted work during in six states. DCPS was one of six districts in Kentucky included in the pilot.

Common Core State Standards require… that literacy be taught in all subjects – not just in ELA. a stronger emphasis on rigorous informational texts. “Using the LDC framework, teachers can merge CCSS literacy standards with important subject area standards – fostering coherence in teaching both.” (The 1.0 Guidebook to LDC, p. 7)

From a content teacher’s perspective… “If you plan this instruction right,” according to an Oregon history teacher who pioneered the LDC strategy, “you do not take time away from your content. In the end, the students will learn the content better than if they had not worked on their literacy skills at all.” (The 1.0 Guidebook to LDC, p. 12)

DCPS Implementation of LDC Work DCPS joined six Kentucky districts to pilot two of the twenty-nine LDC template tasks. o Template Task 11B, Informational/Explanatory (Fall 2010) o Task Template 2, Argumentative (Spring 2011) All middle & high schools were represented in the following subjects: o ELA, Science, Social Studies, and some electives (Agriculture, Fine Arts, Spanish) Several elementary schools also participated (Grades 1-5).

& DCPS was awarded a grant to expand the pilot work. o In addition to the three middle and two high schools, four alternative sites were added. o Literacy staff developer position was funded through the grant to support LDC implementation.

& Goal is to train 90% of ELA, science, and social studies teachers (regular and special education). Several elective teachers are also participating. Continue implementation at elementary schools (outside the grant).

“The purpose of the initiative is to have the students understand that they are reading and writing not just in my class, but in all their classes and it is the same structures – the same requirements – that they are held to the same standard.” a teacher from the pilot (1.0 Guidebook to LDC, p. 61) Teacher Perspective...

– Design Team Team includes one staff developer and one teacher leader per school, Literacy Staff Developer, Directors of Elementary & Secondary Schools. LDC Design Team plans and implements training and as well as provides on-going support.

MS/HS Implementation Selected Template Task Two, Argumentation (Aug. 2011) Identified Phase Two participants at each school (Aug. 2011) Introduced the LDC concept at faculty meetings (Sept. 2011) Conducted “Write a Task” training sessions at each school during planning times or after school (Oct. 2011)

MS/HS Implementation (cont.) Reviewed each template task to provide feedback and maintain consistent work quality (Oct. 2011) Conducted “Instructional Ladder” half day trainings at each school (Nov. 2011) Review each instructional ladder to provide feedback (Dec. 2011)

Implementation Steps (cont.) Teach modules (January – March 2012) Conduct student work scoring training (January 2012) Reflect, refine, and analyze results from LDC modules (spring 2012) Conduct district-wide meetings to share modules and begin planning for next year (spring/summer 2012)

Elementary Implementation Steps A pilot group of content area teachers, staff developers and all principals were provided an overview of the LDC initiative (Feb. 2011). Draft template tasks (2 & 11) were developed and taught. Student work samples were analyzed (Mar. 2011). Staff developers, school ELA representatives, LDC teacher leaders (one per school) and some principals continued to develop template tasks (Sept. 2011).

Elementary Implementation Steps (cont.) Instructional ladder training and analysis of student work sessions will be provided (Dec. 2011). Staff developers, ELA representatives and LDC teacher leaders will provide school- based training (Jan.-Mar. 2012).

The School Perspective Secondary—K. Atwell, J. Humphrey Elementary—A. Shutt

Sample LDC Work To access this PowerPoint and examples of DCPS modules, go to: o o Click on the “Staff” tab. o Select “Teaching and Learning Resources.” o From the list of classrooms on the left, select “DCPS Gates Literacy.” NOTE: All DCPS work is in Draft form. Work will be analyzed and revised in the spring.

Reflections… Template tasks are easy to use (fill-in-the-blank shells). Common Core reading and writing standards are built-in. LDC work should prepare students to be successful on the KPREP. Flexible – template tasks work with any content, and modules can be adapted. LDC work fosters collaboration. Instructional ladder design allows teacher flexibility for pacing work.

Questions

Contact information Julie Clark, Director of Secondary Instruction Dr. Vicki Riley, Director of Elementary Instruction Sharon Thurman, Literacy Staff Developer