Equity Skills Dr. Kathryn McKenzieDr. Linda Skrla Texas A&M University

Outcomes At the end of this session you should: be able to define the 3 components that comprise excellent and equitable schools be able to describe Equity Consciousness and High Quality Teaching Skills be able to define Active Cognitive Engagement have an understanding of Teaching and Learning Tours as a Professional Development strategy to ratchet-up classroom practices to ensure the success of all students.

The Goal Equitable and Excellent Schools Teacher Quality Programmatic Equity Achievement Equity Skrla, McKenzie, Scheurich (2008,2009)

Focus of Our Work Teacher Quality Equity Consciousness + High Quality Teaching Skills Equity Consciousness High-Quality Teaching Skills Two things to look for in assessing equity consciousness and high quality teaching: Active, Cognitive Engagement (ACE) and Zone of Self- Efficacy

Successful Teachers Have Equity Consciousness High Quality Teaching Skills

Teacher in a Traditional School Teacher Skill

Teacher in a Culturally Responsive High Achieving School Teacher Skill

Tenets of Equity Consciousness Tenet One A belief that all children (except only a small percentage with profound disabilities) are capable of high levels of academic success

Tenets of Equity Consciousness Tenet Two A belief that academic success is possible regardless of students’ race, class, gender, culture, or religion (McKenzie, Skrla, Scheurich, 2006)

Tenets of Equity Consciousness Tenet Three A belief that the adults in schools are primarily responsible for seeing that all children reach success (McKenzie, Skrla, Scheurich, 2006)

Tenets of Equity Consciousness Tenet Four An understanding that traditional school practices have resulted in inequity for individuals and groups of students and that these practices must change to ensure the success of all students (McKenzie, Skrla, Scheurich, 2006)

High Quality Teaching Skills 1.Putting in place consistent and reliable classroom procedures and routines 2.Clearly communicating classroom expectations for learning 3.Challenging students with high-level and complex tasks, a rigorous curriculum 4.Engaging all students, all the time, in learning activities that are active instead of passive 5.Extending student learning through teacher-to-student and student-to- student discussions 6.Frequently assessing individual student learning 7.Differentiating instruction to meet individual student needs and capitalize on individual assets 8.Embedding cultural connections in instructions 9.Demonstrating respect and care in all interactions with all students and their families (McKenzie, Skrla, Scheurich, 2006)

ACE Active Cognitive Engagement Define together

Zone of Self-Efficacy Discussed in previous session

Teaching and Learning Tour What is it? – A professional development strategy – A strategy focused on continual improvement reflective practice collaboration

Teaching and Learning Tours Focus: Active Cognitive Engagement; Zone of Self-Efficacy Reminder: This is NOT about the person being observed. It IS about using your colleague’s classroom as a lab for you to engage in reflective practice—that is thinking about your practice. If this was your classroom, what would you be proud of? What is positive in this classroom? What is the objective being taught? Based on this objective, what is the percentage of children who are actively cognitively engaged? Are there any students out of the zone? If so, why do you think this is the case? If this was your classroom, what could you do to “ratchet up” the active cognitive engagement or ensure that all students are in the “zone”? ___________________________________________________________________________________ Your observer will give you feedback on the strategies you want to try in classroom. Which strategy or strategies do you want feedback on? Teacher name:___________________________________________ Copyrighted: Do not copy or distribute without written permission from the authors. Skrla, McKenzie, & Scheurich (2009)

Let’s take a Tour ra+tamara&aq=f

Example of Strategies to Increase Active Cognitive Engagement Teacher guided small groups instead of teacher moving from individual student to individual student Use of white boards for student responses Use of timer to move students through transitions and guide individual, small group, and whole class responses Assign cooperative jobs for small groups Use instruction cards for centers Utilize co-teachers for guiding groups Individual student response cards (for example A, B, C, D or yes/no or agree/disagree) Use butcher paper in corners of room and have students respond on the paper Use butcher paper on the floor and have students respond on the paper Use sponge activities when waiting on restroom etc to maximize learning time Games that require individual response, then small group, then whole class Wait time Think, Pair, Share Flexible grouping by student need Preteach Use of timer or watch for teacher to check ACE and Zone Keep it calm, neat and organized Use of manipulative and graphic organizers