Designing College Prep Math Tracks for Students Learning English Meagan Dawson UW L4L Inquiry February 2014

Equity and Excellence Key Questions Are 8 th -12 th grade ELL students accessing college-prep math courses? Are 8 th -12 th grade Math teachers developing their instructional strategies for ELLs? Are we, as leaders, designing a system that supports college- track Math courses for ELLs? Can we define exemplary Math/ELL classroom instruction?

Student Problem of Practice Claim: Our 8 th -12 th grade ELL students are not accessing college-prep math courses. Evidence: Non-CollegeCollegeCollege Plus 8 th graders th graders th graders th graders th graders510

Teacher Problem of Practice Claim: Our 8 th - 12 th grade Math teachers are developing their instructional strategies for ELLs. Evidence: ▫UW RISE UP Math training (Summer 2013) ▫SIOP training (Fall 2013) ▫Constructing Classroom Conversations (Fall 2013) ▫Math and ELL Coaching (year round)

Leader Problem of Practice Are we designing a system that supports college-track Math courses for ELLs? Claim: We are developing an 8 th - 12 th grade pipeline for college- prep Math coursework. Evidence: We increased the % of 8 th graders who enroll in and successfully complete Algebra. We eliminated the Pre-Algebra (non-credit bearing) course for 9 th grade ELL and SpEd students.

Leader Problem of Practice Can we define exemplary Math/ELL classroom instruction? Claim: We are researching effective 8 th -12 th grade Math/ELL instructional models. Evidence: Project-based learning High Tech High School iPad lesson plans Cross-credit with CTE

Leader Problem of Practice Are we designing professional learning and support for teachers to develop their practice? Claim: We are not offering professional development on Math/ ELL instructional practices. Evidence:

A Theory of System-Focused Action If district leaders design a system that supports college-track Math courses for ELLs, and leaders can define exemplary Math/ELL classroom instruction… Then Math teachers will access ELL coaching and training, improve their instruction for ELLs, and frame their TPEP goals with ELLs’ progress in mind… And ELL students will have access to college-track Math courses, improve both language and math skills via coursework, and have a college- ready transcript.

Collecting and Using Evidence Key Audiences: District Math Coach Math Teachers (7-12) Teaching and Learning Quantitative Data Number of ELL students enrolled Number of L4 students enrolled Percentage who passed course Transcript reviews State assessments College applications College acceptance rate Qualitative Data Student experience in the classroom Descriptions of instruction Teacher interviews Mentoring conversations Teacher goals Training requests Student project symposiums

Taking Action Increased # of sections of 8 th grade Algebra Eliminated the High School Pre-Algebra course Integrated iPads in 9 th grade Algebra Constraints & Challenges # of teachers with ELL background # of leaders with ELL background # of bilingual staff at high school Readiness to trial new models

Assessing What Happened Increased % of ELL students in credit- bearing Math course Increased % of teachers SIOP trained Increased % of teachers attending ELL trainings Actions Not Taken/ No Data Did ELL students pass Algebra course? Are teachers setting ELL goals? Visiting high-performing ELL schools? How do leaders vision Math instruction? Do leaders see themselves as ELL leaders? Do we have an ELL-College Prep vision?

Next Steps: One-on-one surveys with high school Math teachers Instructional Support for teachers Before- and after-school support for students ELL research and theory School visits