1. Compass for Success Full-Day Kindergarten Robert Dunn Superintendent of Education York Region District School Board 1

2. Changing Structure Does NOT Change Results Primary Class Size Reduction – fully implemented in 2007-08 School Year +1% +4% +3% “The only way to improve student achievement is to change classroom practice.” 2

3. What the Research Says The only way to increase student achievement is to change classroom practice! Classroom instruction is the single greatest predictor of student success – greater than SES, Family background, etc. Most educators are working at or very near the limit of their existing knowledge and skill. 3

4. Lessons learned from High Performing Nations High performing nations establish high standards and apply them to all students – Whatever the approach, such standards shape high- performing education systems by establishing rigorous, focused and coherent content at all grade levels; reducing overlap in curricula across grades; reducing variation in implemented curricula across classrooms; facilitating co-ordination of various policy drivers, ranging from curricula to teacher training; and reducing inequity in curricula across socio-economic groups. Develop Leaders at the Local and School Level 4

5. Everything that I know, I learned in Kindergarten NOT! The amount of time a student is read to by age 2 predicts the student’s achievement in reading after the second year of formal schooling. “Pre-schoolers whose parents (especially mothers)read to them, tell stories or sing songs tend to develop later vocabularies, become better readers and perform better in school” “by age 3, children from wealthier families typically have heard 30 million more words than children from low-income families.” National Longitudinal Study of Children and Youth, Statistics Canada 5

6. Please pause this presentation and watch the accompanying video entitle “Judah Reads” located on the Compass for Success 2011 Conference page in the presentation by Robert Dunn.

7. 7 Please pause this presentation and watch the accompanying video entitle “FDK Short Clip” located on the Compass for Success 2011 Conference page in the presentation by Robert Dunn.

8. 8 Please pause this presentation and watch the accompanying video entitle “FDK Longer Clip” located on the Compass for Success 2011 Conference page in the presentation by Robert Dunn.

9. Non-Negotiables of Instructional Practice Assessment for learning: making learning visible (documentation). Comprehensive literacy is not separate from play. Same program that prioritizes literacy and numeracy includes social and emotional growth and play. Oral language is threaded throughout the day. Inquiry based play: keeping the curriculum in mind while following children’s interests. Environment as the third teacher (Intentionality - space, time, resources). Personalization: large group versus small group. Generic worksheets/art activities provide limited assessment information on the child’s level of understanding. 9

10. Criteria for an Effective FDK Program Full-Day Early Learning-Kindergarten 10

11. Instructional Focus Balanced literacy instruction is not separate from play based learning (Oral language/ reading writing connection and introduction to prompts as descriptive feedback) Oral language needs to be threaded intentionally through the day ( linking whole group and small group instruction to work at centres) Definition of Play: playful and engaging while being very well planned and purposeful. Planning begins with knowing each young learner to allow us to respond with purposeful assessment and instruction which is differentiated as needed. 11

12. “Play-based” learning “Kindergarten students spend part of their school day drifting among “free-choice centres” that are regularly updated with new toys and props that reflect interest.” “The idea is that curriculum should be driven by curiosity, and that given enough time to explore, children will ask the important questions on their own and retain more than they would from a lecture.” “Kindergarten split classes will shortchange students; The Globe and Mail, April 26, 2011,p. A12 12

13. Planning Personalized Precise Professional Learning based 13

14. 14 PERSONALIZED Who is at-risk? What are their learning needs? PROFESSIONAL LEARNING (Knowledge and skills of teaches?) & PRECISION (focus on Learning needs of students )

15. Data to inform Planning ASSESSMENTURPOSE Oral Language Assessment ( Crévola) To determine what structures of oral English students understand and control An Observation Survey of Early Literacy Achievement (Clay, 2002) Letter Identification To find out which alphabetic symbols children re recognising (by name, sound or word) Concepts about Print To find out what children know about print and how books work. Word Test To find out the extent to which children are accumulating a reading vocabulary Writing Vocabulary To find out what words children can write accurately. To find out what features of print children are responding to Hearing and Recording Sounds in Words To find out children’s ability to analyze words they hear and/or say. To find out how children record the sounds they hear on paper. To find out how well children are learning to direct their knowledge of letters, sounds a and words to understanding messages in the text 15

16. Planning Focus – Inquiry Question What is the impact of focused, intentional oral language instruction during guided oral language lessons, free play time and class discussions on students’ oral language development as measured by the OLA and the ‘ mean length of utterances’ assessment tool and expressive language profile? How will learning be documented? 16

17. Closing the Readiness Gap Access to high quality programs that are content rich, challenging, developmentally appropriate, aligned with standard and assessments, culturally responsive which sets high expectations for achievement and is built around a coherent scope and sequence which serves as a road map for learning.” EARLY WARNING! Why Reading by the End of third Grade Matters 17

18. Level 3 End of Kindergarten minimum standard 18

19. Level 7 End of Kindergarten – Target Level 19

20. Reading by the End of Third Grade Matters – A LOT A student who can't read on grade level by 3rd grade is four times less likely to graduate by age 19 than a child who does read proficiently by that time. Add poverty to the mix, and a student is 13 times less likely to graduate on time than his or her proficient, wealthier peer. YRDSB Research, grade 1 report card predicts grade 3 EQAO achievement. 2010 KIDS COUNT Special Report: Why Reading by the End of Third Grade Matters Donald Hernandez 20

21. High Expectations of ALL Students Parent’s MeasureTeacher Measure 21

22. School Planning Focus Parent Engagement – children whose parents read to them and engage in “talk” do better in school? Attendance- research has indicated that attendance patterns are set as early as kindergarten – Attendance Matters! What is the attendance management program in the school. Establishing the non- negotiables of instructional practice – what are they, do we as leaders understand what is should look like and what we expect to see? Professional Learning – how do we get the non-negotiables of instructional practice in every classroom? Monitoring impact – continuous, clear data which monitors the impact of instruction on the students. 22

23. Closing the GAP Changing the structure will not, of itself, close the gap. 23

24. These are challenging times in public education, as we enter the second decade of the 21 st Century, the knowledge economy will require more highly educated students than ever before in our history. “The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence; it is to act with yesterday's logic” Peter Drucker OR Doing what we have always done will get us what we’ve got. Is it enough? 24