1. Extended Learning Opportunities
The contents of this PowerPoint were developed under a grant from the US Department of Education, H323A However, those contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the US Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government. Project Officer, Corinne Weidenthal
Welcome
Introductions-
Overview of the day
Schools are all in different places- some have established programs, some do not
Some are only pass/fail- others are graded
Challenge is meeting all of your needs with this training

2. Materials For This Presentation
Come from a variety of sources including but not limited to:
New Hampshire Department of Education
Virtual Learning Academy Charter School (VLACS)
Lebanon High School
Winnacunnet High School
NH Extended Learning Opportunity Program Design Handbook
Lots of resources out there- we will be highlighting many for you to use back at your schools
One that we recommend is the ELO handbook that is on Beyondclassroom. Handbook is under tools and resources. Is also listed on your resource guide
Tag the glossary its page 25 in your handbook

3. Course Learning Objectives
Participants will learn:
what an ELO is
the essential elements & best practices of an ELO
ELOs and their role in transition
where to find ELO resources
We want our session to be interactive and engaging. There is a lot of material to get through in the time we have. Ask questions but know that we tell you that we will be addressing your question later in the session
It is a large group- will be asking for feedback and group sharing throughout but may need to limit the sharing because of the size of the group

4. Guiding Principle
ELOs, like transition, do not happen in isolation. This training is about ELOs and the framework needed to build a program. Actual building needs to include other partners not present at the training.

5. Getting Started What is an ELO? Who do we need to create an ELO?
How do we create an ELO?
Focus today in on the individual- will have some cross over with tomorrow’s material
Resources will vary from school to school
Before we create- we need to know what an ELO is

6. What is an ELO? How do you and your school define what an ELO is?
Ask for feedback

7. What is an ELO?
Using paper, a role play, a video or any creative method of your teams choice, create a representation of how your school team defines an ELO. How did your school determine that definition?
Each group has 7 mins to create a representation and then will ask groups to do a quick share with the larger group. Use this information to lead into how ELO’s are defined by DOE & high quality ELO’s.
Suggest that those there by themselves partner with others for this activity

8. NH DOE Definition of ELOs
The primary acquisition of knowledge and skills through instruction or study outside of the traditional classroom methodology, including, but not limited to:
Apprenticeships
Independent study
Internships
Private instruction
Community service
Online courses
Performing groups source NH DOE

9. DOE Guidance on ELOs
Credit for ELOs must be based on student demonstration of mastery of rigorous, measurable course level competencies.
It is the purview of the local school district to identify/develop course level competencies, decide on appropriate competency assessment methods, and identifying necessary and sufficient evidence for students to demonstrate mastery.
ELOs may provide credit for all or some of a core course.
Source- NH DOE
DOE at the bottom is hyperlinked
How do we define core vs elective? If I take an extra science class- is that a core class or elective?

10. DOE Guidance on ELOs
ELO learning may be offered in any course area; school district policy defines which areas the district will approve.
ELOs must be pre-approved by the school before beginning.
Certified school personnel must authorize and oversee the ELO and the awarding of credit.
Source- NH DOE
DOE website

11. High Quality ELOs Source: www.beyondclassroom.org
A learning opportunity outside the classroom for which students get credit, including, but not limited to, sports, independent study, and online learning.
A specific structure for learning with personalization through flexible parameters. These credit-bearing ELOs have specific student components that foster disciplined inquiry, meta-cognition, and skill development.
Source:
We do not consider on-line classes in and of themselves an ELO.
Let’s talk about this- why would we say this about ELO’s and on line classes? Agree or disagree?

12. Developing your ELO policy? Practice piloting ELOs?
Which comes first?
Developing your ELO policy? Or
Practice piloting ELOs?
We are going with piloting
Practice can inform policy yet many schools need a policy to start a practice
Think implementation science- we need to make sure we have the right people at table, that we commit to developing a process and refining it as we have more knowledge
Policy development , awarding credits, assessment details all infrastructure components will be in will be day 2

13. To start- we need people

14. Identifying the Key Participants
Student
Has an interest or passion, and a desire to explore learning.
Certified Educator
To work with the student & ELO coordinator on identifying competencies and assessing learning.
Community Partner/Mentor
Provides the expertise for what the student wants to learn.

15. Identifying the Key Participants
ELO Coordinator
Coordinates the different aspects of an ELO including agreements with partners, DOL approval, communication with all parties
Guidance/School Counseling
Ensures the ELO is listed on the student’s transcript. Also support the scheduling of the ELOs.
Families
Support the student, agree to the ELO, and may assist in identifying the community partner
Not all schools will have ELO Coordinators
Some schools may have other staff participate

16. Special Education Considerations
For students who receive special education services, the student’s Case Manager should be part of the ELO team.
Consider the following:
alignment to the IEP and identified supports.
include the ELO in the transition services and course of study.
ELO may also serve as an assessment.
This is key for Spec Ed
For at risk student- may need out of district coord

17. For Students with a Disability
Disclosure
What information about the student's disability is shared with the community partner? Does it need to be?
Does the student need an accommodation? Or are there natural supports in the workplace?
Resource
AskJAN
What is the student’s role in this?
What needs to be shared & what does not.
Review JAN- focus on disability and accomidations

18. Preparing a Student for an ELO
Student centered planning
What is a student interested in?
What do they want to learn?
What drives their desire to learn?
Credits
Are there areas the students want/need to gain more credits?
Do they need credit recovery?
Maybe the student wants to take a class they the school does not offer
What has been done for assessment work if a student is interested in career exploration
Will explore credit recovery more tomorrow

19. Key Participant Clarification
ELOs require a Certified Educator to oversee competencies and award credit
The DOE does not require a HQT
Not all schools have ELO Coordinators
School Counselors or Career Tech/Work Based Learning Coordinators sometimes fill this role
ELOs are for ALL students
ELOs do not get rid of the need for teachers.
Transition Counselors or School Counselors also assume the role of ELO Coordinators
ELOs offer a unique tool/teaching method to support students in their learning

20. Making the Connection to Students & Transition Planning
Not everyone does well sitting in a classroom. Experiential learning often works well for students with disabilities and students at risk.
Community connections and concrete, hands-on learning provide support to reach measureable post secondary goals.
Involve the Student’s Case Manager
—Align to the IEP
—Include in transition services and course of study
Review learning style and preferences
ELO can be used as assessment, coordinated set of activities, course of study. Make the connection to life after HS
Discuss relevance- exploration of careers, leisure activities, advanced academics

21. Components of ELOs
We have all seen this- represents the 4 key areas of an ELO
This image was developed by the Q.E.D. Foundation and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit

22. to build an ELO
Again Focus will be on the student. Policy will be day 2
Start to think about a student or situation at your school that you would like to see as an ELO. Can reference the Almost ELO chart of you are looking for a place to start

23. ELO Design Template
Creates a framework to develop and organize the ELO.
Provides student, educator, community partner and family an understanding of expectations for the ELO.
Outlines the roles and responsibilities of the ELO partners.
let’s use the design template to build a high quality ELO
You have it in your folders . Its hyperlinked
Although many of you maybe using different tools- this one offers an explanation of what occurs at each step of the process and is the reason why we are using this one

24. Resources for Developing ELOs
Beyond Classroom
Lebanon High School
Winnacunnet High School
Next Steps New Hampshire
NH Extended Learning Opportunity Program Design Handbook
VLACS
Give time to explore sites
What other resources do you know about and use? Write them on the sticky pads and add them to our resource easel paper

25. Theory into Practice
Consider a student or a program at your school that you would like to design an ELO for.
Using the design template, let’s draft an ELO for that student or program.
You will be working on completing each section for the remainder of this training
Give groups a couple mins to consider this

26. Step 1: PLANNING (Student and Overseeing Educator Work Together)
Competencies
Project Description
The Essential Question
Community Partners
New Hampshire Extended Learning Opportunity Design Template created through the NH Department of Education ELO Initiative
Show template- these are the first 4 elements of the design template. Sets the foundation for what the student will be learning and doing for their ELO
This is one with the student. They take the lead but need to work with ELO Coordinator and Certified Educator to complete
Also- start thinking about credits to be awarded

27. Where to Begin?
Identify what the student wants to learn and create an essential question.
A good essential question:
motivates and shifts students toward ownership of learning.
is thoughtful, provoking, and philosophical, and not have a simple (or “google-able”) answer.
provides a baseline for the student to refine his or her own answer throughout the ELO experience.
The template may start at competencies- we think we need to identify what they wat to learn and the questions they want answered before assigning competencies

28. Essential Question: What drives the learning?
A good essential question can help shift students toward ownership of learning. Essential questions can be thoughtful, provoking, and philosophical – and they should never have a simple (or “google-able”) answer.
The community partner can serve as a sounding board as the student works through and refines his or her own answer for the essential question.
Source:
Further reading on Essential Questions
Remember to click on hyper link
Give some examples from your schools

29. Strong or Weak Essential Question?
What does Dr. Seuss have to say to adults?
Strong question! Will require creativity
Do depressed high school students benefit from medication?
Weak question. Can ask Google and get the answer
How does a leader maximize the effectiveness of a group?
Strong question! Requires critical thinking
Source:
Amination set up- questions are visible- click to show answers
Ask group if its strong or weak

30. Competencies…
are based on the enduring knowledge expected to be gained by a student.
often reference NH Curriculum Framework, Common Core Competencies and Grade Span Expectations.
describe what is expected from a student to demonstrate mastery of the competencies.
Typically 3-7 are identified for an ELO. This may vary due to the credits being earned for the experience.
To support the learning and ensure continued growth toward mastery, the learning process includes continuous feedback and predetermined bench marks (formative assessments) which clearly show progress toward achievement of learning goals and help guide instruction.
This can be a sample performance task(s), a test, a presentation, or another form of evidence to show mastery of the competency.
Source: NH DOE

31. No Competencies? We’ve Got You Covered
Two resources to identify competencies for an ELO:
New Hampshire State Model HS Competencies- State Board Approved
VLACS
Competencies are listed for each course.
ACTIVITY
Go to the VLACS learning catalog
Find the High School English class called Creative Writing. There are four competencies for the class.
What did you find?

32. Project Description Think big picture
What does the student want to learn?
Who will they work with?
What will they do?
How will they, and others, know when the ELO
is complete?
How will they demonstrate what they learned?
How will their work be assessed? By whom?
Performance indicators
Comes down to- what are they going to do?

33. Community Partners…
work with the student and certified educator to create the ELO and to establish criteria for commitment and engagement.
provide the expertise/information.
provide assistance on determining the student’s understanding of the subject matter.
You will need a working knowledge of your school insurance policy and familiarity with the NH Department of Labor rules.
Need to have someone that can connect with the community

34. A Note About Community-Based ELOs
The NH Department of Labor has specific rules and regulations regarding students and an unpaid work experience. This includes ELOs.
Visit to learn about the process to have your program and businesses approved map/schools.htm
Additional information can be found in the NH Extended Learning Opportunity Program Design Handbook
Depending on time- may only briefly touch on this
More of this on day 2

35. Community Partner Considerations
Does the community partner have requirements for students to be on their premises?
Criminal record check?
Drug screening?
Immunization requirements?
Non-disclosure agreement?

36. Team Time
Now its your turn to work with your team to start to complete the first part of the template. Consider the student or situation that you want to make into an ELO. Complete the first 4 sections. You can also use this time to make notes on resources to further explore for that ELO

37. Step 2: Implementation and Formative Assessments
Timeline and benchmarks
Research
Reflection
Overseeing educator and student communication
Community partner communication
● Formative Assessments - a wide variety of methods that teachers use to evaluate student comprehension, learning needs, and academic progress during a lesson, unit, or course. The information collected during formative assessments is used to improve the teaching and learning process as it is taking place.
How is the student doing? Setting up guidance and direction for the learning

38. Timeline & Benchmarks
How long does the student anticipate the ELO will take to complete?
How will you know if the student is on track to complete the ELO ?
How is the student, certified educator and community partner/mentor monitoring progress towards completion/mastery?
Timeframe des not refer to seat time. May start at the beginning of a term but true ELOs are finished when they are finished
Performance indicators and benchmarks
Accountability eliminates wiggleroom but the learning is done when the learning is done. Question is how are you monitoring it?
Handbook has some mid point forms to use to check on progress

39. Components of ELOs
This image was developed by the Q.E.D. Foundation and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit

40. Research
Explores how and where the student will find the information they want to learn.
Prepares them for implementation & engagement in their ELO.
Relates to the essential question and what the student wants to learn.
Allows student to identify any assumptions they made and consider new learning opportunities.
Source New Hampshire Extended Learning Opportunity Design Template, created through the NH Department of Education ELO Initiative
Formative assessment
What are they learning? Where is the information coming from? This is foundational- knowledge setting
Articulates the question(s) that guides the learning. (Essential Question)

41. Research Considerations
Identify the resources the student needs:
Community mentor
On-line resources
College classes…
What is a reputable information source?
Research should be ongoing and occur throughout the ELO.
Research can be reading a book, interviewing, experimenting- there is no one way to do research

42. Reflection
Provides information on what the student is learning, how they are learning and the connections they are making.
Allows educators and community partners the opportunity to evaluate learning and provide feedback.
Shows the evolution of thought and understanding.
Demonstrates problem solving and critical thinking.
Think about those times when you have had an Ah Ha moment- when things clicked. We want students to document those times or when the pieces are not coming together
Different parties will have different perspectives- having all partners involved in the reflection provides an opportunity for everyone to learn
Formative assessment- ongoing
Metacognitiion

43. What Does Reflection Look Like?
Reflection can be:
A journal
A blog
Correspondence
Weekly narrative
Video or audio documentation…
The goal is to document the progression of
learning connections between experience, research,
critical thinking and growth.
Who sees the reflections and how are you giving feedback? Can also have video or recordings too
Reflection allows the student to take ownership of the process and their education.
Highlights the differences between learning vs teaching

44. Communication
How will the student, certified educator and community partner communicate?
How is information shared with other team members?
Topics?
Frequency?
Method?
These aspects need to be considered and decided upon prior to the ELO starting.
Does everyone understand the scope of the ELO? Who is monitoring what aspects?
How often does everyone need information? Remember the timeframes you identified
Is it OK for the educator to stop by the site?
Is best?, Blog? Google drive document?
Make sure communication is tied to benchmarks and timelines

45. Team Time
Again- take time with your team to build the 2nd section of the template

46. Step 3: Summative Assessment
Final demonstration of mastery
ELO presentation
Assessment of mastery

47. Final Demonstration of Mastery
The project description gave an overview of the ELO. Now shift gears to think about how the end product and presentation are assessed.
What is going to be assessed?
By whom?
When?
Where?
Planning for the big show

48. ELO Assessment
In developing an ELO, all partners need to know what the expectations are and how the ELO will be assessed. No surprises! That information needs to be clearly outlined in the ELO plan.
No one likes surprises. Make sure that roles and responsibilities are clear. Beyondclassroom has tools for assessing ELOs . Successful ELO programs have clear assessment processes
The student should know from the beginning what they are going to be assessed on

49. Assessment of Mastery
All four components of the ELO need to be assessed:
Research
Reflection
Product
Presentation
The four components are intertwined.
Rubrics provide a clear understanding of the expectations for all aspects of the ELO.
Research is seen through the product and presentation. Critical thinking and understanding of materials is evident in reflection
Process vs content
Single pt rubrics
Defines by school policy

50. Product
The artifact(s): the concrete, tangible display of the student’s learning.
Assessment
Reflects the description of the ELO
Demonstrates the key aspects of the learning experience
Answers the essential question
Can include:
Portfolios
Research papers
Depending on the ELO it could be a building, website, a manuscript…the possibilities are endless!

51. Assessing Product Consider: Complexity Authenticity Quality
Reflection of learning
Uniqueness to the student
Visually engages the audience
Source Q.E.D rubric
How do you define quality?

52. Presentation Student demonstrates research and their findings.
Student publically shares their ELO experience.
Involves ELO team members including: community partner, ELO Coordinator, educator and family.
Defending their learning Mention competencies

53. Assessing Presentation
Elements to consider:
Articulates a clear explanation of the ELO and the rationale for it.
Evolution of thought and understanding of the subject matter and materials.
Use of the product in the presentation.
Engages the audience.
Summative assessment

54. Assessing Research What sources did they use?
Did they integrate and apply the information into their ELO?
Is that information clearly articulated?
Did the product and presentation clearly demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the research and its application to the essential question?
How do you assess any project that a student does- a research paper? Project?
Are the product and presentation a clear reflection of what the student set out to learn? Can they articulate an answer to their essential question

55. Team Time
You know the drill…work on the 3rd section

56. Now that the ELO is done
The overseeing Certified Educator is responsible for:
providing the student with feedback.
issuing a grade.
working with school counseling to record the ELO in the student’s transcript.

57. Let’s Face It…..
ELOs are an amazing opportunity for student learning

58. Summary ELOs are for all students, in every subject matter.
ELOs are a tool to support students to learn content and skills through a rigorous, structured learning process.
There are a wide variety of resources available to support the development of ELOs.

59. Preview to Day 2
Learn the critical components of an ELO program including policies and practices that support ELOs.
Explore strategies to develop an infrastructure to support ELOs within your school.
Work with your team to create a plan to enhance or build your ELO program.