Charter elementary School Broward County, Florida

1. Curriculum RenewalEDD 7913 CRN 30585By Jamie Leeder, Genevieve Leydig, Keith MabeNova Southeastern universityApril 4, 2013

2. Charter elementary School Broward County, Florida

3. Background/Rational • As a result of 2010-2011 FCAT performance, Charter Elementary has been identified as a School In Need of Improvement (SINI) with a Differentiated Accountability (DA) Correct II Status. • During 2010-2011, the school’s population had two subgroups: • Economically Disadvantaged • Black. • The percentage of students who qualified for the Free and Reduced Lunch program rose to ninety-six percent (96%), the highest in school history. • Analysis of the achievement results, indicate that the 2010-2011 initiatives intended to move students to grade-level proficiency were not intensive to target student needs as assessed on the more rigorous FCAT 2.0.

4. Background/Rational Continued • The school grade for the 2010-11 school year fell from a “D” to an “F”. • State and district mandated higher achievement or school faced closure • Grade must move from a F to a C to keep school open. • Academic rigor and effective teaching strategies were lacking in all grade levels • The percentage of students making one year’s growth decreased in the following areas (amount decreased): fourth grade math (2%), fifth grade reading (10%), and fifth grade math (37%). • Only 50% of bottom quartile (lowest 25%) of students made a year’s worth of growth.

5. Target group and objectives • All academic teachers K-5. • All academic subjects . • Objectives: • To increase academic rigor of core subjects • To increase professional development to improve teaching strategies and instructional delivery. • Goal: • To raise school letter grade from a F to a C and to create a rich learning environment with a more rigorous academic focus.

6. Strategies • Reconstitution of all staff • Hire new administrative team (Principal, Curriculum Coaches, RTI (Response to Intervention) Specialist) • Hire new teachers that have strong student data to support their instructional delivery. • Revise all academic curriculum to meet new state standards and FCAT 2.0. • Increase daily schedule by one hour. • Increase teacher planning time to one hour. • Provide instructional support through coaching cycle. • Monitor student data on a bi-weekly basis. • Weekly professional development. • Increase opportunities for tutoring and remediation of skills.

7. Curriculum Renewal Step one: initiate • Strong school culture. • Team member support/collaborative planning. • Administrative support and development in curriculum. • Ongoing professional development. • Bi-weekly data chats. • Student centered activates that directly align with FCAT 2.0 .

8. Curriculum Renewal Step TWO: ANALYZE • Data analysis shows a need for academic improvement

9. Curriculum Renewal Step Three: Design • Daily common planning to promote collaboration. • School based coaches facilitate grade-level common planning three out of five days a week. • Intermediate teachers receive extended common planning time to allow for disaggregating the FCAT 2.0 benchmarks and designing lessons that address the content and cognitive requirements of the FCAT 2.0. • Intermediate teachers also use FCAT 2.0 Test Specifications to develop higher-order questions that align with FCAT 2.0 question stems. • Student interventions are in full alignment with NGSSS FCAT 2.0 Test Specifications and follow a “push-in” strategy where students receive additional small-group support within their general education classroom.

10. Curriculum Renewal Step Three: Design continued • Increased instructional time in all subject areas • Grades 3-5 • Reading instruction 2 hours • Math instruction 1.5 hours • Writing instruction 1 hour • Science and Social Studies is .5 hours (infused in Reading instruction as well). • Curriculum instruction designed with authentic texts • Improves instruction • Increases the students love of reading • Provides a connection to the text • Increases student engagement • Encourages students to read more • Prepares students for the reading stamina required for FCAT 2.0 • Allows teachers in incorporate other areas of the curriculum throughout reading instruction.

11. Curriculum Renewal Step Four: Implement • Coaches monitor teacher instructional design. • Bi-weekly data chats to monitor student progress. • Conduct coaching cycle to improve instructional delivery. • Push in support for low level learners. • Increased tutoring and afterschool academic help to all students. • Teachers will be provided with the support, training, instructional resources and positive educational climate to successfully implement revised programs in all content areas. • Budget allocations for supplies and materials, textbooks and staff development will be focused on the revisions or new program.

12. Curriculum Renewal Step five: evaluation and revise • Continue to collect data in evaluation of curriculum changes. • Checkpoints are established to gather feedback from teachers. • Adjustments in implementation and staff development are made along the way. • Program observations are conducted during this year. Observation of teacher performance in implementing the new curriculum is emphasized since teachers are teaching brand new material. • Curriculum renewal plan will be evaluated against any changes in state and national standards and state and national assessment practices. • The plan works only if you constantly review it and revise it as needed. • Plan for next review.

13. references • Badiali, B. (2011). Self-assessment, program evaluation, and renewal. Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education, 110(2), 444-462. • Fisher, D., & Frey, N. (2013). Implementing RTI in a high school: A case study. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 46(2), 99-114. • Jacobs, H. (2010). Curriculum 21: Essential education for a changing world. Alexandria, VA: ASCD. • Schmoker, M. (2006). Results now: How we can achieve unprecedented improvements in teaching and learning. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.