The following workshop will be conducted at the VL Conference July 17th-18th. The workshop is designed to support stakeholders in addressing the following driving question: How do we develop an educational system that supports all students in seeing themselves as their own teachers? Participants will: - Understand the process by which governance members, administrators, teacher leaders, teachers, and students identified, created, and implemented a system-wide approach to addressing the four fundamental questions: Where is the learner going? Where is the learner now? What are the learner’s next steps?, and, In light of the evidence, what approaches and strategies appeared to efficiently and effectively enhanced the learning process? - Understand the actions students have taken to see themselves as their own teachers in the classrooms. - Understand the actions teachers have taken to see learning through the eyes of students - Relate the six signposts of the VL research to system-wide leadership efforts of TUHSD in developing a learning system infrastructure, including professional development, to enhance students’ clarity of the learning process. - Explore actions (successes and challenges) that permeate across contexts to achieve the type of alignment and autonomy experienced by the leaders, teachers, and students of the presenting school district.

1. Developing a System-wide Approach
to Support Students in Seeing
Themselves As Their Own Teachers
Michael McDowell, Ed.D.
#vlconf2014

2. How do we develop an educational system
that supports all students in seeing
themselves as their own teachers?
#vlconf2014

4. First Theory of action
– If all students have clarity regarding
outcomes, success criteria, knowledge of
current performance, and voice and choice in
the learning process, then students will
substantially improve in their learning and
take greater responsibility over their learning.

5. Second Theory of action
• If teachers provide clarity of learning outcomes,
success criteria, knowledge of current
performance, and voice and choice in the
learning process, then students will substantially
improve in their learning and take greater
responsibility over their learning.

6. Our Story

7. Our Story
Learning System
Infrastructure
Daily operation

8. #vlconf2014
Outcomes
• To understand a system-wide approach for
enabling students to have:
• Access to core learning outcomes,
• Clarity of expectations,
• Knowledge of performance levels, and
• The opportunity to make decisions in the
learning process

9. #vlconf2014
Outcomes
Understand the actions students have taken to see
themselves as their own teachers in the
classrooms.
Understand the actions teachers have taken to
see learning through the eyes of students

10. PART I
Creating a Learning System
Infrastructure

11. #vlconf2014
• Developing a backbone
• Embracing Customization
• Developing a support system

12. Research Guidance
Strategy Effect
Teachers working together to evaluate their impact and responding to
that impact 0.93
Teachers conduct pre-assessments, utilizing data to inform instruction,
and providing students with a clear understanding of expectations for
meeting learning outcomes (Where are we going?, where are we now?,
and what’s next?
0.77
Teachers using practices in the classroom that values errors and trust 0.72
Teachers receive feedback on their impact on student learning 0.72
Teachers are providing an appropriate proportion of surface and deep
level knowledge 0.71
Providing students with challenge and practice at the right level 0.60

13. What’s the story?
• Teachers are among the most powerful
influences on learning

14. “Teachers don’t teach.”
– They

15. Teachers need to be directive, influential,
caring, and actively engaged in the passion
of teaching and learning

16. • Teachers need to be aware of what each and
every student is thinking and knowing, to
construct meaning and meaningful experiences in
light of this knowledge, and have proficient
knowledge and understanding of their content to
provide meaningful and appropriate feedback
such that each student moves progressively
through the curriculum levels

17. #vlconf2014
- Where is the learner going?
- Where is the learner now?
- What are the learner’s next steps?
- In light of the evidence, what approaches
appear to efficiently and effectively enhance the
learning process?

18. • Teachers need to move from the single
idea to multiple ideas, and to relate and
then extend these ideas such that learners
construct and reconstruct knowledge and
ideas. It is not the knowledge or ideas, but
the learner’s construction of this
knowledge and these ideas that is critical.

19. School leaders and teachers need to create
school, staffroom, and classroom environments
where error is welcomed as a learning
opportunity, where discarding incorrect
knowledge and understandings is welcomed,
and where participants can feel safe to learn,
re-learn, and explore knowledge and
understanding.

20. Research Guidance
Strategy Effect
Teachers working together to evaluate their impact and responding to
that impact 0.93
Teachers conduct pre-assessments, utilizing data to inform instruction,
and providing students with a clear understanding of expectations for
meeting learning outcomes (Where are we going?, where are we now?,
and what’s next?
0.77
Teachers using practices in the classroom that values errors and trust 0.72
Teachers receive feedback on their impact on student learning 0.72
Teachers are providing an appropriate proportion of surface and deep
level knowledge 0.71
Providing students with challenge and practice at the right level 0.60

21. Progress
Proficiency

22. A culture & climate conducive to improving teaching and
learning

23. What do we want all
students to know and be
able to do?
How do we know when
students are learning?
What do we do based on
such results?
How do we work together
to review and respond to
student learning?

24. What do we want all
students to know and be
able to do?
What do we do based on
these results?
How do we work together
to review and respond to
student learning?
Common Outcomes
Common Scales
Common Intervention
Criteria
Common Culture and
Work
How do we know when
students are learning?

26. Teaching [and learning] in the dark is a
questionable practice” (Taba, 1966)

27. #vlconf2014
- Where is the learner now?

29. Score Description
4 Extension
Applying Understanding
3 Relational
Making Meaning
2 Single/Multiple
Building Knowledge
1 Direct Support
Proficiency
Not Yet
Proficiency

30. Score Description
4 Extension
Applying Understanding
3 Relational
Making Meaning
2 Single/Multiple
Building Knowledge
1 Direct Support
DEEP
SURFACE

32. Connections
Limited Growth (0.0-
0.39)
Expected Growth (.40 +)
Not Yet Proficient (0.0-
2.25)
Proficient (2.5-4.0)

33. Limited Growth (0.0-0.39) Expected Growth (.40 +)
Not Yet Proficient
(0.0-2.25)
Make A Change!
• Review & Make Changes to
Instructional Strategies
Keep it up!
• More Time
• Same Instructional
Program
• Celebrate Success
Proficient (2.5-4.0) Cruising
• Review & Make Changes to
Instructional Strategies
Success
• Capture Instructional
Strategies
• Celebrate Success
• Continue Practices

34. Limited Growth (0.0-0.39) Expected Growth (.40 +)
Not Yet Proficient
(0.0-2.5)
Make A Change!
• Review & Make Changes to
Instructional Strategies
Keep it up!
• More Time
• Same Instructional
Program
• Celebrate Success
Proficient (2.5-4.0) Cruising
• Review & Make Changes to
Instructional Strategies
Success
• Capture Instructional
Strategies
• Celebrate Success
• Continue Practices
Capture
Success/Replicate
Change

35. What? So What? Now What?
Moving from Data Analysis to Response

36. Single/Multiple Ideas- What instructional approaches
will support students in understanding foundational
knowledge (e.g. facts, vocabulary terms) related to
learning outcomes?
Relating ideas- What instructional approaches support
students in connecting and contrasting ideas? What
are generalizations and principles that can be made
about these ideas?
Extending ideas- What instructional approaches support
students in applying the learning outcomes to other
contexts
Next Steps- Teachers

37. Single/Multiple Ideas- What strategies am I using that
will support me in building knowledge and skills (e.g.
facts, vocabulary terms) related to learning outcomes?
Relating ideas- What approaches appear to be working
or I should attempt to connect and contrast ideas? How
am I going as related to making generalizations and
principles?
Extending ideas- What approaches support me in
applying the learning outcomes to other contexts?
Next Steps- Students

38. Math Strategies
Below Average
• Counting all 22%
• Counting on 72%
• Known facts 6%
• Derived facts/Number
Sense 0%
Above Average
• Counting all 0%
• Counting on 9%
• Known facts 30%
• Derived facts/Number
Sense 61%

39. Aligning “High Probability Strategies” from the
Art and Science of Teaching to Progression
Levels.
Outcome Questions Activities
Applying understanding What do I typically do to
engage students in
cognitively complex tasks
involving hypothesis
generation and testing?
Experimental-inquiry
tasks
Problem-solving tasks
Making meaning What do I typically do to
organize students and
deepen knowledge?
Venn diagrams
Comparison matrix
Building knowledge What do I typically do to
identify critical
information?
Identifying critical input
experiences

43. Face the Brutal Facts

44. • Driver of customization is impact
• Impact is identified through progress and
proficiency
• Impact is discussed by all stakeholders
• All stakeholders have degrees of voice
and choice in showing, celebrating, and
improving upon their impact.

45. Common Outcomes
Customized
Instruction
Customized
Assessment
Customized
Collaborative
Structures
Customized
Intervention
Common Scales
Common Intervention
Criteria
Common Culture and
Work

46. #vlconf2014
Support Systems
– Governance Purpose, Procedures,
Agreements
– Aligning policy
– Allocating resources
– Developing a distributed leadership team
– Codifying and Focusing Human Capacity
Efforts

47. Research Guidance
Strategy Effect
Teachers working together to evaluate their impact and responding to
that impact 0.93
Teachers conduct pre-assessments, utilizing data to inform instruction,
and providing students with a clear understanding of expectations for
meeting learning outcomes (Where are we going?, where are we now?,
and what’s next?
0.77
Teachers using practices in the classroom that values errors and trust 0.72
Teachers receive feedback on their impact on student learning 0.72
Teachers are providing an appropriate proportion of surface and deep
level knowledge 0.71
Providing students with challenge and practice at the right level 0.60

48. Part II
How do we operationalize a learning
system to substantially impact
all learners?

49. #vlconf2014
- Where is the learner going?
- Where is the learner now?
- What are the learner’s next steps?
- In light of the evidence, what approaches
appear to efficiently and effectively enhance the
learning process?

50. Where we are going?
(Program Goals)
Where we are?
(Proficiency Scales) Where to next?

51. Scenario

53. Be honest with where I am at on
learning progressions. I definitely am
honest with where I am in this class.
This way of assessment has
completely made me feel alright with
being in the pit because I know that I
am not stuck there and that I can get
myself out of it. I really appreciate all
that you have done to make us feel
comfortable with progress.

54. Be open to struggling…Before this class I was not open to
struggling at all, so this took me a while to get used to.
Now I know that I can get myself out of the pit, so I feel
comfortable being in it! I just wish it was this way in the
rest of my classes. ):

55. My annotations and thoughts on written pieces were at
about a 1 level at the beginning of the semester, but with
guidance in class and a lot of practice I have grown to
getting a four on the last annotation. Next semester I
hope to grow further.

56. #vlconf2014
- What are the teacher’s next steps?
- In light of the evidence, what approaches
appear to efficiently and effectively enhance the
learning process?

57. Learn more about Visible Learningplus
at www.corwin.com/visiblelearning