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Building Partnerships Between School Districts and a University to Increase

Equity and Access

Jane Gawronski, Linda Dye, Karen Payne Aguilar, Tanya Vik and Steve Klass

Session #94 – AMTE 2006 – Tampa

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Today’s SessionWelcome and introductionsWhat we know about professional

developmentWhat we do in our professional

development Impact of our workQuestions/discussion

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Characteristics of Expert Teachers Know the structure of the knowledge in their

disciplines; Know the conceptual barriers that are likely to

hinder learning; Have a well-organized content knowledge

and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK); and

Continuously assess their own learning, knowledge, and practices.(Bransford, Brown, and Cocking, 1999, p. 230)

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Effective Professional Development Is driven by a well-defined image of effective

classroom learning and teaching;

Provides opportunities for teachers to build their content and pedagogical content knowledge while examining their own practice;

Is research-based and engages teachers as adult learners in the learning approaches they will use with their students; (continued)

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Effective Professional Development (continued) Provides opportunities for teachers to

collaborate with colleagues and others to improve their practice;

Supports teachers to serve in leadership roles;

Links with other parts of the education system; and

Is designed based on student learning data and is continuously evaluated and improved.– Loucks-Horsley et al. (2003), p. 44

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Our Belief System Good professional development blends

content and pedagogy.– Teachers with this understanding can teach

effectively from any curriculum materials. Good professional development is led by

people with K-12 teaching experience with expertise in mathematics and/or mathematics education.

All students can learn mathematics. Assessment should be used to inform

instruction.– Use student thinking to make instructional

decisions.

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Characteristics of Our Professional Development Accountable for teacher growth and

increased student achievement

Blends content and pedagogy

Links to classroom practice

Embeds equity

Sustained over time

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Professional Development Collaborative Currently supported by a $5.1M grant

from Qualcomm to Improve Student Achievement in Mathematics (ISAM)

This is the sixth year of our work

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Facets of Our Work University certificate programs

– Upper elementary grades

– Primary grades

– 12 semester units of Teacher Education and

Mathematics District partnerships, including district-

based professional development

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District Partnerships

San Diego Unified School District (K-12)

Ramona Unified School District (K-12)

Lemon Grove School District (K-8)

Sweetwater Union High School District (7-12)

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San Diego Unified School DistrictDistrict Needs

–Increase student achievement and eliminate achievement gap

Teacher Participation–Upper elementary grades–Primary grades

Delivery–Meeting once per week

–Intensive start preferred

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Ramona Unified School District District Needs

– Rural district – Focus on teaching of mathematics

Delivery– 2 year agreement– 15 full days each year (4 summer, 11 during academic year)– Informal visits to “leadership team” members’ classrooms

Teacher Participation– 25 teachers (grades 3-6)– Mostly voluntary – Representation from each of the 6 elementary schools – District math resource teacher participates in all sessions

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Lemon Grove School District

Delivery– Started with three, optional, full day sessions prior to

the beginning of the school year– Full-day sessions over a two-year period– Five-year partnership

District Needs–Establish a “culture of mathematics”

•Regularly analyze students’ math understanding •Reflect on effective “next steps” for instruction

Teacher Participation–Mandatory for participating schools–Includes “Reading Recovery” intervention teachers

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Sweetwater Union High School District

Delivery– All 22 middle and high schools

– Four full-day sessions each year over a five-year period

District Needs–Increase student achievement in Algebra–Increase California High School Exit Exam pass rate

Teacher Participation–Mandatory

–All Math 7, Math 8, and all forms of Algebra,

including Special Education

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“We’re testing a theory of practice… …can we carry off a long-term partnership?”

- Lionel “Skip” Meno, Dean, College of Education, San Diego State University

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Essential Elements in Developing Successful Professional Development Partnerships

Communication, Collaboration, Continuity– Creating a Shared Vision

• Clarifying, revisiting• Belief systems• Overcoming the pervasiveness of a “quick fix”

– Establishing and maintaining a “culture of mathematics” in schools

• Administrator and teacher turnover• Sustainability in the dynamic environment of schools

– On-going reflection and refinement of PD• Participant feedback• Formative assessment

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How We Measure Impact Teacher growth: Content and pedagogy

– Quantitative and anecdotal data

Student achievement– Gains on CST (all)– Matched pairs analysis (SD)– Participant / non-participant (R, LG, SD)– Standards-based report cards (R)– Effort Grades (R)– End of course tests (S)

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Impact on Teachers’ Instructional PracticesTeachers report that they now: Try new strategies in their classrooms; Select among many tools including the

textbook, the pacing guide, and CGI principles; and

Recognize good mathematical problems from the text that will help students meet the standards.

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One Teacher’s Comments About Our Impact on Her Teaching

“I feel my knowledge and understanding of mathematics has been expanded to the point where I will never teach math the same again. I know too much about group/partner work, using manipulatives; reflective writing, student-directed teaching, student responsibility. In short, I feel enlightened. I feel I finally understand math.”

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References

Loucks-Horsley, S., et al. (2003). Designing professional development for teachers of science and mathematics (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Bransford, J. D., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R. R. (1999). How people learn. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

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Contact Us

jgawronski@projects.sdsu.edukpayne@sciences.sdsu.eduldye@projects.sdsu.edutvik@projects.sdsu.edusklass@projects.sdsu.edu

http://pdc.sdsu.edu