Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made … · 2014-06-04 · Donald Hess Jemison Investment Company Thompson Foundation. Public Sector Partners. Alabama Legislature

DOCUMENT RESUME

ED 464 363 CS 511 123

AUTHOR Vaughan, AmandaTITLE Closing the Gap: How the Alabama Reading Initiative Is

Transforming Reading Instruction for All Students.

INSTITUTION Alabama State Dept. of Education, Montgomery.; A-PlusEducation Foundation, Montgomery, AL.

SPONS AGENCY Alabama State Commission on Higher Education, Montgomery.

PUB DATE 2000-00-00NOTE 21p.; Published with support from the Best Practices Center.

Project evaluation funded by Dwight D. Eisenhowerprofessional development program.

AVAILABLE FROM Alabama Reading Initiative, Alabama Department of Education,P.O. Box 302101, Montgomery, AL 36130-2101. Tel:334-353-1389; Web site: http://www.alsde.edu.

PUB TYPE Reports Research (143)

EDRS PRICE MF01/PC01 Plus Postage.DESCRIPTORS Elementary Education; Program Descriptions; Program

Effectiveness; *Reading Achievement; *Reading Improvement;*Reading Instruction; *Reading Programs; Staff Development

IDENTIFIERS Alabama Reading Initiative

ABSTRACTThis report examines the first 2 years of the Alabama

Reading Initiative (ARI), whose goal is 100% literacy for all Alabama'spublic school children using a balanced approach to reading instruction. Itincludes results from the external evaluation team, examples of changes inteaching practices and student behaviors, as well as the voices ofparticipating teachers and school administrators. The report discusses whatthe ARI is, the key players (the principal, classroom teacher, highereducation partner, reading specialist, and inservice center readingspecialist), early results (reading scores are up, students are reading more,discipline problems are down, and special education referrals are down),stories of transformation from classrooms across the state, and challengesfor the ARI. (RS)

Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be madefrom the original document.

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U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONOffice of Educational Research and Improvement

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATIONCENTER (ERIC)

O This document has been reproduced asreceived from the person or organizationoriginating it

O Minor changes have heen made toimprove reproduction quality

Points of view or opinions stated in thisdocument do not necessarily representofficial OERI position or policy

EST COPY AVA1LA LE

he Alabama Reading Initiative is a project of the State Board of Education and the State

Department of Education. The A+ Education Foundation provided the inital funding and

helped recruit the private and public sector partners for the first two years. After the Alabama

Reading Initiative demonstrated promise in classrooms across the state, Governor Don Siegelman proposed

statewide expansion of the initiative, and the Alabama Legislature allocated six million dollars for fiscal year

1999-2000 and $10 million for fiscal year 2000-2001.

This report is dedicated to everyone involved in the Alabama Reading Initiative. Special thanks to the fol-

lowing for taking the lead in solving Alabama's literacy problem:

Private Sector Partners

$100,000 ContramtorsParsons & Whittemore, Inc.

$50,000-$65,000 Contributors

A+ Education Foundation

Alabama Education Association

Alabama Power Foundation

BellSouth

Hugh Raul Foundation

Meyer (Robert R.) Foundation

Mercedes-Benz U.S. International

Protective Life Corporation

South Trust Bank

$25,000 Contributors

ALFA Insurance Group

Am South Bank of Alabama

The Corner Foundation

Compass Bank

Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham

Reese Phifer, Jr., Memorial foundation

Royal Cup Coffee


Regions Bank

Southern Progress

Vulcan Materials Company


ADTRAN, Inc.

Alabama Association of School Boards

The Bankhead Foundation

Eagle Forum of Alabama

Sony USA Foundation

Time, Inc.

Walker Area Community Foundation

Under $5000 Contributors

AZE Family Partners

Alabama Bag Company

Altec Industries, Inc.

Brasfield & Gorrie

Goodrich Family Fund

Graves Service Company, Inc.

Donald Hess

Jemison Investment Company

Thompson Foundation

Public Sector Partners

Alabama Legislature Local School Systems (LEA's)

Attorney General's Office* Governor's Office Regional In-Service Centers

Project evaluation funded in part by a federal grant under the Dwight D. Eisenhowerprofessional development program administered by the Alabama Commission on Higher Education.

*Funds ftvm the settlement of antitrust litigation

CLOSING THE GAP:

HOW THE ALABAMA

READING INITIATIVE IS

TRANSFORMING READING

INSTRUCTION FOR ALL

STUDENTS is a report on the

first two years of the ARI. The goal

of the ARI is 100% literacy for all

Alabama's public school children.

This report includes results from the

external evaluation team, examples

of changes in teaching practices and

student behaviors, as well as the

voices of participating teachers and

school administrators. Because of

A+'s belief that literacy is funda-

mental to raising student achieve-

ment in Alabama, the A+ Education

Foundation developed and published

this report, with the assistance of the

Best Practices Center.

Written by:

Amanda Vaughan,


Edited by:

John Norton

Graphk Design:

Walker Printing Company, Inc.

Additional information and extra

copies of this report are available

from:


P.O. Box 4433

Montgomery AL 36103

(334) 279-1886

www.aplusala.org

-OrAlabama Reading Initiative

Alabama Department of Education

P.O. Box 302101

Montgomery, AL 36130-2101

(334) 353-1389

Multiple copies con be obtained for a

nominal charge.

"The Alei 69.

Reek hj kifioti4ve

Alabama State Board of EducationGovernor Don Siegelman, PresidentMr. Bradley ByrneMr. G.J. "Dutch" HigginbothamMs. Stephanie W. BellDr. Ethel Hall, Vice-PresidentMs. Ella BellMr. David F. Byers, Jr.Ms. Sandra RayDr. Mary Jane Caylor

Superintendent of EducationDr. Ed Richardson

Deputy Superintendent of EducationDr. Joseph B. Morton

Alabama Reading Initiative StaffDr. Katherine Mitchell, DirectorMs. Sherrill Parris, Education SpecialistMs. Cassandra Wheeler, Education Specialist

41

osing h e Gap:

effiEN -0)101g Hh©. HU@FAHHThat's just a numberand not even a surprisingoneuntil you consider the impact of illiteracy on ayoung person. Rather than accepting the problem asinevitable, we can begin to change things by giving

every young person the instruc-tion they need to learn to read.

If you want to solve a prob-lem you have to name it,define it, and measure itsdepths. That takes courageespecially in a high stakes envi-ronment where hiding or ignor-ing problems might seem saferthan carefully identifying them.

Buckhorn High School is oneof the first high schools in thestate to own up to a problem itshares with so many otherAlabama schools. Attempting todeal with a basic skill like read-ing in a high school environmentis a bold move. As TommyLedbetter, principal at Buckhornnoted, "The prevailing philos-ophy at the secondary level is'we assign reading; we don'tteach it." By high school, stu-dents who can't read well facelots of pressure and many lostyears. And their teachers, for themost part, have not known howto help them.

Buckhorn, located in MadisonCounty in a growing metropolitanarea just outside of Huntsville,has 850 students from both ruraland suburban communities. Thestudent population comes from arange of socioeconomic back-grounds. Some are the children of

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5

doctors, educators, farmers, andbusiness owners. Others are thechildren of skilled technical work-ers, engineers, truck drivers andday laborers. The test scores atBuckhorn indicate that the schoolis performing at or above thestate average on all of Alabama'saccountability standards.

"Still, we knew we had a read-ing problem," said Ledbetter. "Wecan't afford to let these kids fallthrough the cracks. We had short-comings as a faculty to tacklethis, and we needed help." To gethelp, they applied to become oneof the first high schools to partici-pate in the Alabama ReadingInitiative. The faculty willinglywent into "uncharted waters"said Sara Fanning, instructionalleader, in search of tools to helptheir students read better.

The first step in thatprocess was to identifyBuckhorn's struggling readers.Two hundred students, almostone in four, were found to bereading below their grade level.The latest NAEP scores, a meas-ure that compares students acrossthe nation, indicated that 34 per-cent of 8th graders in Alabamaread "below basic" level. Thesefigures suggest that even thoughBuckhorn has a large number of

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struggling readers, its reading levelsare probably above average forAlabama. Still faculty membersweren't satisfied. "The problem looksdifferent when you see the face of astruggling reader. It's not just a scoreanymore. At the high school level,for these students, reading is a barri-er for every subject," said Ledbetter.

After ARI training, during thefirst three weeks of school, SaraFanning and other specially trainedteachers spent one-on-one time withBuckhorn students using newassessment tools they learnedthrough the Alabama ReadingInitiative. Fanning, a veteran educa-tor of 25 years, said that experiencechanged her life forever. The assess-ments revealed the magnitude ofthe problem. "For days, I couldn'teat or sleep," she said.

For many Buckhorn teens, thereading assessment was a difficultexperience. They had been hidingsevere reading difficulties for years,and they were about to be discov-ered. As Mrs. Fanning called stu-dents out of class one by one toadminister the reading assessment,those who couldn't read began topanic. Some of them cried, some ofthem were wringing their hands,and one of them quickly confessedto her, "I can't read." One student,when asked, could not call out asingle word on a fourth-gradevocabulary list.

Both the faculty and students atBuckhorn were steering throughuncharted waters. No one had everplumbed the depths of the reading

R ea ding

1/7\

problem, student by student, withthat level of attention or precisionbefore. The initial assessmentrevealed that 123 students werereading at elementary grade lev-els, with many at the fourth gradelevel or below. The struggling stu-dents crossed the spectrum of socio-economic backgrounds and race.Some of them were registered inchemistry and other advanced class-es. They had one thing in com-mon: they couldn't read theirown textbooks.

With knowledge comes a price.As Fanning warns, "Once you openthe can of worms, you can't turnback. Once you see and reallyknow, you have to keep going."

Intervention at the high schoollevel can meet some students'needs, but it can't pick up all thepieces that were missed along theway. Social stigmas and damage tostudents' self-concept have alreadytaken their toll. Years of educationalopportunity were lost while thesestudents were learning to hide theirreading difficulties.

Fanning agonizes that identifyingstudents so late in the game meansthat there isn't enough time orresources to help them all. Somewill remain in the shadowsmov-ing from the classroom to the worldof work with low literacy skills.

For many other Buckhorn stu-dents, however, being "discov-ered," though painful, offered achance to learn to read better.They were given support andskillful intervention from the ARI-

6

trained readingspecialist. They were welcomedout of the shadows and into fullmembership in the classroom.

Improving reading at the highschool level is very difficultresultsare much slower to appear thanwith intervenion with younger chil-dren. Still, more than half of thestudents who received interven-tion showed significant improve-ment. Because of ARI training, allteachers at Buckhorn High Schoolare integrating reading strategiesinto their daily lesson plans to helpall students read better. In addition,there is a new reading elective forall struggling ninth-grade readers, sothey get a headstart on the specialinstruction they need.

The Buckhorn story vividlydescribes why the Alabama ReadingInitiative was created, and it givesus an example of what is necessaryfor all of Alabama's school childrento read well. Alabama is right to seta goal of 100% literacy for all stu-dents. Reaching that goal will taketime, resources and extraordinarycommitment. But once that goal isreached, thousands of our highschool students will no longer haveto hide their illiteracyor live withthe shame that comes from our fail-ure to develop them into strongreaders before they ever leave ele-mentary school.

Schools that are a part of theAlabama Reading Initiative arealready on their way to thatgoal.

e 3

Doll r for dollar, researchshows that ifiveshoent ii

teacher professional

devekprnent increasesstudent achievement moretha anything else.

Good teaching matters most when it

comes to improving education.

Research shows that high quality,

subject-specific professional

development for teachers improves

teaching and results in improved

student achievement. Today every

successful business leader knows that

staying ahead of the curve requires

continuous learnincand access to

information and new skills. Valuing the

difficult job teachers do means giving

them the high quality support and

development that professionals in

other fields can expect and receive.

Alabama has invested very little in

professional development in the past.

Since 1997, Alabama has spent only

two-tenths of one percent of the

growth of the Education Foundation

Program on professional development.

The investment in the Alabama

Reading Initiative is a shift in a

positive direction --delivering

urgently needed information and skills

for reading instruction to teachers in

the classroom.

CHsing

Whig

The Alabama ReadingInitiative is targeted onthree fronts:

Strengthening reading instruc-tion in the early grades,Continuously expanding allstudents' reading power andcomprehension levels,Intervening effectively withstruggling readers.ARI moves beyond the debate

about phonics and "whole lan-guage" strategies to promotewhat research proves to be effec-tive: a balanced approach to read-ing instruction. Research tells usthat a "balanced approach" toreading is not a compromise. Itcombines the explicit teaching ofskills needed to decode words(phonics, phonemic awareness)and language-rich, literature-richinstruction.

Today's teachers are likely tofavor one approach or the other,depending on when and wherethey went to college. But, asARI's success demonstrates, a sin-gle teaching method is notenough.

Under a one-size-fits-allapproach, some children simplywill not learn to read. Successrequires addressing children asindividuals and meeting theirspecific needs for reading instruc-tion. To help each individual stu-dent achieve, teachers must haveexpertise in using multiple strate

h e7

Gap:

gies and creative classroom man-agement techniques to help eachindividual student achieve.

Many elementary teachershave not had any training inreading instruction since college,and the body of knowledge aboutreading continues to growtremendously. Teachers in uppergrades or subject specific areasmay have no background in read-ing instruction at all, eventhough many of their studentsmay be struggling to understandtheir textbooks and other aca-demic materials.

ARI's balanced approach toreading instruction requires ahighly skilled teacher. It buildsteachers' capacity by giving themaccess to the latest research,many practical demonstration les-sons, and ongoing support.

The ARI teacher trainingcovers eight modules based onthe latest research on readinginstruction:

Language development andvocabulary,Phonemic awareness andphonics,Concepts of print,Comprehension strategies,

./ Reading/writing connection,Formal assessment,Informal assessment andEffective intervention.

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This is not a "program" or cur-riculum that schools purchase, noris it a "flavor of the day" approachthat will fade as a new fademerges. It is a research-drivenprocess for developing and main-taining an expert corps of readingteachers across Alabama andproducing permanent improve-ments in the academic perform-ance of all our students.

AR1 is designed tocreate systemic change.

Achieving the goal of 100% lit-eracy for all school children is veryambitious. It is a complex chal- \

lenge involving hundreds ofschools and thousands of teachers.ARI is designed for systemicchange and lasting impact. It is anexample of public education put-ting proven, forward-thinking prin-ciples to work.

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ARI is focused on leveragepoirs for change: continuous pro-fessidnal development for teachersand teacher preparation programs.It requires the principal and facul-ty to commit to the shared goaland to make a local investment.

WHAT MMUS AM WORN?

/ Voluntary

/ Clear Goals

,/ Innovation is Rewarded

and Shared

/ Peer Coaching

/ Teams of ExpertPractitioners

/ Feedback Loops

/ Networks of Communication

Theti Schools apply to become Literary Demonstration Sites and are select-

ed for readiness and commitment.

/ Schools adopt the goal of 100% literacy.

/ 85% of the faculty, including the principal, participate in a 10-13

day intensive summer training.

/ Schools and local school systems designate and support full-time

reading specialists who spend half of their time with struggling read-

ers and half of the time coaching other teachers.

Higher education faculty partners work as mentors connected to

each school, providing support, access to research, demonstration,

and problem-solving assistance.

Process

or ileac mers.

Participation is voluntary.Innovation in implementation atthe local level is expected,rewarded and shared with otherpractitioners. School facultiesare trained as teams of expertpractitioners on a clear and com-mon mission. The "spread" ofthe program is based on expertpeer coaching. Non-hierarchicalin nature, it develops a wholearmy of experts: reading special-ists, peer coaches, and trainers.Partnerships with colleges ofeducation and on-going trainingbuild networks of communica-tion and deliver information asneeded. On-going evaluation anddirect feedback loops measureprogress and constantly informthe process. OP

School faculties develop and implement on intervention plan for

struggling readers.

/ Teachers put their new skills to work. They utilize new assessment

tools to check progress and work together to apply instructional con-

cepts, sharpen their skills and solve problems.

Reading Specialists attend monthly advanced training sessions and

share new techniques and information with teachers at their schools.

External evaluators observe classroom practices and compare and

analyze students' test scores.

R ea ci n a e

osil g The Gap:

Skilled educators with access to the latest research and bestpractices are our best defense against illiteracy. MargaretYarbrough Elementary in Auburn gives us a view of these keyplayers at work to achieve 100% literacy. At each LiteracyDemonstration Site, ARI supports the development, trainingand collaboration of a team of key players:

PrincipalClassroom TeacherHigher Education PartnerReading SpecialistInservice Center Reading Specialist

Principal

The principal's role in ARI isthat of instructional leader. Theprincipal attends the ARI trainingand leads the faculty in thedevelopment and implementationof a school-wide interventionplan for struggling readers.

The principal helps developand coordinate a schedule thatallows for individualized readinginstruction, supports teacherswith on-going professional devel-opment, and works with thereading specialist to providecoaching opportunities for thefaculty and regular monitoring ofstruggling readers.

The ability of the principal tobe an effective instructionalleader is a determining factor ina school's success.

The A

9

"When a few people go off to a confer

ence, the whole school doesn't change.

With ARI, we all went, we all planned, and

the whole school moved forward together.

"ARI is not a programit is a commit-

ment to the goal of 100% literacy and

doing what it takes to get there. Because

of ARI, we have developed more contmu-

ity, consistency and collaboration.

"The principal has to be the instruc-

tional leader, very involved in the kind of

teaching that is happening. We are all life-

long learners, and we have io hove profes-

sional development to be sure we are good

at what we do and getting better all the

time. We use every creative strategy we

can come up with to get our teachers the

training they need. The key is professional

development. The principal's job is to stay

on top of that"

Debbie Smith, Principal,

Yarbrough Elementary School

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Classroom Teacher

Because whole faculties participate together in ARItraining and in the development of reading interventionplans for their schools, every classroom teacher devel-ops new skills for reading instruction, regardless ofgrade or subject area. Besides identifying and interven-ing with struggling readers,teachers learn techniquesfor helping all studentsexpand their readingpower with better com-prehension, broadervocabulary and betterwriting skills.

Higher Education Partner

The Higher Education Partner is a college of educa-tion faculty member who participates in the SummerAcademy and commits to helping LiteracyDemonstration Sites achieve the goal of 100% literacy.The higher education partner is connected with localschools to provide guidance, access to research, andcontinuous staff development. This person regularly vis-its the school, assists with monitoring progress, modelseffective instructional techniques, and provides sus-tained assistance and advisement.

"It is my job to make sure that we all understand what a bal-

anced approach to reading instruction is. I make sure all the play-

ersthe teachers, principals, reading specialists and even my

pre-service teachersare all on the same page. The

ARI is on the right track, because it is develop-

ment oriented, practice oriented and

demonstrated. It has made us more

balanced in the way we teach, and

it has impacted how we teach

reading instruction in the university.

"In the past, instead of finding out

what was wrong when a student couldn't read, we did the same

things over and over and handed them more worksheets. That never

helped. Now every child gets every piece of the process. Teaching

reading is not about following the teacher guide. It is about Josh,

Marcus or Kelly.

"The benefits of the higher education partnership are incredible.

When I teach, one of my feet is in the school and the other one is in

the University. Long after the summer academy, I am there with the

teachers and the reading specialists."

Dr. Pam Boyd, Auburn University

Higher Education Partner for


'When I first went to the sum-

mer academy, some of it was over-

whelming. Integrating reading and learn-

ing new techniques is difficult. It takes more planning and shared plan-

ning. But we ask children to do new things that are hard for them

everyday. So why can't we? If I am going to be a skilled teacher, then I

have to be willing to be a pupil, too.

"It is hard, but I urn reaching more children. That's why I am here.

I have seen major changes in my lower level readers. I see my students

using techniques they learned from the reading specialist. ARI training

has made me a more balanced teacher. I am more aware of phonics

than before. It has also changed how I will teach other subjects like

mathto reach all of my students.

'Every student in my class reads out loud to me everyday. Our

principal has made that a goal for us. Now when I hear a child read,

I know where they are and where they are struggling. That's ihe best

way I can make sure no one is falling through the cracks.'

Debbie Vkk, Third-grade Teacher


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Reading SpecialistIn Literary Demonstration Sites across the state,

the Reading Specialist is frequently cited as the singlemost important person to improving reading achieve-ment. State ARI funds and LEAs support the creationof this position. The Reading Specialist spends half-time with struggling readers and half-time coachingteachers in best practices. Because this person's timeis devoted to reading instruction, the school is able tostay up-to-date on emerging research, available mate-rials and instructional techniques. ARI's theory is thatthe very best teachers ought to work with strugglingreaders. Many of Alabama's best teachers have takenon this challenge as Reading Specialists.

When the ARI began, each participating schoolwas provided with funding for its own ReadingSpecialist for one year. Some are able to continue theposition by using Title I funds. Other schools try tocreatively fill the gaps if they cannot afford to contin-ue to employ a full-time, school-basedReading Specialist. As ARIexpands to serve more schools,limited resources mean thatnew participating schools"share" a Reading Specialist atthe system level. This personstill provides assistance toteachers and students,but resource constraints ("

mean their time isdivided betweenmore schools.

he Gap:Inservice Center Reading Specialist

Eleven Inservice Centers connected to colleges ofeducation across the state provide educators withprofessional development. As ARI expands to reachmore schools, the volume of training needs and sup-port increases exponentially. ARI partnered with theInservice Centers to create the position of lnserviceCenter Reading Specialist to support participatingschools and focus existing professional developmentresources on high quality reading instruction. ThisInservice Center Reading Specialist spends four daysa week in schools, and one day a week developingand coordinating training. Activities include support-ing Reading Specialists at the school and system level,training the growing body of trainers, nurturing net-working among principals, and helping coordinate thesummer academy for schools in their region.

Jennifer Hall is the Reading Specialist at the EastAlabama Regional Inservice Center inAuburn. Twenty-eight schools in thatregion are participating in ARI. Ms.Hall is focusing on four school systemsin her region, two of which are on

alert status.

"We keep the focus on kids' needs. Every

school needs their own Reading Specialist. 1 have taught for 17

years. This experience and the chance to learn and help kids be suc-

cessful makes me want to keep teaching. I am a more balanced

teacher now. I have multiple strategies to meet every child's need,

and I work with teachers on a professional level. 1 have learned

more in the past two years as ARI Reading specialist than I ever

learned before.'

Pam Yandle, Reading Spedalist,


"ARI changed me dramatically. The month-/-,i ly trainings ore the hest staff development 1

have ever received. It is graduate level

training. This experience has motivated me

to go on and work on my doctorate.

)"I see lots of changes in schools.

---- Reading specialists are the catalysts in their

---- schools because they have a«ess to continuous

development. The principals are the guiding force for instruction.

We are connecting everything between the schools and the colleges

of edu«ition more powerfully than ever before. The undergraduates

are getting this training now, and they will leave the university more

prepared.

"This is a growth experience. If you view ARI as a two-week

institute, then you hove missed it. This is a commitment to on-going

learning and continuous growth as a teacher. I see the results in stu-

dents and teachers. Lust year, I was the Reading Specialist ut Drake

Middle School in Auburn, and I worked intensively with struggling

readers. By the end of the year, most of them had made it to grade

level. Now, I can teach reading from ground zero."

Jennifer Hall, Reading Specialist

East Alabama Regional lnservke Center x)

ii

3

4

5

-6

7

Imagine an eighth-grade student

who is reading at a second-grade

level. If that student receives special

instruction and moves to the sixth-

grade level in reading in one semes-

ter, wouldn't you agree that is

remarkable improvement?

In April that same student would

take the SAT-9, the standardized

test given to Alabama students

every spring. Because she is in the

eighth-grade the test would be on

the eighth-grade level. Although the

student made great strides, her

progress would not show up on the

SAT-9. Even though the student

jumped four grade levels in read-

ing, she would still be achieving

below grade level.

This example makes it dear why

results with older students are slow-

er to appear than with younger stu-

dents. Assessment is critical, but

catching up takes time. We must

have high expectations and reason-

able timetables. Teachers trained

8 through ARI are taught to use infor-

mal assessment tools that can gauge

students' progress throughout the

year. Positive changes in student

behaviors, teaching practices, and

9 school climate ore early indicators

that we will see improvement in stu-

dent achievement over time.

-10

The Center for Educational Accountability of the

University of Alabama at Birmingham designed

and conducted the evaluation of ARI.

The reading scores of students at ARI LiteraryDemonstration Sites schools show more improve-ment from 1998-2000 than at similar schools that didnot participate.

The percentage of students classified as strugglingreaders at ARI Literary Demonstration sitesdecreased from 1998-2000, while the percentage ofstruggling readers at non-ARI schools stayed constant.

Students are reading more. Library circulation in theparticipating schools is up dramatically. LincolnElementary in Talladega County saw library circulationtriple in one year. Library circulation rose by an averageof 43 percent in the original literary demonstration siteswith data for 1998-2000.

Teachers are teaching differently. Teachers report andexternal evaluators confirm that teachers use 76 percentof the new practices they were taught in ARI professionaldevelopment. After ARI training, 86 percent of teachersfelt more prepared to teach reading.

Discipline problems are down significantly at partici-pating schools. School climates are improving. Disciplinereferrals declined by an average of 67 percent in the orig-inal literary demonstration sites reporting data for 1998-2000. Jonesboro Elementary School in Bessemer noted a75 percent reduction in discipline referrals, andDiscovery Middle School in Madison recorded almost 80percent fewer discipline referrals. In both cases, the prin-cipal linked the improvement to ARI because more stu-dents are meaningfully engaged in the learning process.

Special education referrals are down. At ArabElementary School, referrals declined from 23 to three inone year. More students' difficulties with reading are suc-cessfully handled in their regular classrooms, as teacherslearn new intervention strategies.

12 9

d:sv enceLasthig Impact

Colleges of education aredinging the way theyprepare new teachers for

reading instruction. The State

Board of Education adopted

new, research-based standards

for preparing future teachersand reading specialists.

,0 Partnerships betweenfaculty at colleges ofeducation and participatingschools are growing and

reinforcing teacher

development.

All 11 Regional inserviceCenters collaborate with theARI to provide substantial

ongoing professional

development for teachers in

their regions. Center staff have

embraced the responsibility ofcoordinating the ARI summer

academies.

A growing number ofteacher trainers is increasingAlabama's capacity to deliver to

students the best reading

instruction possible. There are

700 K-12 and college personnel

faculty now certified to offerprofessional development in

reading.

A new master's degree inreading education has been

certified by the State Board of

Education, and colleges are

developing programs that will

increase the expertise in the field.

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Cedar Ridge Midde School: Vmproving

Writing through ReadingResearch shows that there is a strong connection between

reading and writing. The faculty at Cedar Ridge MiddleSchool in Decatur decided to capitalize on this connectionwith their school plan developed through ARI. The facultyadded an emphasis in writing with a consistent grading rubricused in all grades and all subjects. Reading Specialist Dee DeeJones said their students' writing scores on the Alabama writ-ing assessment "zoomed way ahead in just one year."

She cites the emphasis on reading and the continuity ofcurriculum developed in the ARI process as the reasons for thedramatic improvement. "The training at the summer academyset the stage. We spent so much time as a faculty planningtogether. We just took the writing piece to the next level."

Students are tested on four types of writing: descriptive, narrative, expository and per-

suasive. Four achievement levels.indicate students' writing competency, with one indicat-

ing the lowest end of the measurement scale, and four indicating the highest. Gains were

seen in just one year in all four types of writing.

1998-1999 SCORES

Descriptive

1999-2006 SfORES

Descriptive

Level 1 12% Level 1 5%




Narrative Narrative





Expository Expository





Persuasive Persuasive





assroo s A.ross the Sligo

West Blocton Elementary: Making Up

The GapFrom the outside, West Blocton Elementary School in Bibb

County looks like almost any other school. As soon as you stepinside the school, usual expectations are replaced with wonder.Classrooms are filled with words. In the kindergarten roomseverything is labeled with neat letters, even the clock and thegarbage can. Books hang in pockets on the walls, and stacks ofbooks sit on every table. In the first-grade hall, bulletin boardsboasts stories written and edited by seven year-olds. Completesentences and careful punctuation fill the pages with neat hand-writing. The time and concerted effort of first graders and teach-ers are obvious.

West Blocton is a small timber and mining community inBibb County. The majority of the students at the Title I schoolare on free or reduced lunch. West Blocton became a LiteraryDemonstration Site in 1998, the first year of ARI. "The AlabamaReading Initiative is the best thing that ever happened to us.The professional development opportunities gave us tools wedidn't have before. It affirmed what we knew and gave us per-mission to use every tool to help students who are struggling,"said Carol Belcher, principal.

As a result of what they learned at ARI, West Blocton mademany changes. Teachers have time to work together, planningand developing strategies for struggling students as a team. Theycoach each other with ideas and suggestions for improvement.They use creative scheduling to give teachers more individualtime with students. Some teachers now stay with the same groupof students for two years in a row so they focus their instructionon the needs of students that they know well. They know howto assess students' reading ability better, identify problems withprecision, and use targeted intervention strategies.

"The Alabama Reading Initiative has put us on an equalplaying field with the schools that have more resources in com-munities with higher socio-economic levels. It's about trainingteachers based on proven research. The Alabama ReadingInitiative is making up the gap," said Dr. Cheryl Fondren, WestBlocton's reading specialist.

This year the State Department of Education recognized theexcellence of West Blocton by nominating it for a National BlueRibbon School award. Belcher recognizes ARI training as a criti-cal catalyst that helped a hardworking faculty attain higher lev-els of excellence. The children of West Blocton are getting thebest there is, and their students' scores show it.

Significant progress has

been made at lerary

Demonstration Sites,

particul rly with

struggling readers. The

Stanford scores of West

Nocton Eenie1ary

School in Bibb Com y

reflect ARI's pact

VBefore ARI, 41 percent ofthird graders were reading below

grade level. After one year, only

10 percent in that grpup are

reading below grade level.

VBefore ARI, 33 percent offourth graders were reading

below grade level. After one year

only 8 percent were still behind.

0/Overall, 62.5 percent of the

struggling readers improved to

grade level reading or above in

one year.

0/These gains were maintained

during their second year of

participation.

14 1 1

Ciosing he sap:

Alexander City Schools:

A Syste -Wide Approach

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Jim Nabors, superintendent of education inAlexander City, is not a typical educational adminis-trator. A retired executive from the RussellCorporation, Nabors became superintendent last year,

bringing his experience from the corporate world withhim. He and the entire Alexander City school systemjumped into the ARI with both feet, and now high

school sports coaches are gladly taking the lead on developingmotivation strategies for student reading.

"It was clear from our scores that we have a reading prob-lem. It's not rocket science. We have to do something different-ly," Nabors said.

"We knew that ARI was the help our teachers needed." Atthe time, none of the schools in Alexander City were involved.Immediately, Nabors began advocating for the Alexander Cityschool system to get involved in the ARI all at once. Generally,schools apply and are chosen individually, but Nabors knew thatall of the teachers needed access to better training in order tochange the whole system.

Nabors approached the State Department of Education andasked if the whole school system could become a part of ARI ina single year. He raised the $150,000 costs for teacher trainingstipends himself, and met with all the faculty members in thesystem to get them behind the idea. How could the StateDepartment say no? All Alexander City Schools are LiteraryDemonstration Sites in 2000-2001, making it the first system-wide participation in the state.

Nabors says that his business experience makes him eager toinvest in targeted and high quality professional development."Why evaluate teachers and make recommendations for changeif you don't follow up with professional development that helpsthem improve? To think you can send a kid to college for 3 or 4years and expect them to be fully prepared to teach is ridiculous.I come from the corporate world, and we just don't do that. Weinvest in ongoing training and mentoring," he said.

All teachers in the system were trained together during thelast weeks of school and early days of summer. Now even mathteachers and PE teachers are integrating reading instruction intoeverything they do. Tillie Parks, Director of InstructionalServices, said. "The teachers were so excited and full of ideasthat they were ready to start school in June."

"We know we are going to change the culture of our schoolsto make them reading places," said Parks. "This is the largestand most effective professional development we have ever had.Do we believe a big leap in reading achievement is possible? Youbet we do. We have all come together. We have new tools, newskills. We are motivated, and we are all in sync," Parks said.

h1 5

barna

,onesboro E0eHientorySchooD:

Addressing Every Siiuden1"The Reading Initiative is an approach, not a program that

you buy. It is different from all the other things we have tried tohelp our students read better," said Michael Foster, principal ofJonesboro Elementary School in Bessemer. "There is nothing elseout there that addresses every student's need. ARI addresses thewhole staff, the proficient readers, the struggling readers, and thewhole school environment."

Jonesboro Elementary has over 700 students, and 89 percentof them are on free or reduced lunch. Foster noted that 10-20percent of their students were continuously falling through thecracks when it came to reading. "For years we have tried differ-ent thingsspecial programs, re-grouping our studentsbutnothing addressed all of the children," said Foster.

Foster visited several of the first Literary Demonstration Sites,and he was convinced by what he saw. "These people werebeaming about reading and begging people to see what theycould do with the research. They understood the research andwhat to do with it. We watched them in action and saw strug-gling readers come to life rather than get depressed and misbe-have. I saw children come to life before my eyes," said Foster.

The faculty at Jonesboro began to study a borrowed ARI manu-al the year before they were accepted as a Literary DemonstrationSite. They officially became a part of ARI in 1999. This is their sec-ond year as an LDS, and their excitement hasn't waned.

"We have seen a much improved attitude about readingamong both children and teachers," said Barbara Roberts, readingspecialist at Jonesboro. Students clamor to present the latest bookthey have read over the intercom for "book of the day." PE andlunch have been restructured to give more uninterrupted atten-tion to reading and to provide time for teachers to work together.

Foster says that discipline problems are down 75 percent.Attendance is up. "We aren't spending our time running offcopies of worksheets that bore children. We are engaging them.The culture has changed. It's hip to readeven for the olderboys that can be hard to reach," Foster said.

What is different at Jonesboro because of ARI? "We havewhat we need herethe teachers with the training they need."Foster said. "We don't have to go out and buy expertise orexpensive programs. We have It. When a kid hits a brick wall,our teachers know how to supply a strategy that will workandthey know the research that backs them up."

It will take a while for test scores to began to show consistentchange notes Foster. "You can't catch every kid falling through thecracks overnight. We think we will look back in five years and seethe change reflected consistently in our students' scores. We aregoing to stay with it. It will take continuous professional develop-ment, and we have to keep up the energy. But the researchpoints the way, and that is what will keep us on course," Fostersaid.

Reading

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According to conventional wisdom, reading is an ele-mentary school subject. By the time a student reachesmiddle school, direct reading instruction is over.

Secondary teachers are trained in subject-specificareas, and few have ever had classes in reading instruc-

tion.Still many of these math and social studies teachers find that

some students are blocked from achievement in every subjectbecause they can't read well. Discovery Middle School buckedconventional wisdom, and all of their teachers went to the ARIsummer academy to become "reading" teachers.

Discovery Middle School, in the Madison City System, hasan ethnically diverse population with a relatively high-incomelevel. They have strong test scores across the board. Still, thereare struggling readers at Discovery. "We have some studentswho were just falling through the cracks," principal MelvinaPhillips said, "and we want to expand reading power for all stu-dents. Reading is going to be a primary learning tool. Every stu-dent needs to do it well and enjoy it."

After the summer academy, science and math teachersjoined English and social studies teachers to integrate compre-hension strategies in their subject area. There is a new readingand writing focus in all content areas.

The new teaching strategies at Discovery are producing stu-dent achievement. Writing scores have improved significantly.Comprehension in all subject areas has improved. Skilled, directintervention is paying off with big leaps in progress. The average8th grade struggling reader went from the 20th percentile to the60-70th percentile on standardized reading assessments. Manyreaders at the fourth-grade level moved to the seventh andeighth-grade levels in a six-month period.

Discipline referrals dropped from 681 before ARI participa-tion to 127 during the first year. The second year they incheddown further to 118. Phillips relates the drop to participationin ARI. "It is a key indicator to me that there is good teachinggoing on in the classroom when students don't have the chanceto get in trouble."

Phillips is pleased with the tremendous progress. However,she notes that each new class of sixth graders arrives at aboutthe same starting point. In 1999, three of the four feeder ele-mentary schools became Literary Demonstrations Sites. Becauseof the ARI, Phillips is hopeful and confident that the futureclasses of sixth graders will be higher achieving readers whenthey arrive because of better instruction in earlier grades.

The17

abama

:incoDn Ele entary ScSiudems and -eachers

100 Chops in

Lincoln Elementary School is located just three miles fromthe Talladega Speedway. The population of the K-4 school hasincreased twenty percent in the past two years. Two-thirds ofthe students are on reduced or free lunch, qualifying Lincoln asa Title I school. They became a Literary Demonstration Site in1999.

When children start kindergarten at Lincoln, most of themlack the basic concepts of printlike the understanding thatprint goes from left to right and that there is a distinctionbetween letters and numbers. "Normally only two children ineach kindergarten class are reading by the end of the year,"according to principal Dorothy Wright.

This year, over half of every kindergarten class was reading byspring. Library circulation, normally averaging 13,200 books peryear, skyrocketed to 40,000 in one year. In 1998, LincolnElementary barely avoided being classified "on caution" by the statesince only 55 percent of their students scored in above the mini-mum state performance standard. This year, 2/3 of their studentsscored exceeded that standard.

Wright credits ARI training, on-going support and internalstaff development. "This was the best staff development we everhad. It was the first time that our whole faculty was evertrained in anything all at the same time," Wright said. "Webrought in help throughout the year to keep up the professionaldevelopment and help teachers solve problems."

Faculty meetings became, for the first time, instructionalsharing and problem-solving meetings. Teachers began to active-ly use each other as expert resources. School scheduling wasrevamped to accommodate more one-on-one instructional timewith struggling readers and more emphasis on reading and writ-ing. By December when students were given the QualitativeReading Inventory, it was clear that reading was improving, andLincoln teachers were invigorated by the results. By springretesting, the scores were even higher.

"We made shifts to deal with every student at their ownlevel. No matter where they start, we are going to showimprovement with each child," Wright said. "BeforeARI training, third and fourth grade teachers knewlittle about the basics of reading instruction. If a stu-dent made it to those grades without learning toread well, they just fell through the cracks. Nowevery teacher knows how to help every child makeprogress."

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The role of the principal and the reality of transition :The instructional leadership skills and the level of involvement of the principal is a critical factor in the suc-

cess of Literary Demonstration Sites. At the same time, faculty and principal turnover is a frequent phenome-non. Leadership transitions have already occurred in 10 of the original 16 sites. Many shifts occurred as suc-cessful principals moved up, and two of them retired. Training new staff and assuring continuity in instruction-al leadership is a major challenge for ARI. As ARI expands to schools with varying capacities, principals' accessto professional development for instructional leadership is important for all schools to take advantage of the ARrspotential.

The need for reading specialists:ARI has significantly increased the number of highly trained reading specialists in Alabama. Reading

Specialists are providing intense, precise intervention for struggling readers, and ongoing professional develop-ment for teachers. However, as ARI expands, reading specialists must be "shared" among several schools dueto resource constraints. There is clear evidence that Reading Specialists have a major impact on studentachievement, but reading specialists need contact with struggling readers at least twice a week to affectachievement. Maintaining impact is a challenge, however, as their time is divided between more and morestudents and faculties.

Long-term commitment to meet the challenge:Because Alabama has such a significant reading problem, we must be real-

istic about what it will take to achieve 100% literacy. ARI is already demon-strating the capacity to impact student achievement through systemic profes-sional development. The challenge is to stay the course with the commitmentto reach every student. That will require long-term investment of resourcesand focus on reading.

All of the good work of the Alabama Reading Initiative has not yetreached every child. And every child needs the best reading instruction wecan provide. We are grateful to the private supporters who made ARI possi- 90%-ble, and the elected leaders who supported the expansion to reachmore students. We must hold fast to our commitment to 100% literacyfor- all- of-Alabama's-school-children.

ARI is Expanding to Reach Students Across the State

YEAR 1998 1999 2000 2001'

Literary Demonstration Sites (Schools) 16 81 268 428

Trained Teachers and Administrators 600 2500 10,000

Certified ARI Trainers/Presenters 40 200 700

Reading Specialists 0 75 207'

'103 side-funded, 104 locally funded um'These schools will be !mined in Summer 2001.

h e19

a b a m

ALEXANDRIA

ELEMENTARYSCHOOL

P.O. BOX 121ALEXANDRIA, AL

36250May 8,

2000

Dr.Katherine

MitchellARIOffice

AlabamaDepartment of

EducationP.O. Box

302101Montgomery,AL

36130-2101Dear Dr.Mitchell:

I want tothankyou for the

privilege of being a literacy

demonstration site. As you

remember,Alexandria

Elementarywent to the

training asalternates the first

year. So,

this is oursecond year of

implementing thestrategies.

This is thesecond year in a row that

Alexandriateachers are

reviewing theiryear and

feeling such a greatsense of

accomplishment. Itbrings tears to my

eyes tosee them

realize that they havediscovered

strategies thatactually work and help

children to

read. Theschool is alive

withteachers

sharing andlearning

together. Thechildren

arereading

everywhere and all the time. I havenever seen

anything like it in my 29

years ineducation.

Ibelieve the

ReadingSpecialist

position was acatalyst to help the

teachersunderstand

thestrategies better and to show

us anintervention model for the

children. We

already wereexperiencing

success with ourintervention, but the

readingspecialist

helped the Title Iassistants and the

teachers view goodintervention. Wewere

blessed

to haveBecky

McKay foroneyear and

hope andpray that

something can come

through so wecan haveher as a

ReadingSpecialist at least

one more year.Some

people come intoyour lives

andchange you

foreverthat is what you andBecky

have done for us.

Thank you foryour

vision anddetermination to help the

studentsofAlabama. You

are aninspiration to us all.

Sincerely,

coh`totliieel00W462---

SarahW.(Sally)

McClure

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U.S. Department of EducationOffice of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI)

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