What is New for a New Generation of Learners?

Sam ReddingCenter on Innovation &

Improvement

Generational Change

• 1970: 80% of 25 year olds had married• 2000: 40% of 25 year olds had married

• Independence: moved away from parents, married, children, financially self-sufficient– 1960: 70% of Americans independent by 30– 2000: Less than 40% independent by 30

Divorce in America

• Highest rate in the world• 50% of first marriages• 67% of second marriages• 74% of third marriages

Single Parent Families

• 1970: 13% of families• 1998: 34% of families

• Births to unmarried mothers– 1 in 10 births in 1970– 1 in 3 births in 1995

Percent of Age 25+

• With high school degree– 1970: 52.3%– 2009: 86.7%

• With college degree– 1970: 10.7%– 2009: 29.5%

Percent Age 25+ in 2009

• With high school degree– White: 87.1%– Black: 84.1%– Hispanic: 61.9%– Asian: 88.2%– Male: 86.2%– Female: 87.1%

Percent Age 25+ in 2009

• With college degree– White: 29.9%– Black: 19.3%– Hispanic: 13.2%– Asian: 52.3%– Male: 30.1%– Female: 29.1%

Cell Phones and Computers

Voice and Text

Teens and Text Messages (Pew)

• Teens and Cell Phones (Pew Study, April 2010)The typical American teen sends and receives 50 or more messages per day, or 1,500 per month.

• 31% of teens send and receive more than 100 messages per day or more than 3,000 messages a month.

• 15% of teens who are texters send more than 200 texts a day, or more than 6,000 texts a month.

Use of Media by Adults

• Internet (including email): 32.7 hours per week

• Television: 16.4 hours per week• Newspapers and magazines: 3.9 hours per

week

This is Alaina

Alaina . . .

Has brown hair and brown eyes

A big brother, big sister, and little brother

A dog named JunebugAnd a kitty named Abby

Alaina loves her new doll; she named her Alexis

Alaina is in first grade

Alaina . . .

Is my granddaughter

She calls me “Papa Sam”

Where is Alaina in the school system?

A lainaA laina's P arents A laina's S c hoolmates

A laina's T eac her

A laina's T eac her 's T eam

A laina's P r inc ip al

A laina's S c hool

A laina's D is tr ic t's S up p ort for S c hool

A laina's D is tr ic t's S up er intend ent

A laina's D is tr ic t's B oard

A laina's Intermed iate E d uc ation A g enc y

A laina's S tate E d uc ation A g enc y

Looking for Alaina From the Top Down

A laina A laina's P arentsA laina's S c hoolmates

A laina's T eac her

A laina's T eac her 's T eam

A laina's P r inc ip al

A laina's S c hool

A laina's D is tr ic t's S up p ort for S c hool

A laina's D is tr ic t's S up er intend ent

A laina's D is tr ic t's B oard

A laina's Intermed iate E d uc ation A g enc y

A laina's S tate E d uc ation A g enc y

Finding Alaina

What Matters Most to Alaina’s Success?

Proximal variables matter most – the people closest to Alaina and what they do

And the systems (people) who support them

Alaina’s Family

Alaina’s family’s role is to:

• Love her and talk with her every day• Read to her and listen to her read• Teach her to be kind and to behave in school• Aspire for her to succeed• Expect her to do her best• Build her habit of studying at home• Stay in touch with her teacher• Know her friends and their parents

Alaina’s Teacher

Alaina’s teacher’s role is to:

• Know Alaina well and care about her• Know the subjects well and how to teach them• Meticulously plan every detail of every day• Set and reinforce clear expectations for students• Know what Alaina already knows and what she needs to learn• Adapt instruction for Alaina and for each student• Inspire Alaina to love learning and do her best• Stay in touch with Alaina’s parents and support them in their

role

Alaina’s Teacher’s Team

Alaina’s teacher’s team’s role is to:

• Add flesh to the bones of the aligned curriculum• Develop and share instructional plans, strategies, and

activities• Monitor the progress of their students• Adapt their plans, strategies in response to assessments• Mentor new teachers• Observe each other’s teaching and make suggestions• Contribute to each other’s professional growth

Alaina’s Principal

Alaina’s principal’s role is to:• See that Alaina has the best teachers possible by:

– Hiring good teachers– Clearly communicating and reinforcing expectations for teachers– Monitoring teachers’ performance– Evaluating teacher’ performance, especially through classroom observations

and student achievement– Providing teachers with opportunities for growth aligned with their evaluated

performance– Removing inadequate teachers

• Monitor student and school progress and make adjustments • Coordinate the work of teams• Manage the “business” of the school’s operation• Set the tone of attitude toward students and their families

Alaina’s District’s Support for Her School

The role of Alaina’s district’s support to her school is to:

• Provide a rich, aligned, articulated curriculum• Provide periodic assessment with timely and meaningful reporting

to teachers• Maintain regular two-way communication with Alaina’s principal• Monitor the school’s operations and performance• Provide mentoring and professional development for the principal

aligned with the principal’s needs• Provide professional development for teachers aligned with their

collective and individual needs

Alaina’s District’s Superintendent

Alaina’s superintendent’s role is to:

• See that Alaina’s school has the best principal possible by:– Hiring good principals– Clearly communicating and reinforcing expectations for principals– Monitoring principals’ performance– Evaluating principals’ performance, especially through school operations and

student achievement– Providing principals with opportunities for growth aligned with their evaluated

performance– Removing inadequate principals

• Organize and monitor the delivery of district support for Alaina’s school• Serve as channel of informed communication among district constituencies• Manage the “business” of the district

Alaina’s District’s Board

Alaina’s district board’s role is to:• Establish policies with Alaina in mind• Negotiate contracts with Alaina in mind• Provide the resources necessary for Alaina’s success• Provide the best superintendent possible by:

– Hiring a good superintendent– Clearly communicating and reinforcing expectations for the

superintendent– Monitoring the superintendent’s performance– Evaluating the superintendent’s performance, especially in district

operations and student achievement– Providing the superintendent with opportunities for growth aligned

with their evaluated performance– Removing inadequate superintendents

What Happened About Year 7?Millard Fillmore SchoolScores on State Assessment

28

Year 1 Year 7 Year 9Year 4 Year 12

What happened about Year 7?

List 3 actions that most contributed to Millard Fillmore’s improvement.

Change of principals doesn’t count.

Proximal Variables for Student Learning

The student’s –• prior learning, which teachers have provided;• metacognitive skills, which can be taught;• motivation to learn and sense of self-efficacy, which a teacher nurtures;• effort and time on task, which a teacher expects;• interaction—academic and social—with teachers and other students;• family’s engagement and support for learning, which a teacher curries.The teacher’s -• instructional planning and classroom management;• instructional delivery through a variety of modes;• personalization (individualization) of instruction for each student;• taught and aligned curriculum, designed by teacher teams.