Overview:

Amity Regional High School is entering year 3 of an ambitious initiative designed to ensure that research-based literacy strategies are used to support content-based instruction in all courses and by all teachers at Amity Regional High School. Over the past three years, literacy liaisons in each department, reading consultants and high school administrators selected and vetted research-based literacy strategies that best supported content-based objectives. These literacy strategies and student work were puton a WordPress blog. The literacy strategies and student work were reviewed by administrators and department chairs assigned to evaluate each teacher as part of the Region 5 Teacher were shared with teachers in each department. Teachers were provided the autonomy to select from the strategies and choose which strategy best supported the aims of their instruction. As part of professional goals, each teacher at Amity Regional High School was expected to use four literacy strategies, including at least one digital or media/informational component, throughout the course of the year. Teachers subsequently posted these literacy strategies and Evaluation Instrument. The result of this approach was the creation of a robust collection of literacy strategies organized by department on the WordPress blog. This collection of literacy strategies is available to all teachers at Amity Regional High School.

Goal:

The goal of the 2011-2012 literacy plan is to ensure that all Amity Regional High School teachers continue to use research-based literacy strategies to support content-specific instruction. Further emphasis will be placed on infusing digital and media information literacy strategies. This goal will work in tandem with a newly designed inter-disciplinary and intra-disciplinary Professional Learning Conversation (PLC) time, and a concerted effort to ensure that a living curriculum is created and maintained by all teachers.

Key components of the 2011-2012 Amity Regional High School Literacy Plan include the following:

• Professional Goals: As part of the Region 5 Teacher Evaluation Instrument, each teacher will be expected to develop a literacy goal. As part of this goal, teachers will be required to select and use researched-based literacy strategies during the 2011-2012 academic year. Requirements to satisfy the goal will include participation in literacy roundtables run during interdisciplinary PLC time, and the selection and use of literacy strategies to support content objectives. Once selected and used, teachers will be required to use intra-disciplinary PLC time to update ATLAS curriculum guides by posting the literacy strategy in either the “Literacy Strategy” or “Suggested Instructional Approaches” columns.  By the end of the 2011-2012 academic year, each unit should have at least one identified literacy strategy.

 

• Literacy Roundtables: Each teacher at Amity Regional High School is assigned to an interdisciplinary PLC team. These teams will meet once every other four day cycle throughout the school year. Reading consultants are assigned to each of the PLC teams through which they will conduct Literacy Roundtables.

 

• Living Curriculum: For the 2011-2012 academic year, each teacher has been assigned an intra-disciplinary PLC time. These intra-disciplinary PLC teams will meet 3 times every two cycles. During this time, teachers will be expected to work independently, or in teams of content-specific/course-specific teachers, to develop a living curriculum. Key components of a living curriculum involve the regular reflection on, and updating of, ATLAS curriculum guides. Two of the key components of the ATLAS curriculum guides involve documentation of “Amity Literacy Strategies” and “Suggested Instructional Strategies.” As part of professional goals, teachers will be expected to use literacy strategies in support of an articulated unit objective.  To achieve this goal, teachers can use the following resources:
  • Use the department WordPress
  • Work with reading consultants assigned to each department or PLC
  • Consult with technology or media specialists
  • Use resources on the literacy/numeracy blog (e.g. flipcharts, Beyond the Blueprint, Reading Next, etc.)

 

Teachers will post the strategies, or a link to the strategies, in the ATLAS curriculum guide under the heading of “Amity Literacy Strategy” or “Suggested Instructional Strategy”.

• Reading for Information: Each department will be expected to develop and implement at least two Reading for Information (RFI) assessments. These assessments will be administered to all freshmen and sophomore students prior to the CAPT in March. In mixed grade level courses, all grade levels will be administered this assessment. These RFI assessments must be assessed using CAPT rubrics with feedback provided to students.  The process involves administration of a first RFI (pre-assessment), data collection/review, instruction/remediation, administration of second RFI assessment (post-assessment).  Reading consultants are available to meet with individual teachers and/or departments for support in developing RFI assessments. 

 

• Reading Screening for Freshmen and Sophomores:

All ninth and tenth grade students will take the Gates-MacGinitie universal screening in their social studies classes during the first weeks of school.  Information from this screening measure will be used to determine students who may need additional instructional supports in the regular education classroom.  In order to facilitate supporting students, the English, Social Studies and Reading department teachers will meet in September/October to review the data and to discuss instructional strategies.  The data will be shared with department heads who will then be able to share the data with the teachers in their departments who have ninth and tenth grade students. 

Supports:

To support teachers, the following resources will be provided:

• Access to literacy resources
  • Beyond the Blueprint
  • Literacy Flip Chart
  • Literacy/Numeracy WordPress Blog
  • Literacy Rubrics
  • Reading Next
  • RFI Consultation – Reading Department
  • WordPress Blog

 

• Reading Consultants Assigned by Department

 

• Reading Consultants by Interdisciplinary PLC

 

• Literacy Liaisons by Department

 

• Administrative Support

Administrators/department chairs will set Literacy goals with teachers Administrators will coordinate with the departments and PLC groups below to ensure literacy strategies are being incorporated into the “living curriculum” on Atlas. Building Administrators are assigned to the following departments/PLC groups.

• Reading Consultants

Reading consultants will be available to departments and PLC groups for Literacy support.  They will facilitate 4 Literacy Round Tables for each Interdepartmental PLC. Consultants will also be available to assist departments in the creation of RFI Assessments (as needed). 

 

• Library Media Specialists

Library Media Specialists are available to support staff with both print and digital literacy strategies.  There are a number of digital media available to students and staff, and teaching students the ethical, practical, and educational uses of technology is a key focus of the supports that can be provided through the media center.

Evaluation:

The following methods will be used to continuously evaluate the implementation of the 2011-2012 Literacy Plan.

• Set a literacy goal with Department Chairs and/or Administrator (Teachers)
• Identify, document, and continuously update literacy strategies using the ATLAS (Teachers).
• Regular review of curricular guides in ATLAS (Department Chairs, Literacy Liaisons, Reading Department, and Administrators).
• Walk-Throughs conducted throughout the year (Administrators, Dept. Chairs)
• Literacy Committee Meeting Reports – Alignment of Literacy Strategies with ATLAS curriculum (Literacy Liaisons, Reading Consultants)

By department, the High School will continue to collect and implement discipline-specific literacy (or numeracy) strategies across the curriculum.  Evidence and evaluation of the initiative will focus, primarily, on the collection of exemplar lesson plans that support the specific literacy or numeracy objectives identified by each department in an electronic database readily accessible to teachers.   Teachers will participate in professional dialogue around literacy or numeracy at department meetings and post comments and discuss content area literacy through an electronic forum (Word Press) that will be part of the department’s literacy/numeracy resources.  Each department should assemble a collection of Common Formative Assessments (CFA’s), with some specifically aligned to Reading for Information (CAPT) and/or Critical Reading/Writing (SAT).  Faculty will receive release time to participate in quarterly Roundtable discussions will be scheduled by department, class, and/or grade level.  Roundtables will be coordinated and facilitated by the reading faculty, literacy liaisons, and department heads. Reading and special education teachers will co-teach select Level 3/Level 2 classes in English, math, science, and social studies.  Finally, members of the high school literacy committee will meet quarterly, throughout the school year, to determine evolving needs of faculty and students.

Teachers:

• Continue to effectively embed literacy or numeracy strategies in the content areas. Teachers are encouraged to work with department literacy liaisons and reading consultants to develop and assess the use of literacy strategies.
• Develop a measurable 2010-2011 literacy goal with administrators and department heads.
• Develop common formative assessments that focus on literacy (RFI – CAPT and Critical Reading/Writing – SAT).
• Participate in ‘Roundtables’ to examine student work in literacy as it pertains to a specific discipline. 
• Submit four lesson plans/strategies and related student work that show evidence of embedded literacy strategies and objectives as identified by department.  At least two of these lessons should reflect instruction where students are asked to access, create, navigate, and/or evaluate digital materials.  Literacy strategies will be uploaded onto the department’s literacy E-Folio (Word Press).  Department literacy liaisons will train teachers on how to submit literacy strategies to Word Press E-Folio and will oversee/ support teachers in the process of submitting literacy strategies throughout the year.
• Use rubrics for reading/writing/numeracy that align with department and school-wide rubrics.
• Retain samples of student work for literacy strategies submitted.  Samples of student work will be used during Roundtable discussions and goal setting/review of goals.  Posting of student work on the literacy E-Folio (Word Press) is optional, but if posted should be done by keeping student names anonymous.

Department Literacy Liaisons:

• Collect and manage submitted lessons.
• Continue to work with reading faculty to gather resources to support content specific literacy strategies, including materials appropriate for CAPT, SAT, PSAT, NOCTI, and AP.
• Engage department colleagues in dialogue around literacy, strategic reading/response skills, and common formative assessments.
• Maintain department site on Word Press (includes blog or other discussion board)

Reading Consultants:

• Analyze 8^th grade CMT results to identify students who should be enrolled in Content Literacy.
• Conduct comprehensive reading testing per 504/SST/parent referrals and for triennial evaluations.
• Co-teach in English and Social Studies classes. (Special Education Teachers will co-teach in English, Math, Science, and Social Studies).
• Continue collaboration with content area teachers on lesson planning, review of student work, and formative assessments as necessary through roundtables and other venues.
• Coordinate all aspects of the CAPT alternate assessment in reading for juniors not meeting the high school graduation requirement (>228 standard score).
• Continue to teach regular and special education students in the reading classrooms.
• Facilitate New Faculty Training: Review goals of district literacy initiative and support teachers in developing lesson plans/assessments that embed literacy strategies as they apply to respective content areas.
• Participate in scoring the practice CAPT Reading for Information subtest and create practice CAPT Reading Across the Curriculum database for analysis by principal and referral of students to CAPT Prep class.
• Provide DI/SRBI teams and L2/L3 teachers with literacy resources and professional development.
• Support administration in the review of student work based on areas emphasized in the literacy plan.
• Work with content area faculty to provide support in modifying materials and assessments for English Language Learners.
• Work with ninth and tenth grade teachers as well as the department literacy reps to create a department library of model Reading for Information* assessments (texts and questions) that align with the state test and reflect the curriculum of individual classes.

* Reading for Information question stems provide good examples of phrasing in each category/strand (e.g. Using evidence from the text to draw/support conclusions; Evaluating explicit and implicit information and themes within the text; drawing conclusions about author’s purpose; etc.). Teachers should model using this language.  Although what is considered a “text” can be broadly defined to include print, on-line materials, digital recordings, images, film, maps, and schematics to fit the instruction and purpose of any particular class throughout the year, students should also be assessed using articles that are similar in length, style, and vocabulary to those that they will actually see on the CAPT.  Student responses must include specific and concise references to the text to receive full credit.

Administrator/Department Head Responsibilities:

• Dialogue with teachers about effective implementation of literacy strategies across the curriculum.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of embedded literacy across the curriculum through the following means:
  • Analyze CMT data and identify areas of strength/weakness for ninth grade students.  Share results with ninth grade faculty.
  • Analyze results of CFA and embedded literacy strategies. Share results with faculty including exemplary CFAs.
  • Analyze results of practice CAPT in reading and share results with sophomore teachers.
  • Conduct walk-through observations.
  • Review lesson plans and related student work collected by department data bases for literacy.
  • Monitor literacy goal by observing lessons that embed literacy strategies.
  • Work with teachers to develop a literacy goal.