Group items tagged

In order to increase the achievement levels of minorities and low income students, there are three components that are the focus: high standards, a rigorous curriculum, and effective educators.

This post hits home, as I see it at my Title I school. Students struggle but even the students passing AP classes and Honors courses, yet when they see the SAT's or the ACT's. Last year, my school's valedictorian only got a 1000 on the SAT and did not get to attend her first choice. We, as a school, and larger, we as educators need to ensure that we are doing everything we can to get these students to get past whatever challenges exist outside of the school and have strict standards that need to be met.

This a great resource for every teacher.

An informative and engaging article that provides eight solutions to tackling the achievement gap.  It is well organized and written with clear reasoning for each solution.

I really enjoyed this article. As a new instructor I am constantly looking to engage my adult students. Through my instruction, making that personal connection is so important. Once you make that personal connection I find that students start making a personal connection with their assignments as well. I find having a non-academic conversation at the beginning of class can help the students feel involved classroom citizens.

This article really gives great advice on how teachers can help close the achievement gap by changing small things they do in the classroom. The two things that stuck out to me was allowing more time and progress monitoring. Sometimes time is all a student needs to succeed. When students feel rushed they end up just picking whatever answer they think is right or just something to complete the assignment. Allowing students to return to their unfinished work could really help students concentrate knowing that they don't have to rush to finish an assignment. As far as progress monitoring goes, it helps when the teacher really cares about making sure the students are on the right track and that their parents are aware of the work they have completed or would need to complete to get them on track.

This site provided an article that looked into what the organization, Partners in School Innovations is doing to "not just close the achievement gap, but the teaching gap." Results from a survey are shared regarding average class sizes and the time spent teaching versus the time spent planning. The article provides a case study of a school that focused on instructional gaps and its results. This is a great read for administrators, policymakers and other stakeholders.

I realize this has more to do with achievement gaps than specific gaps within a single classroom, but it has been my experience that targeted instruction to support a few helps every learner in the room.

"Closing the ELL/ESL Achievement Gap with Blended Learning," by Debbie Malone. Type of post: Strategies (in a sort of blog). This is an interesting article about helping ESOL/ELL students. Some important "take-aways," according to the author (regarding the blended learning approach she advocates): "However, one of the most valuable tools provided by online and blended learning programs is their continual checks for understanding, which provide educators with real-time actionable data. This helps teachers gauge whether their ELL/ESL students are keeping up with the rest of the class or whether they need more assistance. Educators can then spend more time working with individual students in areas where they are struggling and prevent problems from snowballing. "But technology can't solve all of the problems associated with the growing achievement gap between ELL/ESL students and native English speakers. Many educators have reported a lack of funding or personal development geared toward addressing the needs of ELL/ESL learners. Technology can, however, be leveraged to personalize the learning experience for these students. "Because the human element of the student-teacher relationship is still a vital classroom component, especially for ELL/ESL students, a blended learning classroom offers an ideal way to cultivate that relationship. Building on that, it may also be the answer to creating a more effective learning environment that lowers the language barrier for educators and increases academic achievement for ELL/ESL students." Great points! As the fictional movie character Borat used to say, "I like." However, I would like to see additional (and empirical) evidence. I do agree with the author on many points, though I would enjoy seeing a research study on this. Malone, D. (2014, November 12). Closing the ELL/ESL Achievement Gap with Blended Learning. Retrieved from https://blog.edgenuity.com/closing-the-ellesl-achievement-gap-through

This presentation talks about instructional gaps and how they relate to a cycle of low achievement. There is a tendency for assignments to fall further away from the appropriate grade level. Following the Standards in Practice (SIP) model, teachers will be able to close an instructional gap and make assignments more rigorous in order to provide students with the instruction they need to obtain proficiency.

This article provides an overview of instructional gaps and how to expand assignments to ensure we are teaching and assessing students in way that provides good instruction. It was a helpful overview that provided me with great thinking points and a clear structure on how to move forward.

The article was a lot of help. I typically gave lower level readings to my students that are ELL's so they can understand their concept as their reading levels are typically lower. I'm going to try more with the SIP model to see if students will rise to the occasion.

(Week 9: Tolulope Oladipo and Michelle Bear) This is a journal article that is available in Diigo. The link to the article is also provided below: The Real Versus the Possible: Closing the Gaps in Engagement and Learning. Retrieved from https://www.educause.edu/research-and-publications/books/educating-net-generation/real-versus-possible-closing-gaps-engagement-and-learning. This article explores the generations of learners, how we can utilize technology in learning, the discovery of education community and learning science. The authors discussed further educational Goals about learning, improving student's success, engagement and learning through people to people interaction, people and tools, using information technology device as a vehicle by which concepts are presented (such as using simulations, and animations), using collaboration and rich media communication to promote interaction an engagement. The author discusses how access to technology determines generation of learners, such as the Net generation. According to the authors, many students in the K-12 and post-secondary education do not have adequate access to advanced instructional technologies or the web. Despite the engagement created by technology-enabled interactive instruction, many students, teachers, do not have the requisite experiences. The authors went further that internet resources are not yet fully integrated into the day-t0-day classroom routine. The authors cited a finding that proposed that motivation is a key factor to learning, and that engagement and learning can be achieved through competency and control, curriculum, instruction, the organization, management of the schools and the environmental conditions. Furthermore, according to the authors, the Board on Children, Youth and Families 2004 National report recommended that we can keep young people in school and making learning worthwhile by forming a good connection between learners and the context in which learning occurs. We sh

This article discusses academic vocabulary and how it can have an impact on the achievement gap.

This article discusses the relationship between achievement gaps and literacy gaps. As many students enter high school with low literacy skills, they become frustrated and struggle with the vocabulary needed to excel in math, science, social studies and other classes. As teachers, we need to help students to build the vocabulary needed to excel in all subject areas.

This article focuses on a potential root cause for the achievement gap, which the authors identified as the language and literacy gap. When students lack the language necessary to access the material in math, science, or other specialized classes; it can be difficult or overwhelming to try to bridge that gap in the classroom. Teachers need to do a better job of incorporating and explicitly teaching the academic language needed to be successful in the subject area in question. The process can start more general before leading to content specific "jargon," but the important thing is to expose students to the language frequently.

A 21-page study of Milton Public Schools addressing the achievement gap of special education students.

I find this interesting, considering we never question the tests. Teachers, Schools, Families, and School districts have been trying for years to close achievement gaps, yet the gap remains. I think it is time to stop discussing what we need to do and start looking at standardized tests as inappropriate.

This study suggests that policy makers need to re-examine how they view the educational gaps of students with disabilities, in that they are diverse in the range of disabilities that create these disparaties. Decision making to lessen the gap cannot look at a one size fits all solution when dealing with a heterogeneous sub-group.

Closing Achievement Gaps: An Association Guide (NEA), (Pg, 18-19), 2015, Retrieved from http://www.nea.org/home/13550.htm Retrieved on 10/16/15 This article is extremely useful for teachers. The article delivers important information on strategies to use when trying to close the achievement gap.

List of ways that you can close the gap that can be used as a good starting point but does not provide any real substance.

This website provides tips and strategies that can be used in the classroom to help close the achievement gap. The strategies include family outreach, multiple learning opportunities and classroom support strategies

This Edutopia post discusses arts education having intrinsic value and its effects on achievement gaps.

Art education can lessen the achievement gap, specifically with students from low socioeconomic backgrounds (SES). Unfortunately, an 'opportunity gap' exists with low-income students, which makes them less likely to have access to art education as compared to their higher-income peers.

This article focuses on simple things that teachers should keep in mind when trying to close the achievement gap. It reminds teachers that they don't need to make grand, sweeping changes; just doing some small things can have a major impact in terms of both the instructional and achievement gaps. The steps include using data more effectively, reflecting on your own choices in the classroom with a purpose, staying open-minded and avoiding assumptions, ensuring that the class is academically and culturally relevant, and developing positive relationships with parents. These are not necessarily ground-breaking ideas, but they are small enough that they can be effectively implemented relatively quickly and then fostered more to help close those gaps for students.

I enjoyed this article as it gives very simple ways that teachers can do a better job. It also confirms what I've known to help by making more culturally friendly lessons that students are more accustomed to as we try to scaffold concepts that are foreign.

This article discusses how professional development for teachers will help close the achievement gap. This blog centers on how the improvement of teaching practices will best assist students and that there should be universal teaching strategies. EDTC 615. k-12

Details 4 critical ways in which we can improve the quality of instruction by focusing on improvement as instructors. Standardizing practices, strategies, assessments, etc. Interesting read and turns the system around to look at instructors what we are able to change.

This article is great at recognizing necessary checks and balances for teachers. Changing standards will not along close all of the achievement gaps. The improved curriculum must come with a way for teachers to know they are delivering appropriately and sufficiently.

Instructional gap between black and white students and suggestions to reduce the achievement gap.

I have a problem with these comparisons, because what are we comparing? Suburban White children with Inner City Black children? I would rather see what differences occur within the same socio-economic range. Then we can discuss what the differences are and how to decrease the gap. Otherwise it's apples to oranges.

This article describes the need to address the cultural gap that exists in our society. The author focuses on a first grade teacher, Lauren Mead, in Kirkland Washington and her journey to connect with her students on a deeper level. The article goes on to highlight sentiments from other educators about cultural awareness. The remarks of one teacher were very profound: "First and foremost, let your students know that their lived experiences are valid and valued. They have every right to hold on to who they are, what they know, and what they live, even if sometimes they have to stop and work through differences," he says. "But you also have to show them how to navigate our school culture so they can succeed." Understanding that more than achievement gaps exists in our classrooms will help educators engage students and begin to see progress in closing the learning and instructional gaps that are present.

Wow, very interesting article. I agree with the article in that it is important to value your student's diversity. I have a melting pot of students in my class and I am trying to get to know each family on a deeper level. This will allow me to make connections with this student and hopefully understand any barriers that may be relevant to their learning.

Instructional and Learning Gaps aren't always attributable to pedagogy or technology. I find it's more often the teacher-student relationship.

This article discusses the need for implementation of student-involved classroom assessment to aid in closing the achievement gap. The authors discuss how motivation occurs at both ends of the spectrum for learners; high achieving learners are motivated by their continued success while low achieving learners are motivated to give up as they have had few to little successful experiences in the classroom. The article goes on to discuss three methods of embedding students into the learning process that will prove to help them take ownership of their learning experience. The first is student involved classroom assessment. This tool allows students, "under the careful management of their teachers," to give input into how they will be assessed in the classroom. The second is student-involved record keeping. Here students are responsible for tracking their progress, allowing them to see and take charge of their personal growth in the classroom. Finally, student-involved communication is discussed. Students have the opportunity to advocate for themselves in setting such as parent/teacher conferences. The article also discusses four conditions that are necessary, in the opinion of the authors, to assist in closing the achievement gap.

I enjoyed this article, Jason, especially the premise that essentially enforcing the idea that students are underachieving as a whole by a set of arbitrary test scores can, consequently in some empirical cases, produce negative self-fulfilling prophecies in students' beliefs. This promotion of subconscious failing, if replicated and shown to be universally significant, holds dramatic implications. Looking back on my own experiences, Jason, I can remember the pride that I constantly felt in elementary school because we were known to be the leaders in our county; conversely though, if that were not the cause, I think it would be fair to conjecture that a pall of hopelessness may have replaced my academic banner of proverbial pride and high morale.