From "Incusion in action / edited by Phi Foreman, 3rd ed., Chapter 5, 2011, pp. 179-218 5 Panning effective teaching strategies Michae Arthur-Key & Judith Neiands This chapter aims to: Examine aspects of differentiated curricuum, teaching and the earning environment reevant to the education of a students, incuding individuas with additiona needs Introduce a mode of cassroom panning that is practica and reevant to the needs of teachers working in reguar schoos and the students they teach Expain severa key concepts and strategies that support the design of effective teaching interventions, incuding universa design, curricuum-based assessment, mastery earning and task anaysis. Visit the companion website to see xxx for this chapter. FPO 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 179
180 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices Introduction Figure 5.1 Effective teaching is the basis for successfu incusion As suggested in the earier chapters of this book, students with additiona needs are not vasty different from their peers who do not have a disabiity. In fact, it is much more hepfu to consider simiarities between the two groups rather than differences. The same point is true for the approaches effective teachers use when incuding students with differing eves of abiity in the one cass (see Figure 5.1). The design and impementation of cass programs that meet the needs of a students is a process of differentiation grounded in principes of effective teaching and earning that are famiiar to a teachers. Recent initiatives such as a research synthesis of effective teaching by Eis, Worthington and Larkin (2006) and more ocay, the Quaity Teaching project in NSW (NSW Department of Education and Training 2003), highight this point. Figure 5.2 shows some of the factors that pay a part in the achievement of effective teaching and earning for students, under the headings of curricuum issues, instructiona issues and aspects of the earning context. The points that have been isted in this figure are not exhaustive and it may be usefu to deveop other topics for further consideration and foow-up reading. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 180
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 181 Curricuum issues Target-directed earning Task achievabiity Content enhancement Reationship to prior earning Curricuum adaptation Instructiona issues Teaching cyce Instructiona diversity Estabished principes of instructiona deivery and support Effective teaching and earning experiences for students Aspects of the earning context Cassroom management and organisation Cassroom cimate Communication processes Figure 5.2 Factors in the achievement of effective teaching and earning Curricuum issues A number of the factors identified in this aspect of Figure 5.2, such as task achievabiity and curricuum adaptation, have aready been discussed in chapter 4. These factors are underpinned by the quaity of the reationship between the earner and the curricuum on offer in the schoo. Terms such as accommodations and adjustments, often used in educationa iterature and syabus documents, emphasise the fuid nature of curricuum support in modern schoos. For exampe, the effective teacher wi consider questions such as: To what degree does the student recognise the ink between current and past earning experiences and esson content? How achievabe is the materia or task presented to the student? Is the materia presented to the student at a eve that wi stimuate deep earning? Can the student identify the goa of the task and recognise its reevance and appication (target-directed earning)? Shoud assessment materia be presented in an adapted format or under different conditions in ight of the student s particuar needs? As suggested by the exampe in Box 1.1, an underying theme in any anaysis of curricuum is the eve of persona motivation to engage in earning new content and skis, and the degree to which individua needs are met by such experiences. The nature and reevance of schoo curricuum has been the subject of much discussion in the ast decade, and severa authors have examined the reationship between the satisfaction of persona and academic needs in the schoo 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 181
182 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices b o x 5.1 Tim is in Year 9 and is strugging to maintain an interest in the subjects he is competing. Boredom, hormones, a ack of achievement and itte connection between what happens in cass and everyday ife have combined to produce a sense of disiusionment and frustration. Tim is increasingy in troube with teachers for taking constanty and wasting his time and that of his friends. He recenty received a very poor report in the mid-year assessments. Athough his famiy has expressed concern for his schoo work, cassroom behaviour and poor resuts, Tim is finding it very difficut to break this emerging pattern of faiure and possibe resentment. Figure 5.3 Teachers may need to use a range of aternative assessments 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 182
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 183 setting (Arthur-Key et a. 2007; Gasser 1998). In this context, the teacher is concerned with the interaction between schoo curricuums and student variabes, the nature of what is taught to students, and the impact for the individua. A centra consideration wi be the provision of adjusted assessment. For some students, it wi be vita for teachers to use a range of aternative techniques to ascertain exacty how skied a student is in a particuar topic area or ski sequence (see Figure 5.3), in order to gain a picture of anticipated instructiona needs and earning supports that may be required. Impicit in this personaised approach is a recognition of individua preferences both in receiving information and dispaying an understanding or use of it in appied tasks. For exampe, if writing is a chaenge, verba responses may be permitted for a particuar student. Simiary, modifications to the curricuum offered in cassrooms that incude students with additiona needs can be expected to enhance engagement and achievement eves. In their observationa study of 45 students with a range of disabiities enroed in reguar secondary cassrooms in the USA, Lee et a. (2010) concuded that there were positive changes achieved for teachers and their students when curricuum modifications were made to key earning areas. For exampe, students were noted to be more engaged in earning activities, and teachers, happiy, were ess caught up in cassroom management activities that drew them away from the provision of instruction. With this important research in mind, it is appropriate then to turn to the question of how modified curricuum is taught, and to consider the compex reationship between curricuum and instruction. Instructiona issues In the past two decades, educationa research in the area of effective instruction has bossomed (Agozzine, Yssedyke & Eiott 1997; Eis et a. 2006; Good & Brophy 2000; Westwood 2007; Wofe 1998). In exporing the many inkages between curricuum (what to teach) and instruction (how to teach), teachers continue to generate creative approaches to program design (Rosenshine 1995), incuding those centred on cognitive and metacognitive techniques such as strategy instruction and content enhancements (Bugren 2006; Desher et a. 2001), student-directed earning (Agran et a. 2003), cooperative earning (Goor & Schwenn 1993; Jenkins et a. 2003) and the principes of behavioura anaysis (Aberto & Troutman 2006; Duker, Didden & Sigafoos 2004). At the heart of such diversity, however, is an instructiona design that remains constant. In Figure 5.4 a basic instructiona cyce, perhaps typica of a daiy esson, is set within the arger process of instructiona design. The outer cyce describes the key phases a teachers go through when designing instruction, whie the inner cyce represents one of a number of approaches to the deivery of instruction in a daiy esson. Both cyces refect the same process on a macro and micro scae. The themes raised in this figure are not new and have been discussed by many writers in the area of instructiona effectiveness (Agozzine et a. 1997; Christenson, Yssedyke & Thurow 1989; Rosenshine 1995; Wofe 1998). However, current iterature (and common sense!) suggest that instruction and curricuum (the how and the what of teaching) are best considered as part of an integrated approach to effective teaching and earning (Arthur-Key et a. 2007; Dempsey & Arthur-Key 2007). Hudson, Lignugaris-Kraft and Mier (1993), for exampe, drew attention to the ways in which teachers can ink content enhancements such as advance organisers and mnemonics with various instructiona stages, incuding the presentation of new materia, and guided and 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 183
184 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices Review prior earning Evauate progress Assess student performance and earning needs Introduce new materia Provide demonstration, guided practice and appication Pan teaching and earning program Promote independent practice and appication Link to next task or ski area Impement program Figure 5.4 A typica instructiona cyce embedded in the process of instructiona design independent practice, in order to optimise student earning outcomes (aso see Bugren 2006). In a compex educationa area such as reading acquisition and deveopment, the same interpay between curricuum goas and instructiona variabes is noteworthy. For exampe, the US Nationa Reading Pane (2000, in Musti-Rao, Hawkins & Barkey 2009) isted the components that constitute effective reading instruction: phonemic awareness, aphabetic principes, fuency, vocabuary and comprehension. Highighting the need for fuency, Musti-Rao et a. (2009) have shown repeated reading intervention is a research-vaidated approach which can improve fuency, and thence comprehension, for readers at risk. Rosenshine (1995) drew attention to the research evidence for the critica inkage between an individua earner s cognitive processing patterns and the features of instruction designed to support the earning process. Likewise, Eis et a. (2006) provide an exceent discussion of 10 areas of research into effective teaching, aong with reevant imitations and barriers. The interreationship of student earning abiity and needs, instructiona behaviour by the teacher and the reevance of the curricuum on offer in the cassroom is underscored in this vauabe review. Finay, a range of factors reated to the quaity of instructiona deivery and support must aso be considered in any discussion of effective teaching and earning. Exampes incude (but are 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 184
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 185 not imited to) pacing, types and amounts of feedback and reinforcement avaiabe, the strategic use of prompting strategies, provision of adequate earning time, and specific techniques such as teacher cueing, question distribution behaviours and grouping arrangements empoyed (Bauer & Shea 1999; Christenson et a. 1989; Duker et a. 2004; Eis et a. 2006; Rieth & Evertson 1988; Rieth & Posgrove 1994; Vaughn et a. 2001). Schoss et a. (1995) provided a review of a number of research-based principes and strategies for teaching, incuding prompting, chaining, modeing and shaping. In a review of direct instruction (DI), Magiaro, Lockee & Burton (2005) stress the research-based credentias over 30 years of this very focused teaching technoogy, which is essentiay modeing with reinforced guided performance (Joyce et a. in Magiaro et a. 2009). Recent iterations of DI are found in web-based instruction packages. Exampes are provided in the webinks at the end of this chapter. A group size of three has been shown to maximise instructiona time and use resources efficienty during reading tutoring with students at risk of faiure. It was comparabe with a 1:1 ratio in improving reading grades in a study invoving 271 first-graders requiring suppementa reading instruction (Hef, Cooke & Fowers 2009). These approaches are centra to good teaching and provide a foundation for student earning and motivation. As indicated in the next section, the quaity of instruction achieved in a cassroom is aso a function of severa contextua variabes, such as cimate and communication, which effectivey set the scene for meaningfu student participation in the earning process. Aspects of the earning context The earning context provided for students is a crucia factor in the achievement of productive and effective earning outcomes. Teachers face the daiy chaenge of estabishing and supporting a rich earning environment that is stimuating and efficient and, most importanty, suitabe to the diverse needs of the modern cassroom (Keeffe & Carrington 2006; Loreman, Deppeer & Harvey 2005). Diverse backgrounds and cutura heritage are factors for teachers to consider in creating a cassroom cimate that taps into the cutura and inguistic resources within the students persona experiences and vocabuaries (McQuiston, O Shea & McCoin 2008). Athough many aspects must be considered, three interreated themes can be identified: 1 Issues in cassroom management and organisation incuding the deveopment of cassroom routines, seating arrangements and rues (Arthur-Key et a. 2007; Babkie 2006; Bauer & Shea 1999; Bankenship 1988; Porter 2000; Smith & Misra 1992). 2 The cassroom cimate, typicay described as the feeing or atmosphere experienced by both cass participants and visitors. This feature is usuay reated to the types of expectations teachers have of students, the variety of curricuar and instructiona approaches used in the promotion of earning and the degree of encouragement provided to students. 3 Communication processes have an integra roe in the provision of a supportive cassroom context. Factors to be considered may incude the teacher s use of effective istening skis, recognition by teachers that communication is a mutimoda and compex process (Smith & Laws 1992), as we as the abiity of students to isten effectivey (Swain, Friehe & Harrington 2004). Of course, earning contexts are much broader than the cassroom. The schoo cuture and the famiy both provide vita input to the earning process. At a schoo eve, it is generay agreed 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 185
186 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices that the cimate of incusion, and the use of ongoing systemic refection and evauation, is centra to the achievement of optima student earning outcomes (Ekins & Grimes 2009). Simiary, parenta, sibing and extended famiia interest in student abiities ensures that skis earnt at schoo are foowed through in other situations. Schoos that engage famiies in providing back-up to students and engage in the panning of mutuay agreed educationa programs are abe to achieve vauabe mutipier effects and a strategic improvement in the students achievement of earning outcomes that are vaued by a. The quaity of the schoo and cassroom context is centra to the promotion of earning and behaviour, and readers are encouraged to pursue this area, and famiy perspectives on educationa panning and instruction, in greater depth. Severa writers have discussed the contribution of carefu programming and teaching to the prevention of misbehaviour and the deveopment of positive patterns of behaviour, emphasising the proactive roe of the cassroom teacher and the importance of understanding the ecoogy of the individua (Bankenship 1988; Arthur-Key et a. 2007; Smith & Misra 1992). Chapter 6 examines a range of strategies for encouraging appropriate behaviour in students and chapter 7 considers the impact of communication difficuties on behaviour. The interested reader may aso wish to review papers by Babkie (2006), Danies (1998) and Maag (2001) to hep identify issues and strategies reevant to the prevention and management of disruptive behaviour in incusive cassrooms. The foowing case study of Hayey s coege experiences (Narrative 5.1) iustrates many of the curricuar, instructiona and organisationa aspects of effective teaching and earning discussed in the chapter to this point. The reader shoud note the interactive use of the principes and procedures described in Figure 5.2. For exampe, fexibe organisationa structures are used, incuding a variety of student grouping and team-teaching arrangements, in direct reation to the type of esson content, avaiabe resources and, primariy, Hayey s earning needs. Perhaps most importanty, note the rich insights provided by Hayey s mother, Jenny. n a r r a t i v e 5.1 Hayey Bottre the coege years Hayey enroed for the fina phase of her schooing at Tuggeranong Coege. She had enjoyed severa transition visits and attended an information evening in the previous year, so she was very keen and excited about starting coege. At the time, we thought she was ucky to have a friend, aso with Down syndrome (DS), starting at the same coege at the same time. We had decided to send Hayey to this particuar coege for a number of reasons: The coege had not had a person with DS before, so Hayey woud be in mainstream casses, with the teachers modifying her outcomes and making aowances for her, academicay. There was no earning support unit (LSU), so the teachers woud not be abe to suggest a pacement in the LSU if things got tough. There was an Outpost room in the coege where students with specia needs coud go to receive extra hep with their work and assignments. The coege was near a major shopping centre which Hayey knew we, so that if she had a free esson she coud do what a ot of teenagers do, hang out at the shops with friends, window-shop, or have unch there. The coege was near a bus interchange and she woud be abe to catch one bus to and from home (the mother of the other gir with DS offered to teach Hayey to use the buses). 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 186
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 187 Hayey woud receive 50 per cent support of a earning support assistant (LSA), funded by the Department of Education and Training. This transated into Hayey being supported by the LSA for most of her casses, as her friend with DS had the other 50 per cent support and they woud be in a the same casses except for one. Hayey s first morning at coege was very chaenging. Just as we I had taken her and hung around. When she arrived, there were hundreds of students miing around the foyer. Unfortunatey for Hayey, they were mosty much taer than her, and at 1.5 metres she coudn t see a thing in the crush so she got a bit upset. Once the crowd thinned, she was abe to find her LSA and go to her casses. As time went on, Hayey quicky managed to find her way around the coege and was rarey ate for cass. The mobie phone she ater received for her birthday turned out to be a Godsend as her teachers coud ocate her quicky if they needed to. Hayey made many new friends, especiay in dance but interestingy, not friends she woud sociaise with out of coege. Athough, many of the boys at dance thought Hayey was a bit of aright after seeing her dance in her bey dancing costume. Hayey s subjects in Year 11 were cooking, Engish, maths, dancing and community studies. Her maths and Engish were casses for students with specia needs and more often than not, each student in the cass worked at their own individua program based on the same part of the curricuum. This worked we as most of the students had different needs and earning styes. At this stage Hayey was reading and comprehending at a Year 2 eve and her maths knowedge was very basic. The outcomes for these casses were discussed and incuded on Hayey s individua earning pan (ILP). As the year progressed, it became evident that not a teachers were modifying the subject outcomes. Hayey often received the same assignments as everyone ese and was expected to compete them by the due date. The LSA worked hard and woud negotiate a modified assignment for Hayey. This was great, as it meant the assignments were more meaningfu for Hayey and at her eve. Ony one teacher remained infexibe throughout Hayey s coege years. Not ony did she not want the students with specia needs in her casses but she made few or no concessions to hep them work towards their fina grades. I became very good at heping Hayey compete her assignments for that subject, with very itte input from her. I received some very good passes in these assignments! In 2005, the coege began to use a modified pass mark for a students with specia needs. For each of her years at coege, there were meetings regarding Hayey s ILP. At these meetings we woud discuss her progress, what worked, what didn t, in which direction she was headed and what was needed to achieve her goas (i.e. devising, impementing, evauating and reviewing). I was impressed, as these meetings covered a ot of ground which was made easier with most, if not a, of Hayey s teachers and her LSA attending. It heped to have everyone s coaboration and made the ILP process efficient. The ony thing I wished was that Hayey coud be more directy invoved in the process. In saying this, I found it better to discuss with Hayey beforehand any concerns, experiences that were usefu to her, what she enjoyed, what she wanted to be better at, her goas for the future, and how her teachers coud hep her achieve them. Hayey woudn t be abe to convey a her thoughts on these issues, a at once, at a meeting. One of her subjects, community studies, had a work experience component, so Hayey was organised to do work experience in a charity cothes store, which she enjoyed immensey. She aso had work experience in a chidcare centre which she wasn t very keen on and in Target which she found boring, as it was the same thing day in and day out putting cothes on hangers. At Target, her singing and dancing when she had nothing to do didn t go down too we with the bosses either. This ast experience caused us a a big re-think, as we had aways assumed she d end up working in retai because she oved cothes, fashion and shopping. In June of Year 12, Hayey was offered a pace in a course at the Canberra Institute of Technoogy (CIT), a Certificate I in Hospitaity. She was ucky, as a student had eft and they 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 187
188 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices needed the fu quota for their funding. This course was funded by a grant through Woden Specia Schoo (Years 7 to 10) and ran for a year. This course had the same outcomes and expectations as the same course run for mainstream students at CIT, but the difference was these students woud do the same essons twice in one week. The major key for success was repetition and over-earning. The students woud cover the week s esson first at Woden Specia Schoo and then again ater at CIT two days after. This method had proved highy successfu in the past and many of the students went on to successfu part-time and fu-time empoyment because they had competed this highy regarded certificate. The first component of the hospitaity course was food preparation/cooking for the CIT café and the second was serving in the same café. Various fundraisers were hed at Woden Specia Schoo which gave these students the extra experience they needed to pass. They were expected to wear the fu chef s uniform with chef s hat in the kitchen and a waiter s uniform compete with bow-tie and cummerbund when serving. What a year as you can imagine, to-ing and fro-ing from Coege, Woden Specia Schoo and CIT. Canberra taxis are a nightmare, even when you have a permanent booking, and the bus training was interesting as she had two to catch, each way! We ony ost Hayey on three occasions. Funniy, we aways found her where she was meant to be, waiting at the right spot for the taxi or on a ater bus! Again, her having a mobie was important for peace of mind for us, not Hayey! The foowing year, Hayey took part in the Rock Eisteddfod team representing the coege, started training in tenpin bowing in readiness for the Nationa Specia Oympic Games, took up tennis and went to night dance casses in bey dancing and rock n ro. Hayey worked hard at activey keeping in touch with her high schoo friends and had a very busy socia ife. She aso attended sex education casses arranged by the coege through Famiy Services. Hayey passed her CIT course, which finished in June. At the end of the same year, Woden Specia Schoo received some extra funding for a job agency to run a six-week job skis course. This course covered many practica aspects in going for a job incuding putting together a résumé, what to wear and mock interviews. Most importanty, there was a graduation ceremony and the presenting of certificates at its competion. The coege s Year 12 forma was the highight of the year. She was abe to take her boyfriend at the time (he aso had DS). They had a ba turning up in a back imousine and dancing the night away. At the end of Year 12, with her input, we decided that Hayey shoud do a third year at coege. Fortunatey the coege agreed. What a great gift, to have another year to consoidate before going into the workforce. There were many other reasons aso: The year woud be mosty dedicated to preparing her for the workforce with work experience in hospitaity being the main and necessary component of the year. Hayey woud sti have LSA support to monitor her progress at work experience, hep prepare her for such experiences with socia stories targeting the many aspects of the job, incuding hygiene and hep with bus training. Hayey coud have a year at coege without her shadow. Her friend she started coege with became a bit of a burden. Hayey s socia interactions at coege were hampered by her friend being unhappy when Hayey wanted to spend time with other students. Hayey was very outgoing and was quite independent but her friend depended on her. For Hayey, the main consideration was that she woud be abe to go to another Year 12 forma! The extra year was a that we had hoped for. Hayey took three subjects at coege: dance, ceramics and iving skis. Living skis was a course devised with students ike Hayey in mind. It consisted of cooking and everyday ife skis. Hayey stayed on vounteering with the Savos at the cothes store and had work experience, a pacement the coege found, in a café cose to the coege. This job went we but in the end, after two terms, it was decided that this job didn t have enough to keep her occupied. This particuar cafe was very sma, with no more than eight tabes and three staff which was one too many. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 188
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 189 Shorty after, Hayey started work experience at a café with 30-pus tabes. To get there required two buses and an interchange which the LSA trained her for. Hayey has recenty signed up with a job agency and they wi approach this café in December for parttime work for Hayey, so fingers crossed! Term 4 wi invove a foow-up course to the Job Skis Program she competed the year before, and of course the Year 12 forma which she wi attend with her new and current boyfriend. It is important to mention that Hayey s success has been argey due to the dedication of her LSAs, of which there were two during her time at coege. Both LSAs made sure that Hayey had every chance to make decisions for hersef and buid her independence, doing very itte hand hoding. They went over and above what is required of them to ensure that Hayey had every chance for success. This sometimes required transportation to and from various venues. Often the itte things can make or break and it means so much more and makes things easier for us parents, if these things are seen to (for exampe making sure notes came home about excursions and coege happenings; writing important comments, dates and deadines in her diary; and generay etting us know how things were going and any probems that have occurred). The socia stories were invauabe in heping Hayey understand what was required of her in different situations, especiay in work experience. Tuggeranong Coege has proved to be a wonderfu setting for Hayey to grow, earn and extend hersef. The experiences they provided for her have a heped to buid a we-rounded young woman, ready for the workforce. Her confidence has increased immeasuraby and because of this, she is very wiing to give most things a go and embrace ife generay. The coege prides itsef in being a Pace of Exceence for a its students and fortunatey for us they waked the wak not just taked the tak. The senior teacher running the area of specia needs, the teachers, the LSAs and the rest of the staff are to be commended for a job we done. The students were aways supportive and hepfu when required. Hayey wi aways have fond memories of her coege ife. Prepared by Jenny Bottre, Specia Education Teacher, ACT Department of Education and Training Discussion questions 1 In ight of Hayey s experiences, what do you consider to be the most important aspects of a fu and incusive educationa experience? 2 Who are the key payers refected in Hayey s coege experiences? 3 Do you consider that it is easy for a parent such as Jenny to be heard in the process of educationa decision-making for Hayey? Why/why not? 4 What might be the barriers and the gateways in the process of achieving fu participation by students ike Hayey and their famiies in educationa systems? Designing effective teaching interventions An overay inking student earning and teaching effectiveness An impicit theme in Narrative 5.1, and in current educationa poicies (see chapters 1 and 2) is the individuaisation of support for a students, incuding those with disabiities. Athough this support may be deivered in a group setting, the teacher has the responsibiity of ensuring that individua goas and earning experiences are reevant and achievabe. The term differentiation has emerged to describe the importance of teacher attention to the diverse earning goas and needs of students, incuding, in some instances, the provision of aternate or adapted assessment, curricuum and instruction (see chapter 4). Authors such as Westwood (2007) and Tominson (2005) have provided a weath of sensibe and practica strategies for 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 189
190 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices teachers to use in differentiated cassrooms, whie recognising the chaenges teachers face in the context of such diversity (Keeffe & Carrington 2006; Loreman et a. 2005). The Designing Effective Teaching Interventions (DETI) mode introduced in Figure 5.5 attempts to assist teachers in reconciing the sometimes competing demands of individua needs and arge cass groups, and wi form the basis of much of the remainder of this chapter. At each decision point, a focus question is presented as a way of highighting the most important point for consideration by the teacher. Before turning to this framework, however, it is necessary to make paraes between this conceptua structure and a movement caed universa design that has expanded from its base in architecture toward the mainstream of educationa panning and support. The principes and practices of universa design for earning Foreman (2009) provides a hepfu review of the genesis of universa design in the word of socia panning and construction. Simpy put, if faciities are universay accessibe to a, stigma and discrimination are reduced and participation is enhanced. The foowing principes are described by Foreman, based on accepted universa design for earning (UDL) principes: equitabe and fexibe use, simpe and intuitive use, perceptibe information, toerance for error, ow physica effort and the incorporation of size and space that faciitate participation by a users. A of these principes appy equay powerfuy to curricuum, instruction, earning contexts and the DETI mode when considered as a scaffod to the achievement of optima earning outcomes for students. For exampe, we coud test curricuum against the criteria for universa design: how accessibe is it? Is information easiy understood? Likewise with respect to instruction: are the methodoogies empoyed abe to be adjusted to address the range of needs students demonstrate in the modern cassroom? Meo (2008) describes a four-step process for designing and impementing a curricuum (goas, methods, materias, assessment) that is accessibe and effective for a earners and utiises innovative technoogies to accommodate individua earner differences. Chapter 12 discusses the appication of UDL principes to secondary schoo curricuum. Like Figure 5.4, Figure 5.5 emphasises the dynamic and cycica nature of effective teaching interventions. In such programs, assessing, panning, teaching and evauating are integray inked with each other in an ongoing process. In the discussion to foow, four reated concepts and strategies that assist the cassroom teacher in individuaising and differentiating student support are introduced, aong with a number of practica steps to foow in the design of programs. These concepts are: the identification of curricuum priorities and ong-term outcome goas curricuum-based assessment task anaysis mastery earning. The phases outined in Figure 5.5 shoud be considered in the ight of this information. Identification of curricuum priorities and ong-term outcome goas There are a number of possibe sources for the curricuum priorities and ong-term outcome goas that form the basis of cass-eve programming designed to incude a student with additiona needs. First, in the context of the key earning areas (KLAs), syabus documents and program directions for the whoe cass, the teacher may identify specific areas of need for an individua student. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 190 12/9/10 4:25 PM
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 191 Phase Strategies Focus questions Identify curricuum priorities Team meetings IEP Curricuum anaysis What are the target curricuum areas for the student? Estabish ong-term goas Team meetings IEP Curricuum anaysis What are the ong-term (annua) earning goas for the student? Anayse curricuum Scope and sequence chart Task anaysis What are the skis or conceptua sequences? Identify student performance eve Cass-eve assessment How is the student performing in reation to their earning goas? Estabish short-term instructiona objectives Instructiona objectives What are the specific eves of performance (earner outcomes) you are aiming for? Introduce effective instruction Appropriate teaching strategies Which teaching strategies wi resut in the best earning outcomes for the student? Monitor progress Cass-eve monitoring How is the student progressing in terms of the estabished instructiona objectives? Review program detais Active review How can the program be modified in the ight of student progress? Figure 5.5 A mode for designing effective teaching interventions (DETI) 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 191
192 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices For exampe, a primary schoo teacher may be generay aware of the difficuties experienced by a Year 5 student in the area of producing different text types, in the ight of various work sampes and the stages, earning outcomes and indicators described in syabus documents and education department protocos (see exampes at Department of Education, Victoria; Victorian Curricuum and Assessment Authority; and Western Austraian Certificate of Education [see webinks for these three]; NSW Board of Studies 1998a, 1998b, 1998c). The teacher may then decide to use a particuar screening test to confirm this suspicion. Of course, parents may aso aert the teacher to difficuties the student is having in consoidating and generaising the skis outside the cassroom. Second, the estabished ong-term goas, often viewed as an annua target, wi usuay refect the needs of students in both their current and future situations. These goas are usuay expressed in the form of an individuaised educationa program or pan (IEP) (Bateman & Linden 1998; Bauer & Shea 1999; Rodger 1995; Schuz & Carpenter 1995). An IEP is simpy a written statement of the target curricuum areas, intended earning outcomes and necessary supports for an individua, and usuay invoves coaborative input from the student, reguar and specia education (support) teachers, parents and other personne such as counseors and speech pathoogists (Stroggios & Xanthacou 2006). In some cases, such decisions may be the resut of forma review or team meetings. In other situations, they may be agreed on more informay. Regardess of the eve of formaity, the IEP deveopment and review process is an idea patform for improving an understanding of the experiences of the earner with additiona needs, incuding their preferences for various modes of sensory input and modes of expression. The importance of teamwork and coaboration in the design of effective teaching interventions wi be reviewed ater in this chapter, and was deat with in detai in chapter 3. At this point, it is critica to note that the process of reviewing student needs and deveoping an IEP is a fuid yet vita part of effective panning for teaching success, and informs curricuar, instructiona and contextua supports for students with specia needs. There is evidence of improved student earning outcomes when a pan of support is deveoped and impemented by a team that is unified and focused on coaboration (Hunt et a. 2003). Regardess of the manner in which such priorities and goas are estabished, the cassroom teacher is centray responsibe for their impementation and evauation. Accordingy, it is vita that both reguar and specia education cassroom teachers contribute to and support the panning processes and intended outcomes for students. The curricuum priorities and ongterm outcome goas for a student with specia needs may be very simiar to those panned for the majority of students in the cass (see the generic exampes beow), or they may invove modified or aternative curricuums (see chapter 4). The interested reader may wish to review sampe earning outcomes from various states and territories accessibe through the Austraian Government s education internet porta (see webinks at the end of the chapter). b o x 5.2 Exampes of ong-term outcome goas Christian wi independenty catch a bus to and from schoo. Justine wi independenty use the ibrary to gather information about the use of augmentative communication systems in schoos. Amy wi cut aong ines independenty within a 2-cm boundary. Suzi wi initiate conversations with peers in the payground without prompting. Ryan wi be abe to devise and verbay expain a mind-map to his peers. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 192 12/9/10 4:25 PM
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 193 As in Narrative 5.1, the foowing case study of Tom (Narrative 5.2) highights the importance of a dynamic and coaborative approach to panning and deivering educationa programs that address individua needs. n a r r a t i v e 5.2 Tom Tom was enroed in a reguar, mainstream primary schoo. He had been diagnosed with Asperger syndrome and oppositiona defiant disorder. Reports indicated that Tom needed support in deveoping his iteracy skis. By the time Tom commenced Year 3 he was identified as having a behaviour probem, and was reguary found sitting at the office waiting to discuss his inappropriate behaviour choices with the principa. Tom hated schoo, found cass work boring and frustrating, and had found an identity for himsef as the disruptive entertainer for his cassmates. In cass Tom caed out continuay, refused to remain seated during instruction time, ran out of the cassroom, cimbed out open windows and refused to attempt earning activities. He was cheeky, rude and oved to make the cass augh. Tom found peer interaction chaenging, and other students frequenty compained that he was not taking turns, was rude or was shouting at them. He seemed to be disinterested in cass-based incentives or praise and was undeterred by consequences, regardess of their severity. Diagnostic testing reveaed that Tom s abiity in speing and reading was equivaent to that of a student in kindergarten. His handwriting was iegibe, and he destroyed pages in his books with scribbing, cutting and ripping. After discussions with Tom s mother and the earning support team, an individua education pan (IEP) was devised that supported Tom s deveopment sociay, emotionay and academicay. Tom s teacher put in pace a broad range of strategies that targeted each aspect of Tom s IEP. Some of these strategies are outined overeaf. Cassroom environment Tom s teacher created a earning environment that was structured, predictabe and consistent. Changes to routine were forecast and expained. A pease remember noticeboard was created with daiy notices added as a reminder of upcoming changes. A daiy timetabe was written on the board in cooured chak to inform a students of what was on for that day. The schoo discipine poicy was foowed consistenty, with ogica, fair consequences appied when necessary. A strong emphasis was paced on assisting Tom to understand the connection between his behaviour and the outcome. Cass expectations were communicated frequenty and expicity. Socia deveopment Tom found it difficut to interact with his peers in a positive manner. Tom s teacher set aside 30 minutes of quiet time for the cass each afternoon and provided a range of structured activities, such as board games, card games, buiding bocks and dominoes to be used at this time. This provided an opportunity for the cass teacher to work with Tom in understanding how to interact with his cassmates in a positive manner. A focus on taking turns, sharing, and working through disagreements assisted Tom in deveoping his socia awareness and understanding of how to sociaise in a manner that woud not upset his cassmates. Tom particuary enjoyed Pirate Snap, and started to ask what he needed to do to be abe to have first pick of the quiet time activities so that he coud choose Pirate Snap. Tom s teacher capitaised on his interest in this activity and used it as a motivating too to encourage positive behaviour choices. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 193
194 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices Schoo earning support officers (SLSOs or teachers aides) In previous schoo years, Tom had worked with a SLSO sitting next to him in order to try and maintain his focus on earning tasks and bridge academic gaps. He had deveoped an extreme aversion to having any adut sitting with him, and engaged in even more inappropriate behaviour when he was supported in cass in this manner. In order to avoid this confict, Tom s teacher worked with the SLSO to estabish a program aimed at teaching Tom independent work habits and how to request assistance when he needed it. Tom was assured that whenever he was working independenty he woud be eft aone to get on with the job. The SLSO provided vauabe assistance to the cass teacher by moving among the cass and checking understanding whie the teacher worked with other students sitting near Tom. This soution aowed the cass teacher to monitor Tom s understanding, progress and engagement indirecty whie sti supporting the other students in the cass. Positive working reationships Whie it took some time to buid rapport with Tom, his teacher s efforts in maintaining a positive cassroom environment, using humour and remaining cam when Tom escaated his inappropriate behaviour eventuay resuted in Tom and his teacher reaching a point of mutua respect and understanding. The consistency and predictabiity in the cassroom aowed Tom to understand that his behaviour woud aways have a consequence. Ongoing acknowedgement of positive behaviour and maximising every opportunity to recognise and ceebrate successes meant that Tom knew his efforts to make good choices woud not go unnoticed. Tom s teacher aso estabished and maintained cose communication with Tom s mother. This connection kept Tom s mother up to date with incidents of inappropriate behaviour and aso with Tom s positive moments at schoo. Sending home commendations and work sampes that showed increased effort had instant effects in the cassroom, as Tom began to enjoy praise and positive attention at home for his effort at schoo. Student interests Tom oved animas, had a reptie icence and had severa unusua pets at home, incuding a izard, mice, tropica fish, a dog and a turte. He had interesting stories of adventuring through the bush on his grandmother s property and finding the carcass of a wid pig, poking into huge ant mounds and trying to catch ees with sharp teeth. As part of a science unit on ife cyces, Tom s teacher suggested he bring in the sku of a pig that he had found, and te his story to the cass. The cass was captivated by Tom and his pig sku, and he gained increased respect and admiration from his peers. He fieded questions for days about the pig sku, and experienced entertaining his peers with knowedge and information rather than by behaving inappropriatey. Cass workshop Whie Tom made sow progress in modifying his behaviour, the cass was sti incined to augh at his disruptions and inappropriate choices in the cassroom. With the support and consent of Tom s mother, Tom s teacher ran a workshop with the cass on Asperger syndrome. The cass watched a short video specificay for the purpose of teaching primary-aged students about Asperger syndrome, and then participated in a discussion about how to be a good friend to everyone. This discussion covered strategic ignoring of inappropriate behaviour, gente redirection when off-task, and how to give compiments and be encouraging to each other. Tom was introduced at the concusion of the workshop as the cass expert on Asperger syndrome, and taked very briefy about the things he finds very easy at schoo, and the things he needs hep with. Tom came up with these points himsef, and one of the things he asked for hep in was making good choices in the cassroom. Tom s teacher asked the cass if they woud be wiing to be a good friend to Tom and hep him make good choices. The response was a resounding yes. The days immediatey after the workshop saw every student ignoring 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 194
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 195 Tom when he began to behave disruptivey. Sma whispered comments, such as Tom, it s time to isten, were overheard, and without a captive audience Tom ost interest in behaving outrageousy to entertain the cass and avoid his work. As he saw other students receiving praise for their efforts in cass, he began to want to work harder at earning new things himsef. Academic support Tom had aready experienced severa years of faiing in the cassroom. He was aware of being we behind his peers and was embarrassed by needing extra hep. He reacted angriy when offered easier work, and said he was abe to do what everyone ese did. The teacher started by modifying work tasks sighty to suit Tom s abiity and attention span. Activities were broken down into chunks, with each section expained again before commencing. Some activities were competed with a partner. Some activities had severa options, aowing Tom to choose those that he coud compete independenty and confidenty. As Tom gained confidence as a earner, his teacher increased the focus on Tom s academic deveopment. This incuded working on recognising sounds, buiding knowedge of basic sight words, practising reading books containing famiiar words and phrases, acquiring and practising decoding strategies, and writing short stories using famiiar and unfamiiar words. Tom began to make positive comments about schoo and about himsef as a earner. Continua monitoring and refection on Tom s progress and achievements in comparison to his identified earning goas took pace throughout the year in coaboration with Tom, Tom s mother, the cass teacher and the earning support team. The individua education pan deveoped for Tom was an essentia instrument in continuay working on his targeted areas for deveopment, and gave an exceent overa evauation of Tom s ongoing academic and socia growth and deveopment throughout the year. At the concusion of the year Tom had made significant progress as a earner and was enthusiastic about schoo, eagery checking the cass timetabe each morning and ony visiting the principa to show off his pet izard! Prepared by Catherine Leane, NSW Department of Education and Training Discussion questions 1 How important is it for teachers to identify meaningfu opportunities for choice and input into earning by their students? 2 Do you consider that the form of the individua education pan devised by earning support teams is critica, or is the intent and the process of coaboration that it invoves the most important issue in schoo settings? 3 Identify and discuss three factors in Narrative 5.2 that demonstrate how curricuum, instruction, context and student engagement in earning are connected. Having identified appropriate curricuum priorities and ong-term outcome goas for the student, the teacher uses the principes of curricuum-based assessment to design and impement a teaching program that aims for student success. Curricuum-based assessment Essentiay, curricuum-based assessment (CBA) is a framework for cass-eve testing of student performance, and the use of this information in programming and teaching decisions. Unike standardised testing, where individua student performance is compared against that of the wider popuation, the teacher who empoys curricuum-based assessment effectivey generates a profie of the earner in the context of the specific curricuum goas and experiences of that individua. Bankenship and Liy (1981) have defined curricuum-based assessment as the process of obtaining direct and frequent measures of a student s performance on a series of sequentiay arranged objectives derived from the curricuum used in the cassroom (p. 81). 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 195
196 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices Severa features of this definition are important to note. First, CBA is a process, rather than an isoated testing event. Second, such measures are direct and frequent, and occur in the cassroom as a norma part of the teaching day. Third, student performance is considered in terms of a sequence of objectives. This impies that esson content is anaysed, and targeted student performance is ceary stated. Finay, the curricuum foowed in the cassroom forms the basis for assessment. Of course, these curricuums wi often refect the prescribed content set out in syabus documents adopted for use in key earning areas. Aternativey, as discussed earier, ong-term teaching and earning goas for a student with additiona needs may be derived from an individuaised educationa program. However, the distinguishing feature of CBA in this context is the emphasis on measuring student performance on materia that is individuay reevant and part of a cass-eve program (Bankenship 1985). Athough there has been some discussion in the iterature about various terminoogies and areas of emphasis, for exampe curricuum-based measurement (CBM) as opposed to CBA (see Fuchs & Deno 1991), the use of systematic data to inform the teaching and curricuum decisions made by the teacher is one of the hamarks of the CBA approach (Jones, Southern & Brigham 1998. For an exceent aid to deveoping CBA toos, see webinks at the end of chapter). Curricuum-based assessment, then, heps the teacher to ceary identify students instructiona needs (see Figure 5.6) by pinpointing what the students can presenty do as we as the skis and knowedge they need (Choate et a. 1995; Fuchs & Fuchs 1998; Howe & Noet 2000; Jones et a. 1998; Whinnery & Fuchs 1992). In the foowing discussion, the five main steps invoved in CBA are described, aong with exampes of the appication of these procedures. Figure 5.6 CBA heps teachers to identify instructiona needs 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 196
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 197 Key steps in appying curricuum-based assessment Step 1: Identify the scope and sequence of the curricuum The first step in using curricuum-based assessment in the cassroom is to anayse the curricuum ( What shoud the earner be abe to know or do? ) and sequence that information ( What is the ogica order of this content or set of skis? ). This information is often presented as a scope and sequence (or continuum of earning) chart for organisationa purposes, thus aowing the teacher to organise content into a series of cumuative teaching modues or stages (see exampes in Carnine, Sibert & Kame enui 1990; Kame enui & Simmons 1990; NSW Board of Studies 1998a, 2003; Sibert, Carnine & Stein 1990). In a sense, the scope and sequence chart describes, at a gance, what is to be earned. Whie, on the one hand, it may describe in fine detai the content and ordering of a specific curricuum area, it may aso refect the broad sweep of curricuum content and coverage in schoos and casses, as refected in syabus documents (see the webinks at end of this chapter). Figure 5.7 provides a simpe exampe of a scope and sequence chart for the anguage ski(s) of writing simpe sentences. It aso emphasises three reated points. First, content is broken up into a sequence of modues that are inked to each other and are not taught on a rigid timeine. That is, one modue does not equa one 40-minute period. Second, earning is cumuative, with previousy taught and reviewed materia serving as a base for new skis and content. Finay, the visua dispay aows the teacher to anayse and summarise curricuum and identify skis or content that need to be further refined. This strategy is commony referred to as task anaysis. Scope and sequence: writing simpe sentences Modues Identifying sentences Word functions Subject and predicate Tense 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Review 1 Producing sentences Combining sentences 10 11 12 13 14 15 Review 2 Figure 5.7 An exampe of a scope and sequence chart for writing simpe sentences Source: Deveoped by Pau Seishman, Cathoic Schoos Office, Maitand-Newcaste 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 197
198 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices Task anaysis Task anaysis, as the name impies, is the strategy of breaking down a task (or activity) into its component parts. Typicay, a task wi be made up of content (knowedge, concepts, facts) and strategies (what to do with the content) (Howe, Fox & Morehead 1993). A task anaysis can assist the reguar teacher to answer the question: What is invoved in Student A successfuy competing that task, or demonstrating that ski? In the foowing exampe in Box 5.3, note the sequencing of steps and the roe of prerequisites in the overa competion of a task. b o x 5.3 Task anaysis for the use of a cacuator to check four-digit addition probems Prerequisites: Fine motor contro in order to grasp and activate the cacuator, and press appropriate keys. 1 Turn cacuator on 2 Read through the written probem on the sheet, incuding soution 3 Key in the first number 4 Press addition symbo 5 Key in the next number 6 Press addition symbo 7 Key in the next number 8 Press addition symbo 9 Key in the next number 10 Press equa sign 11 Compare totas on the written sheet and on cacuator dispay This type of anaysis aows the teacher to view, from the perspective of the earner, the compexity of a earning task. In the exampe above, prerequisites, subtasks, concepts and strategies buit into the task incude fine motor contro (computer use), numerica and operationa key recognition and seection, and comparison of resuts when presented in two formats. Of course, it may not be necessary to anayse such a task in this way for many students in the cass. In addition, such an exercise can take up a considerabe amount of time. However, for a sma number of students, task anaysis has a wide range of appications, from the broad ( What comprises successfu grade-eve writing? ) to the specific point of focus ( What is the skis sequence for designing a basic computing program? ). It can be used for academic, socia and activity skis (see discussion questions at the end of this chapter) and provides the cassroom teacher with information that is usefu in three phases of teaching (Kemp 1992). First, as an assessment device, the task anaysis heps the teacher to decide where, in a given activity or ski, the student is having difficuty. Second, the teacher can then pinpoint the area of need and write appropriate teaching objectives. Third, a task anaysis ceary identifies the teaching sequence and aows the teacher to deiver and adjust instruction that buids on previous earning (Kemp 1992). In practica terms, there are severa ways to conduct a task anaysis. The teacher may sowy perform a target ski or task, writing down each step in its ogica and natura order. In this way, 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 198
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 199 the student gains a cear understanding of what is invoved, incuding the sequentia and cumuative aspects of the task. Another approach is to watch somebody ese performing the ski, whie recording the steps and prerequisite sub-skis demonstrated for successfu competion of the task or activity. Finay, a teacher may choose to work backwards through a task, from competion to the very first step. In this way, information is gained regarding the compexity of the task, the cumuative use of skis and the chaining of one ski with the next, in a ogica order. This sequencing information is especiay usefu when the teacher is deciding how to work on a difficut task with a student. For exampe, a teacher may be working with a student on the activity of accuratey cutting aong a ine. It may be appropriate to commence by focusing student effort on the very ast step of the task (the student independenty cuts for the ast 2 cm, having been assisted with the earier tasks of grasping the paper, coordinating the scissors and so on). Graduay, and dependent on student performance, the student is encouraged to attempt more of the steps in the task, in reverse order, as their success and confidence deveops. Referred to as backward chaining, this strategy is a simpe and effective use of the principes of task anaysis. There are many other variations of this approach, incuding forward chaining (working forward through a task, providing assistance at the first point of need) and competion of the whoe task, with teacher support on any and a areas of difficuty. The interested reader is referred to an exceent paper by Carter and Kemp (1996) that reviews the different types of task anaysis and outines the impications of a task anaytic approach to assessment, panning and teaching approaches reevant to the education of students with and without disabiities. This section has discussed the integra roe of curricuum anaysis as the first step in curricuum-based assessment and introduced the strategies of individua education pans (IEPs), scope and sequence charts and task anaysis. The next step in the process is to gather specific information on student performance within the curricuum. Step 2: Assess the current performance eve of the student on the curricuum In Figure 5.8, three eves of assessment are described in the context of earning processes and outcomes. Leve 1 refects aspects of student performance that are considered daiy. Leve 2 introduces key considerations for the teacher in the medium term, whie Leve 3 is concerned with the arger timeframe and the overa reevance of curricuum and earning for the individua. In reaity, teacher assessments of student performance and needs combine eements of Leves 1, 2 and 3. However, in terms of daiy programming, Leve 1 is the natura starting point. The teacher is concerned with gaining a picture of student abiity in terms of the curricuum content being covered in the cass, sometimes referred to as a pre-test or baseine. As noted earier in this chapter, and in chapter 4, these curricuums may be drawn from a vast array of subject areas, may invove modified or enhanced content and foow a set of objectives outined in an IEP. An important point to be considered here is the eve of observed student engagement with the curricuum. Assessment by the teacher shoud be compemented by student sef-assessment wherever possibe, in order to maximise the degree to which students own their earning 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 199
200 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices (Keen & Arthur-Key 2009). Astute teachers use a range of information sources, incuding student input, to guide their choice of topics, preferred earning materias, strategies and instructiona approaches and, as we note a itte ater, they reguary evauate the student s response to intervention in order to continuousy adjust instructiona design factors. What to assess Notwithstanding the diversity of curricuums on offer in cassrooms, the teacher is particuary interested in two reated dimensions of student behaviour: the process (how the student performed the task) and the outcome (how we the student performed the task) (Figure 5.8). In the first area, the earning process, task anaysis shoud be considered as a usefu means of describing student performance. Two aternatives shoud be considered: first, devising a task anaysis prior to the esson and noting how a student performs in reation to this sequence; and, second, observing the process foowed by the student, recording the sequence of steps and the specific areas of difficuty. The observation of the process aows the teacher to anayse errors and pinpoint areas for remediation (Gabe & Hendrickson 1990; Szarkowicz 2006). In the second area, earning outcomes, the teacher coects information about individua performance in terms of designated behaviours (e.g., putting hand up to speak) or permanent products (e.g., number of correct simpe sentences written in one minute). One usefu way to consider the quaity of student earning outcomes is to evauate the stage of earning the student appears to be functioning within for that task or area. These stages are often described as the phases of acquisition, fuency, maintenance and generaisation (Figure 5.8). In the acquisition phase, the student is earning how to do the task and so is, of necessity, buiding up speed, confidence and understanding. Fuency phase refers to the use of a ski or content quicky and efficienty. In the maintenance phase, the earner retains the ski over time, whie in the generaisation phase, the ski or content is adapted to suit new needs as they arise (Aberto & Troutman 2006; Sne & Brown 2000). For exampe, a common way for a teacher to assess student fuency of a ski is to count how many maths facts or sight words a student is abe to reca in one minute (see chapter 9). In contrast, another teacher may be interested in the number of times a student independenty perseveres in a conversation with peers in the payground. The nature of the task, then, wi determine how such assessment is carried out. How to assess Teachers assess student performance in many ways, depending on the skis or content being considered and a range of other factors, such as the amount of time and the eve of teaching support avaiabe. Some of the most common methods are: penci and paper tests informa work sampes that serve as indicators of ski deveopment portfoios a coection of student work over a period of time checkists running records, in which the teacher writes down as much as possibe about student performance as it occurs, typicay as a continuous description systematic observationa records rating scaes. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 200
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 201 Leve 3 Leve 2 Leve 1 Process How student competed task Subtasks/strategies used Cass-eve assessment task anaysis Error anaysis Process Sequence of objectives Mastery of easy to hard sequences Cumuative earning Assessment in the context of curricuum targets, earning profies, individua education program (IEP) Process Learning across settings Assessment of socia and educationa vaidity what reay counts? Outcome What the student achieved Number/% correct, rate per minute Leve of independence Outcome Progress from acquisition to fuency, maintenance and generaisation Progress towards annua (ong-term) goas Outcome Meaningfu appications Sociay vaid skis Preparation for ife Figure 5.8 Considering processes and outcomes in assessment a three-tiered mode On many occasions, teachers use severa sources of information in order to fuy assess student behaviour, as iustrated in Box 5.4. This assessment information is then used to estabish specific teaching objectives. Having gathered appropriate cassroom-eve assessment information, the teacher turns to the task of estabishing specific performance objectives in the area. This becomes Step 3 in the curricuum-based assessment process. b o x 5.4 Mr Pascoe, Year 10 Engish teacher, was concerned about Juie s skis in the area of reading comprehension. In group work, Juie appeared to be heaviy reiant on other students for answers to questions requiring direct reca, and was totay nonpussed when required to evauate even short passages of text. When Mr Pascoe was abe to hear Juie read a sampe piece of text on her own, it soon became obvious that the student was unabe to extract meaning from the print because of her sow rate of reading. Further testing using a common sight word ist and primary schoo readers confirmed that Juie was three years behind her peers in overa reading rate and sight vocabuary. This expained her ack of confidence and dependence on others in reading comprehension tasks. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 201 12/9/10 4:25 PM
202 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices Step 3: Estabish short-term instructiona objectives for the student(s) Having anaysed the curricuum and assessed student performance within it, the next step for the teacher using curricuum-based assessment is to program for student progress. By deveoping a series of short-term instructiona objectives that refect the specific earning needs of the individua, ensuring that sma progress steps are buit in and reguary checking the quaity of student performance, the teacher is using the principes of mastery earning (Boom 1980, 1984). Mastery earning The teacher using mastery earning seeks to avoid student faiure on the curricuum by aowing adequate time for the individua to master the target content, and ensuring that formative, ongoing assessment is used to guide teaching decisions and support given to the student, incuding corrective instruction as appropriate (Boom 1980, 1984). At the heart of a mastery earning approach is the principe that ony sma amounts of new information shoud be taught and that the student shoud not be introduced to more compex skis or content unti the criterion for mastery of earier work has been reached. In the exampe beow in Box 5.5, the vaue of carefu curricuum anaysis and the introduction of mastery earning principes is highighted with reference to the anguage skis of a Year 8 student, Justin. Foowing this exampe, the deveopment of short-term instructiona objectives for use in the reguar cassroom is discussed. b o x 5.5 Justin has been strugging in Year 8 mathematics for some time and casseve assessment has indicated the need for specific work in the area of agebraic addition and subtraction tasks and written story probems invoving these cacuations. Justin has received teaching support in the form of individuaised instruction, peer modeing and worksheets, enabing him to successfuy identify the various types of number tasks when presented in written or ora form. Before moving on to the strategy of story probem writing (incuding deriving numerica concepts from text and speech), Justin must independenty achieve 80 per cent correct on three consecutive sets of tasks that invove the ski of writing or stating simpe number sentences comprising an agebraic addition or subtraction. Justin s confidence has increased markedy as a resut of the opportunity to master these basic numeracy skis. Designing short-term instructiona objectives In order to be abe to carefuy monitor student progress and change teaching and earning programs as necessary, a very cear statement of intended student performance can be designed (see Aberto & Troutman 2006 for further information on this aspect of programming). As noted in the overview of mastery earning, progress is then measured against this objective, aowing the teacher to make informed decisions about whether, for exampe, to introduce the next ski in the sequence (or section of content) or, aternativey, to revise student understanding and appication in the present area. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 202
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 203 Short-term instructiona objectives (sometimes referred to as teaching, performance or behavioura objectives) shoud refect sma progress steps for the student based on the performance information gathered in the cass-eve assessment phase. As demonstrated in the two exampes that foow, these very specific statements of intended student performance have four features, expressed in a variety of ways (see Aberto & Troutman 2006). b o x 5.6 Features Student name The conditions under which the behaviour wi occur Statement of intended behaviour Criteria for successfu performance Exampe Pau wi, when provided with the cue Pau, write your name, egiby write his name within 2-cm boundary ines,... on three consecutive occasions over two days. This exampe describes an academic ski that is important for Pau, identified from direct assessment of his cassroom behaviour and a curricuum sequence. Many teachers write simiar objectives for socia behaviour, as demonstrated in the next exampe (Aberto & Troutman 2006; Arthur-Key et a. 2007). Note that the foowing exampe reates to the performance of the whoe cass, rather than an individua student. Cass 4H, on hearing the teacher s request for sience, wi be sitting quiety without noise within 10 seconds on five consecutive occasions. The short-term instructiona objective is a precise statement of expected student performance, based on what the students can do and need to be abe to do. It does not, however, specify how to teach students. The next section introduces the important topic of instructiona strategies (Step 4), as a means of assisting students to achieve targeted eves of performance. Step 4: Introduce effective instruction In this section, an overview of severa instructiona strategies is presented. Further materia on teaching strategies is presented in ater chapters, and the reader is directed to the sources isted at the end of this chapter for more detaied information. Books by Westwood (2007), Kame enui et a. (2002), Heney, Ramsey and Agozzine (2002) and Mastropieri and Scruggs (2004) may be especiay usefu in this context. It is important to emphasise that the estabished principes of instructiona deivery and support (Figure 5.2), discussed earier in this chapter, provide a necessary framework for the successfu introduction of more specific teaching strategies. That is, the effective teacher continuay evauates the impact on the earning processes and outcomes achieved by students of factors such as reinforcement and prompts, aong with the effectiveness of particuar approaches, such as those described in the foowing section. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 203
204 Part B Incusive Teaching and Learning Practices The techniques described beow represent exampes from a wide range of strategies teachers may seect and use in cassrooms. In fact, the strength of a mode such as designing effective teaching interventions (DETI), based on the principes of curricuum-based assessment, is the emphasis on active review of programs and the opportunity for changes in the ight of student progress, incuding the seection of new teaching methods when others are not effective. Teacher preferences, communication styes and the eves of additiona support avaiabe are exampes of the factors that may infuence a decision to use a particuar approach. In addition, as highighted in many of the suggested readings, particuar curricuum areas end themseves to certain instructiona methodoogies. The aim of a programming overay such as DETI is to provide the teacher with a means of effectivey designing and deivering teaching and earning programs that maximise student outcomes by enhancing the earning process. The seection of appropriate teaching strategies is an important step in this process. As we note in the foowing discussion, it may we be necessary in some situations to systematicay combine strategies in order to optimise student engagement and earning outcomes (Copeand et a. 2002). Cooperative earning Cooperative earning strategies (sometimes referred to as team earning methods) have been the subject of much research and discussion over the past few decades (Jenkins et a. 2003; Neson, Johnson & Marchand-Martea 1996; Putnam 1998; Savin 1996; Yamanashi 2005). Using a probem-soving focus, students with a range of abiity eves work together to achieve earning outcomes through a process of panned interdependence. Rewards can be based on individua or group changes in performance, and many variations on the basic theme, such as Jigsaw, Student Teams Achievement Divisions, and Think-Pair-Share, have been deveoped. (For a practica discussion of the key aspects of severa modes and a range of instructiona considerations when using cooperative approaches, see Goor & Schwenn 1993. For a more recent anaysis of teacher perceptions about the use of cooperative earning techniques, see Jenkins et a. 2003.) Cooperative earning has a great dea of potentia for promoting the incusion of students with additiona needs, with an emphasis on the socia process, positive earning outcomes and reevance to a wide variety of student needs highighted in current iterature (Giies & Ashman 2000; Piercy, Witon & Townsend 2002; Putnam 1998; Yamanashi 2005). However, cooperative earning is consideraby more than simpy pacing students into groups and providing a task for them to compete. For exampe, Goor and Schwenn (1993) emphasised the importance of preparing students for cooperative earning, incuding the cear definition of roes, and monitoring progress cosey as the group works together. In one study, Jenkins et a. (1994) discussed the roe of group dynamics (e.g., estabishing before the activity, as far as possibe, which students wi be compatibe) in the successfu introduction of cooperative earning strategies in the cassroom. Whie this method may have a great dea to offer, then, in terms of promoting student acceptance of individua differences and improving student earning outcomes, the time invoved in carefuy structuring and overviewing such a program may be regarded by some teachers as a imitation to its practica use in schoos and casses. 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 204
Chapter 5 Panning effective teaching strategies 205 Peer tutoring as one exampe of peer-mediated approaches Figure 5.9 Peer tutoring can be same-age or cross-age The invovement of peers in some form of instructiona arrangement has burgeoned in the past decade and is often referred to as the peer-mediated range of strategies (Utey, Mortweet & Greenwood 1997). One exampe, perhaps most commony known and used by teachers, is peer tutoring. As the name suggests, peer tutoring is a genera descriptor for teaching strategies that invove one student heping another with specified content or tasks. Typicay, these may be referred to as same-age or cross-age tutoring arrangements (see Figure 5.9). In the first type, the tutor is usuay in the same age-bracket (or cass) as the tutored student(s), whie in cross-age tutoring, the tutor is oder than the tutee. The tutor may have severa roes, incuding modeing, expaining skis or content, and encouraging the tutored student(s), and so training and monitoring of the tutor is an important issue for the supervising teacher. (For an exceent discussion of severa critica considerations in the effective use of peer tutoring and peer-centred strategies, see Jenkins & Jenkins 1985, 1987; Topping & Ehy 1998. For an overview of peer-mediated approaches, incuding peer tutoring, see Utey et a. 1997.) Tutoring may produce important affective and skis-based improvements for both the tutor and tutee (Utey et a. 1997), and promote the achievement of individuaised support in incusive settings (Jenkins et a. 1994; Rose 2008). As noted earier, teachers may decide to combine strategies in order to best meet the needs of their students. In one study, Spencer, Scruggs and Mastropieri (2003) utiised peer tutoring with strategy instruction in the ski of summarising paragraphs. They found that not ony did the targeted students with emotiona or behavioura probems enjoy this format when compared 05_Foreman_3ed_SB 9780170187626 TXT 2pp.indd 205 12/9/10 4:25 PM