The Art of Change-What Stops Educational Systems from Moving Forward?
- Education is very slow at making changes. We start by defining the difference between a leader and a manager and how it can effect a learning system.
- Explore factors that interfere with Leaders from moving systems forward.
- Discuss how these factors impact Leaders in their current situation.
- Look at potential ways to overcome the roadblocks that impede change.
Special Education 101-How do Principals bring two worlds together
- Special Education maybe a complex and difficult world to understand. In this session we explore several areas that may be a challenge for General Education administrators.
- Discuss the legal aspects and how Federal Laws and State Rules do not always align.
- State Performance Plan (SPP) indicators and why it is important for Leadership to understand them?
- What do Principals and Leadership need to understand when signing the IEP.
- Explore what are the cost of Special Education and why we are required to provide those services.
- Examine the Principal’s role in supporting the learning of all students.
Developing Parents as Partners
- Developing positive relationships with parents. Working effectively with parents of students. Both for the Leadership and their staff.
- Examine legal aspects of IDEA and the requirements of schools as it relates to parents. Distinguish between an At-Risk student and a child with a disability.
- A discussion on the "grieving" process that many parents have to deal with when supporting a child with disabilities.
- Training on Generational Poverty and parent response.
Early Childhood-How Does it Impact Long-Term Learning?
- Review the research on Early Intervention and the positive effects on a child's long-term learning.
- Explore the long-term financial impact of a failed Early Childhood system.
- How to engage parents in the process and make them feel parts of the team.
Special Education 101-How do Principals bring two worlds together
- Special Education may be a complex and difficult world to understand. We explore several aspects that may be a challenge for General Education administrators.
- Explain the legal aspects and how Federal Laws and State Rules do not always align.
- Review State Performance Plan (SPP) indicators and why is that important for Leadership to understand them?
- What do Principals and Leadership need to understand when signing the IEP.
- Explore what are the cost of Special Education and why we are required to provide those services.
- Examine the Principal’s role in supporting the learning of all students.
The Legal aspects of Special Education-Special Education 102
- It is beneficial for Leaders to understand both worlds of education. This will be a continuation of Special Education 101.
- What are the financial implications for your school? The Do's and Don’ts of working with Special Education budgets and staffing.
- Continue to examine Federal Rules that govern Special Education.
- Examine recent court cases that impact how schools do business.
Multi-Tier Systems of Support (MTSS) introduction 101-What is it and why do we have to do it?
- It is important to understand that children come to the educational system with a variety of abilities.
- Review of how schools currently identify students with learning problems.
- Examine the differences between the "Lack of Appropriate" Instruction and a true disability.
- Begin to look at methods to distinguish the difference and how Leaders support the learning for all students.
Multi-Tier Systems of Support (MTSS) 201-Developing an Effective System-Collecting Appropriate Data
- Data Collection. What is necessary?
- File review and how that plays into identifying students with disabilities.
- Explore various interventions to support an MTSS system.
- Review when we move to a Special Education referral.
Inclusion-What does it mean and how can we do it effectively
- Examine Federal Law on the language of Inclusion.
- Discussion with participants on their current practices of inclusion.
- Discuss what prevents inclusive practices in schools.
- Explore supports for General Education teachers in inclusive schools.
Co-Teaching-Could it Work for you?
- What is Co-teaching? Why would Principals support Co-Teaching?
- Co-Teaching has many faces. Discussion about different methods and types of Co-Teaching.
What are they telling us with those Behaviors-What does it look like and what does it impact your school?
- Disruptive behaviors are the number one challenge to schools across the world.
- Examine the various behaviors that schools deal with.
- Discuss with students are attempting to communicate with us with the various behaviors.
- Discuss how we can attempt to not get sucked in power struggles with behaviors.
- Discuss strategies in an attempt to provide alternatives to the behaviors we are seeing.
Foundations of Explicit Instruction
Instructional decision-making and helping teachers determine when to use EI (based on e.g., type of skill, level of student need, prior knowledge) and when and how discovery-oriented approaches might be reasonable. Pre- and in-service teachers will understand and apply the principle that instructional decisions must be made based on student needs over teacher preferences
Basic EI principles and vocabulary will be introduced, and emphasis placed on the structured, systematic nature of EI, the importance of frequent, targeted, informal assessment, the need to adjust instruction based on student responses, and types of scaffolding that are foundational to effective teaching.
Included in this presentation is a brief and well-grounded overview of the research base supporting EI in order to facilitate teacher buy-in. Teachers will engage in an interactive overview of three principles that are highly correlated with student success: academic learning time, content coverage, and level of success.
Skills and strategies for lesson design
Introduces and provides practice with the overarching structure of an EI lesson (i.e., opening, body, close). Teachers will understand the components of an effective opening, body, and close and will participate in writing an EI lesson plan with feedback from instructors
Lesson delivery skills Provide teachers with essential lesson delivery skills to keep students engaged and successful. Skills that are introduced, modeled, explained, and practiced by teachers include: (1) eliciting frequent student responses, (2) carefully monitoring student responses and making instructional adjustments, (3) providing immediate affirmative and corrective feedback, (4) assessing and providing the appropriate pace for instruction.
Effective vocabulary instruction
Vocabulary knowledge is essential for reading comprehension. Teachers will learn how to select high-impact words to target for explicit vocabulary instruction as well as the most efficient and effective ways to teach content-area specific or general vocabulary words.
Effective independent practice
Provide teachers with a rationale for independent practice ("seatwork" or homework) and methods for ensuring that independent practice serves as the final step for lasting mastery of skills and knowledge. Benefits of independent practice (i.e., retention, increased speed and accuracy, improved skill generalization and engagement) are addressed and common but inappropriate uses of independent work are explained.
Upon completion of this workshop, teachers will demonstrate an understanding of the different types and appropriate uses of independent practice. Special emphasis is placed on the type and timing of student feedback teachers should provide.
