Targeted Assistance Solutions

Increasing Teacher Effectiveness

Teachscape helps increase teacher effectiveness through a comprehensive solution that focuses on building the capacity of teachers of targeted students to select and implement appropriate scientifically based curricula, employ proven instructional practices, and relentlessly monitor and measure their impact on student learning, using these data to inform and improve teaching and learning. Understanding that any solution is incomplete unless it is systemic, Teachscape ensures that all professionals focused on the target students—teachers, paraprofessionals, and instructional leaders—are included in the solution. To this end, the solution is designed to ensure:

• Teachers have the opportunity and support to develop their capacity to improve achievement among the target students in their classrooms
• Paraprofessionals are offered professional learning to build their skills and support them as integral members of the teaching team
• Instructional leaders enhance their understanding of effective strategies to develop, implement, monitor, assess, and refine research-based teaching practices and improve student learning

The solution offers both customized professional learning, face-to-face and online, and focused coaching to ensure that the featured strategies and practices are implemented effectively, and with fidelity, in service of the targeted students.

For Teachers: The professional learning and coaching for teachers is designed to enhance teacher knowledge and skills for one purpose only—to improve the achievement of targeted, struggling students. Both new and veteran teachers will hone their skills through face-to-face and online professional studies; classroom-based applications, supported by coaches, of the featured practices for the target students; careful alignment of student learning needs with the state standards, scientifically based curriculum, proven instructional practices, and assessment instruments; and facilitated Professional Learning Community sessions focused on student work products and understanding of student thinking.

This work will be guided and informed by a customized suite of Teachscape's online resources, selected for their fit with the needs of the target students and their teachers. These resources, selected in collaboration with the schools and districts, will focus on:

• Scientifically based curriculum—appropriate resources for literacy and mathematics, which can be adapted for English language learners and for students with special education needs, and others
• Effective instructional practices—High Yield Strategies and resources to develop deep understanding of student learning needs, effective planning, differentiation to address individual learning needs, and others
• Ongoing assessment and analysis—effective questioning and formative assessment, data-based instructional decision making, analyzing student work products, and others

Additional support will be offered for new teachers to ensure they can develop and sustain classroom environments, rules, procedures, and basic instructional practices that support effective teaching and learning.

For Paraprofessionals: Professional learning for these integral members of instructional teams is designed to develop coherent, consistent, and effective teaching. Guided and supported by Teachscape's online resources and facilitated by expert coaches, this comprehensive solution includes paraprofessionals in many of the professional learning activities described for teachers and also offers them role-specific learning that includes:

• Deepening knowledge of the literacy and mathematics content of research-based curricula
• Strategies for supporting effective instruction and managing individual and small-group learning activities for the target students
• Monitoring student learning through formative assessment measures
• Communicating effectively with parents to ensure home and school messages are consistently focused on achievement

Teachscape coaches will facilitate the face-to-face and online learning and will coach the paraprofessionals—both individually and in their classroom teams—to ensure the application of the practices and strategies studied.

For Instructional Leaders: This comprehensive solution is also designed to help instructional leaders promote, support, and sustain effective teaching and improved academic outcomes for the target students by making clear and explicit links between teaching practice and student learning. Through face-to-face and online professional learning, supported by at-elbow coaching, the instructional leaders will enhance their capacity to: understand, promote, and support research-based curricula; identify and support proven instructional strategies; assess ongoing teaching and learning; and use teaching/learning data to raise student achievement by improving teacher effectiveness.

Teachscape leadership coaches will use Teachscape tools and resources to enable instructional leaders to focus relentlessly on assessing, tracking, and improving teacher instructional practices and student achievement.

• Online curriculum-focused resources will ensure the leaders understand the essential elements of scientifically based curriculum to enable them to support the teachers of the target students
• Online resources, focused on effective instruction, will help the leaders hone their skills in identifying and supporting effective practices for the target students
• A customized Classroom Walkthrough tool and process will help the instructional leaders monitor implementation of scientifically based curriculum and effective instructional practices, analyze their impact, and develop action plans to enable the teachers to more effectively address the learning needs of their target students

The focus of the program for instructional leaders is on building capacity to support and sustain measurable improvement in student achievement through improved teacher effectiveness.