Benchmark – Reflection of Professional Development Session

Jessica Quap

College of Education, Grand Canyon University

EAD 523: Developing Professional Capacity

March 15, 2021

 Summary

In order to give all campus teachers an instructional framework in order to fully

incorporate listening, speaking, reading and writing into all courses, I presented the Talk, Read,

Talk, Write framework from Nancy Motely. The presentation included identifying the need based

on our campus data, modeling the framework by having teachers analyze the campus data,

discussion on the implications of the data and planning time to incorporate the framework into

the teachers next two weeks of instruction. An accountability piece was placed within the

development where teachers would conduct peer-walkthroughs in order to learn from watching

other teachers on campus incorporate the framework outside of the training.

Upon reflection with my campus principal, I eliminated an extra demonstration of the

framework that was included over growth-mindset and changed the overall structure of the

professional development in order to have the entire session be a model of the framework. We

also discussed simplifying the campus data given to teachers from one report with all subjects

contained in it to content specific reports that only had the teachers' content displayed. All of the

mentioned feedback was incorporated into the revised presentation and streamlined the process

providing teachers more time to develop their own lessons with instructional leader support.

School-based Data (COE 1.2)

State assessment data currently shows a 14 point deficit for students in the areas of

reading and writing that accounts for the “normal” summer slide and an additional “COVID”

slide according to the Texas Education Agency (TEA). In order to meet the demand of increased

student outcome demands placed on districts from TEA, the Instructional Leadership Team was

looking for a teaching framework that would provide teachers with a framework to deliver
instruction guided by listening, speaking, reading and writing in all content areas and offer an

outcome-based success experience for all students. An article outlining best-practices for all

content teachers to understand the reading process in order to “learn” their content suggests that

vast amounts of research support the conclusion that to teach content is to equip students with the

ability to read for information and draw a conclusion based on their analysis of the reading

(Taylor, 2012). In order for the Talk, Read, Talk, Write strategy to gain teacher buy-in, their own

content data placed beside our campus reading and writing assessment data helps draw a

connection between all content areas and the importance of this research-based strategy.

For example, in 2019, according to state accountability assessments, 37% of all students

“met standard” in Reading/ELA when the state average was 48%. During the presentation, I

correlated this to the science and history courses accountability outcomes after asking those

teachers to identify why they feel their students are not able to display mastery in their content

area. Their answer was that they feel students are not willing to learn on their own and struggle

when given a reading assignment. Graphic organizers have replaced students reading in their

classes. We discussed how their scores could go from 10 points below the state average to within

2 or above if they had a quality way to ensure that students were able to read and write within

their content area.

School Vision and Mission (COE 1.1)

Our mission and vision statement state, “It is the mission statement of Slaton High

School to maintain instructional focus on academic goals, objectives, and the priorities that

support academic achievement for all students. It is the goal and purpose to provide an

atmosphere in which teaching and learning are emphasized and rewarded.” As a campus,

supported by our district, we set our goals based on the aforementioned state accountability data
and incorporate those goals into our Continuous Improvement Plan, which we execute

throughout professional development selections for the year. Currently to achieve our goals, we

select one strategy or framework to focus on each school year. Fortunately my professional

development over the Talk, Read, Talk, Write strategy was selected as the year’s focus.

With this strategy, we are able to build the professional capacity of all content teachers

with a streamlined and consistent approach to reading and writing in all subject areas. Students

thrive on consistency, and we have already seen that students are becoming more and more

familiar with the reading and writing framework from classroom to classroom. Students are able

to sharpen their reading and writing skills multiple times a day within many different contents of

study, which is setting them up for the success ensured in our mission and vision statements. As

Richard Vaca, author of Content Area Reading: Literacy and Learning Across the Curriculum,

says, “Adolescents entering the adult world in the 21st century will read and write more than at

any other time in human history. They will need advanced levels of literacy to perform their jobs,

run their households, act as citizens, and conduct their personal lives.”

Technology (COE 2.4)

Technology used within the professional development session included a way for

teachers to share their thinking on a Jamboard, which is an online area for people to post and

read other people’s posts at the same time. We took each comment and sorted them according to

characteristics that overall proved the need for a reading and writing framework for all classes.

The presentation itself was contained within a Google Slides presentation that was shared with

all teachers and included a slide with links to videos and more resources. The follow-up

accountability for teachers to conduct peer-walkthroughs is to be completed via a Google Form

as well as the overall session evaluation.

 In addition, within the planning session of the professional development, teachers were

encouraged to use a sticky note and common area to share technology resources they were going

to use to present the framework to their students. This list grew and was typed up and emailed

out to teachers.

Next Steps

With any new learning and expectation of implementation in the classroom, an

accountability strategy must be in place. Within this presentation, the final requirement for

teachers was that they plan and implement 2 lessons including the Talk, Read, Talk, Write

framework within the next two weeks and conduct 2 peer walk-throughs and reflect on their

observations of the framework. THey will offer each other strengths and suggestions for

improvement. As well as teacher walk-throughs, administrators and members of the Instructional

Leadership Team will also conduct formal walk-throughs to ensure that the framework is being

utilized as expected. Additionally, each PLC and Cluster meeting, the framework will be

evaluated by analyzing student work samples from the framework. It will be the expectation that

teachers bring these to each meeting.

Emerging Trends and Initiatives (COE 6.3)

Just in the way that the Talk, Read, Talk, Write framework was vetted for its alignment to

student outcomes and teacher effectiveness, all future trends and initiatives will also include

research-based instructional practices that are aligned to student outcomes. The first step in

vetting this is to become aware and familiar with the trend and initiative. Myself, as the

principal, would have to commit to doing my research in regards to the new opportunity. I must
be able to put my teacher hat on when I attend any training or information session to see for

myself the impact the learning could have on our student outcomes.

It is also important to remember that just because one framework or strategy works for

the school two towns over does not mean it will work for my campus. A principal must take into

account the specific learning needs of each student on campus and the place from which students

begin. Just because the state says that my students will have a 14 point reading deficit to

overcome does not mean that they are coming to me on-level already. Most of the time, that

deficit already exists and is added to with the 14 points. Even after the implementation of my

professional development’s framework, we have discovered that we must add in support and

differentiate for our students who come to high school with a middle school reading level.

Preparation and Confidence (COE 5.2)

My strategy for preparing for the leading of professional development began by reading

the book that the framework comes from. I shared this with my reading teacher colleagues and

instructional team so we could have conversations like I mentioned above: will this help our

specific students? We looked through reading data and current writing samples from student

work products. The overall message was clear, this strategy could help our students. I utilized the

book when creating the presentation and included many of the pages straight from the book in

my handouts and slides. I adapted the framework’s lesson plan into our current lesson plan for

teachers to not feel overwhelmed by seeing something new.

For myself, I felt very confident giving this presentation because my 16 years of teaching

have been as a reading and writing teacher. My passion was evident because I have seen the

reality that our students need a consistent way to read and write in all classes. Many, if not all,
teachers on campus respect my expertise in this area based on successful student outcomes in the

past. I believe that having someone deliver professional development that is passionate about it

and contains the experience to back up what they are saying goes such a long way with teacher

buy-in and implementation. They know they can come to me to help with their planning and

grading of the writing samples. The whole process resulted in me feeling more confident and

prepared and helped with the level of trust other teachers have in me to bring them quality

strategies and frameworks that will help them achieve their goals for their students.
 References

Alber, R. (2014, January 15). How Important Is Teaching Literacy in All Content Areas?

Retrieved March 21, 2021, from

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/literacy-instruction-across-curriculum-importance

Taylor, C. R. (2012). Engaging the Struggling Reader: Focusing on Reading and Success

across the Content Areas. National Teacher Education Journal, 5(2), 51–58.