Bella Roumain

ED 243

1/26/24

Notes on New Series on High Leverage Practices &

Clarifying the Relationship Between HLPs and EBPs
Terms:
HLP: High Leverage Practice
EBP: Evidence Based Practice
OTS: opportunities to respond

New Series on High Leverage Practices

https://highleveragepractices.org/welcome-our-new-series-high-leverage-practices

HLPs must be:

- Fundamental to effective teaching
- Used frequently by teachers
- Cut across instructional content
- Apply to many age levels & types of learners
- Improve student outcomes
HLPs are appropriate for most students even the ones without special needs

Many HLPs are necessary for implementing EBPs effectively

4 High Leverage Practices

1. Collaboration
2. Assessment
3. Social/emotional/behavioral
4. Instruction

Clarifying the Relationship Between HLPs and EBPs

https://highleveragepractices.org/clarifying-relationship-between-hlps-and-ebps

HLP: High leverage practice EBP: evidence-based practices

Evidence Based Practices (EBP):
- instructional practices shown to improve outcomes for specific populations of learners by
multiple, high-quality studies
- Specific strategies teachers can use to address specific needs of learners
- Should be prioritized to help ensure students receive specially designed instruction

High-Leverage Practices (HLP):

- Instructional and professional practices educators employ alone, or in collaboration, to
implement EBPs, make needed adjustments to instruction, and use when a specific EBP isn't
available for a specific situation. Also helps teachers provide a range of supports.
- Support effective implementation of EBPs, adapt instruction, and design and deliver instruction
when EBPs are not available

Part 1: Clarifying the relationship between high-leverage and evidence-based

practices

Importance of HLPs & EBPs:

Usually more broader than specific EBPs

HLPs complement EBPs by offering skills and actions necessary for successful implementation of specific
EBPs

Using HLPs and EBPs in combination may contribute to a more effective and individualized education for
all students

Critical for designing and delivering information for students with special needs

Part 2: Illustrating How to Implement HLP & EBP

Teacher example:

EBP: develop & teach predictable classroom routines

- Establish predictable patterns & activities
- Promote smooth operation of classroom
- Outline steps for completing activities
- Teach routines and procedures directly
- Practice regularly
- Create routines for problematic areas
 EBP: multiple and varied opportunities to respond
- Individual and small group questioning
- Choral responding
- Nonverbal responses

HLP 7: Establish a Consistent Organized & Respectful Learning Environment

- Classroom expectations, rules, and procedures should be defined and taught
- Use a continuum of strategies to acknowledge appropriate behavior with high frequency

HLP 16: Explicit Instruction

- Range of opportunities to respond
- Use range of examples and non-examples
- Clear language
- Modeling
- Guided practice
- Opportunities to respond (OTP)

HLP 18: actively engage students

- Build positive teacher-student relationships
- Use a variety of strategies to engage students
- Actively monitor students and provide feedback

EBP: Use of manipulatives as part of real world story problem solving

- Use of counting blocks
- Real world scenario
- Modeling
- Guided practice
- Opportunities to respond
Graphic Organizer for HLP-Highly Leverage Practices/Videos
Do one of these HLP write ups for each of the HLP videos you view.

HLP #7 Establish a Consistent, Organized, and Respectful Learning Environment

Here is how we will evaluate this HLP assignment:

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.

● "Establishing a consistent, organized, and respectful learning environment means the

teacher is planful and deliberate in how they set up their classroom space to provide
students with clear directions, procedures, and expectations to support their learning
and behavioral success." (2:00)
● "When students misbehave, effective teachers do not immediately turn to punishment
to try and eliminate the unwanted behavior. Instead, they treat behavioral issues as
learning errors" (4:44)
● "Review and reteach expectations regularly" (6:40)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)

● Last semester, I spent time in a Kindergarten classroom at Lab 60. The teacher, Ms.
Shackleford encouraged her students to treat each other with respect. If they spoke over
each other, she asked them to take a break and return when they ready to rejoin.
● I worked as a camp director last semester. I learned that my campers were more
receptive to my instructions when I was positive and rewarding good behavior.
● Ms. Shackleford reviewed the carpet time expectations every morning to remind her
students of what the right and wrong behavior was.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)

● Classroom expectations need to be age appropriate and content specific. It's impossible
to ask younger kids to follow the expectations of a 5th grader.
● Expectations should be taught in an appropriate setting. Asking students to actively
listen to expectations during a high energy activity is unreasonable.
● Taking time to explicitly teach students what your non-verbal cues mean. Each student
has a different perspective which means they all have different ideas of what cues could
mean.
4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)

● This HLP is very important at the start of the school year when teachers are creating a
positive learning environment with their students.

HLP #8 & 22 Provide Positive & Constructive Feedback to Guide Students' Learn

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.

● "Feedback is information all teachers provide to all students in order to improve

performance in academic or behavioral domains. Students use the information to
improve their motivation, engagement, and independence." (2:15)
● "Goals can relate to academic or behavioral outcomes" (4:45)
● "Immediate feedback is especially important when students are in the early stages of
learning a new skill." (12:56)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)

● In ED 316, I learned that providing feedback is essential to the student's math abilities.
It's important to give the student wait time to think and try the problem.
● In ED 303, I set a goal for my focal child. I purposely kept it vague because I wanted to
improve his reading strategies, but he couldn't read text yet. My focal child felt more
motivated when he knew what specific strategy or goal we were focusing on.
● In ED 316, I worked on word problems with my focal child. We worked on developing
more efficient strategies. I let her work independently. When we reviewed her work, I
pointed to the sections where there were mistakes and asked her to explain her work.
This helped her realize where she needed to correct her work.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)

● Focus on student actions, not personal judgements.

● "Comparing today’s performance in a negative way to a previous performance or to
other students’ performance is demotivating and not focused on success." (16:20) It's
important that students succeed so they build their confidence.
● Setting goals is effective for all students at all ability levels in order to reduce the gap
between their current knowledge and what they need to learn.

4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)

● I want to continue learning how to develop challenging but accomplishable goals for my
students.
HLP #18 Use Strategies to Promote Active Student Engagement

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.

● "Another hallmark is effective teachers provide students with numerous scaffolds to

actively participate during lessons, and then offer meaningful feedback on their
performance." (3:57)
● "Simply being open to the fact that student’s individual backgrounds are a core part of
how they see the world, and honoring that worldview is one powerful way to connect."
(6:35)
● "Prompts to respond should cut across academic and behavioral domains." (9:51)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)

● In Mrs. Bucher's classroom, at Lab 60, incorporates a lot of project work into her
classroom. Project work welcomes all types of learners and their participation style. As a
class, they complement their peers' work.
● In ED 398, Dr. Adams led discussions about the importance of students' backgrounds in
the class, and how to incorporate each student into the learning community.
● I remember in high school, my teachers always made sure to check in with us before
they began class to make sure that we were doing okay.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)

● Forging connections to students lives

● "Teachers can also leverage technology to promote engagement, whether that is having
students use individual devices or whole group methods such as interactive whiteboards
or other options that allows students to share and contribute to skills and processes."
○ This allows all types of learners to engage.
● "Because many students with disabilities struggle with limited background knowledge
and cognitive functioning, they often experience frustration and failure in school."

4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)

● I want to continue my learning on how to motivate students who have been

disencourage, and show them that they are capable.
HLP #17 Use Flexible Grouping

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.

● "Effective teachers use flexible grouping of students intentionally to differentiate

instruction, make instruction more intensive, and meet individual student needs." (2:15)
● "Using groups provides explicit and implicit opportunities for students to develop
interpersonal skills." (6:50)
● "Homogeneous groups are used to provide focused, intensive instruction for students
with common instructional strengths and needs." (10:15)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)

● I remember in high school math classes, I usually had one partner for the whole
semester which put limits on my learning. At times, my partner and I had completely
different learning and communication styles which made it difficult to complete
activities. If my teacher had made partners/groups more flexible, it would have been
better for our learning.
● In COE classes, I've learned that schools are one of the biggest places where students
learn social skills and cues. Using flexible grouping frequently invites students to talk to
new people which will help them develop their social skills
● In ED 316, we talked about the thinking behind math groups. Pairing students together
who are more advanced is productive because they can help one another solve more
challenging problems. On the other hand, pairing students who are at different levels of
understanding is also effective as the students have an opportunity to teach each other.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)

● "Students with disabilities are more likely to find success with academic or other tasks
when expectations are clear, and the teacher is deliberate and explicit about what the
lesson is going to entail." (6:57)
● "Teachers use small heterogeneous groups to engage all students in grade level
content-related conversations, facilitate student thinking and communication skills, and
improve interpersonal relationships among students with and without disabilities."
(11:55)
● "At each decision point, the special educator and colleagues consider various
instructional settings and group sizes that are appropriate for delivering
specially-designed instruction." (14:05)
4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)

● I want to continue my learning on how often I should change groups depending on the
students abilities.

HLP #14 - Cognitive and Metacognitive Strategies

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.
● "Strategies help students become better problem-solvers." (3:20)
● "Teacher needs to provide clear explanations, and provide examples and non-examples
as appropriate" (9:30)
● "It is important to provide guided and independent opportunities for students to
practice using the strategy" (16:15)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)
● In ED 316, I worked with my focal child to develop more efficient strategies to solve
word-problems.
● As a camp director, I helped my counselors explain their expectations to their campers. I
gave examples of what is appropriate behavior and what is not.
● In ED 303, I wrote mini-lessons for my focal child. Embedded in the lesson was time put
aside so that he could practice the reading strategy independently.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)
● "While some students may be able to develop or figure out strategies on their own,
students with disabilities and others who struggle to learn often need instruction in
specific strategies, including when and how to use them coupled with practice and
feedback." (4:08)
● "In addition to being explicitly taught, cognitive and metacognitive strategies should be
embedded in academic and non-academic lessons, so that students can experience the
various ways in which these strategies are used to learn specific academic content."
(4:55)
● Solve it! – Strategy for problem solving: read, paraphrase, visualize, hypothesize, predict,
calculate, and check
4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)
● I want to continue my learning on the difference between cognitive and metacognitive
strategies.

HLP #12 Systematically Designed Instruction

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.
● "teachers establish clear learning goals for students, they sequence each lesson to
explicitly connect to previously learned material... All while using explicit scaffolds to
help support acquisition of new knowledge" (2:43)
● "Support students in organizing new knowledge by providing scaffolds and structures for
learning." (5:30)
● "Teachers are explicit about confirming students’ critical background knowledge, and
reteach, as needed" (8:56)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)
● In ED 316, I designed lesson plans that connected our previous activity to the following
ones. Additionally, I provided the supports to facilitate discussions about new strategies
between my focal child and one of her peers.
● During Ms. Shackleford's math lesson, she used a poster to organize her students' new
knowledge. She recorded their responses and hung up the poster so they could add
more for the next lesson.
● In ED 308, Dr. Corpus discussed the importance of background knowledge in regard to
literacy. Some children's parents read to them at home so they understand the basic
ideas about how books work. Other children are not read to at home, so they must learn
the primary principles of books at school.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)
● "Many students with disabilities struggle to learn content, especially when the new
information holds little, if any relevance to their life. As a result, students may not learn
important content when it is first presented, and teachers typically move quickly from
topic to topic in order to keep up with curriculum pacing guides and prepare students
for various assessments." (1:43)
● "show students a variety of ways to interact with or demonstrate the skill or concept
being taught." (11:02)
 ● "Supports for students with disabilities should be individualized per their IEP. In a more
intensive learning environment, the teacher should carefully select a scaffold or tool
(such as a graphic organizer) that provides individualized support." (11:40)

4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)

● I want to continue learning about how to create inclusive classroom goals.

HLP #16 Explicit Instruction

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.
● "Explicit lessons are also known for the I do, we do, you do instructional sequence."
(3:14)
● "And content should be sequenced in a logical format to go from easiest to understand
to most complex." (5:24)
● "The level of your questions should depend on the goals of the lesson and capacity of
your students." (12:20)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)
● In high school, most of my math classes followed the I do, we do, you do instructional
sequence.
● In ED 316, Dr. Flessner advised to start the mini lessons off with a problem that the
student would definitely be able to do to build their confidence. Then we could
introduce a problem that is more challenging.
● At Lab 60, Ms. Shackleford knew her students really well which helped her when she was
designing the lesson and creating goals for her students.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)
● "special education teachers and other specialists should use data to make informed
decisions about the size of instructional groups, and determine the needed intensity of
instruction." (4:01)
● "One way to keep your lesson moving is by delivering a healthy number of opportunities
to respond. Students' responses can be verbal, written, or performed. " (11:55)
● " the unique setting and needs of students being taught determines the level of intensity
with which the teacher uses this practice." (17:15)
4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)
● I want to continue my learning on the best ways to encourage student
engagement/responses.

HLP #20 Intense Instruction

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.
● Individualized feedback (3:15)
● "Data-based individualization (DBI). DBI is a research-based process for individualizing
and intensifying instruction through the systematic use of validated intervention
programs, progress monitoring, diagnostic data, research-based adaptation strategies."
(3:45)
● "Teachers make instructional adjustments based on results of the diagnostic data, and
then they continue to monitor student progress on a regular basis." (15:12)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)
● In ED 316, I learned the importance of really paying attention to your student's work so
that you know how to give them encouraging and constructive feedback.
● In ED 417, The Teacher as the Researcher was one of the big ideas that we focused on.
It's important that educators evolve with their students and with the new methods.
● In ED 491, I learned about recording data on your students to track their progress both
academically and emotionally.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)
● Intensifying intervention can mean adding instructional time to target a student’s
specific area(s) of deficit.
● Intensifying intervention can mean integrating academic and behavioral supports.
● "Research indicates that it may take students with intensive needs, including those with
disabilities, as much as 10 – 30 times more practice to master a skill, compared to peers
without disabilities." (3:30)

4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)

● I want to continue my learning on the best ways to record and organize data about my
students.
HLP #15 Scaffolding Support

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.
● "Scaffolded supports are flexible and numerous" (2:45)
● "When teachers provide multiple opportunities to practice a skill with supports, they
should assess whether the students have connected the use of the scaffold to successful
performance of the task." (14:12)
● "Just as students need plenty of opportunities to practice with the support, they need
plenty of opportunities to practice it without the support, when ready." (15:42)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)
● In ED 299, Dr. Madrazo led an introductory lesson on scaffolding. This built the
foundation of my knowledge in regard to scaffolding. She connected it back teachers
incorporating Universal Design for Learning in the original plans rather than adding it last
minute.
● In ED 303, I introduced reading strategies to my focal child, and each week he
developed deeper understandings and connections to them. I looked forward to seeing
him use strategies from previous weeks during his reading choice time.
● In ED 316, I worked with my focal child on word-problems. Throughout the semester, I
brought problems that I believed were appropriate for her ability level. We worked
together on them. At the end, I conducted a problem-solving interview, with no
intervention, where she showed me all she knew.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)
● "...,providing scaffolded supports is a critical practice for teachers of students with
disabilities. Scaffolded supports can take the form of visual aids or strategies that
teachers teach to their students" (5:35)
● "In addition to the explicit lesson on how to use the tool, something often forgotten is
the need to provide students with explicit cues on when to use the tool. Explicit cues
often take the form of a verbal reminder, but can also be gestural or physical, as required
by students’ needs." (8:00)
● "Teachers should monitor whether a support is effective in moving students toward their
learning goal." (13:55)
4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)
● I want to continue to learn about how I can construct a rigid schedule but allow
flexibility in scaffolding.

HLP #11 Goal Setting

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.
● "These goals generally focus on what students will be able to do by the end of the year
and tend to focus on general academic, social, emotional, and behavioral outcomes."
(4:10)
● "Short-term goals help teachers develop weekly and daily lesson plans and individualize
instruction for students." (4:35)
● "We know that when students take part in developing and owning their goals, they are
often more motivated and engaged in their learning" (9:15)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)
● In ED 491, we discussed the importance of catering goals to the student as a whole.
● In ED 303, I created weekly goals for my focal child. I had the opportunity to see him
once a week for part of the semester.
● I remember being in my sixth grade advisory room before and after school. My advisor,
Mrs. Bailey, had meetings with all of the students to collaborate on the goals that were
accomplishable and challenging for each trimester.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)
● "Long-term goals refer to those that focus on broader outcomes essential for teachers to
develop and implement high-quality educational programming for students with
disabilities" (2:40)
● "The purpose of the IEP is to ensure that, to the maximum extent appropriate, that
children with disabilities are educated with peers without disabilities and they are able
to make progress in the general education curriculum " (6:50)
● The target behavior includes a description of the observable behavior the student is
expected to perform. The target behavior should include observable action words like
define, read, calculate, analyze, or demonstrate as opposed to unobservable behaviors
like understand, think, or know." (13:47)
4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)
● What is the best way to welcome parents into the conversation about their student's
goals without feeling superior or inferior to their opinions?

HLP #19 Assistive Technology

1. Provide three quotations that stuck out to you across each video assignment and then note
the video number on the bottom of where you found them.
● "The ultimate goal is to prepare the student for independence after the K-12 system."
(4:00)
● "The Every Student Succeeds Act points to UDL as a scientifically valid framework for
guiding educational practice." (11:41)
● "When educational environments and activities are designed and delivered according to
the principles and practices of UDL, the barriers faced by many students will be
anticipated and lowered." (13:09)

2. Make at least one connection to personal experience, other texts you’ve read, other
classes, and/or to what you know about schools from each quotation. (3 points)
● Looking back on my K-12 years, I remember each year getting a little bit more difficult
and it adequately prepared me for college. I was lucky to have really great teachers who
supported me through each one of those years.
● I first heard about UDL in ED 299. It is one of my goals to always have UDL in mind when
creating lesson plans. ED 398 and ED 498 with Dr. Adams has assisted me in this process
because she teaches me the influence of students' home life, language, and background
in their school life.
● I went to schools where everyone looked the same and there wasn't much variety. My
teachers usually didn't have to think about adding accommodations to their lesson
plans. The COE has taught me the importance of UDL.

3. Include three pieces that you do not want to forget that deal with characteristics,
adaptations, and strategies with the brain or certain disabilities or teaching overall. (3 Points)
● "Under section 300.5 AT devices are any item, piece of equipment or product system,
whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified or customized that is used to
increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of a child with a disability. "
(3:00)
● "A key element of AT is that it is related to function rather than any disability category.
And as such, addresses the entire range of what students may need to succeed in school
and beyond" (3:26)
 ● "..., IT is most impactful when teachers combined it with best practices for
differentiating and personalizing learning experiences for students with and without
disabilities" (6:29)

4. Questions/future learning on HLPs (1 point)

● In the future, I want to set up a system to hold myself accountable to use UDL principles in my
lessons.