November 10
We are BELIEVERS here at Suisun Valley
Goal: Success for every student
Accepts that change (the right change) is necessary to improve student performance
Student interest is more important than personal interest. – our concern is “we” not “me”
Focus on overcoming obstacles and problem solving
View colleagues and organization as a resource
We are problem solvers NOT complainers
Refer to the Report Card section of your Important documents folder for GATE plan, EL report card, and retention forms are located in your google drive.
The word "rigor" is hard to avoid today, and it provokes strong reactions from educators. Policymakers tout its importance. Publishers promote it as a feature of their materials. But some teachers share the view of Joanne Yatvin, past president of the National Council for Teachers of English. To them, rigor simply means more work, harder books, and longer school days. "None of these things is what I want for students at any level," Yatvin says. Part of the problem is that we have adopted the jargon without a clear understanding of what we really mean.
Calculating Cognitive Depth
For classroom teachers, the more important question is one of practice: how do we create rich environments where all students learn at a high level? One useful tool, Norman Webb's Depth of Knowledge Levels, can help teachers meet that challenge. Depth of Knowledge (DoK) categorizes tasks according to the complexity of thinking required to successfully complete them.
Level 1: Recall and Reproduction
Tasks at this level require recall of facts or rote application of simple procedures. The task does not require any cognitive effort beyond remembering the right response or formula. Copying, computing, defining, and recognizing are typical Level 1 tasks.
Level 2: Skills and Concepts
At this level, a student must make some decisions about his or her approach. Tasks with more than one mental step such as comparing, organizing, summarizing, predicting, and estimating are usually Level 2.
Level 3: Strategic Thinking
At this level of complexity, students must use planning and evidence, and thinking is more abstract. A task with multiple valid responses where students must justify their choices would be Level 3. Examples include solving non-routine problems, designing an experiment, or analyzing characteristics of a genre.
Level 4: Extended Thinking
Level 4 tasks require the most complex cognitive effort. Students synthesize information from multiple sources, often over an extended period of time, or transfer knowledge from one domain to solve problems in another. Designing a survey and interpreting the results, analyzing multiple texts by to extract themes, or writing an original myth in an ancient style would all be examples of Level 4.
Recently, educators have begun applying Webb’s DoK to help them design better instruction. Try this exercise to better understand the cognitive depth of the tasks you are using in your classroom and improve the rigor of your instruction:
1. Keep a list or collection of every task you ask students to do in a day (or in one subject for a week), including classwork, homework, and projects.
2. Sort the tasks into categories according to the four DoK Levels.
3. Work with a team of colleagues to review the groupings. Many tasks are easily categorized, but some will require deeper discussion to clarify your understanding of the levels. Strive toward consensus. A few pointers:
· The verb does not define the level. Instead, consider the cognitive effort that a student will use to complete the task. The verb "describe," for example, could be any level, depending on the kind of description.
· It is common to find tasks that seem to fall in between levels. When in doubt, assign the higher level.
· "Extended time" alone does not make a task Level 4. Lower-level tasks that are merely repeated over a period of time are still lower level.
4. Analyze your groupings. What patterns do you see? Is there a reasonable distribution of tasks across the four levels? Do you notice anything unexpected?
Apply as Needed
DOK Levels are not sequential. Students need not fully master content with Level 1 tasks before doing Level 2 tasks. In fact, giving students an intriguing Level 3 task can provide context and motivation for engaging in the more routine learning at Levels 1 and 2.
DOK levels are also not developmental. All students, including the youngest preschoolers, are capable of strategic and extended thinking tasks. What they look like will differ, and what is Level 3 to a kindergarten student may be a Level 1 task for a middle schooler. All students, however, should have opportunities to do complex reasoning.
To find the right balance, ask yourself these questions:
· What kinds of thinking do I want students to do routinely?
· If my own child were participating, what would I want him or her to be doing?
· What's the most effective way to spend the limited classroom time I have?
Decide for yourself how often you should focus on tasks at each level so that students gain the most from the learning opportunities you design.
Regardless of how you define "rigor," the important thing is that students are thinking deeply on a daily basis. Webb's Depth of Knowledge gives you a framework and common language to make that happen in your classroom.
Board
Policy of the Week:
The Governing Board recognizes that volunteer assistance in schools can enrich the educational program, increase supervision of students, and contribute to school safety while strengthening the schools' relationships with the community. The Board encourages parents/guardians and other members of the community to share their time, knowledge, and abilities with students. BP/AR 1240 - Volunteer Assistance outlines the process for having volunteers on campus.
Observable Fish Moments at SV:
Be There: Thank you Janice,
Kristin, and Katie for doing an AMAZING job for our AR party. Brandon thank you
for having student council collect candy for our troops.
Play: LOVE YOUR JOB!!
Choose your attitude: Be positive during
conferences. Parents LOVE to hear what their child shines in.
Make Their Day: Make Their Day: THANK YOU: I
would like to take this time to let you know how thankful I am to work with a
warm, hard working and dedicated staff that puts students needs first. I am
thankful for every day that I come to work and smile at how much we have
already accomplished in just a few short months (new staff, academic
conferences, setting RIT goals, new math curriculum). I love working here with
you, the students and parents!
