COLLABORATIVES STRIKE
THE MATCH
INTERACTING WITH DATA AND
EACH OTHER TO PREPARE
TEACHERS
Pearl Solomon: psolomon@stac.edu, Robert Searson rsearson@stac.edu,
Gerardo Iturrino: iturrino@ldeo.columbia.edu , David Fried dfried@ercsd.k-12.ny.us
THE COLLABORATIVE
PARTNERS
MAJOR PROJECTS AND
FINDINGS
FROM PRESERVICE UNDERGRADUATE
STUDENTS TO GRADUATE STUDENTS
AND
IN-SERVICE TEACHERS
The RENEW Model
R Recruit the best teachers
E Educate them
N Nurture them as they begin to
practice
E Educate them again as the need for
change develops
W Watch them and learn
EARTH SYSTEMS FOR
UNDERGRADUATES
EARTH SYSTEMS COURSE FOR UNDERGRADUATES TAUGHT BY
ST. THOMAS AQUINAS (STAC) FACULTY AND LAMONT-DOHERTY
SCIENTISTS
PURPOSES AND ACTION COMPONENTS
SHARED RESEARCH DATA
SHARED INSTRUCTIONAL DATA–BASED ACTIVITIES WITH
CONCURRENT COLUMBIA COURSE
SMALL GROUP MEETINGS WITH TEACHING CANDIDATES
FINDINGS:
STUDENT INTEREST IN LEARNING SCIENCE OR SCIENCE AS A
LIFE ENDEAVOR IS WEAK
STUDENT ATTITUDES SEEM UNRELATED TO SCHOOLS ATTENDED
OR PREVIOUS LEVELS OF SUCCESS AS STUDENTS
STUDENTS SEEM UNINTERESTED IN LEARNING SCIENCE AS
INQUIRY
STUDENT ATTITUDES TOWARD
LEARNING SCIENCE
LOOKING AT STUDENT DATA
ATTITUDES ABOUT LEARNING SCIENCE
EARTH2CLASS
LDEO-COLUMBIA AND STAC PROGRAM FOR
INSERVICE TEACHERS
PURPOSES:
Trainselected cohorts of teachers from the New York
metropolitan area and elsewhere to:
enhance content knowledge in the Earth Sciences
develop skills to incorporate improved electronic and
hands-on investigations
increase student achievement on elementary,
middle,and high school mandated assessment tests
EARTH2CLASS
Action Components
Develop and revise www.earth2class.org web resources and curricular
materials to serve as a more effective basis for teacher-scientist interactions.
Train and support research scientists to develop additional instructional
materials (print and electronic) correlated to state and national science education
standards.
Select and train approximately thirty-five participating teachers from New
York City and other districts in Westchester and Rockland Counties in NY as
well as Bergen, Essex, and Hudson Counties in NJ.
Create two follow-up programs for curricular development based on E2C
workshops.
Design and carry out formative evaluation plans.
Expanded dissemination of curricular materials through professional
conferences, DLESE, and other venues.
EARTH2CLASS
2003 - 2004 Earth2Class Program
Sept 20, „03 Gerard Bond & Rusty Lotti: “Studying Climate Change Using the LDEO Deep
Sea Sample Repository”
Oct. 4, „03 LDEO Open House
Oct. 25, „03 Arthur Lerner-Lam: “Living with Earthquakes”
Nov. 15, „03 Martin Visbeck: "What Can Ocean Temperatures Tell Us about Climate in the
Southern Hemisphere?" & Michael Studinger: "Uncovering the Secrets of Lake Vostok"
Dec. 13, „03 Nicole Davi: “Learning from Tree Rings”
Jan. 24, „04 Gerardo Iturrino: “Structure and composition of the oceanic crust ”
Feb. 14, „04 Dorothy Peteet: “Marsh Archives of the Hudson Estuary”
Mar. 20, „04 Christopher Small: “Exploring the Southern Oceans with Ships and
Satellites” & Gregory Mountain: “Beneath the Ocean Floor: What Do We Know and How
Do We Know It?”
Apr. 17, „04 Dallas Abbott: “Historical Impact Craters” & Dee Breger: “Exploring the
Microworld”
May 8, „04 Jeffrey Weissel: “Using Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) to Map Natural
Hazards and Disasters.”
Teacher Participant Comments
I will definitely use the power point, the Hudson river links and the
Stevens institution lesson of water resources
I would like to see a quick time movie of a few minutes of the guest
scientist sharing what they do and what they love about their work.
It would be great to share with students to inspire them and show
them that scientists are real people
Resources: I loved the Stevens Institution curriculum!!!!!
Interaction: Dr. Peteet was enthusiastic and knowledgeable about her
topic. She would make a great role model for students.
Please get a movie link to her talking about what she loves to study.
EARTH2CLASS
Teacher Participant Comments
Workshops are organized and well planned
Presenters are good and content knowledgeable
Student learning activities that included physical
oceanographic information were newly discovered
Level of materials presented was difficult, but discussion
session made it understandable.
Teacher’s guide and activities would be used with their
students
Workshops would be recommended to other teachers.
EARTH2CLASS
Teacher Participant Comments
I plan on teaching by using many aspects of the Hudson river and link
to earth2class for this marsh presentation. This topic is great for showing
effects that people have had on the environment (deforestation, marsh
reduction, climate change). I think it would fall under standard 7.
I was amazed to see how much of the marsh environment has
been destroyed by development. The map of the historical location
of marshes was most useful. It is difficult to select an item that is
least useful.
Interdisciplinary problem solving - key idea: consider
environmental and social implications of various solutions to an
environmental earth resource problem.
PROJECT STEF
PROJECT STEF (SCIENCE TEACHERS ENSURE THE
FUTURE)
Action Components:
ENCOURAGING TEACHERS TO BE ROLE MODELS
FOR FUTURE TEACHERS
SUMMER INSTITUTE
PLANNING MEETINGS
JOINT CONFERENCE: NAGT AND NEW YORK STATE
SCIENCE CONGRESS
PROJECT ERAP
EAST RAMAPO ASSESSMENT PROJECT
Purposes
To improve the student achievement in
mathematics, K-8, in the East Ramapo
schools
To reorganize curriculum and make it more
specific
To prepare and administer curriculum-
matched proximal assessments.
To help teachers use the results of these tests to
diagnose and respond to student needs.
Action components:
In order to achieve a useful match between the curriculum,
instruction and assessments:
2001
Specific designed-down Grade Level Objectives, organized
by Key Ideas, were created from more general State
curriculum documents.
2002
These were then organized for each grade into curriculum
maps (units with timeframes and specific objectives).
2002-2004
For each unit, the essential performance objectives were
sequenced into test specifications for each assessment.
Groups of teachers wrote assessments.
Each test item was matched to a specific content-based
expectation.
2002-2004
Each assessment includes a group performance
component, as well as an assortment of
questions that require different levels of
cognitive demand.
The group performance and individual
assessment contain extended response items
are graded with carefully constructed rubrics.
The tests were constructed by 44 grade-level
teachers working in pairs.
Editing:
1. Math coordinators and consultant, Pearl
Solomon
2. Dr. Solomon and Assistant Superintendent
David Fried
Dissemination and Evaluation:
Each test is disseminated
electronically as a draft to
grade level teachers, who are
asked for revisions and
feedback.
Following administration the
results are recorded,
analyzed and shared.
PRODUCTS AND FINDINGS
By the end of April, 2004 we will have
completed approximately 75 of these in
grades K-8.
Test construction and analyses has
revealed specific deficiencies that are
being addressed.
Two of the district’s elementary schools
were on the list of most improved
schools in the state. Only four
elementary schools in the county were
on the list for math.
East Ramapo Test Results
New York State Math Tests
Percent of Students Performing at Each Level
4=Exceeding standards 3=Meeting standards 2= Just below standards 1= Far below standards
Level 2001 2002 2003
Grade 3/4 57% 55% 67%
4
2 28% 33% 24%
1 14% 12% 9%
Grade 3/4 32% 34% 37%
8
2 34% 40% 39%
1 34% 26% 25%
East Ramapo Test Results
Districtwide Standardized Math Test (TerraNova)
Median National Percentile
Grade 2001 2002 2003
3 53.3 59.7 67.3
5 50.0 54.6 55.1
6 52.4 55.1 59.3
7 50.6 53.9 49.9
PARK RIDGE
Purposes:
To improve student achievement in
mathematics
To provide professional development
opportunities for teachers that:
Improve their own math knowledge
Concentrate on teaching math with understanding
Call attention to the expectations of the curriculum
PARK RIDGE
Action Components
Analyses of state test results
Identification of specific needs such as problem
solving and explanations of concepts
Curriculum revision
Demonstration lessons
Products and Findings
Curriculum is reorganized into teacher-
friendly units
Curriculum includes designed down
embedded concepts and skills needed to
achieve expectations
Time is allocated to cover all needed topics
Teachers respond to demonstration lessons
by incorporating observed strategies
State Disaggregated Data vs. Park Ridge
Partially Proficient Adv.
Proficient Proficient
Statewide 32% 42.8% 25.2%
White 21.4% 47.1% 31.5%
Students
Park Ridge 11.8% 48.2% 40%
Source: NJ Assessment of Skills and Knowledge – Cycle 1-
Preliminary Reports
Comparing Statewide and Park Ridge Distributions
Total Points and Just-proficient Scores
Number Geometry and Patterns/
Sense Measurement Algebra
Numerical
Operations
Total 13.0 10.0 9.0
possible.
points.
Statewide 7.7 4.5 4.8
Average
Park Ridge 9.9 6.2 6.6
Average
Comparing Statewide and Park Ridge Distributions
Total Points and Just-proficient Scores
Data / Problem Knowledge
Probability/ Solving
Discreet
Math
Total 10.0 20.0 42.0
possible
points
Statewide 5.0 5.0 22.0
Average
Park Ridge 7.4 7.4 30.0
Average
Source: NJ Assessment of Skills and Knowledge – Cycle 1-
Preliminary Reports
Score Range Comparison – NJASK – Grade 4 East Brook
Score Range 2001-2002 2002-2003
240-249 3% 10%
230-239 15% 10%
220-229 11% 5%
200-219 11% 18%
Source: NJ Assessment of Skills and Knowledge –
Cycle 1- Preliminary Reports
Score Range Comparison – NJASK – Grade 4 West
Ridge
Score Range 2001-2002 2002-2003
240-249 17% 22%
230-239 11% 31%
220-229 22% 14%
200-219 44% 33%
Source: NJ Assessment of Skills and Knowledge –
Cycle 1- Preliminary Reports
Staff Development Demonstration Lessons
“University-based professional development schools (PDS)
may be a remedy. University-based professional
development schools are inching closer to a better or more
equitable outcome for schools involved in well conceived
partnerships. McConnell, Bruneau, Barbour & Ambrose
(1991) define the professional development school in its
broadest interactive sense as one “in which classroom
teachers and university faculty work collaboratively to better
understand teaching and learning.”
Source: “Project Smart”
Staff Development Demo Lesson Advantages
•Long Term, sustained professional development
•Conceptual v. Skills based approach
•Teacher Friendly
•Teacher ownership of the process of change
•Teachers become an integral part of the process
•Supported administrative assistance
•Conducted in a real classroom setting
•Training and curriculum Standards based
•Expose teachers to training conducted by experts
Curriculum Development Process
Review the State Standards
Define that to be taught at each grade level
Develop the indicators to address Standards at each level
Uncover the “embedded concepts”
Develop classroom activities to support the indicators
Develop the assessment
Provide increased Manipulative materials
On-going training