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Showing posts with tag increased test scores Show all posts >
How to Create an Effective Summer Learning Program
- February 12, 2013 by Hallie Smith
For many educators, summer school planning is in full gear! Districts are determining the who, the what and the how, and all with limited resources.
When I was working in the school system, summer school left something to be desired. The students were doing the same activities from the school year (and were still bored by them), and the teachers were working with students they didn’t know, struggling to individualize instruction. Making an effective summer learning program isn't easy; I appreciate the work that goes into making any instructional plan effective. Educating our students, during the year or summer, is not for the faint of heart. It takes an enormous amount of collaboration, planning, expertise, creativity and energy (lots of energy!) to be done well.
The Rand Corporation’s 2011 report on summer school effectiveness makes many recommendations; here are just a few:
- Do something different. Often the students coming to summer school are those who have struggled during the year. Summer school is the ideal time to try something new, to include enrichment activities, and to engage these kids in a new way. The Rand Corporation’s report recommends moving beyond remediation to “…go beyond "drill-and-kill" instruction and provide students with (1) expanded learning through innovative instruction that accelerates learning and (2) opportunities for enrichment.”
- Individualize instruction. This is nothing new: we know differentiating instruction leads to better learning. Summer school is an ideal time for this, but there are still only 4-6 weeks and more kids than one teacher alone can target in any given day. One effective way to individualize is through technology. When teachers are individualizing instruction during guided reading groups, for example, let the computer differentiate for the students who are (supposed to be) reading independently. The Reading Assistant™ program is the perfect tool for this – it’s an online reading software that uses voice recognition to “listen” to each child as he/she reads aloud, providing individualized reading coaching and decoding support.
- Incent students to show up. Attendance is key: no educational program is effective when the students don’t come to school. When students are challenged, having fun, learning something new, feeling successful, and their parents are involved, it’s a recipe for success. The Rand Corporation’s report suggests incentives such as “payments, prizes, parental pledges, parental benefits, bus passes, and enrichment opportunities.”
After all is said and done, it’s important to know whether your summer school program was effective. Did all the work you put in lead to improved reading scores, for example? For schools that used Reading Assistant in their summer school programs, the answer was a resounding yes:
- In a 4-week summer program in Marion County, GA, students who used Reading Assistant gained more than 6 months in reading comprehension, on average.
- In a 5-week summer program in Wayne County Public Schools in North Carolina, students improved from the 21st percentile to the 30th percentile after working with Reading Assistant—a statistically significant improvement. They also improved their average reading level, moving from “struggling readers” to “emerging readers.”
Is your district on track to make this the best summer school yet? If there were two recommendations I’d make, I’d say:
- Read the Rand Report and
- Use the Reading Assistant program.
For further reading:
Rand Report: Make Summer Count
Results on Reading Assistant:
Students jump from 21st to 30th percentile in reading after summer school with Reading Assistant
One-half year increase in reading after a one-month summer program using Reading Assistant
Attend one of our popular webinars with thought leaders in learning. Live and pre-recorded webinars are available. Register today!
Categories: Education Trends, Reading & Learning, Reading Assistant, Scientific Learning Research
"What’s in the Common Core, but Missing in Your Curriculum” webinar by Dr. Martha Burns
- January 29, 2013 by Scott Sterling
Earlier this month, Dr. Martha Burns presented a webinar titled “What’s in the Common Core, but Missing in Your Curriculum.” One of the exciting new changes that the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) bring is a great deal more emphasis on how students learn rather than focusing solely on what they learn. The emphasis of previous standards have focused more on memorization of facts rather than on higher order thinking skills. In this webinar, Dr. Burns reviews the learning capacities spelled out in the CCSS and describes the skills that students need to be successful as lifelong learners, e.g., the ability to evaluate, to adapt, adjust and critique, etc. At the foundation of these higher order abilities lie the foundational skills below. Together, these skills can be termed the “process of learning.”
· Attention
· Memory
· Executive control or self-control
· Adaptability
Students with deficiencies in these foundational skills may be labeled as “trouble makers” or “at risk” and have difficulty keeping up in today’s growing classroom. Experienced educators have always recognized the importance of these skills, but the idea that they can be specifically addressed and improved is relatively new. Without the ability to remember the details of a non-fiction text, how would a student be able to evaluate and critique it?
Dr. Burns describes new insights in neuroscience that are contributing to our understanding of the process of learning and what can be done to strengthen these skills in all learners, even those with learning disabilities and other challenges. The idea that these skills are inherent in students and cannot be changed is simply untrue. With the right training, all students can become stronger, more capable learners.
One efficient way for students to practice the skills needed to meet the rigor of the Common Core Standards is through the research-based learning tools employed by Scientific Learning’s Fast ForWord and Reading Assistant programs. Dr. Burns concluded her presentation with a walkthrough of the programs, highlighting the aspects of the programs that speak directly to the foundational skills needed to create college and career ready students. She also describes what happens in the student’s brain when they are engaged with the software and the results that can be expected.
This new approach by the Common Core State Standards to draw attention to the “process” of learning, rather than just content, is important for all stakeholders to understand. With this new understanding comes a greater importance to use all of the tools at our disposal to help all learners succeed.
Related reading:
Teaching Reading in Science Class: A Common Core Trend?
Common Core Reading Recommendations and the Role of the Teacher
Attend one of our popular webinars with thought leaders in learning. Live and pre-recorded webinars are available. Register today!
Categories: Education Trends, Fast ForWord, Reading & Learning, Reading Assistant, Special Education
How The Arts Can Help Students Excel
- December 11, 2012 by Jessica Velasco
Many people disregard the importance of the arts in education. Sure, the arts are good for blowing off steam and encouraging creativity, but are they useful in the real world? If a student doesn’t have the capabilities of being the next Beethoven or da Vinci, what is the point of wasting resources on their continued arts education?
The Current State of Arts Education in Public Schools
The prevalence of art education in public schools has been on the decline since the early 1980s and in recent years, budget cuts have made it almost obsolete. Nowhere are these cuts more severe than in urban areas where minority children are the most unlikely population to receive arts education.
Why Parents and Teachers Should Be Worried about the Future of Arts Education
Several new research findings are proving what art education teachers have been saying for years: art is valuable. A well-rounded educational experience that includes the arts is closely linked to academic achievement, social and emotional development, civic engagement, and equitable opportunity.
A recent study of high schoolers revealed a correlation between arts education and math and writing test scores. These high school students were tracked for three years and were required to take a minimum one credit of art education. Students who took more than the minimum requirement were 1.5 times more likely to meet or exceed the ACT Plan national average composite score! These students excelled in statewide tests, earning proficient levels in math, reading and writing.
How the Arts Enhance a Student’s Education and Overall Development
Plenty of research has supported the role of arts education in providing a comprehensive education. Let’s take a closer look at how exactly the arts affect a student’s ability to learn and develop:
- Learning to read music and understand concepts like time, rhythm, and pitch have a direct effect on a child’s ability to comprehend math skills. One study showed math scores of music students surpassed those of their non-musical classmates. Students from low socio-economic backgrounds were twice as likely to excel in math if they had musical education.
- Studying the lyrics of music can teach students about syllabification, phonics, vocabulary, imagery, history, myths, folktales, geography, and culture.
- Studies show there is a direct correlation between continued involvement in theater and success in math and reading.
- Non-native English speakers may learn the language more quickly with the use of music. Thematic learning helps children learn in a safe, enjoyable, student-centered environment.
- Students who take the time to master a musical instrument learn about hard work, practice, and discipline. While performing in a group – like an orchestra, band, or choir – students learn to work together, appreciate teamwork, strive for a common goal, and develop negotiation skills.
- Cultural awareness is achieved through every form of arts education.
Arts education has always been important to those who value creativity. Now, as new evidence continues to emerge, more and more people are realizing its importance – especially when it plays such a crucial role in a well-rounded educational experience. What if the next Picasso is sitting in your classroom right now?
Author Bio:
Jessica Velasco is a freelance writer. She has 15 years experience working as a teacher and child development specialist.
References:
Schwartz, J. (2012). Kids Like Blues: Using Music and Video to Rock Your Classroom. Retrieved from Edutopia website: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/kids-like-blues-music-video-jon-schwartz
Kloberdanz, K. (2012). Want Your Kids to Excel in Math and Reading? Teach Them to Paint. Retrieved from Take Part website: http://www.takepart.com/article/2012/10/23/want-kids-excel-math-reading-teach-them-paint
Good Reasons Why Your Child Should Study Music. Retrieved from Schoolatoz website: http://www.schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au/homework-and-study/other-subjects-and-projects/the-arts/why-your-child-should-study-music
Related reading:
Musical Training and Cognitive Abilities
Teaching Creativity in the Classroom
Attend one of our popular webinars with thought leaders in learning. Live and pre-recorded webinars are available. Register today!
Categories: Education Trends, Reading & Learning
How a Low Performing School Achieved Double-Digit Gains on the California Standards Tests (CSTs)
- November 20, 2012 by Scott Sterling
On November 5th, Dr. Martha Burns and Mr. Charles Wilson, principal of the Korematsu Discovery Academy in the Oakland Unified School District, presented a live webinar that explained the research behind the Fast ForWord program and how it took Korematsu from NCLB Program Improvement (PI) status to achieving double-digit learning gains -- and emerging from PI status in only two school years!
Dr. Burns focused on the neurophysiology of learning, specifically the importance of several key left hemisphere pathways. Dr. Burns noted that these pathways appear to be originally founded in object naming networks but gradually expand to symbolic representation systems. She described how information is moved from perceptual/comprehension regions in the rear of the brain to the anterior regions of the frontal lobe, where the learner can utilize the information in useful ways.
This process is particularly important in reading. Reading represents one form of symbolic processing in which the visual symbol corresponds initially to speech sounds and ultimately to words and sentences. Fast ForWord is particularly designed to activate and strengthen speech perception, comprehension and production regions and those key pathways that enable processing for struggling learners by:
- Targeting key neurological centers for language, perceptual processing and sequencing
- Enhancing processing speed and accuracy through repetition and practice of brain fitness exercises
- Building executive functions (life skills) through exercises that increase students’ ability to control their attention and retain information (working memory)
The best testament to Fast ForWord’s capabilities is real-world success, which is exactly what Mr. Wilson provided in his section of the webinar. Korematsu is a heavily disadvantaged school with a 95% free lunch rate and a high percentage of ELL students. Korematsu found itself in NCLB Program Intervention status due to not meeting AYP requirements, at which point Wilson and his staff adopted Fast ForWord. In the subsequent school year, the Academy experienced double-digit gains on the CSTs and was named the Alameda County English Learner School of the Year.
Those of us who have worked in a low-performing school understand the immense challenge it is to improve student achievement, especially in the midst of record budget cuts. A lot can be learned from Mr. Wilson, a man who has achieved such great success for students in one of the most challenging educational environments. With a mix of leadership, determination, innovation, and inspiration, Mr. Wilson shows us that anything is possible.
Attend one of our popular webinars with thought leaders in learning. Live and pre-recorded webinars are available. Register today!
Categories: Brain Research, Education Trends, English Language Learners, Fast ForWord, Reading & Learning
Join Us for Our 2012 Fall Webinar Series for Educators
- September 4, 2012 by Carrie Gajowski
Our Fall Webinar Series for Educators is here! Join us for presentations on topics from how the brain learn to how you can increase test scores and reading proficiency for your students.
How the Brain Learns
9/12 - The Development of Executive Function: Building the Brain’s “Air Traffic Control” System
Dr. William Jenkins, one of our four founders and an expert in learning-based brain plasticity, will review the three dimensions of executive function often highlighted by scientists—working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility. Learn about the development of these skills across childhood and look at some popular misconceptions about executive function in children. His last webinar on executive function was a big hit—you‘ll want to join us for this one!
10/11 - Teaching with the Brain in Mind
Brain-based learning expert Eric Jensen returns to share specific, practical brain-compatible strategies you can use in the classroom right away. Discover how the brain works, how teaching changes the brain, and what it takes for students to acquire complex learning and achieve their best. Jensen’s webinars are always packed—be sure to register and arrive early!
10/30 - What do Neuroscientists Know About Learning That Most Educators Don't?
Dr. Paula Tallal will join us to discuss the latest neuroscience research on learning, her original research on auditory processing and language, and the classroom application of these scientific findings to help struggling learners succeed. Dr. Tallal is one of our four founders and a very engaging presenter—don’t miss this rare opportunity to learn from her!
Real Life Results with Scientific Learning Programs
9/5 - 79% of Arizona English Language Learners Improve One or More Proficiency Levels In One School Year
Returning presenter Cory Armes will discuss how the Fast ForWord program supports English Language Learners by simultaneously developing academic skills critical for reading, such as English language conventions, phonemic awareness, vocabulary, and comprehension. A live Fast ForWord demo will be included in this webinar.
Dr. Martha Burns will open the webinar with an overview of how the brain learns. Then, special guests Dr. Dave Mundy and Cindy Keever from Westfield-Washington Schools in Indiana will discuss how students achieved nearly double their expected gains in reading with the Fast ForWord program. Bring your questions for our guests!
9/26 - Students Surpass Reading Level Gain Expectations by 50% With Reading Assistant
Maura Deptula will provide an in-depth look at the Reading Assistant online reading coach and results achieved by students using it. Reading practice with Reading Assistant helps strengthen fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. This webinar will include a live product demonstration.
For Parents
9/10 - The Science of Learning
One of our most popular presenters, Dr. Burns returns to discuss ways to accelerate your children’s learning. Recent brain research shows that developing the critical cognitive skills of memory, attention, processing, and sequencing can make a significant difference for your children and result in improved test scores. Dr. Burns will discuss key areas of the brain and how these areas influence reading and academic performance. Angela, a parent from Wisconsin, will discuss her son’s progress and results with the BrainPro program.
Attend one of our popular webinars with thought leaders in learning. Live and pre-recorded webinars are available. Register today!
Categories: Brain Fitness, Brain Research, Education Trends, English Language Learners, Fast ForWord, Reading & Learning, Reading Assistant, Scientific Learning Research
Preventing Summer Brain Drain with Dr. Martha S. Burns
- May 29, 2012 by Carrie Gajowski
One of my favorite webinar presenters here at Scientific Learning, Dr. Martha Burns, recently gave a webinar called “BrainPro: Preventing Summer Brain Drain.”
Dr. Burns covered a number of points related to learning and retaining information
- How learners can benefit from current research in 3 areas:
- Psychology – the benefits of teaching to a child’s style of learning
- Neuroscience and Technology – using neuroscience-based technology to individualize instruction to meet the needs of each individual student
- Education – providing standardized content to learners across the US
- The science of how the brain learns. The human brain has thousands of networks that work together and help us to do a lot of different things. Pathways in the brain get stronger and stronger with use. The more we do something, the better we get at that activity. The stronger the pathways in the brain, the easier it becomes for the child to learn and retain information.
- Early difficulties in reading. If a child is struggling with phonological awareness, memory, vocabulary or comprehension, it may indicate a learning difficulty. The cognitive abilities of memory, attention, processing, and sequencing that are foundational to language can be exercised with the BrainPro program.
Following Dr. Burns, we heard from Jenny, a parent from Florida who had her teenage daughter use the BrainPro program to help her pass the FCAT (the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test). Her daughter has a very high GPA and takes AP and Honors classes, but had difficulty in passing the FCAT reading test two years in a row. After she went through the BrainPro program, she took the FCAT for the 3rd time and passed with a near perfect score on the test.
View the webinar to for more detail and visuals about how the brain learns, and find out how the BrainPro program can help learners stay sharp over the summer break.
Related Reading:
Antidotes to Summer Brain Drain (Part 2): 5 Ways to Pull the Plug on Learning Loss
Leigh Ann’s Story: Making a Difference in Children’s Lives
Attend one of our popular webinars with thought leaders in learning. Live and pre-recorded webinars are available. Register today!
Categories: Brain Fitness, Brain Research, Reading & Learning
Overall District Performance Score Improves at Almost Double the Rate of LA State Baseline Score
- February 14, 2012 by Melissa Agocs
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This presentation is an update on previous studies out of the St. Mary Parish Public School System in Louisiana. The latest study investigated the changes to the district’s performance on the Louisiana state assessment between 2003, three years before implementation of the Fast ForWord software, and 2011, when over 9,000 St. Mary Parish students district-wide had used Fast ForWord or Reading Assistant software, or both. The data span a period of nine years, from 2003 - 2011.
The Louisiana Educational Assessment Program, abbreviated as LEAP, is part of Louisiana’s criterion-referenced state testing program and is administered to students in the fourth and eighth grades. It measures how well a student has mastered the state content standards in the subjects of English language arts, math, science, and social studies.
This summary shows results achieved by the district on the English Language Arts portion of the LEAP as well as substantial improvements in District Performance Score, a combination a school district’s individual student scores on the LEAP, iLEAP and Graduation Exit Exam as well as attendance and dropout rates, and graduation outcomes. Improvements in other critical district numbers are covered as well.
Fast ForWord was first used in the St. Mary Parish Public School System during the 2006-2007 school year. Since that school year, fourth graders in the district have shown dramatic improvements in their English language arts achievement as measured by the LEAP. In 2008, for the first time in a decade, the district exceeded the state average for the percentage of fourth graders performing at or above the Basic level on the English Language Arts exam. In the five years of Fast ForWord implementation in St. Mary Parish elementary schools, the percentage of fourth graders in the district performing at or above Basic on the initial LEAP English Language Arts test increased from 55% to an impressive 81%.
By the time district-wide implementation was achieved in 2009, the improvements had impacted the district performance such that the District Performance Score exceeded the state baseline. And, in fact, the rise in Performance Score continued between 2006 and 2011, with the district score increasing from 80.0 to 96.7, nearly double the increase of the state baseline score.
In addition, between the years 2006 and 2011 the district increased the promotion rate of both the General Education and the Special Education students. During the same period, the number of students requiring Special Education services decreased by 17%.
If you have questions on this report or any other Scientific Learning study, please feel free to contact our Customer Service Team.
Related Reading:
In Independent Study of Fast ForWord, Sixth-Grade Students Exceed Expected Gains
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Categories: Fast ForWord, Reading & Learning, Scientific Learning Research
In Independent Study of Fast ForWord, Sixth-Grade Students Exceed Expected Gains
- February 2, 2012 by Melissa Agocs
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Hello. This presentation will review achievement gains made at the Bulloch County Schools in Georgia after students used the Fast ForWord® products. This was an independent study conducted by Dr. Jody Woodrum, an Assistant Superintendent at the district.
The Bulloch County Schools started using the Fast ForWord products at selected schools during the 2007-2008 school year. The district’s focus was on students close to proficiency in reading or language arts. In the fall of 2009, the Langston Chapel Middle School expanded its implementation to all sixth graders, regardless of ability level. This summary is about these sixth graders.
The students in this study used various Fast ForWord products, including the Fast ForWord Literacy, Fast ForWord Literacy Advanced, Fast ForWord Reading Prep, and Fast ForWord Reading Level 1 – 5 products. The participating school’s Fast ForWord Participation and Attendance were routinely considered “Gold Cap,” which is a high standard to strive for and shows that the school was adhering to the protocol.
Study participants were evaluated using the Measures of Academic Progress, abbreviated as MAP. Developed by the Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA), the MAP are state-aligned, computerized adaptive tests that accurately reflect the instructional level of each student and measure growth over time. The MAP are appropriate for students in grades 2 through 10 and are available to evaluate student achievement in a variety of subject areas including reading, language arts, math, and science.
The MAP uses a measure of improvement called the Growth National Percentile Rank, which is a percentile rank of growth relative to “academic peers” – students in similar grades and at similar achievement levels. On average, Fast ForWord participants made gains on the MAP, and for students who made gains, the gains were very large, corresponding to high Growth National Percentile Ranks. The next two graphs look at the Reading and English Language Arts results more closely.
Overall, 64% of participants from both groups of students – on and above grade level, and below grade level – increased their percentile rank on the Reading portion of the MAP. For the students who made gains, the gains corresponded to the 98th percentile, which is considered very large and exceeded the expected improvement on the Reading component.
On the English Language Arts component of the MAP, 77% of participants made gains. Once again, the improvement of both groups of Fast ForWord participants exceeded the expected improvement and the gains that were achieved were substantial – at the 99th percentile.
Analyses by the staff at Bulloch County indicated that high gains were seen regardless of the students’ prior achievement levels, and regardless of the highest Fast ForWord product completed.
Thank you for your time. This video was a brief summary of the rigorous study from Bulloch County. For further detail, please reference Dr. Woodrum’s full report on the Scientific Learning website at www.scientificlearning.com/woodrum.
Related Reading:
60% of Middle and High School Learners Exceed FCAT Annual Learning Gain Expectations
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Categories: Fast ForWord, Reading & Learning
Fifth Graders Make Significantly Greater Gains than a Comparison Group Across Multiple Subjects After Fast ForWord
- December 27, 2011 by Melissa Agocs
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The Grand Forks Public Schools in Grand Forks, ND, wanted to evaluate the effects of the Fast ForWord® products on the academic achievement of their students. A study was designed such that students at one elementary school used the Fast ForWord products and comparable students at a different elementary school served as the comparison group. Both elementary schools fed into the same middle school and the study participants were in the fifth grade at the time of Fast ForWord use.
Students used the 30-minute protocols, which call for students to use the Fast ForWord products for 30 minutes a day, five days per week for 12 to 16 weeks. Students used the products for an average of 132 days across 11 months.
The Measures of Academic Progress, abbreviated as MAP, are state-aligned computerized adaptive tests, administered by the district each spring. They accurately reflect the instructional level of each student and measure growth over time. The Grand Forks Public School District uses the MAP to assess students in third through eighth grades.
A comparison of the fifth graders at the two elementary schools showed that students at the school using FastForWord products made significantly greater improvements in all areas tested compared to the students at the school that did not use the products. The areas tested were reading, language, and math, with the study results demonstrating that the products can positively impact achievement across multiple subject areas.
Related Reading:
Longitudinal Study Shows Significant Fast ForWord® Gains Endure Over Time
Students Exceed State Average on TAKS after Fast ForWord, Maintain Gains
Attend one of our popular webinars with thought leaders in learning. Live and pre-recorded webinars are available. Register today!
Categories: Fast ForWord, Reading & Learning, Scientific Learning Research
BrainFit Studio Accelerates English Learning with Brain Fitness
- November 22, 2011 by Cheryl Chia
BrainFit Studio is a Singapore-based network of learning centers designed to build brilliant brains and keep them fit. More than 8,000 children have passed through its classes over the past 10 years accelerating their learning, building fitter brains, and achieving continued academic success.
Five Brain Pillars
BrainFit Studio has designed a total brain fitness training program that builds five brain “pillars”:
- SMART Moves enhances the Sensory Motor Pillar
- SMART Vision strengthens the Visual Pillar
- SMART Focus develops the Attention Pillar
- SMART Emotions builds the Socio-Emotional Pillar
- SMART Listening (the Fast ForWord® program from Scientific Learning) optimizes the Auditory Pillar
SMART Listening, SMART Vision
In May 2011, BrainFit Studio launched the first of its four BrainFit Classrooms in Singapore. BrainFit Classrooms provide brain fitness training in fee-based learning centers to students from 4 to 12 years old who seek to improve their English language learning.
The threefold English learning course curriculum is aligned with the Singapore Ministry of Education’s English Language Syllabus, brain fitness training activities, and the Fast ForWord and Reading Assistant™ products. Students learn via a blended approach including both instructional contact time and online learning. Just six months in, students are already showing improvements, including an increase in school examination grades.
BrainFit Studio’s latest offering, the Brainy Programme for preschoolers, was launched in September 2011. BRAINY SAM and BRAINY TAD are two modules which, using an early childhood education approach, bring little ones through BrainFit Studio’s hallmark SMART programs.
BrainFit Studio has eight BrainFit Studios and ten school collaborations across Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines. The work of training fitter brains continues each day through these centers, with parents and teachers reporting significant changes and improvements in their children.
BRAINY SAM and BRAINY TAD are trademarks of BrainFit Studios.
Related Reading:
Scientific Learning Around the World
Unlocking the Potential of English Language Learners
Attend one of our popular webinars with thought leaders in learning. Live and pre-recorded webinars are available. Register today!
Categories: Brain Fitness, English Language Learners, Fast ForWord
