Tiered Teacher Support System

McREL Evaluation

McREL identified significant, positive relationships between Learning Bridges coursework and student achievement in both reading and mathematics.

McREL 2009 Study

McREL 2008 Study

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Learning Bridges' Solution for

Turning Around Low Performing Schools

Learning Bridges solution for turning around low performing schools is a Tiered Teacher Support System delivered through a BLENDED MODEL of both onsite and online products and services that has been shown to significantly improve achievement in low performing schools.

TIERED TEACHER SUPPORT SYSTEM

There are three (3) tiers of support to the school based on the degree and kind of support needed for teachers in a three-year plan for school improvement:

Tier I Teacher Support

Teachers with 0 - 3 years of experience.
Support Required: Foundations of teaching (teaching standards) for induction and retention; Meeting the learning modifications of their culturally diverse students
Observations: Need explicit feedback from principals, PLC facilitators, and mentors using the adopted rubrics
Collaborative groups of teachers learn together in Professional Learning Communities. Teachers need to learn together to discuss new learning, reflect together on the learning in their school context, and refine their foundational practice.
Learning Communities Facilitator Guide is provided by Learning Bridges for Facilitators to guide the PLCs during the learning process. PLC Facilitators are drawn from Tier III teachers or mentors.
Online Professional Development recommendations are drawn from the Professional Teaching Standards plus the Cultural Proficiency courses (Professional Knowledge). Six (6) online professional development courses - two per year - over 3 years will be taken by Tier I teachers.
Choices each year are determined by Principal and Teachers in each school. Online courses are taken through the Learning Bridges System with adjunct professors/instructors guiding the Online Professional Learning Communities.
- EDCI 607J Effective Instructional Strategies
- EDCI 607F Motivating Students
- EDCI 607D How the Brain Learns
- EDCI 604 Differentiated Instruction
- EDCI 607AA - Foundations of Culturally Proficient Teaching
- EDCI 607B Classroom Management

Use the Teaching Practices Guide - Learning Bridges System TOOL to guide decisions on instructional strategies for teaching literacy and mathematics ALIGNED TO the State Standards and/or the Common Core Standards - in rank order of their power to impact learning based on their Effect Size from the research.
Use theParent Activities - Learning Bridges System TOOL to engage parents in learning that supports classroom activities ALIGNED TO the State Standards in Grades K - 8 available in English and Spanish.
Onsite training of the Learning Bridges System Tools, including the Online Professional Development System provided by certified Learning Bridges Trainer/Consultant - 1 day training

Tier II Teacher Support

Teachers with 3 - 7 years of experience
Support Required: Increasing effectiveness on impacting student outcomes, with a focus on those reflected by low scores on State Assessments that are the focus of the School Improvement Plan
Coaching to improve effectiveness that will impact student outcomes provided by Tier III Literacy and Math Coaches, Mentors, and PLC Facilitators
Online Professional development needs to be targeted on student outcome improvement needs supported by Online Professional Learning Communities led by certified adjunct professors/instructors. Choices for online professional development courses are determined by the results of the Synthesis System reports run by grade level against the low scores in Literacy and Mathematics. Teachers participate in two (2) online courses per year.
Participation in Onsite Professional Learning Communities led by Tier III Literacy and Math Coaches, Mentors, and PLC Facilitators to collaborate in their learning process, reflecting on their learning and analyzing student work as they learn new practice. PLC Facilitators will use the Learning Bridges Facilitator's Guide to Professional Learning Communities to assist them with PLC facilitation.
Course recommendations drawn from the Content Pedagogy Knowledge Online Professional Development classes correlated to student outcomes and proven to improve effectiveness defined as the ability to impact achievement (McREL, 2008, 2009). Learning Bridges Content Pedagogy courses are ALIGNED TO State Standards ensuring that instruction is standards-based with a focus on literacy and mathematics.
Use the Synthesis System TOOL of the Learning Bridges to identify the instructional interventions and online courses -in rank order of their power to impact learning - correlated to TARGETED student outcomes - that are the focus of improvement in Language Arts and Mathematics. The results will be used to determine which professional development is appropriate for which teachers.
Use the Teaching Practices Guide - Learning Bridges System TOOL that identifies research-based instructional strategies ALIGNED TO State Content Standards and/or the Common Core Standards - in rank order of their power to impact learning - based on the Effect Size from the research.
Use the Parent Activities - Learning Bridges System TOOL to engage parents in learning that supports classroom activities ALIGNED TO State Standards for Grades K - 8, available in English and Spanish.
Onsite training of the Learning Bridges System Tools, including the Online Professional Development System provided by certified Learning Bridges Trainer/Consultant - 1 day training

Tier III Teacher Support

Teachers and Administrators with expertise and experience enough to mentor and coach others, e.g. Literacy Coaches, Math Coaches, Mentors, PLC Facilitators, Principals and Assistant Principals. The principal of each school selects the coaches, Mentors, and PLC Facilitators, using existing staff who have demonstrated expertise and experience as teacher leaders.
Support Required: Onsite Coaching of coaches; providing explicit feedback, modeling, and guidance in how the coaches support Tier I and Tier II teachers to improve their effectiveness to impact student outcomes. Onsite Support of coaches provided monthly by Learning Bridges Coach of Coaches, a highly trained individual, experienced in coaching and certified in supporting coaches of teachers as a follow up to the onsite training.
Email and phone support provided by Learning Bridges Coach of Coaches as needed in between onsite visits.
ONSITE Training - 6 days - customized to meet the needs of the school's Literacy Coaches, Math Coaches, PLC Facilitators, Mentors, Principals, and Assistant Principals to assure that they can support teachers in their learning process.

TRAINING MODULES

Three Days Onsite - Year One

Creating and Leading Professional Learning Communities - 1 day
Welcome and Overview of the Learning Bridges System - 1/2 day
Group Facilitation Skills - 1/2 day
Teaching Practices Guide, Synthesis, and Content Pedagogy/Professional Knowledge Inventory TOOLS - 1/2 day
Professional Development System - 1/2 day

Three Days Onsite - Year Two Option

Curriculum Congruence - 1 day
School Improvement Planning - 1 day
Student Assessment and Data Analysis - 1 day
Curriculum Alignment - 1 day

All of the training materials contain the declarative and procedural standards for the training, the activities required to master the standards, and the assessment tasks required to demonstrate proficiency with the content. Training is provided by a Certified Learning Bridges Consultant Trainer. All training is evaluated against the training standards by the participants who receive it. ELECTRONIC COPIES OF THE TRAINING MANUAL, THE PARTICIPANT MANUAL, AND THE PRESENTATION MATERIALS WILL BE PROVIDED TO THE PRINCIPAL UPON COMPLETION OF EACH MODULE for their continued use. Participant manuals will be provided by Learning Bridges.

Principals and Teacher Leaders need to be knowledgeable of the entire Learning Bridges System, including the content from both the Professional Knowledge and Content Pedagogy Knowledge courses which they will gain by access to the Accelerated Courses. They will gain knowledge of the Decision Tools in onsite training. Principals and teacher leaders need to develop the skills to create and lead PLCs of teachers, to guide in the decision-making process for online professional development to focus their learning on student outcomes in need of improvement, as well as the School Improvement Planning process - all of which will be provided in onsite training.
Coaches need to have unlimited access to the Accelerated Courses for a quick review of the critical attributes of the online accredited course content that teachers are engaged in so they can provide better support without a huge time commitment. Accelerated courses are read-only, independently completed in about 2 hours/course, and available on each of the fully accredited online courses.
Use the Synthesis System TOOL of the Learning Bridges to identify instructional interventions ALIGNED TO State Standards based on assessments, and to recommend the online courses correlated to TARGETED student outcomes that are the focus of improvement in Literacy and Mathematics.
Use the Teaching Practices Guide - Learning Bridges System TOOL - to guide decisions on instructional strategies for teaching State Standards and/or the Common Core Standards. The research-based, instructional strategies are in rank order of their power to impact learning based on the Effect Size from the research.
Use the Parent Activities - Learning Bridges System TOOL to assist teachers in engaging parents in learning that supports classroom activities in Grades K - 8.
Use online Administrative Reports to monitor teachers whose practice they are coaching.
Facilitate the Onsite Professional Learning Communities for Tier I and Tier II Teachers supported by the Learning Bridges Coach of Coaches.

Essential Components of the Tiered Teacher Support System

Components	Support
Professional Learning Communities	Online PLCs facilitated by Learning Bridges online adjunct professors/instructors Onsite PLCs facilitated by School Leaders and supported by Learning Bridges Onsite Coach of Coaches
Teaching Practices Guide - Online Learning Bridges System TOOL	Provides all teachers and leaders with the highest yield instructional strategies - in rank order of their power to impact learning - aligned to every grade level standard of State Content Standards in Language Arts and Mathematics K - 12.
Synthesis System - Online Learning Bridges System TOOL	Provides all teachers and leaders with the highest yield instructional interventions and professional development courses - in rank order of their power to impact learning - aligned to the low test scores that are the focus of improvement on state tests.
Online Professional Development System - Learning Bridges System	Online, Accredited, Instructor-Led Professional Development for TEACHERS in both Content Pedagogy and Professional Knowledge - proven to significantly impact academic achievement in both reading and mathematics - aligned to State Standards Online, Accelerated Professional Development for LEADERS - independently completed to quickly and easily become familiar with the critical attributes of learning in the Accredited Courses.
Content Pedagogy Inventory - Online Learning Bridges System TOOL	An assessment of teacher proficiency on Content Pedagogy to guide professional development
Professional Knowledge Inventory - Learning Bridges System TOOL	An assessment of teacher proficiency on Professional Knowledge - the teaching standards and the ability to modify both content and pedagogy to address the unique needs of students from diverse cultures (cultural proficiency)
Parent Activities - Learning Bridges System TOOL	Provides activities for teachers to share with parents, aligned to State Content Standards, for grades K - 8, in Language Arts and Mathematics. They are available in both English and Spanish.
Onsite Training - Learning Bridges Service	Six (6) days of onsite performance-based training over two years for principals and teacher leaders to develop the knowledge and skills to support teachers in their learning. Onsite training to be provided by a Learning Bridges Certified Trainer/Consultant
Onsite Training Materials	Learning Bridges will provide the Participant Manuals for all onsite training modules. The Learning Bridges trainer will provide the principal of each school with an electronic copy of all Trainer, Participant, and Presentation Materials for their continued use following each training session.
Onsite Coaching - Learning Bridges Service	Onsite coaching of principals and teacher leaders will be provided by an experienced, certified Learning Coach of Coaches to support their efforts to guide Tier I and Tier II teachers in their learning.
Evaluation - Learning Bridges Service	Learning Bridges will utilize our research partner, McREL (Mid-continent Research in Evaluation and Learning) to conduct an annual evaluation to analyze the effects of the program's implementation. McREL has conducted several evaluations of Learning Bridges over the past decade.

MODEL Work Plan - Project Timeline:

YEAR ONE

Event	Timeline
Tier I Teacher Support 1 day onsite training Professional Learning Community participation - online and onsite 2 Online Professional Development course drawn from Professional Knowledge Coaching/Modeling/Mentoring by Tier III Teachers and Principals Use Teaching Practices Guide Use Parent Activities	August, 2011 Bi-weekly throughout Year One - onsite and online during PD October, 2011; January, 2012 Bi-weekly throughout Year One Weekly for instructional planning Weekly for instructional planning
Tier II Teacher Support 1 day onsite training Professional Learning Community participation 2 Online Professional Development courses on Content Pedagogy drawn from Synthesis Coaching/Modeling by Tier II Teachers and Principals Use Synthesis System Reports Use Teaching Practices Guide Use Parent Activities	August, 2011 Bi-weekly throughout Year One - onsite and online during PD October, 2011; January, 2012 Bi-weekly throughout Year One September, 2011; December, 2011 Weekly for instructional planning Weekly for instructional planning
Tier III Teacher Support 3 days onsite training Facilitate PLCs and Coach Tier I and Tier II teachers Onsite Coaching of Coaches Participate in Online Accelerated Professional Development Use Synthesis System Report Use Teaching Practices Guide Use Parent Activities	August, 2011 Alternate weeks PLC Facilitating and Coaching - Tier I and Tier II teachers Monthly throughout Year One As needed to support Online Professional Development of PLCs September, 2011; December, 2011 As needed for PLCs and coaching As needed for PLCs and coaching
Evaluation - Year One	June, 2012

YEAR TWO

Event	Timeline
Tier I Teacher Support Professional Learning Community participation - online and onsite 2 Online Professional Development course drawn from Professional Knowledge Coaching/Modeling/Mentoring by Tier III Teachers and Principals Use Teaching Practices Guide Use Parent Activities	Bi-weekly throughout Year Two - onsite and online during PD October, 2012; January, 2013 Bi-weekly throughout Year Two Weekly for instructional planning Weekly for instructional planning
Tier II Teacher Support Professional Learning Community participation 2 Online Professional Development courses on Content Pedagogy drawn from Synthesis Coaching/Modeling by Tier II Teachers and Principals Use Synthesis System Reports Use Teaching Practices Guide Use Parent Activities	Bi-weekly throughout Year One - onsite and online during PD October, 2011; January, 2012 Bi-weekly throughout Year Two September, 2012; December, 2013 Weekly for instructional planning Weekly for instructional planning
Tier III Teacher Support 3 days onsite training Facilitate PLCs and Coach Tier I and Tier II teachers Onsite Coaching of Coaches Participate in Online Accelerated Professional Development Use Synthesis System Report Use Teaching Practices Guide Use Parent Activities	August, 2012 Alternate weeks PLC Facilitating and Coaching - Tier I and Tier II teachers Monthly throughout Year Two As needed to support Online Professional Development of PLCs September, 2012; December, 2013 As needed for PLCs and coaching As needed for PLCs and coaching
Evaluation	June, 2013

YEAR THREE

Event	Timeline
Tier I Teacher Support Professional Learning Community participation - online and onsite 2 Online Professional Development course drawn from Professional Knowledge Coaching/Modeling/Mentoring by Tier III Teachers and Principals Use Teaching Practices Guide Use Parent Activities	Bi-weekly throughout Year Three - onsite and online during PD October, 2013; January, 2014 Bi-weekly throughout Year Three Weekly for instructional planning Weekly for instructional planning
Tier II Teacher Support Professional Learning Community participation 2 Online Professional Development courses on Content Pedagogy drawn from Synthesis Coaching/Modeling by Tier II Teachers and Principals Use Synthesis System Reports Use Teaching Practices Guide Use Parent Activities	Bi-weekly throughout Year One - onsite and online during PD October, 2013; January, 2014 Bi-weekly throughout Year Three September, 2013; December, 2014 Weekly for instructional planning Weekly for instructional planning
Tier III Teacher Support Facilitate PLCs and Coach Tier I and Tier II teachers Onsite Coaching of Coaches Participate in Online Accelerated Professional Development Use Synthesis System Report Use Teaching Practices Guide Use Parent Activities	Alternate weeks PLC Facilitating and Coaching - Tier I and Tier II teachers Monthly throughout Year Three As needed to support Online Professional Development of PLCs September, 2012; December, 2013 As needed for PLCs and coaching As needed for PLCs and coaching
Evaluation	June 2014

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