The Georgia Campaign The Georgia Campaign for Grade Level Readingfor Grade Level Reading

B.J. Walker, Senior FellowAnnie E. Casey Foundation

Former Commissioner of Georgia Department of Human Services

Scaling UpScaling Up

What is the Georgia Campaign for Grade Level Reading?

It is NOT another new literacy program another major collaborative effort to bring

everybody touching young children to the table to talk and plan and then implement everybody stays in their lane and agrees

to fight the same WAR and BATTLES another opportunity to win a special grant

where the work stops when the grant ends

What is the Georgia Campaign for Grade Level Reading?

It Is… a multi-sector effort, using the science of

reading to identify the transactions most likely to move the grade level reading needle

an effort to recruit and engage major public and community stakeholders to assume responsibility for moving key indicators that fall within their sector

The WAR

Increase the percentage of children reading at or above grade level (by NAEP standards) by the end of 3rd grade from

30% to 60% by 2015 and

Increase the percentage of children exceeding standards on Georgia Reading

CRCT from 31% to 61% by the end of 2014.

The BATTLES

ORAL LANGUAGE & VOCABULARY ACQUISITION

TEACHING CHILDREN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MEANING, PRINT AND SOUND

ADULT RESPONSIVENESS TO INDIVIDUAL CHILD NEEDS

Who are the Partners?

Public Sector Agencies Public Health Human Services Department of Education Department of Early Care and Learning

Community Based Organizations United Way, YMCA, Family Connection

Partnership School Districts (Pilots)

Atlanta Public Schools, Dublin City Schools, Laurens County Schools, Savannah-Chatham Public Schools, and Polk County Schools

What are some Challenges to Scaling Up?

Historic and enduring division between research and practice lots of knowledge, very little

implementation based on what we know

Multiple sectors in the Birth to age 8 world not focused on same goals and not

tracking the same measures

Death by a 1000 collaborations (and a 1000 meetings)

What are some Challenges to Scaling Up?

Not sure what to do so we try to do it all – not sure what matters the most

Fear of scale We know we can reform a school or a

program/not so sure about a system

Lots of what – not enough how no theory of execution that moves what we

know consistently to the frontline of the work

What are some Challenges to Scaling Up?

New leaders almost always mean new programs – the frontline waits it out

Plenty of good reasons/excuses why we cannot get this done: money, poverty, bureaucracy…

Not sure about the impact of our efforts until the end (plenty of lag measures, not enough lead measures)

How are We Overcoming Those Challenges?

#1. Have a very specific Execution Strategy

Name the WAR and BATTLES What are we trying to get done by when?

Ratify the WAR and BATTLES with Sectors and Leaders

Establish Lag measures by Sectors, for each of the BATTLES

How are We Overcoming Those Challenges?

Determine Lead measures that have the “power” to move the Lags Ask the “HOW” question

Expand the number of statewide partners and deepen their commitment to these WARS and BATTLES

How are We Overcoming Those Challenges?

#2. Track the execution with data and scoreboards

Break up the work into ‘bites” that can be tracked and measured regularly

Track commitments from the frontline on what they are doing to move the score (lead measures)

Start publishing results long before lag measures (test scores) are due to come in

Emerging Principles of Scale Up in the Grade Level Reading Campaign

What are we learning?

Engage the right sectors but let them stay in their “lanes”

Be intentional about the Goal and the measures to be tracked in the different sectors

The Goal has to be a deal breaker – wildly important enough to present itself as a moral imperative

Emerging Principles of Scale Up in the Grade Level Reading Campaign

What are we learning?

The Goal has to be on the lips of leaders (and dynamic enough to enter the political fray)

People who need to execute on the Goal have to believe and see how they can win

Our Scale-Up Bet:

Pick a Goal that is hard to say No to Pick a WAR that must be fought

Use Science to figure out what matters most

Ask: Who needs to do what differently?

Let the partners stay in their lane (but attack the same goal)

Our Scale-Up Bet:

Measure the work regularly on the frontline Do not wait on lag measures to tell you

whether you are winning or losing

Keep a visible scoreboard so you can quickly make needed changes

Keep recruiting new partners to the WAR

What the Campaign Looks Like on the Ground

Laurens County Schools Superintendent Jerry HatcherDennis Howell (Kindergarten)Lynn Bowden (Kindergarten)Marcee Pool (Third Grade)

LAG MEASURE (AGES 4-5) Lynn Bowden – Southwest Laurens Elementary

90% of students will improve from “some risk” to “low risk” on nonsense word fluency measure of Dibels benchmark by April 2011.

LEAD MEASURES (AGES 4-5) 1) Implement evidence-based phonemic awareness

activities for 15 minutes a day.2) Increase the number of Read Alouds during whole group

instruction 3) Develop/Implement parent activity on print/sound weekly

School Districts

Print/Sound

State Agencies

DCH/DPH/Maternal and Child Health Rhonda Simpson

LAG MEASURE IIIncrease the number of Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) trainings by ASQ certified trainers for staff, community partners and parents from 0 to 6 by June 30, 2011

Responsive Adults

LEAD MEASUREConduct one ASQ training per month starting January 2011 by ASQ certified trainers for staff, community partners and parents

State Agencies

Department of Early Care and LearningBentley Ponder Kay HellwigMonica Warren Susan AdamsKristie Lewis

LAG MEASURE I (Pre-K)A. Increase the percent of classrooms that score a five or

above on both of the CLASS Domains: Emotional Support and Classroom Organization from 75% to 77% by May 2012, and to 82% by May 2013.

B. Increase the percent of classrooms that score a 3.25 or above on the CLASS Domain Instructional Support from 11% to 20% by May 2012 and 30% by May 2013.

LEAD MEASURES1) 95% of the CLASS teacher pilot completes the online learning module2) 80% of the CLASS teacher pilot provides online learning module

feedback3) 95% of assistant teachers complete and pass the phonological

awareness online learning module by May 20114) 100% of Pre-K consultants/CLASS observers conduct one advanced

CLASS Professional Development module every quarter

Print/Sound

Oral Language

Savannah-Chatham County Public School System Superintendent Dr. Thomas LockamySharon SandLinda Canady Deborah JonesCharlene Ford Donna MyersAndrea Williams Marcia Young

School Districts

Print/Sound

Increase by 15% annually the percentage of children who exhibit at or above average print- and sounds-based skills, as evidenced by group performance and random sampling on state mandated and norm-referenced measures.

LAG MEASURE (Ages 4-5) The percent of 2nd grade students scoring at 330 Lexile and higher in reading will increase from 63% to 85% by the end of May 2011 as measured by Scholastic Reading Inventory administered on May 26, 2011

LEAD MEASURES (Ages 4-5) 1) Grades Pre-K, K and 1st conduct a 15-minute Read

Aloud daily2) Implement two student Response to Literature

activities weekly 3) Implement an at-home reading program to be utilized

three nights per week.