K-12 Comprehensive Reading Plan Requirements
General Questions
1. Is there legislation to support the implementation of the K-12 Comprehensive
Reading Plan?
Yes. The Research-Based Reading Instruction Allocation is addressed in Section
1011.62, Florida Statutes.
2. Must schools that choose to use research-based reading programs use these
programs with the time frame and group size recommended by the publisher?
Yes. According to HB 7087, each district school superintendent shall certify to
the Commissioner of Education that the district school board has approved a
comprehensive staff development plan that supports fidelity of implementation of
instructional materials programs. The report shall include verification that
training was provided and that the materials are being implemented as designed.
Fidelity of implementation is of utmost importance when using research-based
programs. The research evidence that most programs use to support the use of
their program is based upon strict adherence to a particular model. Failure to
utilize the programs under the same conditions as which the research was
conducted will limit the success with the program. For example, the evidence
base for Read 180 was conducted based on a 90 minute model. If a school
chooses to use Read 180, it must be implemented using this 90 minute model.
3. What exactly is meant by the ‘fidelity of implementation’ requirement listed in
the K-12 Plan?
When implementing both programmatic interventions and research-based
strategies, it is extremely important to implement with fidelity. For programmatic
interventions, this would include fidelity to both the time and class size
recommendations that the publisher used in developing their evidence-base for the
program. Given that there is no such thing as a “one size fits all” program,
common sense and teacher judgment through analysis of formal and informal
assessment should guide instructional adjustments to the program when it is
determined that the desired effect may not be occurring for individual students.
4. What is the purpose of the program reviews conducted by the Florida Center for
Reading Research (FCRR)?
The FCRR website provides districts with the opportunity to read reports of
programs that have been reviewed. Each program on the FCRR website has a
report. The reports are intended to be informational and factual. The reports are
helpful to teachers, principals, and district personnel in their choice of materials
for use in the classroom. A listing of the districts implementing a particular
program will be at the bottom of each report with their contact numbers. This
allows districts to inquire more about the program before purchase. This is a
valuable tool when choosing the appropriate programs for the district according to
the needs of students. Whether or not a program has been reviewed does not
constitute endorsement or lack of endorsement by the FCRR. The programs for
which reports are available do not constitute an “approved” or “required” list,
since many potentially useful programs have not yet been reviewed.
5. May districts choose programs that have not been reviewed by FCRR?
Yes. Many K-12 Comprehensive Reading Plans state that only programs with a
favorable FCRR review will be used in the district, however many strong research
based programs have not been reviewed. District and school leadership have
become very adept at discerning the scientific basis for a program, and we urge
them to continue this course in evaluating a program that has not been reviewed
by FCRR.
6. Must districts identify which materials and assessments are being used in each
school?
Yes, in charts C, F and I of the K-12 Reading Plan.
7. Are all schools required to have a reading leadership team?
Yes. This is a requirement of the K-12 Reading Plan.
8. What are the requirements for placing Level 1 and Level 2 middle and high
school students in reading intervention classes?
Please see the Reading Placement Chart at
http://info.fldoe.org/justread/educators/Secondary_Reading_Placement_Chart.pdf
9. In middle and high school, is there a recommended class size for reading
intervention classes?
Ideally, the number of students in an intensive reading course should be 15 or
less. However, the district plan could distinguish those students who might
perform better in smaller classes from those students whose reading needs could
still be served effectively in larger classes. In general, students who have greater
intervention needs have not responded well to whole group instruction and require
the daily small group instruction that smaller class sizes provide.
While intensive reading classes with a ratio of 15:1 or less are ideal, schools must
prioritize their smallest classes to their students who have the greatest need. This
would include students who are not fluent readers and require an extended block
of time for reading.
10. When should we administer the assessments above and beyond FCAT that
determine student placement?
These should be completed late in the spring after FCAT has been completed.
11. What criteria should we use to determine reading placement for students
transferring into our district/school from out of state?
A combination of both formal and informal assessments may be used, including
standardized assessments, progress monitoring assessments, programmatic
assessments, and benchmark assessments that measure proficiency on the
Sunshine State Standards.
12. What are the most reliable and valid methods for determining if a student has
fluency and/or decoding intervention needs?
Schools should use a reliable and valid diagnostic assessment to determine
specific student intervention needs. Examples may be found at
http://www.fcrr.org/assessment/pdf/Commonly%20Used%20Assessments%20for
%20Older%20Students%20_3_.pdf. Teachers may also use informal assessment
data to determine student needs.
13. Under what conditions would it be acceptable to exempt or exit a Level 2 student
from an intensive reading course?
This would be for those situations when a student had a history of high
performance with reading, but didn’t perform well in the current year due to
issues not related to actual ability. The district may develop criteria for dealing
with this situation; however it is strongly encouraged that districts keep students
in an intensive reading course until they score Level 3 or higher on the FCAT. A
district making this decision about a student must feel guaranteed that the student
will score Level 3 or higher on the FCAT the following year. Criteria that may be
considered might include:
* Past history with the FCAT
* NRT
* Grade level benchmark assessments
* Current diagnostic assessments
* Teacher recommendation.
14. Can a content area teacher provide reading intervention to Level 1 students if
they block one class of reading with a content area class?
Yes. The teacher must be highly qualified to teach reading.
15. What are the certification requirements for teachers providing reading
intervention?
Please see the Reading Placement Chart at
http://info.fldoe.org/justread/educators/Secondary_Reading_Placement_Chart.pdf
16. What assistance is being provided from the Department of Education to increase
the state capacity of reading endorsed teachers?
The Just Read Florida! Office and Department of Education provide a multitude
of opportunities for teachers to complete reading endorsement competencies at no
cost. As a result of state and district efforts, there are currently 4,213 teachers
with the reading endorsement statewide, in contrast to a year ago when 873
teachers were reading endorsed. Free professional development includes:
-- Annual grant award to Florida Online Professional Development (FOR-PD)
for approximately 5,000 free slots ~ satisfies Competency 2
-- Annual grant award to Florida Literacy and Reading Excellence Center
(FLaRE) to offer train the trainers for endorsement competencies 1, 3, 4, 5
and 6 ~ virtually unlimited capacity
-- Current grant award to NEFEC for 4,000 free slots for online Competency
3 and 1,000 free slots for online Competency 1
-- FDLRS provision to offer competencies 4 and 5 online ~ virtually
unlimited capacity
-- Annual grant award to the Florida Reading Initiative for Competency 2 ~
capacity at approximately 500 teachers per year
-- The Department trained approximately 100 trainers to deliver Reading
Endorsement for ESOL (REESOL) in their home districts in 2005 ~
virtually unlimited capacity
17. Are schools required to administer a formal diagnostic assessment to all students
scoring at Level 1 and Level 2 on the FCAT in reading?
The only requirement for Level 1 and Level 2 students as it pertains to diagnostic
assessments is to diagnose specific reading deficiencies of these students.
Although formal diagnostic assessments provide specific information about a
student’s reading deficiencies, many progress monitoring tools and informal
teacher assessments can provide very similar information in a more efficient
manner. This allows teachers to spend more time providing instruction and less
time administering assessments. The only reason to administer a formal
diagnostic assessment to any student is to determine the specific deficit at hand so
teachers can better inform instruction to meet student needs. If the diagnostic
assessment, or any assessment for that matter, is not going to provide any
additional information about the student’s reading deficiencies that will allow the
teacher to better inform instruction, then there is no need to administer one. The
intent of the law is to make sure instruction is being provided according to student
needs. The decision to deliver a formal diagnostic assessment should be the result
of an in-depth conversation about student instructional and assessment needs by
the teacher, reading coach, and reading specialist.
Reading and Literacy Coaches
1. Which reading/literacy coaches must use the online log as part of the Progress
Monitoring and Reporting Network (PMRN)?
All reading/literacy coaches, regardless of their funding source, must report their
time every two weeks to the PMRN. This is a requirement of the K-12 Reading
Plan.
2. What is the purpose for the coach's log on the PMRN?
The coach log serves many purposes. These include:
-- Serving as a vehicle for information exchange
-- Enabling formative feedback important for reading success
-- Enabling appropriate follow-up support for schools and coaches
-- Providing a time to reflect on how a coach’s time is spent
-- Assisting Just Read, Florida! in their effort to support and advocate for coaches
3. Where should I report hours that I spend
during the school day
on activities that
do not fit into the 11 reporting categories?
These hours should be entered in #12 on the coach log.
4. Where do I log hours
outside
of my contracted work day?
These hours should be reported in the “Comments” section of the coach log.
5. I do much of my preparation outside the regular eight hour work day. Why can’t
I report hours worked outside the school day with my hours worked during the
school day?
Because the Just Read, Florida! Office values the time reading/literacy coaches
must spend on planning coaching-related activities outside of the typical eight
hour work day, it is important that the Department of Education has a clear
accounting of the types of activities that occur within the contracted school day
versus those that occur outside the school day. Hours reported in this way allow
us to effectively provide professional development to principals and teachers on
the role of the coach, as well as advocate for items such as an extended contract
for coaches.
6. Can district administrators access the reading/literacy coach log on the PMRN?
Yes. District administrators can access the coaching log of any coach within their
district. For assistance with accessing the log, please contact the PMRN Help
Desk at 866-471-5019 or 850-644-0931.
7. Are reading/literacy coaches permitted to be part time teachers?
No. Any reading/literacy coach who is funded through the Research-Based
Reading Instruction Allocation (FEFP) as part of the K-12 Comprehensive
Reading Plan, must be a full-time coach. This includes coaches who are only
partially funded through the reading allocation (A coach might serve two schools
during a weeklong period and still be coaching full-time).
8. Are reading/literacy coaches permitted to be split between two schools?
Yes. A coach may be utilized as a part-time coach in two different schools.
9. Is a reading coach permitted to proctor FCAT or administer assessments such as
Dynamic Indicators of Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) and Florida Oral Reading
Fluency (FORF)?
Nothing prohibits a coach from working with either assessment; however, this is a
decision that is usually made at the district or school level. Districts are highly
encouraged to limit the time reading/literacy coaches spend administering or
coordinating assessments, as these tasks prohibit them from providing
professional development to teachers.
10. What should I do if my principal has me completing tasks that are not part of
the coaching role?
Reading coaches should work closely with administrators to clarify roles that will
be most beneficial to the coach’s ability to be a site-based staff developer. If
reading coaches continue to have difficulty with this issue, they should work with
their district contact or K-12 Reading Plan contact.
11. How do I fit all of the coaching roles into the school day?
Reading coaches should prioritize to those activities and roles that will have the
greatest impact on teacher professional development and transfer of effective
practice to classrooms. The research evidence on coaching states that in-class
coaching and modeling has the greatest impact on teacher practice. Therefore,
these activities should be a reading/literacy coach’s number one priority.
12. How do I work with difficult or reluctant teachers?
It is important that coaches focus a great deal of their time on building rapport,
especially if they are new to a school. Early on, coaches should focus on
coaching those teachers who reach out for staff development, versus spending
large amounts of time trying to convince those who are unwilling to be coached.
Once a coach has established themselves in a few classrooms, the message will
quickly spread to others. The key is that a positive message is spread about the
coach’s classroom involvement and its impact on teacher practice and student
learning.
13. How much support should I give to new reading teachers?
New reading teachers should be the priority of the reading coach, especially
during the first few weeks of school, when classroom rituals and routines are
being established. This is extremely important as teachers attempt to do small
group differentiated instruction on a daily basis.
14. Who should take the lead in co-teaching a lesson?
This should be a decision that is negotiated between the teacher and coach but
should be informed by the amount of scaffolding that will be required to
successfully implement the lesson.
15. As a new reading coach, how can I develop my knowledge base?
The best way to develop your knowledge base as a coach is to actually coach.
The experiences that you will encounter through working in varied classroom
contexts with different types of teachers cannot be replaced by a workshop or
seminar. Additionally, it is important that you have a support system of other new
and veteran coaches who can inform your practice and assist with solutions to
issues that arise. Finally, it is important that you take time to read widely from
research journals and attend professional development related to both the
coaching process and the evolving body of knowledge in the field of reading.
16. Are reading coaches required to have the reading endorsement?
While there is no state or federal requirement for coaches to pursue the reading
endorsement, this was a requirement in the past for coaches who were funded
through coach grants from the Just Read, Florida! office. Many districts require
coaches to have endorsement or certification in reading due to the level of reading
knowledge that a coach must possess to serve teachers effectively.
17. How often should the reading coach be working directly with students?
While the reading coach should not be assigned a regular classroom teaching
assignment, they are expected to work with students in whole and small group
instruction in the context of modeling and coaching in other teachers’ classrooms.
This should occur as frequently as possible, given the relative impact on teacher
knowledge and practice compared to other roles and duties of the coach.
18. Which teachers should I be coaching?
The reading coach is responsible for working with
all
teachers (including ESE
and elective areas) in the school they serve; however, they must prioritize their
time to those teachers, activities, and roles that will have the greatest impact on
student achievement.
19. What are some positive indicators that I am making progress as a coach?
An indicator of success is when reading coaches are able to prioritize to those
activities and roles that will have the greatest impact on teacher professional
development and transfer of effective practice to classrooms. These would
include the amount of time actually spent engaged in professional development in
classrooms.
20. Must I be an expert on the reading series or program my school is using?
In order to most effectively serve teachers, it is important for coaches to have a
deep knowledge of all reading tools used in the classroom.
21. What is the process for choosing classrooms for walkthroughs?
It is imperative that the walkthroughs done by the coach are viewed by teachers as
separate and different from those done by administrators. Visits in classrooms
should be a result of negotiation and rapport building between the reading coach
and teachers (See Question 25).
22. How do I find money to purchase materials to meet the needs of all my teachers?
There are many sources of funding to support the activities of the coach. These
include: FEFP Reading Allocation, AP/IB exam funds, vending machine funds,
Title I funds, Comprehensive School Reform Grant funds, district educational
foundation mini-grants, and instructional materials flex funds.
23. Why is it important to sustain coaches in the same school?
Our latest evidence suggests that coaches who remain in the same school are able
to build stronger rapport with teachers and engage in classroom coaching on a
more frequent basis. In class coaching and mentoring are the activities that are
most highly correlated with changes in teacher practice.
24. Should coaches be given an extended contract?
The role of the reading coach is broad and varied. Immense planning is required
to offer professional development that is individualized and meets the needs of all
teachers. Many districts have chosen to put reading/literacy coaches on an eleven
month contract enabling them to create curriculum and professional development
during the summer months.
25. Should reading coaches conduct the reading/literacy walkthroughs as required
by the K-12 Comprehensive Reading Plan?
No. The walkthroughs that are discussed in the K-12 Reading Plan require that
the principal or a designated administrator conduct the walkthrough. Coaches
should not be asked to perform administrative functions that will confuse their
role for teachers.
Progress Monitoring
1. Which students must receive progress monitoring assessments?
Any student scoring at Level 1 or 2 on the FCAT in reading, or any student who
has been identified as having a reading deficiency by other forms of assessment,
must have their progress monitored a minimum of three times per year.
2. Where should progress monitoring data be reported?
Progress monitoring data must be reported through either the PMRN or the
Automated Student and Staff Database System. For further information, please
see the following memorandum and attachments:
http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4030/reading_data_memo.pdf
(Memo)
http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4031/reading_data_att1.pdf
http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4032/reading_data_att2.pdf
http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4033/reading_data_att3.pdf
http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4034/reading_data_att4.pdf
http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4035/reading_data_att5.pdf
http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4036/reading_data_att6.pdf
http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4037/reading_data_att7.pdf
http://info.fldoe.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-4038/reading_data_att8.pdf
3. How often should progress monitoring be reported?
If a school is utilizing the PMRN, data must be reported according to the schedule
provided by the Florida Center for Reading Research (FCRR). If a school is
reporting to the Automated Student and Staff Database System, this data should
be reported at the time the assessment occurs and submitted during reporting
surveys 2, 3, and 5. The PMRN and surveys 2, 3, and 5 deadlines are listed
below. Regardless of the reporting system, schools must monitor the progress of
their identified students a minimum of three times per year.
The PMRN deadlines are:
Post/Removal dates for FORF/Maze 2006-07
Assessment 1: Post- August 10, 2006
?
Remove- October 2, 2006
?
Assessment 2: Post- December 8, 2006
?
Remove- February 9, 2007
?
Assessment 3: Post- April 2, 2007
?
Remove- May 23, 2007
?
The MIS deadlines are:
Survey 2:
Survey Week: October 9-13, 2006 Due Date: October 27, 2006 State Processing:
October 16-November 10, 2006 Final Update/Amendment Date: July 27, 2007
Survey 3:
Survey Week: February 5-9, 2007 Due Date: February 23, 2007 State Processing:
February 12-March 9, 2007 Final Update/Amendment Date: November 16, 2007
Survey 5:
Due date: August 3, 2007 State processing: July 30 - September 7, 2007 Final
Update/Amendment Date: May 2, 2008
4. Where can I download the FORF and MAZE probes?
They may be accessed at http://www.florida-achieves.com
5. Where can I access the risk levels for the FORF and MAZE probes?
They may be accessed at http://www.fcrr.org/assessmentMiddleHighSchool.htm