Collaborative Tools and Resources to Utilize in Special Education
by Kristen Shattler
1. The Three Tenets of Difficult Conversations
1.1. 1. Be prepared for difficult conversations. Have the proof you need to support your point so that your conversation can be objective and actionable.
1.2. 2. Don't get personal. It is important to stay objective and let the facts speak for themselves. Tying emotions into the conversation could ruin relationships.
1.3. 3. Listen more than you talk. A productive conversation should exhibit active listening skills, supportive comments, participant empowerment, and respectful advice.
1.4. Difficult Conversations: When Coaches Have To Have A Talk With Teachers
2. Speak Up or Burn Out
2.1. 1. Teachers need to confront unsupportive leadership.
2.2. 2. Teachers should share their concerns with a colleague who is failing in order to provide support.
2.3. 3. Teachers should communicate if their peers are failing them.
2.4. 4. Teachers need to discuss home versus school roles and responsibilities with parents.
2.5. 5. Teachers need to recognize and mentor students who have behavior problems.
2.6. If more professionals would be willing to have these hard conversations, there would be less turn-over in the education system.
2.7. Speak Up or Burn Out
3. The Influencer Change Framework
3.1. It can be difficult to change the system you are in. Effective change occurs if these three attributes are examined: measurable results, vital behaviors, and sources of influence.
3.2. 1. Measurable Results must be quantitative, explicitly defined, and have a completion date.
3.3. 2. Vital Behaviors are actions that must be taken in order to achieve the goal.
3.4. 3. There are six sources of influence that affect change: Personal Motivation, Personal Ability, Social Motivation, Social Ability, Structural Motivation, and Structural Ability.
3.5. The Influencer Change Framework
4. Oral Assessments
4.1. This strategy works best in a co-taught classroom. One teacher is able to teach or manage the class while the other teacher pulls students to the side individually in order to measure their understanding using a mini-assessment.
4.2. Both teachers should work together to determine what questions should be asked and the criteria for mastery.
4.3. This type of assessment is a quick and easy way to plan for future instruction.
5. Co-Teach Menu
5.1. In the Co-Teach Classroom, it is important to explicitly define the role of each teacher. Roles might change daily or hourly, but at all times, both teachers should be actively engaging students.
5.2. There are 5 types of structures that can be implemented depending on the subject area or activity being taught: 1. Station Teaching 2. Alternative Co-Teaching 3. Lead / Support 4. Team Teaching 5. Parallel Teaching
5.3. CO-TEACHING & COLLABORATION Rebecca A. Hines 2014 Adding Layers that Work in Our Classrooms. - ppt download
6. Flipped Classroom
6.1. Students view important content knowledge online before coming to class. When they arrive, they apply knowledge through project-based learning.
6.1.1. F: Flexible Learning- Students choose where and how to learn.
6.1.2. L: Learning Culture- Class time is learner-centered and personally relevant.
6.1.3. I: Intentional Content- Students develop conceptual understanding and procedural fluency.
6.1.4. P: Professional Educator- Design, delivery, feedback, assessment, and reflection are integrated into every lesson.
6.2. Home_Page - Flipped Learning Network Hub
7. Why Good Leaders Make you Feel Safe
7.1. Why good leaders make you feel safe | Simon Sinek
7.2. Good leaders foster a deep sense of trust and cooperation in world that is filled with danger.
7.3. When we feel safe inside the organization, we will combine our talents and strengths to seize the opportunities.
7.4. Great leaders would never sacrifice the people to save the numbers. They would sacrifice the numbers to save the people.
8. Anti-Racism Activity: The Sneetches
8.1. I love this lesson plan because it incorporates an interactive student lesson with children's literature.
8.2. Students learn historically relevant information about racism and diversity. They have the opportunity to read and discuss the concept of fairness in a fictional world. Then, they experience injustice as it could be portrayed in our world through a simulation activity.
8.3. Anti-Racism Activity: 'The Sneetches'
8.4. Dr Seuss' The Sneetches Full Version YouTube
9. Note-Taking with Feeling
9.1. Note taking skills can be easy for some students and challenging for others. In order to make it an effective learning strategy, accommodations should be provided for students who have difficulties with writing or processing.
9.2. Using blue circles and red triangles to emphasize important details will help minimize the amount of information that struggling students need to write down and maximize the amount of listening they can accomplish.
9.3. https://www.coursehero.com/blog/2011/10/19/infographic-write-it-down/
10. Learning Stations
10.1. Students can complete structured activities with a team to best utilize every minute of instruction. This can reduce student to teacher ratio while still promoting active learning skills.
10.2. Effective Cooperative Learning incorporate teamwork. On a team, each member has a specific role and makes a contribution.
10.3. Cooperative Learning
11. Using Peer Collaboration to Support Online Reading, Writing, and Communication: An Empowerment Model for Struggling Readers
11.1. This article suggests that students who struggle to read have strengths in other areas. By organizing class activities to monopolize alternative strengths, we can empower students to be more successful.
11.1.1. Henry, L. A., Castek, J., O'Byrne, W. I., & Zawilinski, L. (2012). Using Peer Collaboration to Support Online Reading, Writing, and Communication: An Empowerment Model for Struggling Readers. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 28(3), 279-306.
12. Class Messenger
12.1. This tool allows parents, teachers, and students to communicate about announcements, homework, meetings, and behaviors effortlessly. Parents can access information using a computer, phone, or tablet. Teachers can send messages to the whole class or one parent. Parents can message each other. And, intelligent messaging will send reminders to parents who need it. Smartphones are the way of the future.
12.1.1. Class Messenger | Teachers, parents and students in sync.
13. Save the Last Word for Me
13.1. This tool teaches students to practice listening to their peers through a structured activity. Students work in a trio. Student A shares a written response to a question. Students B and C discuss Student A's response and evaluate how Student A drew their conclusion. Then, Student A responds to the dialogue by sharing their reasoning. The strategy continues until all three students have had the opportunity to share.
13.1.1. Deeper Learning: A Collaborative Classroom Is Key
13.1.2. Save the Last Word for Me
13.1.3. Save the Last Word for Me Modeling Activity