The forest and the trees

Among koans that apply to education is “If a tree falls in the forest and no one is there, does it make a sound?” The power of observation to improve teacher efficacy and the quality of classroom instruction is well accepted, as evidenced by the Measures of Effective Teaching Project from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (2012).

 My interest in this subject was prompted by my participation in the coordinators council of Charter Operated Programs, a SELPA of sorts representing 14 charter organizations within the Los Angeles Unified School District. Recently, the council was considering expenditures for purchase of a commercial technology based platform for classroom walkthroughs.

Classroom observation is important for improving teacher effectiveness, coaching opportunities, as well as measuring student behavior. New tools are available for classroom observation, from web-based software that can be installed on smartphones to cameras and software that give 360 degree recording of classrooms for analysis and review. Teachscape Reflect was created to facilitate the Measures of Effective Teaching project. Teachscape developed panoramic video capture sharing and scoring tools. The framework for evaluation can be customized by each district, but the system comes preloaded with Charlotte Danielson’s Framework for Teaching. Framework is an observer training and assessment system that incorporates more than 100 master-scored videos to develop observer skill and expertise.

While many of these technology-based tools for observation are commercially available and require district funds, there are free web-based tools that can be utilized.

Google docs and forms can be uploaded with other free web-based tools, and allow input of data into spreadsheets for further analysis (TICAL, 2010).

The challenges posed by using technology such as that offered by Teachscape and other providers is assuring that the principles of effective feedback guide the framework for data collection and reflect the pedagogy of each school. Teachers could develop a “Big Brother” resentment of video-based scrutiny, and introduction to these tools should be done carefully.

Competence with technology is now considered a foundational competence for school psychologists (NASP 2008).  In NASP’s Best Practices entry the Pfohls provide a general overview of technology that helps orient school psychologists to the basics. They highlight important organizations and resources such as the Association for Advancement of Computing in Education and the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Technology.

It is very important that school psychologists are aware of the latest innovations in adaptive technologies that can benefit students with disabilities. And school psychologists will play an important role in advocacy for students when the “haves and have-nots” issues of access threaten academic success.

The rapid development of technology requires frequent monitoring for effective school psychologists to remain so. Of particular interest is the growth of the visual, auditory and kinesthetic aspects of technology, and potential applications for powerful interventions that are engaging to the latest generation of learners. Advances in assessment, opportunities and challenges of record management, analysis of the vast amounts of data that can be collected --  all these can make seeing the forest for the trees a challenge for today’s school psychologist. Thus professional memberships, continuing education and small learning communities are essential.

              References

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, (2012). Gathering feedback for effective teaching: Combining high quality observations with student surveys and achievement gains. Retrieved from website: http://www.metproject.org/downloads/MET_Gathering_Feedback_Research_Paper.pdf

The New Teacher Project, (2012). 'met' made simple: Building research-based teacher evaluations. Retrieved from website: http://tntp.org/assets/documents/TNTP_METMadeSimple_2012.pdf

Pfohl, William F., Pfohl, Virginia A. (2008), in Best practices in school psychology V. NASP

Sherman, M. (2008). Peering behind the Classroom Door. Techtrends: Linking Research And Practice To Improve Learning, 52(6), 53-54.  Retrieved from: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ838499&site=ehost-live&scope=site

TICAL: Technology information center for administrative leadershi (2010). Retrieved from http://portical.org/tools/gf/

Waters, John K. (2011). 360 DEGREES of reflection. T H E Journal, 38(5), 33-35.  Retrieved from: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=60780497&site=ehost-live&scope=site

I don't think you're hearing me correctly

Auditory processing disorder (APD), also known as central auditory processing disorder (CAPD), is one of the specific learning disabilities which can be the basis for eligibility for an individualized education plan. CAPD is believed to be a weakness in the ability to cognitively process verbal or 'auditory' information. Typically, such students perform well with visual or 'hands-on' activities, but struggle to understand or recall information presented verbally. This is not due to poor hearing, but rather to a weakness in the brain's ability to fully or efficiently process auditory information. This complex problem is estimated to affect about 5% of school-aged children.

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders presents the following example of APD: “ … the request ‘Tell me how a chair and a couch are alike’ may sound to a child with APD like “Tell me how a couch and a chair are alike.”  It can even be understood by the child as ‘Tell me how a cow and a hair are alike.’ ”

The frequency of such errors increases with the presentation of complex information, and in noisy environments, such as classrooms.

According to the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASLHA), a diagnosis of APD can only be made by an audiologist, and most assessments require students be at least 7 or 8 years old.

In “Nature of Auditory Processing Disorder” Moore, Ferguson, Edmondson-Jones, Ratib and Riley present results from a study of 1469 children in Great Britain. The battery of assessments included the Children’s Auditory Processing Performance Scale (CHAPPS). Students’ cognition and AP skills were compared to caregiver’s evaluation of children’s listening and communication. The findings suggest that presenting symptoms of APD were largely unrelated to auditory sensory processing and that APD is primarily an attention problem that, incidentally, often improves with age.  

Moore et al conclude that APD in children is primarily a result of poor engagement with sounds, rather than impaired hearing. “First, the symptoms currently labeled APD may not be attributable to a primary, bottom-up, sensory processing problem, but may have their origins in higher-level, top-down, control of listening.”

This study has significant implications for the diagnosis and treatment of APD and to date has been cited in 23 scholarly publications.

                                                                   

References

Moore, D.R., Ferguson, M.A., Edmondson-Jones, A.M., Ratib, S., Riley, A. (2010). The nature of auditory processing disorder in children. Pediatrics 126:2 e382-e390,

http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/staticresources/health/healthyhearing/tools/pdf/audiprocdis.pdf doi:10.1542/peds.2009-2826

http://www.asha.org/public/hearing/disorders/understand-apd-child.htm

TEA for Tu? Technology Enhanced Assessment

Ask a seasoned educator about the latest flavor of the month and they may lump Response to Intervention (RTI) in with the Vanilla Mint Chip. Many a good intention has failed due to inherent resistance to change, implementation difficulties or lack of evidence based research.
With RTI, however, the research is in and it is good. But several scholars fret that lack of fidelity of implementation may be the straw that breaks this camel's back. That's why it is so important that educators explore the use of technology to enhance programs. Technology is well suited for collecting, managing and analyzing the vast amount of data generated by a robust RTI program.

In "Using Technology to Enhance Tiered Instruction," author Matthew K. Burns outlines  four key areas where technology can enhance RTI:

1. improving classroom instruction
2. tiered instruction and intervention, both behavioral and academic
3. ongoing assessment
4. home-school collaboration

Recently, California administrators and educators gathered to review the state of state regarding RTI and technology, at a recent conference sponsored by the League of Schools.

And more information is available at the National Center for Response to Intervention Technical Tools Committee has created a chart outlining various tools for progress monitoring.

Effective school counselors, psychologists and administrators would do well to explore technology based programs to enhance implementation of RTI in their schools.