Learning Modules

Our teacher learning modules and assessment-focused communities include videos and links to research, briefs, and worksheets from our Resource Hub.

Formative Assessment for Improving Native American Student Learning and Language Development

Welcome to this professional learning series on formative assessment for Native American student learning and language development. This series addresses formative assessment implementation with Native students across content areas. Students’ prior content knowledge and language development vary greatly from one to another. It is important that instructors know where each student is on their learning pathway, and then target instructional experiences matched to their learning levels and aligned to their cultural context. Students gain greater agency in this process through self and peer assessment. It is only in connecting with students where they are on their pathway, that students are able to progress towards meeting their Learning Goals. With formative assessment, teachers and students have the tools to do this work.

How is this program structured?

This professional learning series includes a “pre-module” on working together in a professional learning community, an introduction to formative assessment, and four modules corresponding to elements in the formative assessment process. The elements are:

  • Establishing Learning Goals and Success Criteria
  • Gathering Evidence of Student Learning
  • Analyzing and Interpreting Evidence of Student Learning
  • Taking Pedagogical Action

Working Together!

We recommend that if possible, you work through this professional learning series together with peers in a professional learning community (PLC). This PLC can be in-person at your school site, or a video/phone conference-based community, e.g., across rural schools in a district.

Our vision for using these materials involves:

  • Individuals, on their own time, completing one section of the professional learning series at a time. This includes watching the course video and any additional material, such as completing any handout or inventory activities that go along with the section. To support productive meetings, we’ve included a document on establishing meeting norms below.
  • After completing the section activities, individuals come together and meet with their PLC and discuss:
    • What they’ve learned through the videos and application activities
    • Questions that have come up
    • Experiences/reflections related to culturally responsive instruction in their classrooms
    • Goal setting for each participant

Linked below is a sample meeting agenda for these meetings.

  • Additionally, teachers may come together for Video Study Groups (VSG). These are more targeted meetings to provide peer feedback to one another based on video recordings teachers take of their classrooms. To support this effort, we’ve included a sample initial meeting agenda and an agenda for follow up VSG meetings.

Samples

Part I: Introduction

Part II: Establishing Learning Goals and Success Criteria

Part III: Gathering Evidence of Student Learning

Part IV: Analyzing and Interpreting Evidence of Student Learning

Part V: Taking Pedagogical Action

Additional Resources

Culturally Responsive Instruction for Native American Students

This series provides a framework for instruction that emphasizes experiential, active, and student-centered learning. It supports all teachers in creating culturally responsive instruction for their Native American students.

Formative Assessment in Action

The Formative Assessment in Action Spotlight aims to provide educators with resources that support learning about the formative assessment process. The spotlight includes classroom videos that showcase formative assessment in action, and opportunities to deepen learning about formative assessment with video viewing protocols. Educators can use the opportunities to analyze others’ practice with an eye towards incorporating new learning into current instructional routines. Note: you’ll see some of the same classroom videos that are in this professional development program, plus many more!

High-Leverage Principles of Effective Instruction for English Learners

New college and career ready standards (CCRS) have established more rigorous expectations of learning for all learners, including EL students, than what was expected in previous standards. A common feature in these new content-area standards is their emphasis on students’ use of language to articulate and convey understanding of the content. The heightened role that language plays in CCRS presents new challenges for EL students and their teachers by calling for improved instructional strategies that simultaneously address language and content-area learning.

The purpose of this resource is to provide teachers of EL students with effective, high-leverage learning and teaching principles that can be incorporated into daily instructional plans and routines.