On Target

Targeted Learning Objectives

This past week I had several interesting conversations with some of you about Targeted Learning Objectives as part of the pre- and post-conference process.  One of the things that Standard for Success does is provide teachers and administrators with an electronic portfolio of the evaluation process.  When you get a chance, go into SFS and give your portfolio the Squint Test.

To do this, start at the top of the Teacher Effectiveness Rubric and scroll down.  Squint so that you can’t read the words.  Just look for the green and yellow dots.  What you will find is that your portfolio is beginning to fill up, you can quickly identify patterns, and you are likely to find some white space, places where your evaluator will need more evidence.

One of the places without much color is probably right up top in Domain One.  If so, don’t panic.  We are still working on ways to document this domain, but if you do a quick read-through, you will notice that the Student Learning Objectives (including the Targeted Student Learning Objective) will provide a good chunk of the evidence for Domain One. 

Right now might be a great time to think a bit more about TLOs.

Target Practice

Last week’s post about High Utility study techniques included some of the best practices generated by you and fellow HSHS teachers on how to incorporate distributed practice and practice testing into daily, weekly, and unit plans.  If you are struggling to find ways to work with your Targeted students, reading or re-reading that list might help.

The Teacher Effectiveness Rubric also has suggestions built into the Domain Two that may help with your TLO.  Below I list some of the indicators and add a few comments:

•  Effective in 2.1—Daily Objectives: “Lesson builds on student’s prior knowledge of key concepts and skills and makes this connection evident to students.”  Your TLO is all about making sure the targeted students know “key concepts and skills.”  Anytime a daily lesson objective is built on the targeted standard, you are working on the TLO.
• Effective in 2.2—Communicate Knowledge: “Teacher restates and rephrases instruction in multiple ways to increase understanding.”  This is at the heart of a TLO.  You keep trying until the Targeted students “get it.” This concept is repeated in the next indicator as well.
•  Effective in 2.3—Engage Students: “Ways of engaging with content reflect different learning modalities or intelligences” and “Teacher adjusts lesson as needed to accommodate for student prerequisite skills and knowledge so that all students are engaged.”   Targeted students are often those who learn in different ways or are missing some essential background knowledge.  When you vary your teaching strategies and adjust pacing, you are working on your TLO.
• Effective in 2.4—Check for Understanding: “Teacher systematically assesses students’ mastery of the objective by the end of each lesson through formal or informal assessments.”  For TLOs you need to know whether students are developing understanding or not.  Don’t wait for the summative assessment to find out.
• Effective in 2.5—Modify Instruction: “Teacher responds to misunderstandings with effective scaffolding techniques” and “Teacher doesn’t give up, but continues to try to address misunderstanding with different techniques if the first try is not successful.”  This is, of course, what the TLO is asks you to do for the targeted students and it is good practice for all students.
• Effective in 2.6—Higher Level of Understanding: “Teacher helps students to persevere even when faced with difficult tasks.”  When a lesson starts “hitting” on the TER, it often hits at multiple places.  This indicator fits with almost all of the indicators listed above.
• Effective in 2.7-2.9—Classroom Management, Classroom Environment, and High Expectations: These last three competencies repeat a theme that is summarized in 2.9: “The classroom is a safe place to take on challenges and risk failure.”  Your targeted students have likely experienced failure as part of their academic history. When you run a safe and supportive classroom, you are working on the TLO.

The Heart of the Target

To be perfectly honest, the work you do with targeted students is not easy.  These are students who, for a wide variety of reasons, have not been very successful.  With your TLO you are attempting to rock their world.  You are letting them know that failure is not an option.  You are sticking with them until they are successful.  It is not work for the faint of heart. 

The result for you, however, can be rewarding in a variety of ways.  Certainly, it can help you with your evaluation in Domains One and Two.  More importantly, it can change the world—one student at a time.

And that is the real target we are shooting at with the TLO.

Have a great week, Southeastern.  Stay on target and keep fighting the good fight.

Phil

Two interesting views on the topic of Targets:

• From the philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer: “Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see."
• From the slightly deranged comedian Mitch Hedberg: “I tried walking into a Target, but I missed.”