April 2024
Hello,
I hope this newsletter finds you enjoying some spring weather and looking forward to even warmer days. We are busy at KSDE working on the new school improvement model supports that will be provided to all districts as we focus on the four fundamentals of structured literacy, balanced assessment, standards alignment and quality instruction. Those fundamentals will then provide the framework for the new accreditation system, so please stay tuned to KSDE for additional information over the next several months!
Many of you are moving through assessment time now, and I hope those of you planning to use the optional 2nd grade assessment will find it very helpful and "fun" for your students as you check in on how those fundamental skills are applied to some reading passages. There is more information below and it is not too late to sign up your second-grade classes.
Also included is information/ clarification regarding the KSDE At-Risk Evidence Based List that recently has been revised. I have also included various articles as well as invitation for you to consider some upcoming professional learning to get on your calendar for next school year!
If you have questions for our team, just ask. Our Literacy Lifeline is available any time!
Laurie
Dr. Laurie Curtis
KSDE Early Literacy/ Dyslexia Program Manager
Important Updates/ Information from KSDE
Have you scheduled your students for the KSDE Optional 2nd Grade Reading Assessment?
It is NOT too late!
The KSDE 2nd grade assessment is completely optional and was designed to provide information for teachers and parents. This assessment is based on the kindergarten-2nd grade ELA standards and includes foundational skills as well as a chance for students to apply those skills when reading and answering questions about a narrative and informational passage. This was designed (piloted last year) to help teachers see how students were applying the skills focused on so intently in early grades prior to the required 3rd grade state assessment. The assessment is provided online via the KITE platform and is comprised of 2, 30-minute sessions. Please see the link below for additional information.
2nd grade assessment Grade 2 Reading Assessment | Kansas Assessment Program (ksassessments.org)
PLEASE NOTE:
This test is NOT part of the required state assessment system. Data from this assessment is not submitted to KSDE, but will be sent to schools shortly after the assessment window closes on April 19th so results can be reviewed. The quick turnaround will allow schools to review and send home results prior to the end of the school year. The window for assessment opens soon! So, contact your district test coordinator to participate on or before April 15th to participate.
At Risk Evidence-Based List
As part of a Kansas statute, the Kansas State Board of Education provides an approved At-Risk Evidence-Based list of Programs & Practices list that meets specific requirements. There are important things to remember, specifically that this list originated with programs and practices that districts submitted to KSDE, saying they were spending at-risk dollars in procuring them. KSDE didn't generate the items placed on the original list. The list currently has items marked off. Items most often were marked off because they did not meet the condition of having peer-reviewed evidence finding them to be effective for at-risk students as defined in the law. White papers provided by the vendors or research conducted and published by the company selling the materials cannot be used to approve these materials. Some items, such as the name of a company, were taken off as companies often have multiple products.
It is important to note that:
This is not a list of “good” or “bad” programs and practices but a list of programs and practices that meet the requirements of the at-risk law.
This list reflects what programs and practices that school districts can spend At-Risk Funds on.
This list is not to be considered a list of all things aligned with structured literacy, it reflects "at-risk" as defined in the law
The updated list is contingent upon the legislature eliminating the 5-year research requirement. If the legislature eliminates the 5-year research requirement, the new evidence-based list has 72 programs and 78 practices. If the legislature does not eliminate the 5-year research requirement, the new evidence-based list will have 9 programs and 78 practices.
Some other questions you may have:
Can I spend At-Risk Funds on salaries and wages?
Yes, personnel is an eligible expenditure based on their implementation of a program or practice on the list (school finance has a tool to document this, email dbrundgardt@ksde.org).
Can I still use a program that is crossed out on the new list?
Yes, but you would not use At-Risk Funds to pay for the program OR you may submit a Provisional Application to request approval from KSDE.
A provisional At-Risk Program means an evidence-based at-risk program or service identified by a school district as producing or likely to produce measurable success that has been submitted to the State Board for review.
Expenditures shall only be made for a provisional at-risk educational program for a period not to exceed three years after implementation of such provisional at-risk program by a school district. The State Board shall review any such provisional at-risk program, and if such program satisfies the State Board’s requirements, then the program shall be included on the approved at-risk educational programs.
PLEASE NOTE: The legislative session not over.
How can things be added to the list?
KSDE anticipates providing an application to vendors of evidence-based programs by April 6, 2024 which will allow the vendor/ companies to submit peer-reviewed evidence for specific programs to be added to the evidence-based list. Applications will be considered if the program or practice meets the statutory requirements of an evidence-based practice, including peer reviewed evidence, making it eligible for the utilization of at-risk funds for a school district.
FYI: Evidence and Peer Review
(ESSA, REL, U.S. Department of Education)
Evidence-based “means an activity, strategy, or intervention that demonstrates a statistically significant effect on improving student outcomes or other relevant outcomes based on evidence from at least one well-designed and well-implemented experimental study or from at least one well-designed and well-implemented quasi experimental study or from at least one well-designed and well-implemented correlational study with statistical controls for selection bias; or demonstrates a rationale based on high-quality research findings or positive evaluation that such activity, strategy, or intervention is likely to improve student outcomes or other relevant outcomes;
Peer review is used to evaluate applied research and development products in virtually all fields of science-from medical studies that examine the effectiveness of drugs to articles about the discovery of new planets or ancient species. Scientists use the peer review process to ensure that the information they report is accurate, relevant, original, and supported by appropriate evidence. Simply put, peer review is a method by which scientists who are experts in a particular field examine another scientist's work to verify that it makes a valid contribution to the evidence base. With that assurance, a scientist can report his or her work to the public, and the public can trust the work.
IMPORTANT: The At-Risk Approved Evidence-Based List should not be used as a tool to choose core curriculum materials and it is not an exhaustive list of good materials to provide exemplary literacy instruction. This is a list to fulfil the obligations of the statute regarding the use of at-risk funding with a specific purpose and for specific population. This list will be updated and refined as KSDE is provided additional evidence for materials found to be effective for at-risk students. More information can be found here. Questions can be addressed to stateatrisk@ksde.org.
Information for Promising Practice
How coherent is your Core (Tier 1), Tier 2 & 3 instruction?
Please take a look at this Lead for Literacy document and Infographic to clarify that tier 2 should be coherent with what is happening in core instruction. This is a great place to start conversations as you reflect on the model you have for tiered supports and re-envision what you want to improve upon for next school year. Designing a coherent system can help assure that our students who struggle aren't expected to operate in multiple programs and competing instructional routines but are being provided more intentional and intensive help.
Check out Leading for Literacy's brief and infographic at the following link: Increasing Instructional Intensity
Developmental Language Disorder: MORE INFORMATION!
Continuing with articles to help educators understand the role of language development and the incidence of Developmental Language Disorder, please see the article and audio below entitled:
Supporting a Child with DLD in the Classroom. This was written by Dr. Lisa Archibald and includes a link to additional information on Individualized Intervention for Children with Developmental Language Disorder. This article provides specific ideas for ways classroom teachers and speech-language pathologists can collaborate to provide the best assistance for students. It might provide some great ideas for collaborative efforts in your school and/ or district!
It is my hope that these articles will build knowledge of this very hidden disorder that can affect reading ability and our team will continue to provide educators across the state additional information in the future to provide early support and intervention for these students who struggle with that "top part" of Scarborough's Reading Rope!
Amazing Resource!
Structured Literacy: Grounded in the Science of Reading
To celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the International Literacy Association and their rich history of providing reliable and timely information to support literacy learning for all, they have provided this incredible free resource, their 75th Anniversary Issue of Perspectives on Language and Literacy entitled Structured Literacy Grounded in the Science of Reading (1949-2024), Winter 2024, Vol. 50, No. 1
This resource examines Structured literacy from multiple angles, providing an overview, the "Why", the "What", The "How", and the Who" with linked research included for study. This would be a great resource for your school's PLC discussions! You can access this issue at the following link:
Open-Source Resource for Enhancing Morphology Instruction,
developed by Dr. Shelley Blackwell, SLP.D
Look below for Grade 4-8 open source materials, Literacy Through Language: Morphology, designed to help teachers provide morphology instruction through modeling and rich discussion. All materials have been developed with the Kansas standards in mind and were recently presented at the Kansas/ Missouri Reading League conference.
Shelley wrote, "Evidence suggests that children can use morphological knowledge to infer meaning for unfamiliar words and thereby bootstrap vocabulary growth during reading (McCutchen et al., 2013). As we dig deeper into the components of structured literacy, we are recognizing the critical role morphology plays across comprehension, vocabulary, spelling, decoding, and syntactic development. Teaching morphology is not typically something that has been included in teacher preparation programs (yet) and so educators struggle in knowing what to teach and how, let alone, finding materials that were rooted in research and vetted for accuracy and connected to standards. "Building Knowledge Through Words" is grounded in a body of research and was developed in response to these needs to aid educators in the inclusion of this essential linguistic component into their daily instruction.
"Building Knowledge Through Words" is a resource that spans grades 4-8 and targets the development of morphology through context clues, word building, syntax, and application. It includes a student manual, teacher manual, teacher presentation slides for each grade, and introductory videos. Targeted morphemes were selected through a cross-examination of multiple research-based morphology resources, grade level tiered cross-domain vocabulary published on the KSDE website, and the highest utility morphemes based on grade level curriculum. It is presented as a tool to facilitate rich classroom discussion and is not intended for students to complete as independent work. There are 4-lessons per targeted morpheme and each lesson takes 15-20 minutes.
McCutchen, D., Stull, S., Herrera, B. L., Lotas, S., & Evans, S. (2013). Putting Words to Work: Effects of Morphological Instruction on Children's Writing. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 47(1), 86–97. doi: 10.1177/0022219413509969"
All materials and lessons provided by Dr. Blackwell can be found HERE. You can find student workbooks, teacher manuals, scope and sequence, and video explanations for Grades 4-8. She has also provided a list of research references at the end of each teacher manual as well as some introductory explanations. The relevant standards are listed on each day of the teacher manuals.
Thank you, Dr. Blackwell, for sharing these resources!
Professional Learning Opportunities
Please take advantage of this important opportunity to build your knowledge of structured literacy and practice based on the science of reading
Time is running out, and your involvement is crucial for success.
The Kansas LETRS Science of Reading Professional Learning Courses provide sustained and job-embedded professional learning about the science of reading, at no cost to educators.
Lexia LETRS® for elementary educators is approved for any Kansas educator at any level who provides reading instruction to students in an accredited public or private school and college/university faculty who teach literacy courses in a KSDE-approved teacher preparation program
LETRS for Administrators is approved for district administrators, district curriculum leaders, and building principals.
Lexia LETRS® for Early Childhood Educators is approved for any Kansas educator who supports early learning for children in pre-K programs
The last cohort begins in August and registration for this group closes in June.
For more information, please visit: www.lexialearning.com/kansas-letrs
Mark your calendar! Virtual professional learning coming this fall!
All you need is a book and some time... PD hours documented via KSDE certificate. If you get your book this summer, you can be ready to roll...
Our recent text-based virtual PLC: Structured Literacy Interventions: Teaching Students with Reading Difficulties K-6 was well-received and comes with an amazing Padlet of resources to support your practice of providing interventions to enhance student learning. Sign up yourself or get a group of colleagues to join you as a building-level cohort!
As requested, we will be offering it again, but on a different night this coming Fall/Winter via Zoom and the dates are below. Please mark your calendar! This ten-week study will begin September 18th and meet every other week via Zoom on Wednesdays from 4:00 - 5:00 pm, CST.
Registration will be open next month!
DATES for the study:
September 18
Oct. 2nd, 16, 30
Nov. 13th- no study the week of Thanksgiving
Dec. 4, 18
January 8, 22
February 5, 19
Last year many of you joined us for a study on Wiley Blevins' book called A Fresh Look at Phonics. We will be exploring his brand new book, called "Differentiating Phonics Instruction for Maximum Impact: How to Scaffold While-Group Instruction So all Students Can Access Grade-Level Content (Corwin Literacy) this fall. If you want a preview about what this book is about, check out his quick video introduction.
Differentiated Phonics for Maximum Impact
This study will be held weekly (on Mondays from 5:00 - 6:00 pm) for 10 weeks via Zoom, starting September 16, 2024. There is no cost, except for the purchase of the book prior to the study. Certificates will be provided for sessions attended!
Mark your calendar! All are welcome!
Dates will include:
September 16, 23, 30
October 7, 14, 21, 28
November 4,11,18
Registration will be open next month!
Literacy Lifeline Questions/ Answers
Do you have a question?
If you have a question and would like some help in solving it...or want to consult with someone on the Early Literacy/ Dyslexia team, you can do so by completing this brief form: KSDE Literacy Lifeline Request Form
On the form you can request a day/ time to visit virtually with someone on our team or you can ask a question and receive a response to your question via email if that is better... or you are welcome to pose a question you would like addressed in this newsletter and we will try to provide that information in a future issue. Just know... we are here to help!
Reasons to Celebrate! Chance to Collaborate!
The Kansas Association of Teachers of English (KATE) is having their annual conference at the Drury Hotel in Wichita Nov 1 & 2. If you or someone you know would like to share the incredible work you are doing, consider submitting a proposal (link below). Proposals close June 1st. If you have questions, please contact LuAnn Fox
Information on attending or submitting a proposal can be found here: https://www.kansasenglish.org/fall-conference.html
If you know someone who would like to receive this newsletter, please ask them to contact me at ELitDyslexia@ksde.org to request being added to the Early Literacy/ Dyslexia listserv, or visit the KSDE Dyslexia page and select the purple HERE button and select Newsletter to see the current and past issues.