WEBVTT

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My name is Faith Giddens, and I'm the Curriculum Planner

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and Testing Coordinator for Pocomoke Middle School.

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I also oversee the ILA [Integrated Language Arts] program here in the school,

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which encompasses grades 6, 7, 8 as well as 4 and 5.

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It is important when we're looking for ways to address the needs of our students

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that are struggling in reading, that we look at the entire student,

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we look at every aspect of data that we have available.

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That data includes benchmarks, as well as classroom assessments,

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state assessments, and other assessments.

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Our benchmarking system is throughout all content areas.

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There are two given before we take our actual state test in grades 6,7 and 8 ILA classes.

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That benchmark information is then used to determine whether or not we need to make adjustments

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for our students in terms of some of the interventions we provide,

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whether some students need to move to enrichment-type classes,

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and also whether or not we need to make adjustments in terms of a student's schedule completely.

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Response to Intervention [RTI] is so important here at Pocomoke Middle School.

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One of the things that we've done is to include three primary sources

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of interventions in our middle school.

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They focus on different areas in terms of reading, but they allow students to be successful.

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One of the key components is that not only do we focus on the intervention,

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but the intervention components are carried into the classrooms as well.

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In order for us to respond to intervention, the principal decided that she needed

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to make some adjustments in the schedule.

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Making those adjustments allowed us time to collaborate with each other,

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to actually have common planning times, to actually have those times to gather activities

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for the students, to actually look at the data that's been presented to us,

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and to make changes and modifications.

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And one of the things that's been so great is that it does allow us time to reflect

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on the students in the intervention programs so that we can easily move students in

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and out of the programs in order to reach more of the student body.

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The good thing with the intervention programs is that they're flexible.

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They're always changing.

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Students know why they are in the intervention program.

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Teachers understand that students need the opportunity to grow.

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We need that time outside of the regular 90-minute class period.

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A student that receives interventions spends 90 minutes of their time

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in their regular ILA classroom, which is Integrated Language Arts classroom.

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They spend an additional 45 minutes with an intervention teacher.

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Sometimes we have students that are in two interventions at once.

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Again, even when students are in the two interventions,

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there's a possibility that they can leave in one at the end

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of the first quarter and remain in the other.

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It just depends on the student's need.

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Our students are actually excited about being in the intervention because it's something

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that they are successful at, and they know that it's an opportunity for them to move and grow

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and learn and be successful in the general education classroom.

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One of the benefits of being in the intervention group is that you have that small class size,

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much smaller than the general ed population.

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In an intervention class, the ratio

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and the teacher in a generalized setting would be maybe 1:20,

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as compared to the intervention where it could be 1:5 and 1:7,

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which makes a difference in a student actually learning and getting that attention they need.

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We also provide time for goal setting which allows students to focus:

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"Where do I want to be two weeks from now, a month from now?

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What do I want to see in my growth, in my progress?

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How can I get there?

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What's my plan of action?"

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Worcester County has done a magnificent job in terms of making sure

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that our staff is fully trained in what they're expected to instruct students in.

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Each person who is responsible for teaching one of the interventions goes through a process

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of training, both outside of the county level with professional trainers and consultants,

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as well as additional training where the consultants come here.

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The consultants then observe the staff in their involvement with the kids.

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They give them comments and feedback and actually become their coaches for the program.

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The teachers complete a goal on their plan of action,

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which is a plan of success for the student.

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That plan of action says, I want to move my child or my student to this level by this date.

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They constantly diagnose and assess students' work either from the benchmarks

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or from classroom assessments and observation.

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And then they're reflected upon by the teacher and the committee as well.

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So, there are various people that are sitting on this decision-making.

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It's not just one person looking at the child; it's a team effort.

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We have a student here that reminds me of just how successful and powerful intervention can be.

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The student is actually in two interventions right now outside

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of the general education classroom.

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The student has gained over 100 points on his state assessment, which is powerful.

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And when the conversation was held with him

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about his progress this summer, he was just ecstatic.

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He just couldn't believe it.

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And that lets us know that what we're doing is working.