Running head: STUDENT PROFILE AND INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORTS !

Student Profile and Instructional Supports

Evan Volski

University of Colorado Denver

STUDENT PROFILE AND INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORTS !2

Student Profile

School and Classroom Context

Joseph attends the Pinnacle Charter School which is in the Colorado Charter School

Institute. The demographics of the school are 63% Hispanic, 28.4% White, 5.7% Asian, and

1.6% Black. 63% of students receive free or reduced lunch. 8% of students are on an IEP and

~60% of students receive ELD services. 58% of students are proficient in math and 57% of

students are proficient in reading/language arts.

Students who receive ELD services are pulled for 30 minutes each day. The ELD

program at Pinnacle consists of pull-out instruction with either a ELD specialist or a classroom

teacher who focuses on small group instruction. For one quarter students work with an ELD

specialist and the next quarter they work with the classroom teacher. ELD services are in English

and the instructional team consists of monolingual English teachers. Pinnacle does not currently

offer any native language or bilingual instruction.

In Josephs class there are 9 students who receive ELD services and 4 students who have

an IEP. All instruction is conducted in English however students are encouraged to use their

native language to help them better understand concepts. The only languages spoken in his class

are English and Spanish. In Josephs math, science and social studies classes the teacher-student

relationships are effective. Teachers ensure that students are aware of the expectations for

behavior and work. However, in his literacy class I observed students not being fully included in

activities mainly because they were unsure of directions. I observed several students becoming

frustrated because they were unable to keep up with the instructor. Appropriate language
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supports were not provided and some students were only able to understand the directions with

the help of a Spanish speaking paraprofessional who was helping out that day.

Student Characteristics

Joseph is 10 years old and he is in the 5th grade at Pinnacle Charter School which he has

attended since kindergarten. Joseph speaks both Spanish and English, but through an interview

with the student I discovered that he prefers to read, write and speak in English. I also discovered

through teacher interviews that his parents made the decision for Joseph to learn how to read and

write only in English because switching between English and Spanish was proving to be very

difficult and confusing for him. Josephs parents speak both English and Spanish as well and

while his mother was born in the United States his father was born in Mexico although I was

unable to find out how long he has lived in America. Through the student interview I discovered

that one of the main reasons Joseph speaks Spanish outside of school is so he can communicate

with relatives who are Spanish monolingual.

Joseph is a very social child who has well developed relationships with his teachers as

well as his classmates. According to his Academic Progress and Support (APAS) file Josephs

areas of strength are his attitude, perseverance, and teamwork abilities. His teachers report that

he is willing to give help whenever a teacher or another student needs it. Joseph is a very

motivated student who is eager to succeed in school. His ability to communicate his thoughts is

well developed and his teachers praise him for this ability. When Joseph becomes frustrated with

difficult tasks he is able to quickly bounce back without letting the frustration affect him too

much. However, when he is unsure of directions or the task is too difficult he becomes

disruptive.
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According to the APAS, Josephs areas of need are: behavior, classroom participation,

independence, and organization. The main areas of concern for Joseph are writing and reading

and according to WIDA ACCESS scores Joseph is a level 3 in writing and level 2 in reading (see

Appendix A for WIDA ACCESS scores over time and TCAP scores for 2014). Josephs literacy

teacher reported that Joseph struggles most with fluency and comprehension. According to his

homeroom teacher, Joseph is below grade level in all content areas, with the exception of

mathematics. Teachers and parents are concerned that Josephs difficulties with reading will

cause him to fall farther behind. I chose to work with Joseph because he is a highly motivated

student who, with the right support, will be able to make improvements in his writing and

reading.

I first started working with Joseph one day when I was helping out with his math class.

His teacher had identified him to me as an ELL who would benefit from having extra attention.

During one of my observations Josephs teacher asked the students to write down the name,

description and an example for the four properties of multiplication and when I looked at his

work I noticed that he wasnt writing down the description. When I asked him to show me where

the description was in the book he was unable to do so because he wasnt sure what the

description was. This indicated to me that he would certainly benefit from more structured

support during independent work. After I decided that I was going to work with Joseph for this

project I began to help out in more of his classes. My initial interactions were mainly in an

observational manner and I would help out other students in the class as well as Joseph.

Eventually Joseph and I were able to work one-on-one on writing and math, although the

majority of my time spent with him was assisting and observing group work.
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Through teacher interviews I discovered that Joseph was in Level 3 of the Response to

Intervention model. He received supports such as grade level appropriate texts and a

differentiated spelling list. As of early November he was being placed on an IEP and the special

education staff were developing new supports. As the team was still developing the supports I

was unable to learn more about them. Joseph also receives 30 minutes of pull-out ELD services

and was pulled out for 20 minutes during his literacy block for more focused reading instruction

with literacy specialists.

Joseph is delayed in reading, according to the WIDA ACCESS scores he is a level 2.

Areas of particular need are in fluency and comprehension. Through teacher interviews I

discovered that Joseph is reading at 1st grade level. DRA2 scores were only available through

Spring of 2013 and were not included for this paper because they did not accurately reflect his

current performance.

Joseph is delayed in writing as well as shown by WIDA ACCESS scores that place him at

level 3. Through analysis of writing samples I was able to determine that Joseph is at level 3 in

the domains of linguistic complexity, vocabulary usage, and language control (see Appendix A

for WIDA writing rubric).

Joseph is a level 5 on WIDA ACCESS for listening and level 6 for speaking. As I was

conducting students interviews with him it was clear to me that Josephs receptive and expressive

language skills were at or near proficiency.

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Individualized Instructional Supports

Area of Needed Support

Based off of the observations I made and the interviews I conducted, the area of greatest

need is in Josephs literacy block. After careful consideration of Josephs linguistic needs, I have

come up with some supports that would help him during this class. Joseph would benefit from a

self-management strategy that would allow him to stay on task and know when he should ask for

help from either peers or the teacher. He would also benefit from graphic organizers to help him

build vocabulary and increase comprehension of texts. Josephs literacy teacher currently uses

small group work, however I think this model could be improved by developing groupings that

feature mixed ability levels.

Instructional Recommendations

A) Self-Management Strategy. While I was conducting my observations, I noticed that Joseph

had difficulty completing in-class assignments. This was further confirmed by his teachers when

I interviewed them. His ELD teacher told me that when Joseph is unsure of directions or if the

task is too difficult he will become disruptive, play with items in his pockets, and begin talking

to other students who are trying to work. In order to decrease disruptive behavior and increase

on-task behavior, a self-management strategy will be employed. A self-check behavior checklist

will be developed so that Joseph has a visual cue to help him when he is unsure of what to do

during independent work time. Learning strategies, such as this, can be used for academics as

well as for developing other school-related skills and can be explicitly taught with the skill

eventually being used independently. (Echevarria & Graves, 2015) Self-management plans in

particular are effective at helping develop independence and self-reliance with the added benefit
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of improving academic performance and behavior. (Freeman) I have created an example (See

Appendix A) of a self-check checklist for Joseph to use, however teachers are able to modify the

checklist as they see fit. In addition to the checklist, which is meant to serve as a visual reminder

of expectations during independent work, a self-management form (See Appendix A) should be

implemented so Joseph can monitor how often he has been on task during class. If Joseph has

been working during a certain interval then he gets to put a smiley face on his form. Joseph

would set his own goals as well as what he is able to earn for reinforcement. For instance, if he

gets 6 smiley faces during class then he gets extra time to play a game on his iPad. By self-

monitoring and self-evaluating his behavior, Joseph will be able to see how his performance is

allowing him to reach his own goals and get reinforcement when he is able to meet those goals.

(Freeman)

B) Explicit Vocabulary Instruction. Through observations, I noticed that Joseph was very good

at decoding words and I wondered why he was a level 2 for reading on the WIDA ACCESS.

After speaking with his teachers I discovered that his comprehension skills are very low and he is

currently reading at a 1st grade level. In order to improve comprehension, I think it would be

very beneficial to explicitly pre-teach vocabulary that will be featured in the text. Increased

vocabulary knowledge will positively affect both fluency and comprehension. (Klingner &

Geisler, 2008) Not only will Joseph need help with key vocabulary terms that all students need

pre-teaching to understand, he will also need help with more common words, such as

prepositions, that can also cause confusion with ELLs. (Klingner & Gesiler, 2008) For students

in Levels 1 and 2 of reading proficiency, Eehevarria and Graves (2015) recommend a four-square

strategy (see Appendix A) that will aid in vocabulary development. The four-square strategy
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works by having students divide a note card into four equal squares, writing the word, giving a

definition, using the word in a sentence, coming up with related words and then drawing a

picture that represents the word. This strategy will need to be explicitly taught and modeled at

first but as Joseph becomes familiar with this he will be able to complete this independently.

Certain templates (such as the one in Appendix A) have the squares already labeled to make it

easer for students. He also might need additional assistance with writing the words in a sentence,

so sentence stems might be necessary at first as well.

C) Graphic Organizers to Improve Comprehension. With supports to aid in vocabulary

development, another tool that can improve comprehension is graphic organizers to help Joseph

in finding main ideas and supporting details. Visual modeling of finding main ideas is critical to

ensure student success. (Echevarria & Graves, 2015, p. 108) Before being able to find main

ideas and supporting details independently with the help of graphic organizers, it will be

important to explicitly teach Joseph how to find main ideas, as well the supporting ideas as they

are just as important. Given ample opportunities to practice and be successful, he will develop

confidence in his abilities which will carry over into his independent work. Research shows that

students who have been taught reading strategies explicitly tend to retain the skills longer than

students who were not taught explicit strategies (Echevarria & Graves, 2015) I have provided

examples of graphic organizers (see Appendix A) which could help Joseph, but teachers may find

graphic organizers online that will are better suited to the needs and abilities of the students as

they develop more complex skills.

D). Mixed Ability Groupings. When I observed Josephs literacy block, I noticed that the group

he was rotating through work stations with were students who were struggling the most with
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reading and completing independent work. As I was talking with the Literacy teachers and a

paraprofessional, they all mentioned that the group Joseph was in was the toughest group to work

with, mainly because they each need a lot of help with understanding directions and prompting to

complete work. Most of the other groups seemed to be working well independently, so it seems

to me that utilizing mixed ability groupings (students with varying degrees of English

proficiency and reading ability) would allow for students to complete more assignments. A

strength of this approach is that it allows students with different academic abilities to work with

and learn from one another. (Echevarria & Graves, 2015) In Josephs case, this would also allow

for students who have an understanding of the directions to help those who dont. This model

also give students the opportunity to use develop their oral language skills and actively engage

with the task (Echevarria & Graves, 2015) instead of trying to figure out the directions or

completing the task incorrectly.

Instructional Resources

A) Self Management Strategy.

a. Teaching Self Management Skills http://www.specialconnections.ku.edu/?

q=behavior_plans/positive_behavior_support_interventions/teacher_tools/

teaching_self_management_skills

This resource provides an in-depth analysis of how to implement a self-management

strategy as well as the benefits of using such a strategy. Also, provides blank self-

management forms.

b.) http://www.interventioncentral.org/tools/self-check-behavior-checklist-maker
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Allows teachers to develop their own self-check behavior checklists. Provides

suggestions for effective behaviors for a number of different academic settings.

B) Explicit Vocabulary Instruction

a. Klingner, J.K., & Gesiler, D. (2008). Helping classroom reading teachers distinguish

between language acquisition and learning disabilities. In J.K. Klingner, J.J.

Hoover & L.M. Baca (Eds.), Why do english language learners struggle with

reading? (pp. 57-73). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

This whole chapter will be beneficial to Josephs teachers, but the section on vocabulary

(pp. 63-64) will be particularly useful. It details the importance of building vocabulary

with ELLs and how increased vocabulary can affect comprehension and fluency.

C) Graphic Organizers to Improve Comprehension.

a. Klingner, J.K., & Gesiler, D. (2008). Helping classroom reading teachers distinguish

between language acquisition and learning disabilities. In J.K. Klingner, J.J.

Hoover & L.M. Baca (Eds.), Why do english language learners struggle with

reading? (pp. 57-73). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

The whole chapter will be beneficial to Josephs teacher, but the section on reading

comprehension (pp. 64-65) will be particularly useful for this support. This section

details strategies to improve reading comprehension as well as oral and written language

skills.

b. Echevarria, J., & Graves, A. (2015) Sheltered content instruction: Teaching english

languages learners with diverse abilities. Upper Saddle, NJ: Pearson.

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The section Teaching Reading Strategies in Content-Area Classes (pp. 108-109) gives

examples of scaffolds that teachers can use depending on a students reading proficiency

and grade level.

c. http://www.educationoasis.com/curriculum/graphic_organizers.htm

Free graphic organizers that target and support a number of different skills.

D) Mixed Ability Groupings.

a. Echevarria, J., & Graves, A. (2015) Sheltered content instruction: Teaching english

languages learners with diverse abilities. Upper Saddle, NJ: Pearson.

The section on Using Alternate Grouping Strategies (pp. 94-95) is great resource to learn

more about how teachers can used mixed ability groupings and the benefit that this has

on students and the classroom in general. An excerpt from page 58 (see Appendix A) also

provides insight into how mixed ability groupings can benefit students language

development.

Progress Monitoring

A) Self Management Strategy. Progress monitoring for this support is fairly straightforward

since the student is monitoring their own progress daily through the self-management form.

Teachers can also fill out the self-management form (see Appendix A) to keep their own record

of student on-task behavior. These forms could then be analyzed at the end of the week and

compare it to previous weeks to see if progress is being made. As Joseph is meeting his goals for

working during class the requirements for getting reinforcement can increase and hopefully he

will be able to complete work independently without the self-management strategy materials.
STUDENT PROFILE AND INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORTS !12

B) Explicit Vocabulary Instruction. During the explicit vocabulary and modeling phase of

implementation you will be able to monitor progress by Josephs ability to complete the four-

square card independently. Once he is able to do this you may monitor progress on vocabulary

either through formal assessment (vocabulary quizzes) or informal assessment (asking him to fill

out a four-square card for a word that he had learned earlier in this week). Whichever way you

choose to assess, it would be important to monitor progress weekly to ensure that he is learning

necessary vocabulary.

C) Graphic Organizer to Improve Comprehension. In order to monitor progress for this

support teachers will need to examine the graphic organizers that Joseph has completed that

week. It will be important to look at how accurately Joseph is able to find main ideas and

supporting details. This could be monitored daily at first and as he builds competence and

proficiency with this task monitoring could be curtailed to weekly or even monthly.

D) Mixed Ability Groupings. Progress monitoring for this goal will be more informal than for

other supports. Teachers should be monitoring how effective the mixed ability groupings are. If

students are completing more work or if oral and written language is improving then it might be

an indication that the groupings are working. If improvements have not been made, then it might

important to re-examine how groupings are being determined.

Reflection

Completing this project was a very valuable learning experience. I was forced to get out

of my comfort zone and apply what I have been learning in class to an actual student. One of the

things that I learned about my student is something that has been repeated throughout this

semester in all of my classes and this is that each student has strengths that need to utilized when
STUDENT PROFILE AND INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORTS !13

developing instructional supports. Considering this was my first such experience, there were

some difficulties, but as always these should be viewed as an opportunity to learn more. One of

the things that I learned was that in order to get an accurate picture of what is going on in a

students life (both in an out of school) it takes a lot of effort. Sometimes data from previous

years isnt readily available and other times it is hard to coordinate with other teachers to find a

time to sit down and talk about a student. In the future I will make sure to interview parents as

well as they are invaluable sources of knowledge about the students previous experiences with

language and school.

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References

Echevarria, J., & Graves, A. (2015) Sheltered content instruction: Teaching english

languages learners with diverse abilities. Upper Saddle, NJ: Pearson.

Freeman, R. Teaching self management skills. Retrieved from: http://

www.specialconnections.ku.edu/?q=behavior_plans/

positive_behavior_support_interventions/teacher_tools/teaching_self_management_skills

Klingner, J.K., & Gesiler, D. (2008). Helping classroom reading teachers distinguish

between language acquisition and learning disabilities. In J.K. Klingner, J.J.

Hoover & L.M. Baca (Eds.), Why do english language learners struggle with

reading? (pp. 57-73). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

STUDENT PROFILE AND INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORTS !15

Appendix A

Josephs Access Scores (All available)

Access Scores- Listening Speaking Reading Writing

Grade

2 3.7-Developing 5.2-Bridging 1.9-Entering 2.2-Emerging

3 4.0-Expanding 6.0-Reaching 2.2-Emerging 2.9-Emerging

4 5.0-Bridging 6.0-Reaching 2.9-Emerging 3.5-Developing

Josephs TCAP Scores (All available)

Year Reading Writing Math

2014 105 - Unsatisfactory 307 - Unsatisfactory 255- Unsatisfactory

Example Self-Check Behavior Checklist

WHEN WORKING ON AN INDEPENDENT ASSIGNMENT:

I have cleared my desk of unneeded materials.

I am working on the assignment.

To avoid distracting myself or others, I do not play with objects at my desk.

I ask my neighbor if I have a question about the assignment.

I ask the teacher if I still have a question about the assignment.

I use any extra time when I have finished the assignment to check my work.
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WIDA Rubric for Writing (Focus on level 3, other notes are for other students)
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Blank Self-Management Form

Self Management Form

Student Name: _______________________ Date: _______________________

When you hear the beep put a smiley face in the box if you working on your assignment.

How many times was I working on my assignment when I heard the bell?

My goal is: ________________

The number of times I was working on my assignment: __________

My goal is to be working on my assignment: ____________

I met my goal (yes or no): ___________

I will reinforce myself when I meet my goal by: _______________________________

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Example of Completed Self-Management Form

Self Management Form

Student Name: __Jane__________________ Date: _____9/13/04_____________

When you hear the beep put a smiley face in the box if you working on your assignment.

How many times was I working on my assignment when I heard the bell?

My goal is: _______5_________

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

The number of times I was working on my assignment: ___6_______

My goal is to be working on my assignment: ___5_________

I met my goal (yes or no): _____yes______

I will reinforce myself when I meet my goal by: scheduling 30 minutes extra time
on the computer
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Four Square Strategy Template

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Graphic Organizer for Main Ideas and Supporting Details

Main Idea
Text or Source: ___________________________________________________________________

Main Idea Details

Remember: The main idea is the point the author is making about the topic. The details support the
main idea.

2006 Education Oasis http://www.educationoasis.com May be reproduced for classroom use only.
 STUDENT PROFILE AND INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORTS !21

Graphic Organizer for Characters, Setting and Events

Sequence Chain
Title:
Author:
Illustrator:

CHARACTERS SETTING
Place:

Time:

1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

NAME:

Copyright 2006 Pearson Achievement Solutions. Sequence Chain. Co-nect Professional Development. <http://exchange.co-nect.net>
STUDENT PROFILE AND INSTRUCTIONAL SUPPORTS !22

Excerpt from p. 58 of Echevarria and Graves

Grouping becomes more critical when working with students with a variety of language and

learning abilities. Flexible grouping, moving students among groups strategically, give students

the opportunity to clarify key concepts in their primary languages as needed, consulting an aide,

peer, or primary-language text.