E-Books →Achievement Teams How a Better Approach to PLCs Can Improve Student Outcomes and Teacher Efficacy

Enter Achievement Teams. This is not another program that's here today and gone tomorrow; it's a timeless approach that any school or district can replicate that focuses on the most significant variable in student achievement: teaching. In Achievement Teams, Steve Ventura and Michelle Ventura offer a framework based on John Hattie's Visible Learning research that makes teacher collaboration more efficient, rigorous, satisfying, and effective. Think of it as a systematic treasure hunt for best practices using real data on your students.
The authors walk you through the Achievement Teams four-step meeting protocol:
* In Step 1, teams focus on the evidence from a pre-assessment to provide specific feedback to students and teachers about concepts and skills that students did and did not learn.
* In Step 2, teams use that evidence to establish SMART goals for both teachers and students.
* In Step 3, teams summarize the collected data and make inferences around students' mastery levels.
* In Step 4, teachers select high-impact strategies directly targeted to student needs. A post-assessment reveals what did and didn't work.
The authors provide a plethora of resources along the way, including reflection activities to extend your thinking and a variety of helpful downloadable templates designed to facilitate the work. If you're a teacher or leader who is interested in maximizing student achievement, this book is for you.