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Balanced Instructional ModelHTH’s instructional model is replicated from the Re-Inventing Schools Coalition Model (RISC). This national non-profit organization looks at how systems are formed and maintained to be successful for all students in all places. Knowing there is not one answer for all, an educational system that includes balanced instruction has been proven effective through multiple measures.
STANDARDS are what students need to know and be able to do. This is based on national, state, and district standards, as well as our stakeholders’ input which is on a 3-year cycle for improvement and revisions. All instruction begins with identifying which standard(s) will be addressed. This provides a clear vision of what we are learning. At HTH, we have 8 content areas that all our 1200 standards are divided into:
- Reading
- Writing
- Math
- Science
- Social Studies
- Careers
- Personal/Social/Service/Art/Health
- Technology
Students must master the standard before they move on. How they master them varies on the type of learning that is best for each students, how teachers choose to present the materials, and through “Individual Learning Plans” or ILP’s.
• Connect to HTH’s standards
For more information, go to:
www.reinventingschools.org/sbdb.htm
INSTRUCTION is directly tied to what we have identified in our standards. It may take a student a day, a week, a month, or more sometimes, but they must master the standard before they move on.
Teachers use a mixture of direct instruction (traditional paper/pencil, lecture) with hands-on application. We know, through research, that the best way for kids to remember what they have learned is to apply their knowledge in new ways. Using projects and real-life situations, the lessons are repeated until the student has shown mastery.
The graphic below illustrates this point. (Developed and revised by Bruce Ryland from material by Edgar Dole. See also: Fostering Critical Reflection in Adulthood, by Jack Mezinow & Associates, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1990.)
ASSESSMENT is measured in multiple ways. Students are graded in three assessments;
- SKILLS = knowing it
- ANALYTICAL = doing it
- CONTEXTUAL = living it
All assessments are measured by the rubric that matches the standard. This way, students know, before they begin, what is expected. They do not need to outguess the teacher, or wonder if what they are doing is ‘good enough” for mastery. They see clearly what is meant to master the standard, and are graded by the same rubric they begin with. Rubrics allow for consistency, no matter who is doing the grading.
REPORTING grades is on-line and real time. As students complete their work, their grades are entered into a secure, on-line grading system called “Educate” developed by 3-Shapes software just for HTH. Students can easily see their progress and know if they have completed assignments or if more work needs to be done. For example, in language arts, they may need 5 “hits” to master a writing or reading standard. Doing it proficiently one time would not be mastery. Educate tracks the number of hits and this is viewable anytime, anywhere by the student, their parents, and the teacher and advisor.
• Go to Educate now!
Besides individual grading. HTH participates in all standardized testing, including the Standards-Based Assessments and High School Graduation Qualifying Exam. As a public school in the Anchorage School District, we are measured and compared nationally by our test scores.
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