California State University, Northridge
A STUDY OF INNOVATIVE PRACTICES AT THE
,i
ELEMENTARY-SCHOOL LEVEL
A graduate project submitted in partial satisfaction of the
requirements for the degree o:f Master of Arts in
Education
by
Doris Crossley
January, 1973
The graduate project of Doris Crossley is approved:
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California State University, Northridge
January, 1973
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ACKI\fOWLEDGMENTS·
.The writer wishes to thank Professor Helen Fielstra
for her invaluable assistance on this study and for her
. encouragement and time given for counseling.
The com-
pletion of this graduate project would have been impossible
without her guidance and support.
The writer also wishes to acknowledge the numerous
contributions to this study of her other committee members, Dr. Gwenneth Rae and Dr. Raymond Jung.
Grateful recognition 1s given to Mr. Jarratt Brunson
and the staff of the Thomas Jefferson Primary School of
the Pasadena Unified School District in Pasadena, California, for so graciously providing the writer with
pertinent and essential background information.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Chapter
. I
INTRODUCTION . • . . • . . • • . . . . • . . . . . .
1
II
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ON INNOV ATIVE PRACTICES IN URBAN EDUCATION AT
THE ELEMENTARY-SCHOOL LEVEL
4
I
Nongraded Teaching . . . •
Team Teaching . . . . . . . .
Individualized Instruction . . . • .
Contract Teaching . . . . .
Teacher -Aide Program . . •
Parent-Teacher Conferences
The Nongraded Progress Report . .
Miller -Unruh Reading Program
The Reading Profile . . . . . . . . •
The Mathematics Profile . . . . .
English-as-a-Second-Language
III
IV
4
8
12
17
18
20
23
25
26
27
."
28
REVIEW OF INNOVATIVE PRACTICES AT
THOMAS JEFFERSON PRIMARY SCHOOL . .
30
Socioeconomic Background
Parent Involvement . . . . .
37
A SURVEY OF STAFF OPINION REGARDING
INNOVATIVE PRACTICES AT THOMAS
JEFFERSON PRIMARY SCHOOL
39
Survey of Teacher Participants .
• .
Responses Regarding Practices or Programs
Used by Teachers . . . . . • . . . • . • .
Responses Regarding Pupils . . . . . . • .
Responses of Participants Regarding the
Effectiveness of Innovative Practices • . . . .
Responses Regarding Suggestions for
Improving Teaching Prograrns and Practices
at Thomas Jefferson Primary School...
Suggestions for Improving the Teaching
Practices at Thomas Jefferson Prin1ary
School • . . . • . . . . • •
Survey of Classified Staff
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30
39
43
44
47
51
59
59
TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued)
Chapter
v
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND
RECOMMENDATIONS .•
63
63
63
63
Summary . . • • . . . . .
Purpose . . . . . . . . . . .
Review of the Literature
Innovative Practices at Thomas Jefferson
Primary School . • . . • . • . . • . • . • • .
Survey of Staff of Thomas Jefferson Primary
School . . . . . .
Conclusions . . . . .
Recommendations
65
68
69
BIBLIOGRAPHY •
70
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v
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A STUDY OF INNOVATIVE PRACTICES AT THE
ELEMENTARY-SCHOOL LEVEL
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
The current social upheaval in urban areas has caused
thoughtful educators to realize that traditional methods and materials of teaching are not necessarily relevant to all segments of
the school population.
The child who speaks English as a second
language, the child whose family changes residence frequently, the
child who comes from the lower socioeconomic family, and the
child from a minority ethnic background have sho\Vll that many of
the traditional methods and materials do not seem to be adequate
or appropriate for them.
Many school districts are attempting to
develop curricula, methods, and materials which will help all
children have more successful experiences in school.
One of the
many schools which is attempting to do something about this situation is the Thomas Jefferson Primary School in the Pasadena Unified School District in Pasadena, California.
It is one of the
participating schools in John Goodlad's IDEA Project, and its inno1
vative instructional program was the focus of this study.
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r------Purpose of this study.
The purpose of this study was threefold:
{1) to review the literature on innovative practices in urban educa-
I tion at the elementary-school level;
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(2) to identify, describe, and
evaluate, in terms of teachers 1 attitudes and opinions, the methods
and the materials utilized at the Thomas Jefferson Primary School;
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(3) to discuss the implications of these practices for the future
!! at Thomas Jefferson Primary School specifically and other
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similar
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institutions in general.
Methods used in the study.
After reviewing the literature
available on innovative practices at the elementary-school level,
and after reviewing and describing these practices at Thomas
Jefferson Primary School, the writer developed a questionnaire
which was used to survey teacher opinion regarding the innovative
practices at the Thomas Jefferson Primary School.
The re.sults
of this survey were tabulated, and the findings were then summarized, conclusions were drawn from them, and recommendations
based on these conclusions and on the review of the literature were
developed' and presented by the writer.
Organization of the remainder of this written project.
1
In chap-
ter II of this project, a review of the available literature on innovative practices in urban education at the elementary-school level is
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presented.
In chapter III, the writer has identified and described
the innovative practices utilized at the Thomas Jefferson Primary
School in Pasadena, California, after first giving background information on that school and its student population.
In chapter IV, the
survey instrument, a questionnaire of teacher opinions regarding
the innovative practices at Thomas Jefferson Primary School, is
described and the findings of the survey are reported.
A summary
of this study, conclusions, and recommendations of the writer are
then presented in chapter V of this written graduate project.
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CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ON INNOVATNE
PRACTICES IN URBAN EDUCATION AT THE
ELEMENTARY-SCHOOL LEVEL
The review of literature on innovative instructional practices
such as nongraded teaching, team teaching, individualized instruction, graded-progress reports, the Miller-Unruh reading program,
conference reporting to parents, teacher -aide programs, English
as a second language instruction, and use of mathematics and reading profiles for individual diagnosis revealed many new programs
in operation.
Nongraded.Teaching
Most of the literature discussed the meaning and definition of
nongraded teaching as well as the development and special application of this innovation to urban elementary schools.
Woodring
(18:36), in his book on Investment in Innovation, stated that, "Teachers are most likely to be teaching in the years and decades aheadschools with ungraded classes, teaching machines, educational
television, and team teaching with its flexible use of time, space,
and personnel."
5
Definition of nongraded teaching.
is known by many names.
erature on the subject are:
The concept of nongradedness
Some of the names mentioned in the litnongraded primary unit, continuous
progress, primary cycle, flexible primary unit, primary block,
and nongraded school.
Although some writers use the term
"ungraded, 11 most prefer "nongraded. 11
Otto {10:1) defined nongradedness as:
11
•••
a facet of the inter-
nal organization of a school, a vertical facet, wherein instructional
groups are organized on an intergrade basis in one or more curriculum areas in accordance with pupils 1 developmental needs. 11
Smith {15:21) described nongradedness as "a philosophy of education which makes possible the adjusting of teaching and administrative procedures to meet differing social, mental, and physical
capacities among children.
It uses an organizational plan which
eliminates grade levels, promotes flexible grouping and continuous
progress, and permits the utilization of meaningful individualized
' instruction. 11
Dufay (4:424} interpreted the ungraded primary school as:
11
a philosophy of education that. includes the notion of continuous
pupil progress, which promotes flexibility in grouping by the device
of removing grade labels, which is designed to facilitate the
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s role providing for pupils 1 individual differences, and
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intended to eliminate or lessen the problems of retention
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and acceleration."
Dufay (4:23), quoting from the Dictionary of Education,
described nongradedness as ''that practice which has a flexible
grouping system in which primary grade children are grouped together regardless of age, and exposed to extensive effort in which
instruction is highly individualized."
Although nongradedness is referred to by many names, the
essence of the program as defined in the literature was that different aged children were grouped together and given a flexible
curriculum to meet their individualneeds.
Purposes of nongraded teaching.
When this writer reviewed
the literature on nongraded schools, several purposes for the
development of this particular practice were revealed.
Smith
(15:33} expressed the point of view that a nongraded school enabled
each child to acquire and develop learning attitudes, skills, and
values that helped him function more effectively and happily in his
environment.
Dufay (4: 25 -28) stated, "In the true ungraded school, the ultimate objective is the tailoring of programs to the individual child,
with adjustments made in the program.
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Replacing upward
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movement on a graded basis, the notion of continuous progress
permits upward movement according to the real abilities of pupils.••
In nongraded teaching, Smith (15: 100) implied that for purposes
of special grouping, pupils can have socializing experiences as
leaders and followers and can assume particular kinds of responsibility and initiative.
They also are likely to gain experience
in
hearing and analyzing the views of others and having their own
views heard and analyzed.
Ragan ( 12: 143) concurred with Smith in stating that,
11
The newer
psychology of learning furnishes many guiding principles for curriculum organization.
Among these principles are:
(1} learning
is growth rather than a mere accumulation of knowledge and skill;
(2} growth and development are continuous; (3) individuals differ in
their rates of growth; and (4) learning is experiencing.••
Otto (10:3) expressed the belief that nongradedness with its
revised policies and practices of child grouping, promotion, marking, and reporting to parents achieved improved mental health of
pupils as well as consistent forward educational progress of all
pupils.
In addition to nongrading, team teaching is described in the
literature as an effective innovative instructional practice to
develop pupil growth in a democratic society.
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Team teaching as a relatively new pattern of school organization
has been described as a major educational movement.
Entire
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schools have been reorganized and team teaching has spread
throughout the system.
Some new school buildings have been de-
signed specifically to meet the requirements of this new program.
In the pamphlet U.S. Panel on Educational Research and Developmental Innovation and Experiment Education (35: 35), it was stated
that, "In team teaching in place of the conventional arrangement of
one teacher associated with many pupils, a group of teachers is
associated with a proportionately larger number of pupils.
Team
teaching is sometimes used in conjunction with the nongraded format.
It allows for variation in class size, depending upon the kind
of instruction offered, and it allows teachers to specialize in the
subjects in which they are particularly proficient.''
Shaplin (14: 15) described team teaching as:
"A type of instruc-
tiona! organization involving teaching personnel and the pupils
assigned to them, in which two or more teachers are given the
responsibility of working together for all or a significant part of
the instruction of the same group of pupils."
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Dean and Witherspoon of the United States Office of Education
defined team teaching as follows:
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"The heart of the concept of
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,-team~eachi:g li-es not in details :-:~:ctu:e an:organization of
Icooperative planning, constant collaboration, close unity, unre1
strained communication, and sincer.e sharing.
I in a
group of individuals articulating together, but rather in a group
l which is a simple,
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It is reflected not
unified team.
Inherent in the plan is an in-
creased degree of flexibility for teacher responsibility, grouping
policies and practices, size of groups, and an invigorating spirit
of freedom and opportunity to revamp programs to meet the educationa! needs of children.
In a sense, it might be said that the pro-
ponents of the movement question administrative and organizational
restrictions of the past, and hold that school administration exists
primarily as a service medium not as a control function."
Smith (16:46) defined team teaching as:
"A group of two or
more teachers who assume common responsibility for the total
instructional program of two or more classrooms of children."
The literature varied in defining team teaching, but the consensus of opinion was that teaming involved two or more teachers
with two or more classes or a large group of pupils, jointly planning, teaching, and evaluating the instructional program for pupils.
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Purpose of team teaching.
Several team-teaching plans such
as the Norwalk Plan, Lexington Team Teaching Program (LTTP),
[d~he-~l~r-e~o=-Grad=t~:ool Pro~ra~-m~~ated different
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emphasized that their programs were intended to raise educational
aspirations of pupils, to broaden opportunity of pupils who can make
normal progress and to give extra help to those who need it.
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Malcolm Friedman, Project Coordinator for the Franklin
School (Lexington, Massachusetts} Demonstration Team Teaching
Project, indicated two instructional values of team teaching:
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Team
teaching provides for a greater utilization of the talents of all
teachers on a team and of resource personnel. 11 According to Bair
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Team teaching provides greater opportunity for giving
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assurance to newly appointed teachers to accept appointments in
special service schools. 11
Shaplin ( 14: 97 -98) proposed a multiplicity of goals for a
lin School team-teaching project.
Frank~
Some goals aim at improving the
status of the teachers, others the condition of work of the teacher,
and others the pattern of curriculum development.
Smith (15: 82)
has agreed with others that the advantages of team teaching are
many.
Smith (15: 100) stated that his experience and research in the
Franklin School Project have shown that grade-level organization
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and grouping in a self-contained classroom for all learning is ineffective and insufficient.
He indicated that some lessons can be
I taught better in a larger group or with groups of teachers working
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tog-~~:er to-:ha:~~e responsibility to meet the needs of the
children.
Smith further stated (15: 100) that teachers were stimulated by
other teacher observation, and that team-teaching organizational
I schemes allowed more time for individual assistance to the student.
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j Smith (15: 101) claimed that learning motivation was initiated by team i
teaching and that pupils had the opportunity to work closer with the
teacher in smaller groups.
While many advantageous purposes were stressed, the difficulty of inaugurating and carrying out teaming programs was also
mentioned in the literature.
It has been suggested that many goals
of this innovative practice cause confusion and contradictions.
It
was also noted that accomplishing objectives of team teaching
requires specific planning and operations directed toward the
achievement of those particular goals.
Team-teaching techniques stress closer, personalized
teacher-pupil relations, thereby promoting programs of individualized instruction.
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Individualized Instruction
Definition of individualized instruction.
Iinstruction is not a new trend in education.
Individualized
In the educational
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Passion for Life (36}, the French schoolmaster expressed a
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wish "to get behind the faces, 11 to know more about each child as an
individual.
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In 1916, the psychologist Terman (9:4) recommended that dif-
1 ferentiated
courses of study be offered to permit each pupil "to
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progress at the rate which is normal for him, whether that rate is
tent, and time allocated to provide for individual and community
differences. 11
!ndividualized instruction is not being considered only by
those in elementary education; the National Survey of Education
{23: 1 0), which was conducted in 1932, revealed that in more than
11, 000 high schools individual differences were being cared for
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r-~hiefly--by -:~m~ge~ous--grouping, ~peci::-cla~ses,
and unit
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Harap (20: 16 -72) reported that ability grouping was the most
common method of attempting individualization of teaching.
He
stated that schools were adjusting their courses of study to the
j needs of slow and rapid learners, were preparing special courses
of study for mentally retarded children, were developing remedial
programs, and were using audiovisual instructional materials 1n
the form of workbooks and individual assignment sheets.
Since the 1930's, rate of learning has continued to be of central
interest to persons advocating various plans for individualizing
instruction.
Many of the plans have emphasized so -called homo-
geneous grouping, although this form of grouping has not been found
to be consistently effective.
An increasing number of educators are placing considerable
emphasis upon the need for schools to individualize instruction.
Recently, Fliegel (22: 342} wrote that individualization has become
the "in" word in education.
"Last year, when we moved inten-
sively into individualization, teachers felt threatened and insecure.
Today teachers are successfully individualizing instruction in
almost every class."
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Glaser (33: 95) defined individualized learning or education as
adapting instructional practices to individual requirements.
Three
major facts are involved, each of which defines a set of variables
in the system:
(1) educational goals; (2) individual capabilities; and
(3) instructional means.
Goals are defined to suit the individual,
as when individuals choose different courses of instruction for
different vocational aspirations.
Poore, in the Handbook for Developing Individualized Instruction (33: 3), defined individualized instruction as a more effective
means of reaching the goal of accepting the student where he is and
helping him develop into a contributing citizen within the limits of
his ability and personality.
Eding (28: 2) concurred with the defini-
tion given in the Handbook for Developing Individualized Instruction
by recommending that all individualized instruction require individual pacing.
There are many approaches to individualized instruction, the
elements of which involve many considerations which are dictated
by local situations and conditions.
Purposes of individualized instruction.
Several purposes for
the development of individualized instruction have been cited in the
professional literature.
Two major criteria were established for
an individualized instruction program by Zirbes and the ASCD
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r~:~:~=-~~~~i~~~~-~::_-9-:~:~~~~tat:d-t:~t the program:
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(!) provided opportunities for individual learners to reveal them-
j selves, and {2) the program provided self-discovery for each pupil.
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Cooley and Glaser (2: 96) proposed the following general instruc-
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Itiona! sequence of operation for individualized instruction: (1) the
Il goals of learning are specified in terms of observable student beI
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havior and the conditions under which this behavior is to be exer-
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the learner begins a particular course of instruction, and the capabi'lities are assessed as to their relevancy to the forthcoming
instruction; (3) educational alternatives adaptive to the initial profile of the student are presented to him and the student selects or
is assigned to one of these alternatives; (4) pupils' performance is
monitored and continuously assessed as the pupil proceeds to learn;
(5) instruction proceeds as a function of the relationship between
measures of pupil performance, available instructional alternative,
and criteria of competence; (6) as instruction proceeds, data is
generated for monitoring and improving the instructional system.
Eding (28: 7) indicated that there were five major trends in
developing an individualized instructional program:
"(1) it is
closely associated with traditional skills and subject matter con-
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tent; (2) it mirrors the influence of the child-centered approach;
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different reason; (4) it develops a means to keep the skills and subject matter relevant in terms of the content of the society in which
those behaviors will be used."
In The Handbook for Developing Individualized Instruction in
Continuation Education (33: 8), it was pointed out that "the under ....
lying function of an individualized program places a responsibility
for education upon the pupils.
The teacher acts as a guide to help
the pupil develop and understand his own needs and educational
goals.''
Beery (27: 98) concurred with this idea that a major purpose of
an individualized instructional program is that each pupil must be
enabled to realize his own full potential.
Beery further stated that
there are three kinds of attitudes that influence learning:
{1} posi-
tive attitudes toward persons promote the feeling of belonging and
acceptance; (2) favorable attitudes toward learning enhance the role
of the teacher and the role of the learner; and (3} receptive attitudes
towardsdiscovery promote enthusiasm for learning.
A review of the literature on individualized instruction revealed
a consensus of opinion that the major objectives in developing an
individualized program are dependent upon the needs of the pupil.
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Contract Teaching
Due to the sparseness of professional literature regarding
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contract teaching as an innovative practice, the writer was unable
to elaborate in depth on this area.
Definition of contract teaching.
Eding (28: 20) defined contract
teaching as an arrangement that provides almost the maximum in
pupil freedom of choice.
Not only does the pupil have a great deal
to say about the kind of learning activities in which be will engage,
but be also has available a rich learning resource center which con-
narily would be involved.
This is accomplished by having each
pupil at the beginning of each day map out how he plans to spend
the day.
A feedback system is employed so that the child does not
spend an entire day making out a plan.
Each day's plan is checked
and his progress is monitored by a teacher.
decides what contract he will work on.
It is the learner who
If desired materials are
not available, some alternatives will be worked out and approved
by the teacher.
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Purpose of contract teaching.
Eding (28: 7) stated that contract
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teaching emphasizes learning processes and the methods to make
learning enjoyable.
The major purpose is to build relaxed, flexible
attitudes and approaches to learning, not a sequenced, highly structured, predetermined series of learning experiences.
Many teachers are now using the contract teaching practice and
find it very helpful.
Some of these teachers also are using teacher
aides to enhance their program.
Teacher -Aide Program
One of the common complaints of teachers has to do with the
size of their classes.
Most teachers feel that they cannot have as
effective an instructional program with large groups of pupils as
they can with smaller groups.
Some districts have worked out their
own solution for solving the problem of classroom size through use
of paraprofessional groups or teacher aides.
The use of the paid
paraprofessional assistants in elementary schools has received a
great deal of attention in recent years.
Miles (31:7) reported that
as early as 1952 innovations involving teacher aides were introduced in Bay City (Michigan) School District.
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Definition of teacher -aide program.
The terms paraprofes-
sional and teacher aides are used interchangeably by some groups;
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however, the teacher aide is one of several kinds of paraprofessionals.
Olivero (21:35) stated that "teacher aides are persons who
perform three general categories of service:
(a) supervisory tasks
such as helping pupils cross the street or meet the buses, walking
pupils to the restroom, supervising the cafeteria and monitoring
the halls; (b) clerical typing tasks such as running the ditto machine,
grading objective -type tests, locating materials in the library, and
arranging for use of audiovisual equipment; (c) instructional-type
tasks such as performing relatively low-level instructional jobs
(e. g., reading reinforcement activities or arithmetic drills), and
occasionally supervising the class when the regular teacher must
leave the room.
Many educators are strongly negative about aides
having any responsibility for actual academic instruction.
Fantini and Weinstein
(6:236) wrote that ''a teacher aide is one
who allocates much of the multitude of clerical, routine teaching,
and managerial duties to free the professional teacher to use his
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training and experiences creatively inside and outside the classroom:
in planning more effective instructional programs." It was also
revealed in the literature that aides in the classroom have been
accompanied by a recognition that there may be better ways to
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that the only viable approach is to reduce class size.
Purposes of the teacher -aide program.
Heffernan and Todd
(29: 149} indicated that having the teacher aide gave the pupils more
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opportunity to work with many adults who understood and liked them.!
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Bilingual aides from the community were employed and trained to
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assist in communicating with the parents of pupils of Mexican or
Spanish background.
and welcome visitors.
These parents came to the school as frequent
The aides were able to interpret the purpose
of the program to other parents.
Olivero (21: 34} stated that teacher
aides help to reduce and eliminate those teaching activities which
do not require handling by a college graduate.
Fantini and Wein-
stein wrote that presence of the teacher aides contributes to teacher
self-esteem and job satisfaction, thereby reducing the rate of turnover in teaching personnel.
Teacher aides often play an invaluable
role in aiding the classroom teacher.
Also, aides often can help
bridge a gap in parent-teacher rapport.
Parent-Teacher Conferences
There are several different devices in the category of faceto -face reporting procedures.
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The most common of these is the
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parent
-te~cher ~onference,
usual!~~
whic:-
conducted in the s chooll
building routinely by advance appointment, with the teacher giving
general direction to the conversation.
Successful conferences be-
tween parents and school personnel grow out of an understanding of
factors important in the developmental growth of children.
The
parent and teacher are mutually concerned about helping the child
to gain the knowledge, skills, and attitudes essential to successful
living.
Definition of the parent-teacher conference.
Goodlad
(8: 123)
defined parent-teacher conferencing as the approach most universally advocated in current literature as the most fruitful and effective single means available for improving education.
Otto and his
colleagues {10:125) described the parent-teacher conference as an
outstanding feature of an adequate reporting plan conducted on an
individual basis.
Heffernan and Todd {29: 54) stated that the parent-
teacher conference affords opportunity for parents and teachers to
arrive at common goals appropriate to the pupil's stage of
development.
In the Pasadena Unified School District's Manual of Instruction
for Elementary Education, parent-teacher. conferencing is defined
as a report of the pupil's strengths and needs as an individual, his
growth in terms of the teacher's understanding of his ability, and
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his progress in terms of established district grade norms.
The
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teacher conference also provides a setting in which the teacher and
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parent may plan ways to help the child during the school year.
A variety of purposes for establishing parent-teacher conferences
were cited in the literature.
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Purposes of the parent-teacher conference.
The major purpose i
of a parent-teacher conference is to establish a working relationship between the parent and the school involving the progress of the
pupil.
Rice (34: 42 -43) listed the following purposes for holding
parent-teacher conferences:
1.
To discuss reasons why a child is not working up to his
potential
2.
To explore causes for discipline problems
3.
To discuss various adjustment problems
4.
To discuss factors that may be related to recent
deterioration in work habits of the pupil
5.
To identify and find help for any lack of ability a pupil
may have
D'Evelyn (26: 3) pointed out that there are two important steps
in a parent-teacher conference:
(1) familiarizing oneself with all
available information concerning the parents and pupils, and
I (2) making provisions for the aims and purposes of the conference
I to be achieved. The parent-teacher conference is also an essential
L_
I
2.3
literature.
However, in reviewing the professional literature, the
writer found little printed material on innovative practices of the
nongraded progress report.
The Nongraded Progress Report
The evaluating and reporting of pupil progress are based upon
various kinds of evidence.
Many pertinent facts that exist about a
pupil, his background, his history, his relationship with others,
his behavior in and out of school, and his academic achievement
are a few facts that must be considered in evaluating a pupil's
progress.
Definition of nongraded progress reports.
Goodlad {8:107)
defined the nongraded progress report as the exchange process
that is known as home-school communication wherein information
about the pupil's needs and progress is provided by both parties
of the relationship.
Heffernan and Todd (2.9: 12.3) concurred with
Goodlad in stating that reporting is a form of communication between the school and the parent regarding pupil progress.
The Thomas Jefferson Primary School, in the Pasadena Unified School District, has used the nongraded progress reports for
:
;
I
I
.
,
L-...---,·~·--~--~--·~-~-~---~------·--·-~---------·--·- -------~---~---~---------·--------~~-··-····;
24
as follows:
seldom, usually, and consistently, covering all cur-
I riculum categories.
I
The written conference report was sent home
to parents four times a year.
A face-to-face parent-teacher con-
!
I ference was arranged by the teacher twice a
year.
In these face-
'
to-face meetings or conferences, the teacher and parents gained
mutual understanding and helpful information about the pupils.
There were several reasons cited in the literature for changing
from use of report cards to the nongraded progress report.
The
major purpose was to establish free exchange of information between the school and parents. regarding the academic progress of
the pupil.
Purposes of the nongraded progress report.
Gocidlad (8: 11 0)
pointed out that every public school has the obligation to provide
parents with three kinds of information about the individual pupil:
(1) a complete and accurate picture of the pupil's own potentiality
and the extent to which his progress in school measures up to that
potential; '(2) an approximate description of the relative standing of
the pupil within the class and his own school; (3) an approximate
and Todd (29: 123 -124) indicated that their purpose for developing
l
'-~~.·~·-·---~-~~~----~·----~---~-------~~------·~~------*·----·-----~---~-------~-~----·----------~----
25
,--------·--·
Ia
nongraded progress report was to provide for a descriptive
I
evaluation of pupil progress rather than using letter or check
1
symbols.
I
I
I
Little information concerning the innovative Miller -Unruh
Reading Program was found in the literature.
'
I
l
l.
Miller-Unruh Reading Program
On July 4, 1965, Governor Edmund Brown signed the Miller-
I. Unruh Basic Reading Act,
I by the Speaker
authored by Senator George Miller and
of the Assembly, Jesse Unruh, for special elemen-
tary school reading instructional programs, making it a part of the
California Education Code.
The Act was directed toward reading
success for pupils in the primary grades, and it provided funds for
salary payments for reading specialists, for scholarships, and for
developing teaching skills.
It also provided salary payments for
employment of professional librarians.
The guidelines for Miller -Unruh Reading Programs (25: 1)
stated that the Miller- Unruh Act may help achieve "a prevention
of reading disabilities at the earliest possible time in the educational career of the pupil." The program is voluntary for those
districts that maintain grades 1, 2, and 3.
l
l-------------------------------------------·---~-- -
I
i
II
_________ _j
26
r - -..
---j
-----·----------·-----------~·-··-·-------·---
Purposes of the Miller -Unruh Reading Program.
The
Miller -Unruh Act {25:4) focuses upon four major purposes:
(1) the
diagnosis of actual or anticipated reading disability; (2) the prevention of potential and correction of actual reading disability; {3) the
assessment of the developmental aspects of child growth and development as these may affect "beginning" reading; {4) the development
of positive attitudes toward reading.
The innovative practice known as the Reading Profile is used
currently by the Pasadena Unified School District.
This practice
was begun in September 1970.
The Reading Profile
In the Curriculum Guide of Behavioral Objects for Reading
{24: 14), the Reading Profile is described as a guide of behavioral
objectives to help the teacher develop test items for each skill considered necessary in developing the learner as a better reader.
When the learner has shown mastery of all objectives listed for a
given skill at a given level, the teacher is to initial the appropriate
space on the Reading Profile.
The learner is expected to move
systematically from one objective to the next as mastery occurs,
regardless of his grade level.
It is suggested that testing for
mastery of a given skill be delayed long enough to ensure that the
I
I
I
~--'--··---------··-·------·-···--···----·---·-··--------·-·-----------·------------~-------J
27
r-----------------------
rlearner has mastered and can utilize each skill.
I level on the profile for
The instructional
each learner is determined by the teacher
through administering the informal reading inventory.
Further
help for the teacher may be obtained by consulting the specialist
reading teacher assigned to his or her building.
Purpose of the Reading Profile.
Reading Profiles have been
developed to provide a sequential program of skills to enable the
teacher and learner to evaluate specific learning in the reading
process (24:6).
The primary meaning of the Reading Profile con-
cerns the mental or intellectual process of the learner as it applies
to the cognitive domain of knowledge.
The diagnostic reading skills have been organized into the
following categories:
word recognition, comprehension, study
skills, and oral reading skills, which are in turn expanded in
detail.
In addition to the Reading Profile, a Mathematics Profile was
introduced at the same time.
The Mathematics Profile
In The Mathematics Curriculum Guide, K-Grade 6 (30: 16), of
I
I
I
the Pasadena Unified School District, it was stated that the Mathe-
I
matics Profiles have been designed to ass'ist in ·developing an
L__________________________________.
J
28
~::ve approach: ma~=matics-.--~he guide includes placement l
tests, diagnostic tests, and individual pupil profiles.
These mate-
!
I
rials are designed to help the teacher decide what pupils should
!I
learn and enable the parent to know what, in fact, they have learned.
J
Purpose of the Mathematics Profile.
According to The
Mathematics Curriculum Guide, K-Grade 6 {30: 16}, there were
three major reasons for developing the Mathematics Profiles:
(1} to help determine what concepts and skills of mathematics the
children should learn; (2} to help identify which teaching strategies
are most effective; and {3} to find out what the children have learned.
To accommodate the Spanish or other -language -speaking pupil,
a linguistic innovation is currently being presented in the elementary schools.
English-as-a-Second-Language
Gauntlett (7: 14) pointed out the following purposes for Englishas -a-second-language:
(1) to develop skills in listening to English
as speech suitable to the physical, mental, and emotional development of the students for whom they are intended.
These skills
should provide a suitable basis for learning reading without deciphering or translating and for acquiring facility in ordinary
----~------~------·---w---~---------·--·---·-----·1
29
Iconversation; (2;:-:::lop s~ills in oral expression as abasis of
I::a:n~::u::1r :~:pat:::~t:~:::::i::::i:~s si::::t:::a::g(=~:lish
develop skills in writing English so that these skills may prove of
practical value in situations in which writing is needed.
Definition of English -as -a-second -language.
Allen
(l: 116)
stated that English taught as a second language refers usually to a
situation where English becomes the language of instruction in the
school and replaces pupils 1 primary language or home language
which has been other than English.
IL
____________________ _ _ j;
30
r--------·----------------·------CHAPTER III
l
REVIEW OF INNOVATIVE PRACTICES AT
THOMAS JEFFERSON PRIMARY SCHOOL
The writer of this paper interviewed the principal of Thomas
Jefferson Primary School to obtain pertinent background informa-
I
tion about the school.
The writer asked particular questions and
I recorded on tape the responses given by the principal of this pri-
I! mary
school in which a number of innovative practices have been
introduced and are currently in use.
Socioeconomic Background
Thomas Jefferson Primary School in 1971-1972 had an enrollment of approximately 975 pupils of which 30 percent had Spanish
surnames, 27 percent were Black, and 40 percent were Caucasian.
The other 3 percent of the enrollment was comprised of Japanese,
Korean, Chinese, Indonesian, and American-Indian children.
Some of the families of these children were from extremely
low-poverty pockets and some were from a low-income group earning approximately $3,000 to $4,000 a year.
Two years ago, the
average annual income of this school's families was about $9,000.
I
I
I
I
The principal stated that this change downward was probably caused
by the building of the Foothill Freeway, which removed many of the
.
1
L-------··--·~·------------·---·-------------------·------j
31
!
affluent homes.
There is a high mobility rate among pupils in this
I
1
school, with approximately 50 percent of the pupils being new
enrollees each semester.
The economic situation appears to con-
tribute to transiency in this area.
arrive and leave the school.
Each month 30 to 40 pupils
About 40 percent of the school popu-
lation remains constant.
Thomas Jefferson Primary School changed from a standard
kindergarten-through-grade-six elementary school to a
kindergarten-through-grade-three primary school in 1970.
The
school population was increased, however, by an additional 50
primary-level pupils, who were transferred from other schools.
Also, as a result of the school district's integration program,
about 400 additional pupils were bused into this primary school.
The teaching staff at Thomas Jefferson Primary School includes
' 31 classroom teachers, in kindergarten through third grade, representing a variety of ethnic groups.
There are two Miller-Unruh
reading teachers, three English-as -a-second-language teachers,
one part -time speech therapist, one teacher for the gifted, two
I ESEA Title I coordinators,
1
and one resource teacher.
The admin-
istrative staff includes a principal, a vice -principal, and an opportunity counselor.
l~-----·----··--·-------·--··-----
- - - - - · - - - - ·---------------~I
32
,..------------------·----·----On February 6, 1972, a new building was constructed.
I
Known
as CORE, the building represented the latest and most practical
housing for teaching and learning.
It was specifically designed to
facilitate open-structure classroom teaching.
The open-structure
classroom makes it possible to have an informal atmosphere in
which students can move freely from group instruction to independent study.
Equipment and materials are centrally located and
available either on a class or individual basis.
Teachers are
readily available to each other for consultation in their specialized
areas and for planning together.
Students benefit from the varied
teaching approaches, better supervision, and the opportunity for
wide social contacts.
Why is the new building called CORE?
It was constructed
with self-contained units, housing seven air-conditioned classrooms, a resource and materials center, a teacher's workroom,
lavatories, nurse's office, and an administrative area.
All of the
interior is carpeted and furnished in colors pleasing to children
and conducive to the learning atmosphere.
By duplicating this
building with identical units on other school sites, the district was
able to achieve high educational values in an economical fashion.
The new buildings have been designed so that classes can be
organized in a variety of ways, including large- and small-group
I
!
l
________________ _J
33
-l
~-
I instruction,
I
team teaching, or self-contained classroom instruction.
Movable interior partitions made this possible with a minimum of
effort.
Although the new building will be available for use by all
I
of the students, those who are housed in relocatable classrooms
may take advantage of the other CORE facilities {e. g. , the library
and the resource center).
I
The principal noted that the teachers at Thomas Jefferson
Primary School have shown increased enthusiasm since they have
participated in the Institute of Development of Educational Activities League.
The IDEA League gives teachers an opportunity to
participate in a multitude of activities.
These activities include:
taking special courses in education at the University of California,
Los Angeles; observing the work of the League of Cooperating
Schools, and participating in meetings and conferences with John
Goodlad, Dean of the Graduate School of Education at the University
of California, Los Angeles and author of The Non-Graded School;
and meetings with Bruce Joyce, Professor of Education at Columbia
University.
I
l
All of the above sources presented a good opportunity
for exposure of teachers to innovative ideas which might stimulate
changes in educational attitudes and procedures.
During 1971 -1972, the League of Cooperating Schools expanded
from 18 to 24 schools in order to provide a wider range of
I
34
rsocioeconomic levels and to i~~tiat~ teac~er training.
Thomas
l
Jefferson Primary School was host to a semimonthly meeting of
the League's principals and teacher representatives in February
1972.
One of the League 1 s meetings in which all of the schools
participated was held in Oceanside, California; and six of the small
I
II
i
I
I
1
{
discussion groups and demonstrations held at that League meeting
were headed by Thomas Jefferson Primary School faculty and staff
members.
!
l
Thomas Jefferson Primary School faculty and staff also
attended the bimonthly League meetings that were held at different
League schools throughout the school year, 1971-1972.
A survey
which was conducted in this school revealed that the faculty and
the staff were particularly interested in three areas.
These were
inservice education, communication, and evaluation.
The faculty
and staff at Thomas Jefferson Primary School were later involved
in collecting data related to these three areas of interest.
The
Director of League Teacher Activities met with the Jefferson
School faculty and staff in the fall to find out ways they felt inservice
education should and could be carried out in their school.
Among
other things, they suggested that some of the inservice education
classes should be devoted to the following:
1.
Nongraded teaching
2.
Nongraded progress reporting
I
I
Ii
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _!
35
r-----------------------1
3.
Mathematics profiles
4.
Reading profiles
5.
English-as -a-second-language classes
Some differences of opinion among staff members were
observed by the principal of Thomas Jefferson Primary School.
For example, there appeared to be differences of opinion in defining innovation; however, discuss ion allowed the faculty an opportunity for free exchange of constructive ideas which resulted in
consensus concerning the best methods to facilitate children's
learning.
A number of ideas were then put into practice.
Kinder-
gar ten and first-grade teachers, for example, decided that there
was a real need for kindergarten-through-first-grade or
kindergarten-through-second-grade classes for children who had
had experiences in nursery school or in Headstart.
Many of the
older and more experienced kindergarten children were placed in
these classes.
It was discovered that many were so mature that
they were able to stay all day after a short period of time.
Several
students were double-promoted from kindergarten into second
grade the following year.
Children were allowed to move at their
own rate in the skill areas while participating with their peer group
in a variety of activities.
This organizational plan appealed to
many parents.
L ____. ---------·-------·---------------·------·---~------------ - -
I
36
Another idea which was implemented was the establishing of
a class for boys only.
The boys were channeled into a variety of
boy-oriented, thought-provoking activities that were challenging
mentally as well as physically, and many positive things resulted
from this grouping.
Visitors from all of Southern California visited the Resource
Learning Center which was established at Thomas Jefferson Primary School as a result of the earlier meetings.
Each week over
700 students were admitted to work with 30 "free -choice" enrichment activities.
The ESEA Title I program provided instructional aides, educational materials and supplies, field trips, psychiatric care, tutorial
programs, and inservice education programs for instructional aides
and teachers.
The ESEA Title I program at Thomas Jefferson
Primary School during 1971 -1972 was a "pulloue' program for
grades 1 through 3 and an "input" program for kindergarten.
The
children achieved one month's growth in reading and in mathematics
for each month they were in the program.
A Learning Disability Group class was started at this school
in 1970.
Of the students tested as potential members of this class,
ten were selected after testing and parent conferencing.
This pro-
gram was extremely important to those students who had learning
I
L, _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
----- - - - - - - - '
37
problems which were caused by emotional, neurological, or
I
physiological needs, and which are difficult to resolve in the regu-
! lar
I
i
;
classroom.
This year 140 students participated in a "pullout"
Ibilingual program.
Many of these students were later sent back
I
to regular classrooms better equipped to meet the everyday chal-
llenges in English.
I
The Instructor magazine has published an article on innova-
I
I
tions, multi-age grouping, and team teaching at Thomas Jefferson
i
II Primary School. (3 7) The use of teaming and multi-age groups
! increased as a part of the continuous search for better ways of
I teaching students.
I
By the end of the 1971-1972 school year, only
five classrooms were not working on a regular teaming basis, and
four of those five were involved with open-structure classrooms.
The teachers who worked in the open-structure classrooms got
to share and discuss ideas.
Their children did not work together,
but the effects of cooperative planning on the part of the teachers
were quite evident.
Parent Involvement
Parents in the community had the privilege of requesting
specific teachers of multi -age group classes for their children.
,.
___________________________
___________j
i
I
38
~
I
For the first
tim~
in almost five
ye~=r-e~ts
l
became a
vital part of the total program at Thomas Jefferson Primary School
this last year.
Il
Many parents volunteered to participate in Parent-
Teacher Association activities, and others contributed their services to the school itself.
The new CORE building has many inter-
ested parents and community groups excited about what is happening
i
at Thomas Jefferson Primary School.
In addition to the increased
parental involvement, more than one-half of the staff including
instructional aides, custodians, and administrators were involved
weekly in the Schools Without Failure Program at Thomas J efferson Primary School during the 1971-1972 school year.
I
L_____________________
------
__________ I
__,
39
r·------------- ------·--·---,.,·-----·---·-·· ·-- -··---·--------------------------------------------·-1
I
;
!
I!
'
t
CHAPTER IV
,
A SURVEY OF STAFF OPINION REGARDING
INNOVATIVE PRACTICES AT
THOMAS JEFFERSON PRIMARY SCHOOL
In the spring of 1972, three survey instruments were used by
the writer to obtain opinions of the school staff regarding innovative practices.
Ninety percent of the staff responded.
In the previous chapter, the writer has presented various
innovative practices used at the Thomas Jefferson Primary School
. in Pasadena, California.
The findings of this survey are reported
in this chapter of the manuscript.
In the spring of 1972, the
responses of the participants were analyzed and tabulated.
In
the following tables, the findings are numerically recorded.
Survey of Teacher
P~rticipants
In the teachers' responses, it was found that of the racial or
ethnic groups represented, twenty-six were Caucasian, four were
Negro, three were Mexican-American, and three were OtherCaucasian. *
*European, Swedish, Puerto Rican, Israeli, Dutch Armenians,
Egyptians, Polish.
40
TABLE 1
PARTICIPANTS BY RACIAL OR ETHNIC GROUPS
Race or Ethnic Group
ll
II.
i
4
Negro
Caucasian
Other -Caucasian
Mexican-American
Oriental
I!
!
Number of Participants
26
3
3
0
----------------------------------------~--------------------------
Regarding age groups, ten participants were found to be between
twenty and twenty-nine years of age, and nine were between thirty
and thirty-nine.
The largest number of participants was between
the ages of forty and forty-nine.
Five of them were forty or more
years old.
TABLE 2
PARTICIPANTS BY AGE GROUP
Age Group
Number of Participants
20-29
30-39
40-49
50 and over
10
9
12
5
!
---------------------··--------------------------------------·-------------.J
41
r--~-·---~-------·~k~·-----~--~--
-~
----- . --
,----·~-----
---·----- ·---
-----------~-----~--
-~·
-------·-·----
---.. . . . .
·-------~-~-
---~------~-,
l
I
Regarding total number of years of teaching experience, it was
! found
l
that the majority of the teachers had less than ten years' ex-
perience.
Nine of them had taught between one and five years, and
ten had taught between six and ten years.
It was found that five
teachers had had from eleven to fifteen years of experience; seven.
had had from sixteen to twenty years; and only five had had more
than twenty years of teaching experience.
(See Table 3.}
TABLE 3
TOTAL YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Number of Years
l-5
6-10
11-15
16-20
21-25
26 or more
Number of Participants
9
10
5
7
4
1
The number of years of teaching at the Thomas Jefferson
Primary School by the participants in this study is shown in
Table 4.
Nine teachers had had one to five years of teaching ex-
perience at Thomas Jefferson Primary School, and eight had had
from six to ten years 1 experience teaching at this school.
Six
teachers had taught from eleven to fifteen years, eleven had taught
i
--~---~--~---------~--·-···-··-··--···--·--- ···-·----·---·-·--····--- ··--··-··--·~·-·--------- ·---·---------------------------· _..J
42
,--------·-··--------·-··-·---·--·-·------·-·-·---------------,----------~
I sixteen to
twenty years, and two teachers had taught at the Thomas
Jefferson Primary School for twenty or more years.
TABLE 4
YEARS OF TEACHING AT THOMAS JEFFERSON
PRIMARY SCHOOL
Number of Years
Number of Participants
1-5
6-10
11-15
16-20
21 or over
9
8
6
11
2
In Table 5, the grade levels are shown at which the participants
had taught.
At least five teachers had had experience teaching at
each elementary school grade level and, in addition, three teachers
had had experience at the junior high school level and six others
had had experience at the senior high school level.
.
43
r
TABLE 5
1
'================================
I
I
GRADE LEVELS IN WHICH PARTICIPANTS
WERE EXPERIENCED
I ______________G__r_a_d_e__L__e_v_e_l--------------;--N__u_m__b_e_r__o_f__P_a_r_t_i_c_i_p_a_n_t_s__
I
Kinder gar ten
First grade
Second grade
Third grade
Fourth grade
Fifth grade
Sixth grade
Junior High
Senior High
5
8
9
6
6
5
6
3
6
Responses Regarding Practices or Programs
Used by Teachers
The three practices or programs that were utilized most by
the teachers were individualized instruction, tlle teacher -aide
program, and the English-as -a-second-language program.
four of the teachers used contract teaching.
Only
Most of the teachers
used more than one of the innovative practices or programs.
I
I
1
!
.
i
L--~·--------·~--------------·---------·-----··--·······--·------------ ...-------..--·--·-·------------------_1
44
,----·--
l
TABLE 6
INNOVATIVE PRACTICES IMPLEMENTED
BY PARTICIPANTS
Innovative Practice or Program
I
II
!
Number of Participants
Who Utilized Each
Practice
Contract teaching
Individualized instruction
Miller -Unruh reading program
Teacher -aide program
Learning disability program
English-as -a -second-language program
Open-structure program
Structured program
Nongraded teaching
No responses
I
II Responses
I
4
24
14
20
5
20
14
7
16
2
Regarding Pupils
Concerning the percentage of ethnic distribution in the present
classes, twenty-seven classes reported between thirty to fortynine percent Caucasian pupils.
Thirteen classes reported between
eleven and thirty percent Negro, and twenty-one classes reported
between 31 and 49 percent Mexican-American pupils.
Other-
Caucasians, Oriental, and other racial distribution accounted for
zero to 10 percent for all classes.
I
L.-------~----------------------------------------------
I
J
45
r------------~--------·-····----------
---- ·------- -- ..... --·- ....... ____ -------------·--------------
-----..,I
i
:
TABLE 7
1
'1'_.================================================
,
ETHNIC DISTRIBUTION OF PUPILS
Percentage of
Pupils Per Class
Ethnic Origin
of Pupils
Number of Classes
Reporting This
Percentage
0
1-10
11-30
31-49
50-75
75-100
Caucasian
1
0
0
27
0
0
0
1-10
11-30
31-49
50-75
76-100
Negro
1
3
13
11
0
0
0
1-10
11-30
31-49
50-75
76-100
Mexican -American
0
0
5
21
1
1
0
1-10
11-30
31-49
50-75
76-100
Other-Caucasian
12
16
0
0
0
0
0
1-10
11-30
31-49
50-75
76-100
Oriental
13
15
0
0
0
0
.•·
46
~~
... ·
================T=A=B=L==E=7==(=C=o=n=ti=n=u=e=d=)===================
.
ETHNIC DISTRIBUTION OF PUPILS
Percentage of
Pupils Per Class
Ethnic Origin
of Pupils
Number of Classes
Reporting This
Percentage
e_r_i_c~a-n---In--d_i_a_n--~---------2-1-----------
1----------0-------------+--A-m
__
l!
:
;~~0
0~7
31-49
50-75
76-100
0
The number of participants who identified each of the ability
levels - above average, average, below average, or slow - as
being the ability level of most of the pupils in their classes is
reported in Table 8.
The ability level of the pupils in their classes
was described by most of these teachers as being "average.••
TABLE 8
ABILITY LEVEL OF PUPILS AS REPORTED
BY PARTICIPANTS
Ability Level of Pupils
Above average
Average
Below average
Slow
No response
I
Il____ _
Number of Participants
0
24
6
0
4
____j
!
47
r::onses of Participants Regarding the
Effectiveness of Innovative Practices
I
l
In the category of effectiveness of the various innovative
!
practices, the individualized instruction and teacher -aide programs '
were rated by the teachers who used them as being "very effective."
The nongraded program, the Miller-Unruh reading program, and
the English-as-a-second-language program were rated as being
"effective." In addition, both the open-structure and structured
practices were rated as being "effective." The learning disability
program and contract teaching were rated as being "sometimes
effective. 11
48
TABLE 9
RESPONSES OF PARTICIPANTS REGARDING
EFFECTIVENESS OF INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
AND PROGRAMS
Cll
Q)
>
......
....
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~
Q)
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....u
Q)
Q)
s
......
.... .....>
Q)
.....
Q)
>
>. ......
u
.........u
0'+-4
ro~
Q)
s~
Q)
~
Q)
Q)~
'+4
'+4
:>lil
lil
U)Jil
~lil
How effective did you feel contract teaching was for you during the past year?
2
.3
5
2
How effective did you consider contract
teaching to be for the particular pupils
who were assigned to your class?
2
2
3
1
How effective was contract teaching in
terms of the academic growth of your
pupils?
3
3
4
1
How effective did you feel individualized
instruction was for you during the past
year?
10
13
2
1
How effective did you consider individualized instruction to be for the particular pupils who were assigned to your
class?
11
14
2
0
How effective was individualized instruction in terms of the academic growth of
your pupils ?
7
17
0
0
Innovative Practice or Program
ResEonses Regarding Contract Teaching
Responses to Individualized Instruction
L_
_ _____ j
49
TABLE 9 (Continued)
RESPONSES OF PARTICIPANTS REGARDING
EFFECTIVENESS OF INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
AND PROGRAMS
Ul
Q)
Q)
Q)
•.-I
•.-1
•r-1
.,..,
0
Q)
0
:;:.._ •.-1
..-~-+->
Q)
0
J.f Q)
>
-+->
Innovative Practice or Program
Q)
s>
s .2
Q)
::.-o
J.f Q)
v:t:l
:>~
>
-+->
Q)
'+-!
'+-!
~
-+-> -+->
o'+-~
({).~
>
ro:t:l
~~
Responses to Nongraded Teaching
How effective did you feel teaching in the
nongraded class was for you during the
past year?
10
9
5
1
How effective did you consider nongraded
teaching to be for the particular pupils
who were assigned to your class?
7
12
5
0
How effective was nongraded teaching in
terms of the academic growth of your
pupils?
8
9
2
0
How effective did you feel the learning
disability program was for you during the
school year?
2
1
4
1
How effective did you consider the learning disability program to be for the particular pupils who were assigned to your
class?
2
1
3
1
How effective was the learning disability
program in terms of the academic growth
of your pupils ?
2
2
2
0
Responses to Learning Disability Program
l__. _
50
TABLE 9 (Continued)
RESPONSES OF PARTICIPANTS REGARDING
EFFECTIVENESS OF INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
AND PROGRAMS
-
rn
Q)
Q)
•r-1
•r-1
~
~
>
!;>.U
1-1
Q)
>
u
Q)
Q)~
:>~
~
How effective did you feel the English-as -a
second-language program was for you
during the school year?
Q)
s>
u
s .2
Q)
·r-1
·r-f
~
~
Q)
Q)
>
.....Q) u
!:>.
•r-1
1-1
Q)
~
rd~
r:il
O'+i
U)~
~~
12
14
I
0
How effective did you consider the Englishas -a -second-language program to be for
the particular pupils who were assigned to
your class?
13
14
2
0
How effective was the English-as -asecond-language in terms of the academic
growth of your pupils?
12
15
5
0
How effective did you feel the open-structure
program was for you during the school
year?
7
9
5
0
How effective did you consider the openstructure program to be for the particular pupils who were assigned to your class?
7
8
5
0
How effective was the open-structure program in terms of the academic growth of
your pupils ?
7
6
6
0
Innovative Practice or Program
Responses to English-as -a-Second Language
Responses to Open Structure
I
1
t_____________
51
r=
l
TABLE 9 (Continued)
'
RESPONSES OF PARTICIPANTS REGARDING
EFFECTIVENESS OF INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
AND PROGRAMS
I
Ill
Q)
>
·r-1
~
:;..,U
,...
Innovative Practice or Program
Q)
a>::::l
:>ril
Q)
Q)
>
•r-1
~
u
Q)
'+!
'+!
ri1
a>
Q)
·r-1
•r-1
Q)
u
~
~
a~
O'+l
UJril
Q)
>- •r-1>
.-I ~
u
Q)
,...
Q)
ro::::l
~ril
i Responses to Structured Program
!
I
How effective did you feel the structured
program was for you during the school
year?
4
9
4
1
How effective did you consider the structured program to be for the particular
pupils who were assigned to your class?
5
8
6
0
How effective was the structured program
in terms of the academic growth of your
pupils?
5
7
4
0
Responses Regarding Suggestions for Improving
Teaching Programs and Practices at Thomas
Jefferson Primary School
Included in the forty -one suggestions for improving the instructional program at Thomas Jefferson Primary School were recommendations for closer teacher socialization and better staff relationships.
The suggestions stressed the importance of classroom
environment and health standards.
requested.
More instructional aides were
Inservice education ideas in various instructional
l_________________
!
_j
52
r------------·--·-~----·--·-·----.
1
I
techniques were recommended.
-·-
I
It was suggested that parents and
teachers meet for pupil evaluation as well as holiday classroom
1,·.
1:
activities.
Greater utilization of specific staff talents and strengths
was suggested.
It was also suggested that more time and materials
were necessary to preplan mathematics and reading programs.
A larger amount of money to buy library materials was another
recommendation.
Twenty-four of the thirty-six teachers offered
one or more suggestions for instructional program improvement.
Twelve of the forty teacher participants in this study did not
offer any suggestions for improving the teaching programs and
practices at Thomas Jefferson Primary School.
Survey of Paraprofessional Personnel
The responses of the paraprofessional personnel on selected
innovative practices were analyzed and tabulated.
The responses
were organized into the major categories of the questionnaire
itself.
There were eighteen paraprofessional personnel at Thomas
Jefferson'Primary School at the time of this survey, but only
twelve of these responded.
It was found that four of the paraprofessionals were Caucasian,
three were Negro, three were Mexican-American, and two were
from other backgrounds.
----·--------·-----~---------
;
I
I
J
~
~~~-
---·-~~~~
~~~
53
!
------~---~---------··-'---·-------·---·
TABLE 10
PARTICIPANTS BY RACIAL OR ETHNIC GROUPS
Race or Ethnic Group
Number
Negro
Caucasian
Other -Caucasian
Mexican-American
Oriental
Other
3
4
0
3
0
2
The age groups of the paraprofessional personnel are reported
in Table 11.
Four were between the ages of twenty and twenty-nine,
and four between forty and forty-nine; three were in the thirty to
thirty-nine group, and one was in the over -fifty group.
TABLE 11
PARAPROFESSIONAL PERSONNEL BY AGE GROUP
Age Groups
Number
20-29
30-39
40-49
50 and over
4
3
4
I
54
I
It was found that five of the paraprofessional personnel had
between eleven to fifteen years of similar experience.
One para-
professional had had between sixteen to twenty years of experience.
TABLE 12
EXPERIENCE OF PARAPROFESSIONAL PERSONNEL
Years
Number
l-5
6-10
11-15
16-20
21-25
26 and over
3
3
5
I
0
0
Table 13 shows the titles of jobs held by the paraprofessionals
and the number of persons per job.
TABLE I3
JOB TITLES AND NUMBERS
Opportunity
Aide
English-asa-SecondLanguage
Aide
Miller -Unruh
Aide
ESEATI
Aide
District
Aide
2
2
2
5
I
IL______,______ _
I
55
--,
1 - = s t of the paraprofessionals had served between one to five
I
I
years of their experience at Thomas Jefferson Primary School.
TABLE 14
EXPERIENCE OF PARAPROFESSIONALS AT
THOMAS JEFFERSON PRIMARY SCHOOL
Years
1-5
6-10
11-15
16-20
21 or over
Number
0
2
3
0
0
It was also found that of the twelve paraprofessional personnel
who responded, ten were assigned to Thomas Jefferson Primary
I
School and two selected the school themselves.
The grade-level assignments of the paraprofessional personnel
I
!
were found to range from kindergarten through third grade.
I
·-------1
56
TABLE
:~-----·----------l,
=================================================
GRADE-LEVEL ASSIGNMENT OF
PARAPROFESSIONAL PERSONNEL
Grade Level
Number
Kinder gar ten
First grade
Second grade
Third grade
4
I
3
3
3
The four practices from the Institute for Development of
Educational Activities (IDEA) which were reported by the paraprofessionals to be utilized most in the classroom and to be very
effective were individualized instruction, teacher -aide program,
learning disability program, and English-as -a-second-language
program.
The teacher -aide, learning disability program, and
structured program were recorded as being effective.
Contract
teaching and open-structured programs were found to be sometimes
' effective.
I
L-----~
_j
57
l
TABLE 16
I
l
RESPONSES OF PARAPROFESSIONAL PERSONNEL
REGARDING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF
INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
I'Jl
<!)
<!)
+.>
""
+.>
""
u
k <I>
<I>~
'H
'H
>
>-u
Response
:>ril
>
<I>
ril
<!)
<!)
8 >
+.> +.>
·r-1
......
u
8~
Q'H
<I>
U)ri!
<!)
>
>- ""
+.>
u
.-I
<I>
J..t
<I>
ro~
~r:Ll
CONTRACT TEACHING
How effective do you consider contract
teaching to be?
1
1
2
INDIVIDUALIZED TEACHING
How effective do you consider individualized instruction to be?
6
1
2
9
3
1
1
5
2
2
1
5
2
2
1
5
5
3
1
8
MILLER-UNRUH READING PROGRAM
How effective do you consider the MillerUnruh reading program to be?
TEACHER-AIDE PROGRAM
How effective do yo\1. consider the teacheraide program to be?
LEARNING DISABILITY PROGRAM
How effective do you consider the learning disability program to be?
ENGLISH-AS-A-SECOND LANGUAGE
How effective do you consider Englishas -a -second-language to be?
I
OPEN-STRUCTURE PROGRAM
I How effective do you consider the open-
I
1
1
structure program to be?
L __
.•
_____ I
.....)
58
r,
===================T=A=B==L=E=l=6==(C=o=n=t=in=u=e=d=)=================
RESPONSES OF PARAPROFESSIONAL PERSONNEL
REGARDING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF
INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
til
Q)
Q)
s
Q)
>
.....
+-'
>
.....
+-'
.....
.....>
+-' +-'
Q)
Q)
s~
:;:....U
J.l
Response
Q)
vtl
:>~
u
'+I
'+I
~
Q)
u
0'+-1
U)~
Q)
>- .....>
.-l+-'
Q)
u
J.l
Q)
rotl
~~
STRUCTURED PROGRAM
How effective do you consider the
structured program to be?
2
2
4
2
2
IDEA PROGRAM
How effective do you consider the Institute
for Development of Educational Activities
(IDEA) program to be?
MILLER-UNRUH READING PROGRAM
How effective was the Miller -Unruh reading
program in terms of the academic growth
of your pupils ?
8
10
2
0
How effective did you feel the teacheraide program was for you during the
school year?
11
8
5
2
How effective did you consider the
teacher -aide program to be for the
particular pupils who were assigned
to your class?
11
10
4
1
8
10
5
2
TEACHER-AIDE PROGRAM
I
I'
How effective was the teacher -aide program in terms of the academic growth
of your pupils ?
I
L___
---·----------------------.- - - - - - - - - -
59
r-------~-------------
1
lI
Suggestions for Improving the Teaching Practices
at Thomas Jefferson Primary School
The paraprofessional suggestions offered for improving the
instructional program at Thomas Jefferson Primary School included
testing in Spanish and teacher cooperation in under standing and
I
releasing pupils for English-as -a -second-language.
I
Another sug-
gestion was teacher encouragement of aide participation in faculty
meetings.
Intrinsic reward for pupil participation was also
recommended.
Survey of Classified Staff
Responses of the classified staff concerning innovative practices at Thomas Jefferson Primary School were analyzed and
tabulated.
It was found that the majority of the classified staff
interviewed were Caucasian.
>·f
·-------------
bO
l
TABLE 17
================================================= '
CLASSIFIED PARTICIPANTS BY RACIAL
OR ETHNIC GROUPS
Race or Ethnic Group
Number of Participants
Negro
Caucasian
Other-Caucasian
Mexican -American
Oriental
0
3
0
1
0
Age groupings of the classified participants were reported to
be between twenty and forty.
TABLE 18
CLASSIFIED PARTICIPANTS
BY AGE GROUP
Age Group
20-29
30-39
40-49
50 and over
Number of Participants
1
1
2
0
Of the four classified personnel, two had one to five years of
classified experience.
61
TABLE 19
YEARS OF CLASSIFIED EXPERIENCE
Number of Years
Number of Participants
2
1
1
0
0
0
1-5
6-10
11-15
16-20
21-25
26 and over
The job titles are reported in Table 20, with the number of
persons holding each job.
TABLE 20
CLASSIFIED JOB TITLES
Typist Clerk
Substitute
Clerk
Secretary II
1
1
1
Teacher
1
Concerning the experience of the classified staff, it was found
that one person had worked at Thomas Jefferson Primary School for
six years, two had worked between one to two years, and one had
worked less than a year.
Two classified staff members were
1
I
assigned to Thomas Jefferson Primary School and two were selected ·
1
l
by request.
-~---··-----~--
\
I
_I
62
Classified Suggestions for Improvingthe Teaching
Practices at Thomas Jefferson Primary School
Suggestions for improvement of teaching practices were made
by two of the classified staff.
1,!:_,
These suggestions included addi-
I tiona! teacher -aides to reach a ratio of at least one per classroom,
I
i
additional parent-aides (SERVE*) to assist teachers both clerically
and academically with pupils, additional use of resource people
within and outside the district, continued communication between
staff members with sharing of ideas and materials when applicable,
more supplies and an open stockroom, and more physical education
equipment in each classroom and school.
The writer has presented various innovative teaching practices
as utilized at Thomas Jefferson Primary School.
A summary,
conclusions, and recommendations are reported in the next chapter.
1
*SERVE is a volunteer group.
L_ _______________
I
..J
63
,--
CHAPTER V
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS
ll
I
'
Summary
Purpose
The writer of this paper was concerned with a study of innovative practices at the elementary-school level with children with
the following characteristics
who speak English-as ~a-second-
language, whose families change residence frequently, who come
from lower socioeconomic families, who come from a minority
ethnic background.
For these children, traditional methods and
materials seem to be inadequate in meeting their learning needs.
Review of the Literature
The review of the literature on innovative instructional practices revealed that many of these practices were utilized many
years ago, but are now currently being referred to under different
titles.
M;any of the authors used interchangeab-le terms referring
to the same innovative practice.
J
64
~-Innovative Practices at Thomas Jefferson Primary School
I
The innovative practices used at Thomas Jefferson Primary
School involved fundamental changes in the classroom structure
and teaching philosophy of many teachers.
These included many
approaches such as nongraded instruction, graded progress
I
reports, the Miller -Unruh reading program, conference reporting
to parents, teacher -aide programs, English-as -a-second-language
programs, use of mathematics and reading profiles for individualized diagnosis, open-structure programs, structured programs,
and learning disability programs.
The Institute for Development of Educational Activities (IDEA),
a Research Development Division of the University of California,
Los Angeles, has given teachers the opportunity to participate in
many activities.
These include special classes in educational
foundations at the University, work in the leagues of cooperating
schools, and conferences with noted educators.
These activities
have all pertained to innovative teaching practices and changes of
educational attitudes and procedures.
__l
-------------------------·
,
65
.--·-----·-·""-·----·---~---··---------------------
l
1
Survey of Staff of Thomas Jefferson Primary School
The writer of this paper made a survey of teachers' opinions,
paraprofessionals 1 opinions, and classified staff's opinions regarding innovative practices at Thomas Jefferson Primary School.
The most important findings in the survey were the following:
1.
The majority of the staff chose individualized instruction
for use in their classroom.
2.
The teacher -aide is utilized as another teacher in the
classroom.
3.
English-as-a-second-language and the teacher-aide programs are equally important in benefiting the many
Spanish-surnamed students.
4.
The nongraded teaching program and the Miller-Unruh
reading program were ranked fourth among innovative
practices chosen by the staff.
5.
The open-structure program was rated fifth by the staff.
6.
The survey pointed out that several teachers used a
combination of innovative practices rather than one
innovation.
7.
Most of the staff rated their students 1 ability as average
at Thomas Jefferson Primary School.
8.
The innovative practices which were considered to be
most effective at Thomas Jefferson Primary School were
individualized instruction, the nongraded program, the
teacher -aide program, and the English-as -a-secondlanguage program.
9.
The average paraprofessional had from six to fifteen
years of experience.
I
____ __!
66
I
Extensive recommendations for the program were made by the
staff of Thomas Jefferson Primary School, as follows:
I.
Adequate planning time and preparation for teachers as
part of a working day.
2.
Teachers should have the option to team or not, and
should have the opportunity to choose their own team
partners.
3.
Teachers should seek partners who have similar
philosophies.
4.
Teachers should observe a teaming situation, have discussions with people who have been involved in teams
and review printed materials, audio -visual materials,
and audio -visual equipment before beginning team
teaching.
5.
A model program for preschool, kindergarten and first
grade which can be used in a nongraded classroom situation should be developed possibly for next fall.
6.
Input programs should be used rather than pullout programs in order to keep the student in his own classroom
environment.
7.
Extensive teaming and multi-age grouping should be used
to provide optimum student learning.
8.
The student's learning style should be matched with the
teacher's teaching style.
9.
Diagnostic tests should be given to each student to determine weaknesses and a prescription sheet on which the
teacher can assign specific tasks should be used.
10.
Post-tests should be used to assess a student's knowledge
of objectives within a unit of instruction.
l
l---------·~..
---------···------------·--····--~-·-··-··-·--·······
67
Parents should be involved in making suggestions about
program planning, curriculum planning, and equipment.
12.
Parent involvement and participation should include activities designed to make parents aware of the school's instructional endeavors and students 1 progress so that they
can assist in helping their children in the learning process.
13.
Teacher-aides should be involved in the actual instructional program and understand the teacher's techniques
in working with children.
14.
Written and oral communication with the families, the
community, and the education center should be increased
to keep everyone informed and aware of the activities at
Thomas Jefferson Primary School.
15.
A laboratory approach to teacher training should be used
so that the staff and student teachers are aware of innovative changes in education.
16.
Parents should be encouraged to become involved with all
school activities.
17.
Multitext and multimedia approaches with emphasis on
manipulative materials should be used.
18.
A resource teacher should be provided to organize and
code all teaching materials to make them more readily
available for use.
19.
Full-time clerical help should be provided to assist in
the resource room.
20.
A resource teacher should be provided to assist the
classroom teacher in establishing learning centers.
IL---·---~--------·-·---------------··------. ---- ···----···. ------------------------------
68
Conclusions
This writer believes that the receptiveness to change and the
large number of new techniques and programs instituted at Thomas
Jefferson Primary School are a direct result of the IDEA program
of the University of California, Los Angeles.
The opportunity to
discuss, plan, practice, and evaluate as a group and to exchange
ideas and information has led to greater awareness and in-depth
understanding of the needs of the children, the parents, and the
community.
The surveys conducted by the author reflect this awareness,
especially in the areas of innovative practices used and recommendations for further improvement.
Involvement seems to be the key to professional growth for
the school and is extended outward into the home and community.
Innovative practices evidently reflect the involvement of the
staff, and it seems apparent that this involvement is what is needed
to help the children in this type of community.
69
Recommendations
In view of the multiproblem nature of the children of many
urban schools in terms of socioeconomic status, language handicaps, and ethnic minority status, it is apparent that new techniques
and practices are necessary.
However, the
e~perience
of Thomas
Jefferson Primary School suggests that to bring about real change,
total staff involvement in planning and evaluating is necessary.
It is therefore recommended that programs similar to IDEA be
instituted in any school which feels the need for change and innovation.
Only in this way will we be able to offer the best possible
learning environment for all children.
I
L ___
I
I
__l
70
l
I
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books
1. Allen, Harold B. Teaching English as a Second Language.
New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1965.
2. Atkinson, Richard C. Computer Assisted Instruction.
New York: Academic Press, 1969.
3.
Bair, Medill. Team Teaching in Action.
Mifflin Company, 1 964.
Boston:
Houghton
4. Dufay, Frank B. Ungrading the Elementary School. West
Nyack, New York: Parker Publishing Company, Inc.,
1966.
5. Eckstrom, Ruth E. Experimental Studies of Homogeneous
Grouping. A Review of the Literature. Princeton, New
Jersey: Educational Testing Service, 1959.
6. Fantini, Mario J., and Gerald Weinstein.
Challenge to Education.
Company, 1968.
I
I
l
New York:
The Disadvantaged
McGraw-Hill Book
7.
Gauntlett, J.D. Teaching English as a Foreign Language.
London: Macmillan and Company, Ltd., 1966.
8.
Goodlad, John L. The Non-Graded Elementary School.
New York: Harcourt Brace and World, Inc., 1963.
9.
Lewis, M. Terman. The Measurement of Intelligence.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1961.
10. Otto, Henry J. Nongradedness: An ElementarySchool
Evaluation. Austin, Texas: University of Texas at
Austin, Texas. Bureau of Laboratory School Monograph,
1969.
11.
Peterson, Carl H. Effective Team Teaching, The Easton
Area High School Program. West Nyack, New York:
Parker Publishing Company, Inc., 1966.
'
l
_j
71
BIBLIOGRAPHY (Continued)
Books (Continued)
12. Ragan, William B. Modern Elementary School Curriculum.
New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1960.
13. Rollins, Sidney P. Developing Non -Graded Schools.
Illinois: F. E. Peacock Publishing, Inc., 1968.
14. Shaplin, Judson T. TeamTeaching.
Row Publishers, 1964.
New York:
Intasca,
Harper &
15. Smith, Lee L. Teaching in a Non-Graded School. West
Nyack, New York: Parker Publishing Company, Inc.,
1970.
16. Smith, Lee L. A Practical Approach to the Nongraded
Elementary School. West Nyack, New York: Parker
Publishing Company, Inc. , 1968.
17. Witherspoon, Clinnette F., and Stuart E. Dean. Team Teaching in the Elementary School. Washington, D. C. : U.S.
Department of Health and Welfare Education, 1962.
18. Woodring, Paul. Investment in Innovation.
Brown and Company, 1970.
Boston:
Little,
Yearbooks
19. Commission of Curriculum. Research in Constructing the
Elementary School Curriculum, Third Yearbook of the
National Education Association. Washington, D. C.:
Department of Public Documents, 1925.
20.
Harp, Henry. "Differentiation of Curriculum Practices and
Instruction in Elementary Schools," The Grouping of Pupils
in Elementary Schools, Thirty-fifth Yearbook of the
National Society for the Study of Education, Part I.
Bloomington, Illinois: Public School Publishing Company,
L--~~~~---- - - - - - - - - - -. - -· - - - -
----------
72
-,
BIBLIOGRAPHY (Continued)
I
I
Journals
21.
CTA Journal.
March, 1969.
22.
Phi Delta Kappan, Vol. LII, Number 6.
February, 1971.
Manuals and Bulletins
23. Roy 0. Billett. Provisions for Individual Differences,
Marking and Promotion. Bulletin 1932, Number 17,
National Survey of Education, Monograph 13. Washington,
D. C.: United States Government Printing Office, 1933.
24. A Curriculum Guide of Behavioral Objectives for Reading,
Kindergarten- 6th Grade. Pasadena, California: Pasadena Unified School District, 1970.
25.
Guidelines for the Miller -Unruh Reading Programs {Revised).
Sacramento: Division of Instruction, 1968.
26. D'Evelyn, Katherine. Individual Parent-Teacher Conference,
A Manual for Teachers of Young Children. New York:
Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia
University, 1945.
2 7. Doll, Ronald G. Individualizing Instructions. Supervision and
Curriculum Development. Washington, D. C. : ASCD Nineteen Hundred Sixty -Four Yearbook Committee, 1964.
28.
Eding, Jack V. Individualized Instruction Manual for Administration, State System of Higher Education. Corvallis,
Oregon: Teaching Research Division, 1970.
29. Heffernan, Helen, and Todd, Vivian. Elementary Teacher's
Guide to Working With Parents. West Nyack, New York:
Parker Publishing Company, Inc., 1969.
I
30.
I
t ....
Mathematics, Curriculum Guide K-Grade 6 {Working Draft).
Pasadena, California: Pasadena Unified School District,
1970.
73
r----·------------·-··----·-----BIBLIOGRAPHY (Continued)
1
1
Manuals and Bulletins (Continued)
Ij 31.
I
I
I
Miles, Matthew B. Innovation in Education. New York:
Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia
l
University, 1964.
1 32. Reporting Pupil Progress. Manual of Instructions for Elemen1
tary Education. Pasadena, California: Division of
Elementary Education, Pasadena Unified School District,
!
li
1969.
! 33.
Poore, Ernest A. A Handbook for Developing Individualized
Instruction in Continuation Education. ESEA Title V.
Fresno, California: 1965.
34. Rice, Joseph P. The Importance of Parent Teacher Education.
Volume 83, September, 1962.
35. U.S. Panel on Education Research and Developmental Innovation and Experiment Education. Washington, D. C.: The
President's Science Advisory Committee, 1964.
Film
36. Passion for Life. French and English title: French Department of Education. Brandon, Distributor. Black and
white, 85 minutes, 1948.
Magazine
37. The Instructor. No. 5, Volume LXXIX. May, 1970. New
York: The Instructor Publication, Inc., Subsidiary of
Harcourt, Brace and World, Inc.
l_______________________
__j
APPENDIX
\
L
----·-~·--------·
SURVEY OF TEACHER OPINIONS ON SELECTED
INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
This questionnaire was designed for the purpose of ascertaining
opinions of teachers concerning certain innovative practices. Your
cooperation in giving your opinions would be very much appreciated.
(Please do not sign your name. )
L
GENERAL BACKGROUND INFORMATION
1.
2.
· 3.
Encircle your racial group: Negro
Caucasian
Other -Caucasian
Mexican-American
Oriental
Encircle your age group:
20-29;
Other
30-39; 40-49; 50 and over.
How many years of teaching experience have you had?
4.
How many years have you been teaching at Thomas Jefferson
Primary School?
5.
Did you select this school or were you assigned to it?
6.
What grade levels have you taught?
7.
Check the innovative practice from IDEA which you chose to
use in your classroom.
contract teaching
individualized instruction
nongraded teaching
Miller-Unruh reading program
learning disability program
English-as-a-Second-Language Program (ESL)
open-structure program
structured program
8.
What is the ethnic distribution-in
Caucasian
Negro
Mexican -American
9.
%
%
present class?
Other -Caucasian
Oriental
Other
I
_% .
%
%
Encircle the ability level listed below which best describes
your class:
above average
I
%
yo~r
L._____
average
below average
slow
I
l
ll. OPINIONS REGARDING SELECTED INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
Please select and check one of the columns at the right which you ,
feel correctly expresses your opinion of each of the items below. I
I
Ul
Q)
>
.....
....,
:>,U
f-t
Q)
a>::::l
>~
1.
How effective did you feel contract
teaching was for you during the past
year?
2.
How effective did you consider contract
teaching to be for the particular pupils
who were assigned to your class?
3.
How effective was contract teaching
in terms of the academic growth of
your pupils ?
4.
How effective did you feel individualized instruction was for you during
the past year?
5.
How effective did you consider individualized instruction to be for the
particular pupils who were assigned
to your class?
6.
How effective was individualized instruction in terms of the academic
growth of your pupils?
7.
How effective did you feel teaching
in nongraded class was for you
during the past year ?
Q)
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u
Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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---·
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8.
How effective did you consid er nongraded teaching to be for the particular pupils who were assigned to your
class?
9.
How effective was nongraded teaching
in terms of the academic gro wth of
your pupils ?
1 O.
How effective was the Miller -Unruh
reading program in terms of the
academic growth of your pup ils?
11.
How effective did you feel th e teacheraide program was for you du ring the
school year?
12.
How effective did you consid er the
· teacher -aide program to be for the,
particular pupils who were a ssigned
to your class?
13.
How effective was the teache r -aide
program in terms of the aca demic
growth of your pupils?
14.
How effective did you feel th e learning
disability program was for y ou during
the school year?
15.
How effective did you consid er the
learning disability program t o be for
the particular pupils who we re
assigned to your class?
16.
How effective was the learnin g disability program in terms of the academic
growth of your pupils ?
G)
G)
G)~
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'+-!
G)
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r:L1
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~-~1
.-I
....
v u I
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ro ~ i
p:; r:r:J I
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-
---·---~-
tO
v
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+"'
>-u
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v
v
~.
:>~
I
17.
How effective did you feel the Englishas -a-second-language program was
for you during the school year?
18.
How effective did you consider the
English-as -a-second-language program to be for the particular pupils
who were .assigned to your class?
19.
How effective was the English-as -asecond-language program in terms
of the academic growth of your pupils?
20.
How effective did you feel the openstructure program was for you during
the school year ?
21.
How effective did you consider the
open-structure program to be for the
particular pupils who were assigned
to your class?
22.
How effective was the open-structure
program in terms of the academic
growth of your pupils?
23.
How effective did you feel the structured program was for you during
the school year?
24.
How effective did you consider the
structured program to be for the
_particular pupils who were assigned
to your class?
v
v
s
Q)
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u
v u
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Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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Q)
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~rill
25.
How effective was the structured
program in terms of the academic
growth of your pupils ?
26.
How effective did you feel the Institute
for Development of Educational Activities (IDEA) program was for you during the school year?
II
How effective did you consider the
Institute for Development of Educational Activities (IDEA} program to be
for the particular students who were
assigned to your class?
I
27.
I
28.
'
Q)
>fil
II
'I
!
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....
>-u
J.i
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Q)
How effective was the Institute for
Development of Educational Activities
(IDEA) program in terms of the aca'
demic growth of your pupils ?
l
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·---~---~
III. SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVING THE INSTRUCTIONAL
PROGRAM AT THE THOMAS JEFFERSON PRIMARY SCHOOL
Please list any suggestions or recommendations you may have
for l.mproving the instructional program.
I.
2.
3.
4.
5.
When you have completed your responses to this questionnaire,
please return it in the attached envelope and put it in the school
mailbox of Mrs. Doris Crossley.
THANK YOU!.
I
I
L_._
~·--------·--·-··---·-·-~--·····------------·--------------------------.
SURVEY OF PARAPROFESSIONALS' OPINIONS ON
SELECTED INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
This questionnaire was designed for the purpose of ascertaining your
opinions concerning certain innovative practices. Your cooperation
in giving your opinions would be very much appreciated. (Please do
not sign it. )
I.
GENERAL BACKGROUND INFORMATION
1.
Encircle your racial group: Negro
Caucasian
Other -Caucasian Mexican -American Oriental
Other
2.
Encircle your age group:
3.
How many years of experience as a paraprofessional have
you had?
4.
What is your job title?
5.
How many years have you worked at Thomas Jefferson
Primary School?
6.
Did you select this school or were you assigned to it?
7.
W:hich grade level are you working in this year?
8.
What is the name of the teacher with whom you have been
working this year ?
9.
Check the innovative practice from IDEA which is being
used in your classroom.
20 -29;
30 -39;
40 -49;
Il
50 andover\
contract teaching
individualized instruction
nongraded teaching
Miller -Unruh reading program
teacher -aide program
L ___- '- - -'-_ ______.
-·~PIN~O~~:EG:~IN:~E~E:T:D ~N~VATIVE
II-.
PRACTICESl
Please select and check one of the columns at the right which
you feel correctly expresses your opinion of each of the items
below.
Q.)
>
......
.....,
>,U
H Q.l
v:tl
>~
1.
How effective do you consider contract teaching to be?
2.
How effective do you consider
individualized instruction to be?
3.
How effective do you consider the
Miller -Unruh reading program to be?
4.
How effective do you consider the
teacher -aide program to be?
5.
How effective do you consider the
learning disability program to be?
6.
How effective do you consider the
English-as-a-second-language
to be?
7.
How effective do you consider the
open-structured program to be?
8.
How effective do you consider the
structured program to be?
9.
How effective do you consider the
Institute for Development of Educational Activities (IDEA) program
to be?
Q.)
>
......
.....,
u
Q.)
'H
'H
~
til
Q.)
Q.)
.
Q.)
> >. ......>
......,8
..... ......
....., .....
.....,
Q.) u
8 'H
0 'H
Q.)
(f)
~
Q.)
H
u
Q.l
ro:tl
~~
learning disability program
English-as -a-Second-Language Program (ESL)
open-structure program
structured program
l
'·
·---~-----------~-·--·--·~--·--·-----·-·-----------,.-·-.------------
.
.-l
HI. SUOGESTIONS FOR IMPROVING THE, INSTRUCTIONAL
PROGRAM AT THE THOMAS JEFFERSON PRIMARY SCHOOL
Phn1-~~ H~t
any suggestions or recommendations you may have
fo-r imp-roving
th~ in~;;tructional
program.
1.
z.
3-
.
4.
5.
When you have completed your responses to this questionnaire,
please return it in the attached envelope and put it in the school
mailbo" of Mrs. Doris Crossley.
THANK YOU!
L ___ -
I
1
SURVEY OF CLASSIFIED STAFF OPINIONS ON
SELECTED INNOVATIVE PRACTICES
This questionnaire was designed for the purpose of ascertaining your
opinions concerning certain innovative practices. Your cooperation
in giving your opinions would be very much appreciated. (Please do
not sign it.)
GENERAL BACKGROUND INFORMATION
1.
Encircle your racial group: Negro
Caucasian
Other -Caucasian
Mexican -American Oriental
29-29;
Other
2.
Encircle your age group:
over.
30-39; 40-49; 50 and
3.
How many years of experience as a classified staff member have you had?
·
4.
What is your job title?
5.
How many years have your worked at Thomas Jefferson
Primary School?
6.
Did you select this school or were you assigned to it?
~-----~~------------A--~~-·----·~--
__
..,._,~-·--~-----
l
III. SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVING THE INSTRUCTIONAL
PROGRAM AT THE THOMAS JEFFERSON PRIMARY SCHOOL
Please list any suggestions or recommendations you may have
for improving the instructional program.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
When you have completed your responses to this questionnaire,
please return it in the attached envelope and put it in the school
mailbox of Mrs. Doris Crossley.
THANK
I
YOU~·
I
l._________j
THOMAS JEFFERSON?PRIMARY SCHOOL
-Pasadena, California
- SCHOOL YEAR 19
TEACHER
------------------~-----------
READING
....p..
(1)
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Program
mic and word attack skills
mds silent reading
Loud with fluency and expression
motivated to read independently
variety of materials
LANGUAGE ARTS
Communications:
appropriate mechanical skills
s creatively
s le_gibl;y with reasonable speed
current events and reference materials
1mmunica ti ons:
:s clearly in talks and groups
ns well
good vocabulary in organizing reports
November
SOCIAL SCIENCE AND SCIENCE
.pates in class discussions
and apElies accurate information
>ming. a careful observer
:loEing manual skills
November
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
lloping coordination
~pates in group _games
'lui;ement properly
:;s good suortsmanship
:;rates skill in rhythms
November
I
~
co
p
Ill
1-'
~
0
(1)
June
March
January
,. November
(Jl
=------------Room
0
:=:! :=:!
c+CO
1-' 1-'·
«:co
c+
I
(/)
(1)
j-J
p.
0
a
c::
co
~
~
0
:=:! 0
(1)
c+::l
I-' CO
~ 1-'·
co
c+
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(/)
....p.
(1)
~
~
(1)
Ill
c+co
~
January
March
June
January
March
June
..
'
I
January
'
March
0
co
p
June
::s
0
:=:!
~~·
c+
I
, November
, Januao:
.
Ma;cch
June
MATHEMATICS
~adiness
of whole numbers
Lon of whole numbers
~at~on of whole numbers
of whole numbers
measure
s
blems
November
c::
(ll
(1)
(1) ~
p
(/)
ART AND MUSIC
I-'
p.
0
a
Ill
1-'
~
January
c::
(ll
(1)
(1)
(J)
::I ::I 1-'
c+(ll p.
~~ §
c:
0
0
~
::s ::1
c+(ll
~
"4m
1-'
(J)
(1)
I-'
p.
I-' ,_..,. 0
c:
a
March
c::
(ll
p
Ill
l-'
~
June
0
(1)
0
(J)
(1)
::1 ::1 I-'
c+(ll
1-' 1--'·
"<;(ll
y
g.
a
c::
(ll
~
I-'
~
)ates in music activities
Loping music skills and ap2reciation
)ates ~ art activities
Lopin~ art aEpreciation and skills
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES
November
January
March
June
November
January
March
June
responsibility
es self control
oncern for others
s pro:eerty rights
s school and classroom standards
tes willingly
uickly and cheerfully
suggestions for improvement
.
WORK AND STUDY SKILLS
:ood use of time
: to and follows directions
is work to best of his ability
inde:eendentl;y:
.
0
(1)
0
::1 ::1
c+m
I-' ,_..,.
"4(/l
c:
November
Parent Connnent
lr
--------------------------------------
Signature of Parent
Lpal --------------------------------------
January
Parent Connnent
er
--------------------------------------ipal
-------------------------------------
Signature of Parent
*To be returned to School
Parent Comment
.er
--------------------------------------
ipal - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
ter
--------------------------------------
March
Signature of Parent
*To be returned to School
Ci
Promoted
CJ
Retained
c::J
Conditional Promotion
:ipal - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
'S
Present
rs'
Absent
.tes Tardz
.lst
Record of Attendance
£nd
3rd
4th
Total for Year
A
Level
8
Auditory Discrimination
Visual Discrimination
Letter and Word Recognition
Consonants
Initial
Final
Blends/Clusters
Digraphs
Vowels
Short
Long
Digraphs
Diphthongs'
Variants
Affixes
Endings
Suffixes
Prefixes
Compounds
Syllabication
Contractions
Word Patterns
..6c
Word Meaning
r----------------------------------------------b
g
Using Context
o_
~ ~
;:1
Recalling Facts a'nd Noting Detail
Organizing to Show Sequence
Determining Main Ideas
Recognizing Emotional Attitudes
Drawing Conclusions, Predicting Outcomes
Making Inferences
Interpreting Figurative Language
asadena Unified School District, Pasadena, California
Key
-
October 1970
- Teacher initials to indicate mastery
- Skill not introduced for mastery
- Skill to be reviewed by teacher
Recognizing Cause-Effect Relationships
Distinguishing Fact and Fantasy
Distinguishing Fact and Opinion
Distinguishing Propaganda and Bias
Noting Literary Style
Comparing and Contrasting
Following Directions
Using References
Library
Parts of a Book
Dictionary
Encyclopedia
Speed
Skimming
Organizing Information
Classifying
Summarizing
Outlining
Fluency and Speech
DIAGNOSTIC READING PROFILE
rRUCTIONAL LEVEL
Date
Level
I I I I I I I
I
I I
Name
Teacher Signature
School
'md of year date unless child transfers prior to this time.
Comment
I I
~ts
mguage
2.
Multiplication and division
Set description
a.
Basic facts
Number property of sets
b.
Two digit factors
Empty, finite, infinite
c.
Three or more digit factors
, factors,
factorization
d.
Subset, superset, universal set
Replacement set, solution set
e.
One digit divisors
Matching
f.
Two digit divisors
Equivalence, equality, disjoint
g.
h.
Union
i.
Separation
j.
Us
Square and square root
Intersection
D. Geometry
Cross product
l.
Non-metric
a.
Points, lines, planes
b.
Simple closed curves
Cardinal (whole)
c.
Polygons
Ordinal
d.
Segments, rays, angles
Even and odd
e.
Parallelism and perpendicularity
Primes
f.
Constructions
Fractional numbers
g.
Simple c.losed surfaces
~mbers
&numerals
umhers
2.
Integers
Jumerals
Metric
a.
Segments, angles
Place value, expanded form
exponents
b.
Perimeter, circumference
Other bases
c.
Area
Historical numeration
d.
Volume
Fraction and mixed numerals
E. Function
Decimal fraction numerals
1.
Definition
lperations &Properties
a.
Ordered pairs
<ddition and subtraction
b.
Rule
Basic facts
2.
Graphing
Two place
a.
Lattices
Three or more places
b.
Number plane
Fractional numbers
Using decimal, mixed and
other numerals
Integers
Properties
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
PASADENA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT, Pa
F. Applications
1.
2.
3.
Word Problems
a.
Operations
b.
Geometry
c.
Per cent
Measurement
a.
Linear
b.
Capacity and weight
c.
Time
d.
Money
Probability and Statistics
a.
Graphs and data
median,
and range
c.
4.
Introductory probability
Logic
a.
Quantifiers: all, some, none
b.
Negation
c.
If- then
d.
Deduction
DIR6DOSTIC ffiRTHEffiRTICS PROFILE
Name
lj\\\\:t\1
D
*Date
lifornia
October 1970
Content not introduced
~
Content to be reviewed by teacher
Teacher's initials indicate mastery
Teacher's Signature
School
Comment
*Use end-of-year date unless child transfers prior to this time.