Learning and Leading Together - Lexia Leader Fellowship

Distinctive Guest post by: Carolyn Glantz, Distinctive Schools Literacy Coordinator

What is a Lexia Fellow?

A fellowship is known as a group of people meeting to pursue a shared interest or aim. Eleven months ago, Distinctive Schools (DS) nominated Lexia Leader Fellows, who were accepted into a year-long professional learning opportunity around Lexia Core5. The Lexia Leader Fellowship opportunity embodies the Distinctive vision to Innovate, Collaborate, and Trailblaze to positively impact our students and teachers. Teacher voice is an important part of the culture at Distinctive Schools, which comes to life through our value of Innovation:

​We imagine and incubate new ideas and actively encourage risk-taking, inquiry, entrepreneurial thinking, and learner-agency. 

-Distinctive Schools Strategic Plan

Distinctive Fellows include representatives from our Chicago International Charter School (CICS) campuses. From CICS Bucktown: Bridget Fahey (Kindergarten Teacher), and Jenna Kasper (Fourth-Fifth Grade Teacher),  from CICS Irving Park, Samantha Parrish (Second Grade Teacher) & Meaghan Rohan (Third Grade Teacher), from CICS Prairie, Siri Nelson (Fifth Grade Teacher), and from CICS West Belden, Catherine Morris (Kindergarten Teacher), and Christine Roberts (Second Grade Teacher) participated in the fellowship. 

Our Fellowship educators are leading the work with Lexia Core 5 at the campus level, and were ready to build their knowledge and theory around literacy and Lexia Core5. This shared sense of collaboration and innovation around a digital program in the Fellowship process became more than just learning about best practice. This collective responsibility allowed for teachers to incubate and apply innovative ideas in the classroom to the impact student learning and achievement.

​“Until we start listening to our teachers,
​​our schools will never move forward.”

- Jim Knight, Instructional Coaching Group 

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Teacher Innovations:

"I've incorporated skill builders into an independent center during my reading block. Students are grouped into small groups, each with a folder of their skill builders. On one side of the folder is their blank skill builder, and on the other side they turn in completed pages at the end of the center. I grade student work, return it to students who mastered the skill, and pull small groups for students who need reteaching. If they finish their skill builder they write their name on the board and I will have a new skill builder ready for them the following day."

-Christine Roberts, 
Second Grade Teacher. CICS West Belden

As seen in the examples below, CICS Irving Park teachers, Meaghan Rohan and Samantha Parrish, have created Personal Learning Plans (PLPs) and Reading Menus, where students keep track of their own Lexia minutes and units each day.

Catherine Morris and Siri Nelson shared observations of improvement in student motivation and drive through classroom celebrations, including shout outs and boards showcasing student success in Lexia.  

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Lexia Journey: Past & Future

In our fellowship, teachers focused on the Lexia Core5 experience, implementation, literacy knowledge, ELL and peer support. We collaborated around reading responses through a Google forum and webinars that allowed for cross-campus collaboration.

Anthony Claypool, Distinctive Schools' Director of Assessment and Data, speaks to the importance of continuous professional learning, as seen through this Fellowship, for our teachers and the impact professional learning has on teacher practices around data and digital programs in the personalized learning world.

“Our implementation of Lexia Core5 has really evolved over the years. Our data coaching and strategy has shifted from the basic indicators of fidelity of implementation, to grappling with more qualitative measures of which student and teacher behaviors are improving student outcomes. The fellowship has been a great way to leverage this awesome instructional tool for even greater student achievement, and more importantly, increased ownership of their learning.” 

-Anthony Claypool, Distinctive Schools

This 2017-18 Lexia Grade Level Status by Month for Chicago depicts growth of students in Lexia Core5, working at & above grade level, and finishing Lexia as the year goes on. We continue to see an increase in students working at & above grade level, and finishing Core5.

As we reflect on our use of Lexia, and look to the future, we are excited to dig deeper beyond the quantity of usage and think more about quality. Our Fellows have learned how to use the MyLexia platform to further personalize instruction for their students. By using the real-time data and information, teachers can assemble groups of students in real-time to support them offline. There is a balance in blended learning that we value at Distinctive Schools, and Lexia Core5 is another tool in the teacher’s toolbox to support our teachers and students. ​

Interested in learning more about Lexia Core 5? Read the Case Study from CICS Irving Park.