Mike Mattos - Its about Time [Secondary]: Planning Interventions and Extensions in Secondary School

Planning Interventions and Extensions
in Secondary School

Mike Mattos Austin Buffum

Jack Baldermann | Luis F. Cruz | Joe Doyle | Darin L. Fahrney
Paul Goldberg | Aaron Hansen | Dennis King
Regina Stephens Owens | Steve Pearce | Rich Rodriguez
Bob Sonju | Timothy S. Stuart | Jane Wagmeister

Foreword by Richard DuFour

Copyright 2015 by Solution Tree Press

Materials appearing here are copyrighted. With one exception, all rights are reserved. Readers may reproduce only those pages marked Reproducible. Otherwise, no part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without prior written permission of the publisher.

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Visit go.solution-tree.com/rtiatwork to download the reproducibles in this book.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Mattos, Mike (Mike William)

Its about time : planning interventions and extensions in secondary school / Mike Mattos and Austin Buffum, editors [and others] ; foreword by Richard DuFour.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-936763-05-4 (perfect bound) 1. Remedial teaching. 2. Response to intervention (Learning disabled children) 3. Learning disabled children--Education. 4. Learning disabilities--Diagnosis. 5. Middle school teaching. 6. High school teaching. I. Buffum, Austin G. II. Title.

LB1029.R4M365 2015

371.102--dc23

2014028789

Solution Tree

Jeffrey C. Jones, CEO

Edmund M. Ackerman, President

Solution Tree Press

President: Douglas M. Rife

Associate Acquisitions Editor: Kari Gillesse

Editorial Director: Lesley Bolton

Managing Production Editor: Caroline Weiss

Senior Production Editor: Edward M. Levy

Proofreader: Ashante Thomas

Text and Cover Designer: Laura Kagemann

Compositor: Rachel Smith

I dedicate this book to the exceptional educators and support staff of Pioneer Middle School in Tustin, California. Most of what I know about creating a great secondary school is due to what we learned together by doing the work. I am forever grateful for the privilege of serving as principal of this outstanding school.

Mike Mattos

This book is dedicated to the brave group of professionals at San Clemente High School who sought to create a professional learning community at that school. A special word of thanks goes to Charles Hinman and George Knights, who invested so much of their own passion into the effort.

Austin Buffum

Acknowledgments

Bringing this anthology from concept to completion was truly a collaborative effort, beginning with the outstanding professionals at Solution Tree. Guided by the leadership of CEO Jeffrey C. Jones and Solution Tree Press president Douglas M. Rife, Solution Tree has become the premier educational publishing and staff development company in the world. Specifically, we would like to thank Lesley Bolton for her efforts to coordinate this project, as well as Edward Levy and Kari Gillesse for their superb editing. We hope that this book moves Solution Tree one step closer to achieving its vision of transforming education worldwide.

This book would not have been possible without the contributing authors: Jack Baldermann, Luis F. Cruz, Joe Doyle, Darin L. Fahrney, Paul Goldberg, Aaron Hansen, Dennis King, Regina Stephens Owens, Steve Pearce, Rich Rodriguez, Bob Sonju, Timothy S. Stuart, and Jane Wagmeister. These individuals do not make their living as writersthey are exceptional educators, working primarily as site-, district-, and county-level administrators. We have tremendous empathy and appreciation for their efforts, as we know what its like to try to find time to write after working as an educator all day. Their prose has brought the journey of each school to life.

We thank the exceptional schools that are featured in this book: Westlawn Middle School, White Pine Middle School, Baldwin Park High School, Robert Frost Junior High School, Fossil Ridge Intermediate School, Bloomington High School South, Jane Addams Junior High School, Riverside Brookfield High School, TeWinkle Middle School, Singapore American School, Gateway Community School, and the Virtual School and Early College Academy. These schools did not wait for the perfect conditions to begin restructuring to better serve their students. Instead, they got started, made mistakes, tried again, stayed focused, and most importantly, achieved! The lessons they learned from doing the work have blazed a trail for others to follow. We applaud their collective courage and dedication to ensure that every student succeeds on their campuses.

We would also like to acknowledge and thank the outstanding educators of Adlai E. Stevenson High School, both past and present. While no chapter in this anthology focuses specifically on Stevenson, that school has directly and indirectly influenced almost every other school mentioned. Over twenty years ago, the Stevenson staff started the journey of becoming a professional learning community (PLC), causing them to rethink every traditional secondary policy, procedure, and schedule. As a four-time National Blue Ribbon School, Stevenson continues to serve as a model of success for schools across the world.

Finally, while the schools described here represent a wide range of locations and demographics, they all share one underlying traiteach functions as a professional learning community. Richard DuFour, Robert Eaker, and Rebecca DuFour have dedicated their lives to developing, articulating, promoting, supporting, and living the Professional Learning Communities at Work process. Generously giving of their time and expertise, they have personally mentored almost every contributor to this anthology. We are forever grateful for their support, wisdom, and friendship.

Visit go.solution-tree.com/rtiatwork to download the reproducibles in and access materials related to this book.

Table of Contents

About the Editors

Mike Mattos is an internationally recognized author, presenter, and practitioner who specializes in uniting teachers, administrators, and support staff to transform schools by implementing response to intervention (RTI) and professional learning communities (PLCs). Mike co-created the RTI at Work model, which builds on the foundation of the PLC at Work process by using team structures and a focus on learning, collaboration, and results to drive successful outcomes.

Mike is former principal of Marjorie Veeh Elementary School and Pioneer Middle School in California. At both schools, Mike helped create powerful PLCs, improving learning for all students. In 2004, Marjorie Veeh, an elementary school with a large population of youth at risk, was named a California Distinguished School and won the Title I Academic Achievement Award.