The Aligned·By·Design Model, utilizing a new class of education management
and operating technology, is a ground-breaking addition
to the management and support systems now available to
the education community.
It is a systemic and unifying solution that
combines education efforts at all levels to improve
student achievement.
While respecting inherent autonomy, it
integrates, builds upon and adds value to these
resources.
The comprehensive model’s
significant strengths, unique
benefits and relationship to existing education
support systems include:
Student Information Systems:
The
Aligned·By·Design system
integrates with, but
is not, a Student Information System.
These systems collect essential demographics and
facts, are well established, but do not drive the
classroom process and do not need replacing.
Longitudinal Data Systems:
The
Aligned·By·Design system
collects
substantially more data, and in real-time, than
Longitudinal Data Systems.
It provides data feedback in conjunction with
providing classroom process support, and inherently
provides the warehoused information for analysis.
Longitudinal Data Systems are simply data
warehouses for student information to enable time-phased
and large group analysis. These systems have little
impact on the education process because the conditions
in the classroom are not measured, and the feedback is
so delayed, it does not support the classroom process.
Aligned·By·Design’s dynamic, real-time
data system has a significant, positive affect on the
classroom as well as national, state, district and
school processes.
Assessment Systems:
Assessments are integral within the
Aligned·By·Design system
and test items are
aligned with durable links to the content standards and
knowledge and skills, but it is not an Assessment
System. These systems are single focused and often are
only aligned with standards through a post development
verification exercise.
Teacher Resource Repository Systems:
The
Aligned·By·Design
system provides resource repositories for lesson
plans, reference and other instructional materials that
are precisely aligned with the knowledge and skill level
defined for each course and grade.
It provides comparisons of resources using
clearly articulated knowledge and skills specification
as that common denominator.
When selected, the resource can be seamlessly
incorporated into the teacher’s own curriculum.
Our current Teacher Resources Repository Systems
often have very large quantities of unit plans, lesson
plans, activities and other resources for teachers.
They use search and filter capabilities which
find instructional items that match key words or are
“aligned” to a standard. While these systems appear
helpful, they often waste time or misdirect teachers
because state content standards are so high level, that
the claimed alignment is not true alignment, but only a
relationship. There is no indication of completeness of
coverage or over coverage with the referenced standard.
Lesson Plan Composition Systems:
The
Aligned·By·Design
system provides
lesson plan development tools that are integrated with
the entire process.
The system ensures that teachers know exactly
what knowledge and skills are to be transferred in the
classroom, and they can be confident that a lesson plan
accomplishing that objective fits perfectly into a unit
plan which fits perfectly into a course plan that
exactly satisfies the course objectives.
The current Lesson Plan Composition Systems
typically have very narrow scope and simply help
teachers prepare lesson plans.
They lack the context of standards for alignment
and the tools to ensure proper sequencing.
Classroom Communication Systems:
The
Aligned·By·Design system’s communications
structure is much more comprehensive and dynamic than
the Classroom Communication Systems currently available
to teachers, schools and districts.
The current systems are designed to communicate
to the parents and provide a resource for students to
check assignments and access other information.
But, they lack the integration necessary to make
them a reliable information source, and, they are a
burden to teachers who must separately enter data into
the system in order for it to be current.
The
Aligned·By·Design
system provides this
communication capability inherently with no additional
work from the teacher and with a guarantee of clarity
and understanding.
And,
Aligned·By·Design
system goes far
beyond assignments and schedules.
It provides a portal into the integrated system
with access to the curriculum and the specific knowledge
and skills content to enable students and parents to
perform the critical “out of classroom” component of the
learning process.