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Direction Instruction Coaching Academy 1: Analyzing Data, Classroom Observations, and Providing Feedback

 At our Direct Instruction Coaching Academy, you'll learn: 

  • Communicating with staff in order to increase instructional effectiveness.
  • Refining observational skills to increase the coach's ability to provide data-driven feedback.
  • Determining the appropriate intervention based on data and observation.
  • Utilizing a variety of interventions (in-class coaching, 1:1 rehearsal sessions).
  • Designing and delivering efficient ongoing professional development sessions.
  • Facilitating Data Analysis Team meetings to find and solve student performance problems in a timely manner.

Certificates of Completion: Each participant in the Direct Instruction Coaching Academy will receive a certificate of participation. This certificate is awarded to those that have completed the 2-day training.

  Have other questions that aren't answered here? Call us at 877.485.1973 or email us at institutes@nifdi.org.

Targeted Professional Development – Developing and Delivering In-Services

Can you:

  • Create an in-service plan designed to improve student performance?
  • Deliver an in-service that will target teacher presentation skills?
  • Determine in-service needs through analyzing data and classroom observations?
  • Design observation tools to assess the effectiveness of an in-service?

If you need help in the areas above, this Direct Instruction Academy will benefit you!

On-going staff development is critical to the success of Direct Instruction implementations. This academy will teach participants to utilize Direct Instruction program data and classroom observation data and information to identify student performance problems.  In addition, participants will determine what teacher behaviors can be changed to elevate student performance.

After the focus of the in-service has been determined, participants will work with an outline that will guide them through development of an effective Direct Instruction in-service.  Providing rationale, demonstrating through use of a Model-Lead-Test format and role play is at the heart of delivery of these in-services.

Attendees will generate an in-service and have the opportunity to practice delivering their training.  Furthermore, they will create an observation tool to assist them in determining the effectiveness of the in-service.

Registration:

Schedule & Location:

TBD
 
McGraw-Hill Education Headquarters
8787 Orion Place
Columbus, OH 

Certificates of Completion: Each participant in the Direct Instruction Coaching Academy will receive a certificate of participation. This certificate is awarded to those that have completed the 2-day training.

LodgingCambria Suites OH

Cambria Suites - Columbus/Polaris
9100 Lyra Drive
Columbus, OH 
614-841-9100
 
NIFDI has secured a $121.00 per night room rate (full breakfast included). A shuttle to the Academy is available. 

 
*Please reference NIFDI Coaches Training to receive discounted room rates. Limited space is available. Discounted pricing may not be available after October 15.*

 

 Have other questions that aren't answered here? Call us at 877.485.1973 or email us at institutes@nifdi.org.

Administrator's Leadership Institute: Effective Implementation of Direct Instruction for All Students

Intended Audience: District and building-level administrators and supervisors
Experience Level: All
Presenters: Kurt Engelmann and Tara Davis

A successful Direct Instruction (DI) implementation requires the active participation of a fully engaged administrative team. The role of these individuals is to ensure student achievement by setting up the implementation for success, providing ongoing support to teachers and paraprofessionals, monitoring the effectiveness of instruction, and solving implementation problems as they arise. This intensive five-day session provides a deeper understanding of the rationale for the comprehensive DI schoolwide model as it guides administrators through the practical and proven steps that promote student learning. The afternoon of the final day will include an optional consultation time, allowing participants the opportunity to meet with the trainers individually or in small groups. During the consultation, the trainers will address concerns or questions related to the participants’ specific needs.

The goal of the Administrator Institute is for participants to become familiar with 1) what steps are needed to ensure that DI is implemented effectively for all students and 2) when these steps should be taken. The institute is structured around a calendar that provides a month-by-month breakdown of the major actions to take for a successful implementation of DI. Year-to-year changes that need to occur in order to build the school’s capacity to provide effective implementation support will also be discussed. In addition, the session addresses how to avoid some of the pitfalls that can hamper a schoolwide implementation of DI and prevent schools from maximizing student achievement.

The session references DI Senior Author Siegfried Engelmann’s guidelines for the full implementation of

Direct Instruction curricula as it addresses the following questions:

  • What results can schools expect from the comprehensive Direct Instruction schoolwide model?
  • How do the design features of the Direct Instruction curricula lead to improved student outcomes?
  • What are the advantages of implementing Direct Instruction schoolwide?
  • How can instruction be adjusted to meet different student needs through DI?

Participants engage in several activities that simulate specific actions to be taken in schools, including conducting observations of videos of actual classroom instruction. A particular emphasis of the session is on analyzing student performance data on student placement, mastery, and lesson progress for a wide range of instructional levels and classroom situations. Participants learn how to utilize these data to guide adjustments in instruction as a means of improving outcomes for all students.

This session is appropriate for both school administrators who are new and those who are experienced with DI.

Return to the National Direct Instruction Conference and Institutes page.

 

 

Training Institute Presenters

Kris

                                                     

Kris Althoff

Kris Althoff is an experienced trainer and teacher of Direct Instruction (DI) in the primary grades. Kris was a first grade teacher for over 30 years in the Rush City School District, Minnesota. For the last 15 of those years, she taught Direct Instruction programs (Reading Mastery, Language for Learning, Language for Thinking, Reasoning & Writing, DISTAR Arithmetic I, and Connecting Math Concepts levels A & B). In 1997, she became the Direct Instruction Coach for the school, and in 1999 she became the DI trainer for the entire St. Croix River Education District for Direct Instruction. 

In 1999, she also became a trainer and part-time Implementation Manager for the National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI). She has provided training and support to schoolwide implementations of Direct Instruction with NIFDI in Australia, Detroit, Georgia, Guam, Minnesota, Nebraska and Texas.  

From 2004 to 2013, Kris served as the Title I Teacher/Reading Coordinator for Pine City Public Schools in Pine City, Minnesota, with responsibilities for providing teachers with initial training in Direct Instruction programs, in-class coaching, weekly analysis of student performance and adjustment of the DI implementation based on observations and data analysis.
 

 

 
Tamara

 

Tamara Bressi

Tamara is an experienced Direct Instruction (DI) teacher, trainer and coach. She holds a Master of Science in Special Education from the University of Oregon and Oregon teaching certificates for Basic Elementary, preprimary through grade 9 and Standard Handicapped Learner II, preprimary through grade 12. From 1992 to 1998, Tamara was a resource room/self-contained special education teacher in Shasta & Cascade Middle Schools in the Bethel School District in Eugene, Oregon. From 1998 to 2004, Tamara was a 2nd grade teacher at Meadow View School, also in the Bethel School District. While at Meadow View, she served as a Teacher on Special Assignment for the school’s K-3 reading program, with responsibilities of conducting observations of Direct Instruction reading groups, data analysis and curriculum training in addition to her regular teaching assignment.

From 2003 through 2009, Tamara was an Implementation Manager for NIFDI at middle schools and elementary schools in Guam. In 2010, she was Co-Director of Training for NIFDI and in 2012 became the Director of Training Development (DOTD). Both positions carry the responsibilities of creating, arranging and evaluating training sessions for teachers, administrators, paraprofessionals and NIFDI consultants. In addition to her current position as NIFDI’s DOTD, Tamara continues to provide DI training to teachers and administrators and is also the implementation manager for Union Colony Elementary School in Greeley, Colorado. In the summer of 2013, Tamara is one of two trainers for the Academy on Becoming an Effective Direct Instruction Trainer, which is an integral component of NIFDI’s Southwest Training Institute.
 

 

 
Jane  

Jane Carter

Jane Carter began her career as an educator after completing a Master’s Degree in Special Education at the University of Oregon. At the U of O, she received an introduction to Direct Instruction (DI) from preeminent authors and developers of DI materials, including Mary Gleason, Doug Carnine and Siegfried "Zig" Engelmann. 

Jane spent the next 10 years teaching DI programs in both elementary and middle schools in Oregon. Specifically, her teaching expertise includes DISTAR (arithmetic reading and language), Spelling Mastery, Expressive Writing, Corrective Math, Corrective Reading and Your World of Facts. While Jane was teaching in the classroom, she continued to work at the U of O as a supervisor and trainer in Direct Instruction in the special education licensure program. 

After a decade of teaching DI, Jane moved to administration. In 1990, she became the Assistant Supervisor of Special Education in the Portland Public Schools. From 1993-2004 she was the principal of Meadowview School in the Bethel School District in Eugene, Oregon. While at Meadowview, she oversaw a schoolwide implementation of Direct Instruction in the primary grades. From 2004-2010, she was the principal of an elementary school in the Eugene 4j School District. Jane also holds a doctorate in Special Education.

Since 2011, she has served as a consultant for the National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI) as well as a university instructor and researcher.
   

 
Kurt  

Kurt Engelmann

Kurt Engelmann, Ph.D., began his career in education in the early 1980s as a tutor working with a variety of learning-disabled students, ranging from adult remedial readers to severely language-delayed first graders. In the mid-1980s, Dr. Engelmann worked as a behavioral consultant for the Engelmann-Becker Corporation in cooperation with teh Eugene 4j School District and Lane County ESD in Oregon. During that time, he also worked on the development of a behavioral research program for the Oregon Research Institute that focused on teaching students appropriate social behaviors. From 1994 to 2000, Dr. Engelmann served as an Outreach Coordinator in the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington.

Since July 2000, Dr. Engelmann has been the Administrative Director and President of the National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI). As Administrative Director and President, he is responsible for organizing administrative support for Direct Instruction (DI) implementations, serving as liaison between school district administrators and NIFDI, and coordinating medium and long-term planning of NIFDI implementation efforts. Under his direction, NIFDI has implemented the DI model in elementary schools and middle schools serving highly at-risk populations in a variety of settings, including rural communities (Oregon, Kansas, Nebraska, Georgia, Illinois, Minnesota, South Carolina Utah and Virginia), urban communities (Atlanta, Baltimore, Detroit, Los Angeles County, New Orleans and Philadelphia), island communities (Hawaii and Guam) and internationally (Cape York, Australia).

Under Dr. Engelmann’s leadership, NIFDI became affiliated with several organizations that promote effective school reform. NIFDI joined New American Schools in 2002 and the Coalition for Comprehensive School Improvement (CCSI) in 2004. Engelmann served as the Treasurer of CCSI. For two years he also served as Implementation Manager of a Comprehensive School Reform Quality Initiative grant received by NIFDI and the Center for Applied Research in Education (CARE) from the US Department of Education.
   

 
Linda  

Linda Frost

Ms. Frost is an experienced classroom teacher with extensive experience coaching teachers and supporting schoolwide implementations of Direct Instruction (DI). She was employed with Baltimore City Public Schools—as a curriculum coordinator, teacher tutor for reading and mathematics, and as a reading resource teacher—in addition to her role as a classroom teacher. From 1996-1999, she was a Direct Instruction coordinator employed by Baltimore City Public Schools, with responsibilities for coaching teachers and instructional assistants on DI presentation methods and conducting training sessions to help teachers and instructional assistants increase student proficiency.

From 1999 through the present, Ms. Frost has served as an Implementation Manager for NIFDI in Baltimore, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Louisiana and Nebraska. In addition, she has conducted “coaches’ training” sessions to help prepare select teachers to become coaches for their peers in DI methods in these sites and in Kansas, Wisconsin, and Saipan. She holds a Master’s of Science in Reading and Elementary Education from Morgan State University as well as a Bachelor’s of Science in Elementary Education from the University of Maryland. 
   

 
Rosella  

Rosella Givens

After receiving her BS in Elementary Education from Eastern Kentucky University, Ms. Givens worked as a Title One Teacher in Dayton, Ohio. From 1995 to 1997, she served as the On-site Coordinator for Direct Instruction at two elementary schools in Dayton. In 1998, she worked as an Implementation Manager for NIFDI for two inner-city elementary schools in Baltimore and Philadelphia.

From 1999 to 2006, she was the On-site Coordinator for Direct Instruction at two elementary schools in Chester, Pennsylvania. Since 1996 she has served as the On-Site Implementation Manager for NIFDI at seven elementary and middle schools in Atlanta. In 2010-2011, she also was the IM at Mt. Carmel in southern Illinois and West Point in northeastern Nebraska. She has provided DI program delivery training and coaches training in Georgia, Nebraska, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Florida, Virginia, Illinois and Maryland.
   

 
Robyn

 

Robyn Hendrickson

Robyn Hendrickson is an educator with vast experience in reading instruction specific to all levels of the Direct Instruction curriculum. For 27 years she has served as a classroom teacher at Gunnison Elementary School in Gunnison, Utah, with 22 years teaching first grade.  She has taught and trained all levels of Reading Mastery, Corrective Reading, Reasoning & Writing and other Direct Instruction programs.

In addition to classroom teaching, Robyn served as the Reading Coordinator for Gunnison Elementary from 2003 to 2008, which entailed training the staff in Direct Instruction reading as well as providing in-class coaching, overseeing professional development, facilitating professional leadership groups and directing the school's assessment program using DIBELS and Criterion Reference Tests (CRTs).

For the past 18 years, Robyn has also worked as a preservice trainer for the National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI) in reading, language, spelling and mathematics. She has trained in numerous sites, including Baltimore, Los Angeles County, Atlanta, Nebraska, Guam and Hawaii. 

She holds a B.A. in Elementary Education with an emphasis on reading instruction from Southern Utah State University.
 

 

 
Kathy  

Kathy Madigan

Dr. Kathy Madigan has been a teacher, principal, college professor, curriculum coordinator and research project director.  She co-founded and served as president of the American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence and served as the Executive Director for the National Council on Teacher Quality.

Previously, she worked as the Vice President for Advantage Schools where she was responsible for curriculum, behavior management, staff development and principal supervision in 16 start-up charter schools across the US. Dr. Madigan currently works as an Implementation manager for NIFDI schools in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
   

 
Sue  

Sue Martin

Susan Martin is an experienced trainer, coach and implementation manager. For over 30 years she worked in Oregon public schools—27 years at Harrisburg Elementary School in Harrisburg and six years at Meadow View Elementary School in Eugene. She taught Direct Instruction reading, language and math programs for over 20 of those years. While at Meadow View, she also served as a “Teacher on Special Assignment” for the school’s K-3 reading program, with responsibilities of conducting observations of Direct Instruction reading groups, data analysis and curriculum training in addition to her regular teaching assignment.

Since 2003, Sue has been an Implementation Manager for NIFDI, with responsibilities for supporting schoolwide implementations of DI at a wide variety of sites, including the Lummi Tribal Schools in Bellingham, Washington, La Pine Middle School in central Oregon, several elementary schools in Guam, six Charter Schools in and around Portland, Oregon, elementary and middle schools in rural Nebraska and others. 

From 2010-2012, she held the position of Director of Training for NIFDI, with responsibilities for creating, arranging and evaluating training sessions for teachers, administrators, paraprofessionals and NIFDI consultants. In the summer of 2013, Sue is one of two trainers for the Academy on Becoming an Effective Direct Instruction Trainer, which is an integral component of NIFDI’s Southwest Training Institute.

Currently, Sue is the Project Consultant for a Direct Instruction Charter School in Greeley, Colorado. As she has since 2003, she continues to do program training and special writing projects for NIFDI.
   

 
Yvonne  

Yvonne O'Neil

Yvonne O'Neil began her teaching career in 1984 as a 4th-5th blend teacher at Potrero Elementary School in El Monte, Los Angeles County, California. Yvonne also taught a straight 4th grade class and a 2nd grade class before leaving El Monte in 1988. From 1989 to 1995, she taught first and second grade at St. Joseph's Catholic School in Roseburg, Oregon. Since 1997 she has been employed by Roseburg Public Schools. From 1997 to 2006, she worked at Winchester Elementary School in Roseburg, first as a 5th grade teacher, and then as a 4th grade teacher.

Starting in 2006, Yvonne took on responsibilities as an instructional coach. She was the Reading First Reading Coach for Winchester Elementary from 2006 to 2009. She worked as the Instructional Coach for the Fullerton-Green-Rose Elementary Schools for the 2009-2010 school year before becoming the Learning Specialist for Green Elementary School for the 2010-2011 school year. Since 2011 she has served as the Reading Instructional Coach for all schools in the Roseburg Public Schools system.

Direct Instruction has been an integral part of Yvonne's work as a teacher and instructional coach at Roseburg Public Schools, which implements Direct Instruction at the elementary, middle and high school levels. Yvonne provides in-class coaching support to teachers in Corrective Reading, Reading Mastery and other DI programs.

Since 2010, Yvonne has also been a trainer for the National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI). She has trained DI programs at Santee Community School in Niobrara, Nebraska, Union Colony Charter School in Greeley, Colorado and the Thurgood Marshall Elementary School in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
   

 
Jill  

Jill Shaw

Jill Shaw started her teaching career in 1999 as an English teacher at Meridian Public Schools, a small district in southeastern Nebraska. In 2002, Jill moved to Crete, Nebraska, a larger district with nearly 2,000 students. In Crete, she first worked as a substitute teacher and summer school instructor, teaching students who were reading below grade-level. In 2007 she became a teacher of English Language Learners (ELL) as well as the part-time literacy coach for Crete High School overseeing the implementation of the Corrective Reading remedial Direct Instruction program for targeted students.

Since 2009, she has been the full-time literacy coach at Crete Middle School. As the literacy coach, Jill provides initial training in Direct Instruction programs to returning and new teachers before the start of the school year, and in-class coaching support to teachers throughout the school year. Her duties also include weekly analysis of student performance in the Direct Instruction programs and adjustment of the DI implementation based on observations and data analysis. In addition, she is the Summer School Coordinator for Crete Public Schools, with responsibilities for determining which students to invite, selecting the curriculum to use, grouping students for instruction, and coaching the teachers during the four-week summer school session.

The Direct Instruction Spoken English (DISE) program, published by the Cambium Learning Group is an important part of the curriculum at Crete Public Schools, whose ELL population has increased significantly in recent years. Jill has provided training for DISE and Corrective Reading to teachers in Crete as well as other schools in Nebraska.

Jill holds a Master’s Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Doane College, with certifications in Language Arts (grades 7-12) and Reading (grades 5-12) and endorsements in Coaching and ELL.
   

 
Cheryl  

Cheryl Shelton

Cheryl Shelton is an exceptional Direct Instruction trainer and coach who has experienced successful implementations of the comprehensive DI model from different, critical perspectives. From 1996-2007, Mrs. Shelton worked as a teacher, mentor teacher and leadership team member at Margaret Fain Elementary School in Atlanta, Georgia. After mastering Direct Instruction presentation techniques as a teacher with support from the National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI) and coaches training from NIFDI, Mrs. Shelton served as Direct Instruction Coach at Fain. As part of her time at Fain, she was also the Grade Level Chairperson for 1st-5th grades. In 2007, Mrs. Shelton moved to Continental Colony Elementary School, also in the Atlanta Public Schools System. There, she served as Third Grade Teacher, Grade Level Chairperson and DI Coach. In 2009, she became the DI Facilitator (Coordinator) and helped transform Continental Colony into one of the premier DI implementation sites in Atlanta.

Mrs. Shelton holds a Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education from Clark Atlanta University and a Master's Degree in Curriculum from Central Michigan University. 
   

 
Judy  

Judy Towns

Judith’s experience as a professional education consultant and elementary teacher spans over 40 years. She has successfully completed trainings in more than 200 separate school districts within 25 states, including 14 school-wide implementations for Direct Instruction. Judith’s professional efforts have involved working with General Education teachers as well as Special Education teachers.

From 1985 to 1994, she was extensively involved with the University of Oregon’s Project Follow Through model with dissemination sites in Florida and Iowa. During that time she also worked for McGraw-Hill as a senior consultant.

Currently Judith works for NIFDI in West Point and Beemer, NE and in TriCounty schools as well as Mead, NE. In the past, she has worked as an implementation manager for NIFDI in Great Bend and Leavenworth, Kansas, Crete, Ne and Lynwood, California. She also held a long term contract with the Milwaukee Schools, Chicago Schools and Dubuque, IA schools.

Judith has a Bachelor’s Degree in Education and has attended numerous regional and national classes and seminars to further enhance her capabilities for consulting in the educational arena.

She is a recipient of the “Hall of Fame” lifetime achievement award given by the Association for Direct Instruction, the organization's highest honor
  1. Institute Sessions
  2. Placement testing your students in preparation for conference
  3. Leadership Institutes Presenter: Dr. Kathy Madigan
  4. Training Institute DRAFT

Subcategories

Implementing Direct Instruction Successfully

When implemented fully, Direct Instruction (DI) is unparalleled in its ability to improve student performance and enhance students’ self-esteem. In order to implement DI effectively, much more is required than simply purchasing instructional materials. The following two-part tutorial guides administrators, teachers, and coaches through the key features of a successful DI implementation. Part I provides an overview of the steps schools need to take in preparation for a DI implementation before school starts, while Part II provides an overview of the steps schools need to take after school has started.

IMPORTANT: This tutorial is an intensive video series comprised of 18 segments, each followed by a series of questions. Users should allow approximately three hours to watch the videos and complete the questions. NIFDI recognizes the high demand for time placed on school officials and, for this reason, has structured the tutorial so users may stop at any time and later resume where they left off.

Enroll in the tutorial here. 

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New to Direct Instruction? Watch the Introduction to Direct Instruction Video Series before taking the online tutorial.

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Upcoming Events

The Science of Reading and DI for Teacher-Educators
05-29-2024 1:00 pm
Virtual Event
2024 National Direct Instruction Conference and Institutes
07-15-2024 8:00 am
Training Event
Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons
07-15-2024 8:00 am
Training Event

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In Memory of
Siegfried "Zig" Engelmann

Latest News

Episode 3 of the Direct Instruction Podcast Released!

Wednesday, April 17, 2024

Direct Instruction Podcast Episode 2 Released

Monday, April 08, 2024

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