FOR-PD Update

January 2004

Latest FOR-PD Numbers

• 5593 students
• 255 sections
• 63 participating districts
• 5 participating universities

The Year in Review

Although the whispering voice in the cornfield of "A Field of Dreams" reassured Kevin Costner "If you build it, they will come," the voice we heard while working under an extremely tight deadline from July to December of 2002 to create and implement the first fully online professional development program for Florida teachers whispered "If we build it, WILL they come?"  Well, one year and 6770 teachers later that voice is no longer a whisper, but a roaring "YES!"

Beginning January 21, 2003 and continuing throughout the summer, 4570 teachers across the state enrolled in the FOR-PD course.  As of September 2003, 2045 participants had successfully completed the course.  During the Fall of 2003, an additional 2200 students enrolled in FOR-PD with those sections completing throughout December 2003 and January 2004.  Early registration numbers for Spring 2004 sections indicate an even more robust year ahead with over 1300 participants having started the course since January 20, 2004 and additional participants beginning daily.

The purpose of the FOR-PD project and course has been to provide standards-based and research-based professional development in reading with teachers' and students' needs in mind. As we begin offering our second year of classes on January 21, 2004, our mission continues to be to:

• support the Florida Department of Education in its statewide implementation of a reading professional development system using online delivery;
• serve as a model for reading professional development online delivery;
• translate scientifically based research into action, provide support, empower teachers to use innovative, creative, and effective strategies to help all children learn proficiently;
• increase teachers' knowledge base about reading;
• improve curriculum and reading instruction; and
• improve student learning.

Judging by enrollment numbers and the 2000 plus completed end-of-course evaluations we’ve received this year, we have successfully met our objectives this first year. The FOR-PD project has been a collaborative effort from the start, with literacy and technology experts, university faculty, school districts, professional organizations, and facilitators and teachers from across the state dedicating their time and expertise. The success of the FOR-PD project and course is a success for each and every professional who has played a part in its creation and implementation- but more importantly, it is a success for Florida’s students.  Feedback from those who completed the FOR-PD course in 2003 indicates that the course has provided teachers across the state with instructional tools that they can and will utilize in their classroom reading instruction.

An outside interim report of the first year of the FOR-PD project and course, drawn from various sources including narrative reports from facilitators, surveys of participants at the end of the course, and follow-up telephone interviews with administrators, further indicates the following:

• Over 87% of FOR-PD participants indicated they would make changes and/or additions to classroom reading instruction as a result of FOR-PD.

o      Over 90% (93%) of participants indicated that the value of reading strategies introduced in FOR-PD was excellent or good.

o      Approximately 97% of participants indicated FOR-PD was excellent or good in covering the state and national reading initiatives, with nearly three-fourths of participants (73%) indicating FOR-PD covered the reading initiatives to an excellent degree.

o      Over 90% of participants indicated that FOR-PD has contributed to their knowledge of effective reading theory, research, and instructional practice to an excellent or good extent.

o      The extent FOR-PD contributed to understanding student needs and instructional adaptations for struggling readers to an excellent or good extent was 89% with over one-half indicating excellent (52%).

As we rededicate ourselves to our purpose and mission for a second year, we would like to thank everyone who contributed to the successful launch and completion of our first year.  The data shows that we ARE making a difference in reading instruction throughout Florida and YOU are a part of that! We ask for your continuing support of the FOR-PD project and course and wish you continuing success in 2004.

Spring 2004 Enrollment Boasts BIG Numbers

The Spring 2004 sections have gotten off to a great start with 1316 participants beginning the course in the last two weeks!  575 teachers from 42 Florida districts registered for the Spring 2004 FOR-PD course through our Open Enrollment period.  We received another 741 registrations through districts.  So far we’ve started over 18 Open Enrollment sections and another 28 district sections! 

By popular demand, Open Enrollment will be available once again for the Spring 2004 classes. Online registration will be available at http://www.itrc.ucf.edu/register/register.html from February 2-13 for classes beginning February 17, 2004 and ending May 28, 2004.

This will be the last opportunity to register through Open Enrollment for Spring 2004 classes, but we will continue to accept district registration ANYTIME a district has 25 or more participants ready to begin the course.

Share the News about FOR-PD

We have a FOR-PD flyer [PDF: 2 pages / 948k] and a FOR-PD brochure [PDF: 2 pages / 1.1MB] available. You can download them and print your own copies or we'll mail the real thing to you free of charge. To order, visit the ITRC eStore.

Florida's Instructional Technology Resource Center (ITRC) is funded by partnerships with SEIR*TEC and Just Read, Florida! to provide statewide and regional leadership and support services to educators who are striving to improve student achievement through the integration of technology into teaching and learning. To accomplish this, the ITRC designs and develops instructional materials, online classes and databases, and other products and services. Not only can you order FOR-PD promotional flyers and brochures, but you can also order other great FREE items for students and teachers that address technology in the Sunshine State Standards, effective Internet searching, ITRC technology projects, and other online staff development opportunities from the ITRC.

FOR-PD Announces "Reading Strategy of the Month"

In our continuing effort to benefit teacher's needs across the state, we’ve created a NEW Reading Strategy of the Month feature on our website. Each month we will feature an effective reading strategy, explain the rationale behind the strategy, step-by-step directions on how to use the strategy with students, ideas for assessing the strategy, and, of course, a printable PDF version of the strategy itself that teachers can use immediately with their students! This month we're highlighting the ABC Brainstorming strategy. To kick off this month's strategy we've used the ABC Brainstorming strategy ourselves to create our ABC's of effective FOR-PD facilitation and ABC's of effective FOR-PD participation. We hope that you will share this information with teachers in your district.

News from the Frontline

Our certified FOR-PD facilitators play a vital role in developing and maintaining an online program that is effective, efficient, and supports the realization of the FOR-PD course objectives. They are also our frontline when it comes to supporting participants and bringing "the human touch" to the FOR-PD experience. This month we'd like to share with you some comments we have received from them:

"The FOR-PD year experience was like the unfolding of a flower. With each new course section facilitation I experienced something new either through the participants, the content or my own reflections happened! Now that the flower has opened, the participants can go out like seeds to teach and touch students' lives through the knowledge and skills they have gleaned." Iveta Maska - Pasco County

"Working as a FOR-PD facilitator this year has given me many delights. It is such a pleasure to see the spark and excitement that teachers get when they learn useful and usable information. As I read through our online discussions, I got a clear sense that teachers wanted to learn these important strategies and techniques so that they could help their students grow as readers. In many ways we grew together by sharing our experiences and reflections on teaching. It was a very powerful year for literacy in Florida." Lourdes Smith - UCF

"I was honored to be selected as a facilitator and am ecstatic to be a part of such a professional, effective, thorough initiative to provide top quality, researched based instruction for classroom teachers, administrators, and district personnel. I have loved communicating with educational professionals from across the state and districts both huge and tiny. I have learned much from the participants and have made several friends. In addition, I feel I have become not only a more effective teacher but also a more patient one as well." Claire Osetek - Seminole County

"My base of knowledge expanded dramatically with each experience facilitating three sections for FOR-PD during the first year. In addition to keeping up with the newest trends in literacy instruction, I found myself challenged with all those techno-hurdles. I began a new section as of January 2004, more confident in my ability to help others meet the same challenges with success." Sue Dyess - Santa Rosa County

"Thanks so much-this material is just unbelievably good. I have sent out an email to our Reading Cadre members at each school with the new sign-up information, and have asked the Cadre folks to really give the course a plug. I am just amazed at not only the content of the basic lessons, but the abundance of excellent resources as well. And I love the practice games as we prepare for quizzes-we need to let our students learn like this!" Laurie Hays - St. Johns County

"I just finished the course and see the great need for an online format for all five competencies so educators can earn their reading endorsement through high quality programs such as the FOR-PD course. Many of us live in small rural communities without convenient access to universities to take courses. The online format would certainly facilitate the process." Linda Reid - Suwannee County