Spectacular. Joyful. Awesome. These are words used by middle school students to describe the Janus Teach to One: Math program during a special program tour at Denver Center for International Studies (DCIS) at Montbello this winter.
Six months after the launch of Teach to One: Math at DCIS at Montbello, teachers and students are reporting positive outcomes thus far, saying the innovative math instruction model has introduced a new way of identifying how individual students learn best. During a late February school visit and tour of the program, senior staff with Janus Capital Group, a Denver-based global investment firm that funded the program, toured the program with teachers and students and saw for themselves how the instruction model is working.
During the program tour, the Teach to One: Math lab buzzed with excitement as students in grades 6, 7 and 8 rotated to different areas, saw new teachers throughout the lesson, and followed the routines for transition to fun music. Six students paired off with Janus team members and showed them around the Teach to One: Math labs, organized by modality and lesson instruction groups. Each room and section is named after a different international city, such as Nairobi, Singapore and Paris.
Teach to One: Math was implemented at DCIS at Montbello at the start of the 2015-2016 school year thanks to a three-year, $1.6 million grant to Denver Public Schools (DPS) via the Denver Public Schools Foundation. The grant funds Teach to One: Math at DCIS and will fund the program at a second middle school beginning fall 2016.
The Janus Teach to One: Math program supports the work DPS is implementing around personalized student learning. Teach to One: Math not only enables teachers to better understand which learning module works best for each student – such as teacher led instruction, peer-to-peer, small group, and individual, among others — but it teaches students how they learn best.
“Our students will now tell you how they learn best. They can articulate that, which will carry with them from grade to grade, and into college, and will help them to be confident life-long learners,” said DCIS at Montbello’s math director, Carrie Seawright.
When asked how she learns best, sixth-grade student Tabitha told the Janus team she learns best in the teacher-led modules and the peer-to-peer modules. Fellow sixth-grade student Keoni said he learns best with a peer-to-peer model.
“The peer-to-peer and small group instruction models not only teach students about the math concepts they’re working on together, but it teaches them life skills – like leadership and how to help others learn a concept, which deepens their own knowledge,” Seawright said. “Additionally, they learn that even if they don’t particularly like a student, they learn to work with them. They learn to collaborate.”
During Janus’ tour, students showed the team how they identify which group they will learn with for the day by first grabbing a laptop and logging into their individual accounts. The program immediately shows the student which lesson plan they will be working on for the day, which “city” they will be in, and which teacher they will be working with. At the end of the daily lesson, students answer five questions on an “exit slip” about the content and receive immediate feedback on how well they grasped the skill. Students who do well on their daily “exit slip” move on; those who don’t will continue to receive instruction on the same skill the next day.
When asked how they feel about receiving daily feedback on the work they do, one sixth-grade student explained that instant feedback helps her build confidence to move onto the next section. Students know at the start of every class which section they will be focusing on and which students they will be working with. At the end of the class, they know how well they grasped the concept and if they will work on that same concept again the next day, or if they will move on to a new section.
Teach to One: Math was strategically placed at DCIS at Montbello, which serves a high percentage of students who come from low-income homes in Far Northeast (FNE) Denver. The program leverages technology, data and analytics, and a variety of instructional materials and teaching methods to provide each student with a personalized learning experience every day. Instruction is delivered at the right academic level, using the most suitable instructional method. The program’s automated data analytics create recommended daily learning plans for each student, allowing teachers to adapt daily classroom lesson plans for individual student needs and skill levels.
“Our students are learning math utilizing a curriculum that is tailored to their own needs,” said DCIS at Montbello Principal, Julie Murgel. “Teach to One: Math has already changed the conversation about math at our school, and more students are on track today than have been for several years.”
Janus Capital Group continues to be the largest corporate funder in DPS history. Janus’ funding support has made Teach to One: Math at DCIS at Montbello possible. DCIS at Montbello, Denver Public Schools and the DPS Foundation sincerely thank Janus for its support of Teach to One: Math and for investing in the success of Denver’s students.
Click here to learn more about Janus’ grant to fund Teach to One: Math and other investments made to support innovative programs in DPS such as the Denver Teacher Residency and Blended Learning.
To learn more about program funding opportunities within DPS, please reach out to our team at the DPS Foundation: https://dpsfoundation.org/who-we-are/contact/.
