INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this project is to provide professional development opportunities for teachers that will increase student achievement in English language arts, specifically in expository writing using technology.  This professional development would focus on differentiated instruction that would enhance content delivery, as well as technology integration that would produce novel student products.  Strategies learned in professional development would be implemented to guide students to reach research-based expository writing proficiency.  Each team member will attend three conferences that emphasize differentiated instruction, writing, literacy, and educational technology.  Upon returning from each conference, team members will implement the strategies based upon the knowledge acquired from the conference in the writing instruction and present the strategies to faculty.  Students are expected to incorporate their writing into a technology-based project and present their findings to both peers and instructors.

Team Bio/ Information

Click here for information about Nevin TIIP Team Members

School Information

Nevin Avenue is a K-5 public elementary school in the Los Angeles Unified School District that serves students in South Los Angeles.  Our school is on a year-round, four-track calendar.  The total student population is 820; Hispanics represent 95% of the population, and African Americans represent 5% of the population.  Sixty-nine percent of our students are English language learners, and just over 15% of our ELL's have reclassified during the 2008-2009 school year.  Over 4% of Nevin's students are identified as gifted and talented, 9% of our students have been diagnosed with a disability, and 96% of our population is considered economically disadvantaged. Nevin has increased our state Annual Progress Indicator (API) in the last year years by 109 points and reached API of 700 in 2010.  Nevin has also earned the prestigious Service Learning Award, being the only school in all of the Los Angeles Unified School District to be distinguished with this honor and is also the only elementary school in the South Central area that has a Shakespeare program and a STEM after school program.

Team Activities

This page covers information related to Nevin's participation in conferences and trainings on the topic of differentiated instruction in the area of writing and the integration of technology in the writing process.

Our TIIP team initiated the first annual writing contest at Nevin.

Click here to see the complete project implementation calendar from June 2010 to April 2011.

Professional Development Session

This page provides a brief chronological summary of the staff development sessions Nevin's team has conducted.

Best Practices in Writing

This page provides a list and description of best practices in writing instruction we have acquired through conferences, trainings, and courses we've attended as funded by the UCLA TIIP Project.

Student Work

This page provides descriptions and photos of student work from the implementation of best practices in writing instruction and assessment in Team Nevin's classrooms.