COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
P.O. BOX 2120
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA 23218-2120
SUPTS. MEMO NO. 182
December 21, 2001
INFORMATIONAL
|
TO: |
Division
Superintendents |
|
FROM: |
Jo Lynne
DeMary Superintendent
of Public Instruction |
|
SUBJECT: |
Regional Training Opportunities for Algebra
Readiness Initiative Intervention Teachers |
During February 2002 the Virginia Department of
Education will sponsor four one-day regional institutes to provide training for
teachers involved in intervention programs funded through the Algebra Readiness
Initiative. The training will be
research-based, appropriate for teachers working with middle school students,
and designed to enhance student performance on the Standards of Learning
assessments.
To be successful, an intervention program must allow
time in addition to students' regular mathematics classes to be spent on
productive tasks. These tasks should
enhance skills identified by diagnostic testing, give students the background
knowledge or skills needed for current or future objectives of their current
mathematics class, or give students in-depth knowledge of a concept needed for
success in Algebra I. Each lesson
should reflect the understanding that learning needs to progress from the concrete
to the representational to the abstract.
A model for this type of lesson or unit will be presented at this
training. The staff development will be
designed for participating teachers to learn and implement this type of lesson
planning for instruction.
You are invited to send a team of participants to an
institute in your region of the state. The participants will be provided with
information, materials, and activities that they can use in their intervention
programs.
The institutes, sponsored through an Eisenhower
Title II grant, will last from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. The Department of Education will provide
morning coffee, lunch, and breaks for all participants. School divisions will be responsible for the
cost of substitute teachers, transportation, and overnight accommodations when
required. Arrangements for state rates
at nearby hotels will be made and a list of these accommodations will be sent
to participants upon request.
Regional dates and sites:
Date Location
~ Feb. 7, 2002 Higher Education Center, Abingdon
~ Feb. 11, 2002 Doubletree Hotel, Charlottesville
~ Feb. 20, 2002 Doubletree Hotel Airport, Norfolk
~ Feb. 22, 2002 Holiday Inn, Manassas
To register participants, please fax the attached
registration form to Dr. Wendy Geiger at (804) 786-1597 before January 21,
2002. Space is limited to approximately
75 participants per site. Letters of
confirmation, with directions to the site, will be sent after registration
forms are received.
For more information, please contact Dr. Wendy Geiger
(wgeiger@mail.vak12ed.edu), mathematics specialist for middle instruction, at
(804) 225-2799.
JLD/WG
Attachment