Universal Access

Universal Access

Many teachers have a goal to increase student participation, thus increase student achievement. We want students to learn new things, to master the standards, and instill inquiry to further their education. We know that mastery of standards is a very difficult goal to achieve because kids acquire knowledge in different ways and take educational leaps at their own pace. But we, as educators, should keep HOPE alive in the classroom and know that our students will achieve mastery according to their potential. How do we do this? We teach subjects having Universal Access Time, but what does that exactly mean? Universal Access in education is a concept that encompasses planning for the widest variety of learners from the beginning of the lesson design process; it should not be “added on” as an afterthought. (California Mathematics Framework, Page 661 Universal Access, CA Department of Education)

Universal Access is a time to engage all learners in differentiated instruction.

As we monitor and assess our students, we begin to identify their learning needs and can begin planning instruction to meet those needs. I try to have Universal Access time for both Language Arts and Math, but being that TIME is my worst enemy in education it is difficult to maintain consistency in both. I take the more important one for me, which is Language Arts because I truly believe that reading is the foundation of all learning. With education becoming more rigorous, we now see more reading and writing in the math curriculum as well, hence even if our students are high achieving mathematical learners, but can’t read and write, they will become discouraged and lose focus in the math curriculum as well. 

Teachers in the most exciting and effective differentiated classrooms don’t have all the answers. What they do have is optimism and determination. ~Carol Ann Tomlinson

I plan for Language Arts UA time, five days a week for one hour per day. As a grade-level, we teach routines and procedures for the first couple of weeks of school, thus students should know where to find the essential classroom resources (in case Mrs. Sanchez ever goes missing).  During this time we begin to assess our students using a Phonics Diagnostic, Fry’s Sight Words, and Scholastic Reading Inventory along with Wonders’ Fluency and Comprehension passages. Yes, it takes A LOT of time (about 2 weeks total), it may not seem like a lot, but with the curriculum pacing, it really is. Now don’t get me wrong, the time is well worth it! Yes, more independent work will be done, whole class, but you will get to know each child in your class on a one-on-one basis; you will know their needs and conferencing with goal-setting (mapping our small steps to success in 4th grade) will be facilitated through the process.

After the assessments and conferencing, my grade-level team meets to discuss student achievement levels and group them accordingly. We aim for 4-5 groups, making sure that we meet the ratio of 8:1 or less. I then go back to my class and teach about the importance of TEAMWORK (you can read about this in one of my earlier blogs). The students realize that no matter what occupation you choose in life, we will always work in teams. They realize that they ALL have unique talents they will add to their team, that can lead to having specific roles in the team, but most importantly know that they will not agree on everything. We learn that there may be problems in our small group time, but we learn about respecting one another and agree to disagree; focusing on the goal and not on the problem.          For one month after the assessments have been done and teams have been set, I sit down with one group per day and lead group discussions(that also lead to a writing assignment), all pertaining to the theme of the week. We have good academic discourse where we add positive feedback and ask pertinent questions. Throughout this time, you are modeling positive leader characteristics and continue to reinforce the importance of teamwork in achieving a common goal. The on-level/beyond teams will begin to be very independent, while your approaching teams may need guidance. By then, you will realize, “This is it! I achieved my goal with Universal Access groups!” While my independent groups receive instruction and just go with, I am able to provide 30 minutes of intervention to my struggling learners. The attention provided and collaborative effort now provides greater chances of academic success. Stay tuned for my February Blog, in which I will give you examples of what each group does during Language Arts Universal Access. Live, Love, Teach! Hilda Sanchez