Diverse Learning | Highlander Institute

About
Blog

What is Diverse Learning?

Diverse Learners require additional scaffolding and support in order to reach rigorous grade level benchmarks articulated by the Common Core State Standards. Whether due to poverty, low English proficiency, mild to moderate learning disabilities, or unknown factors that cause students to struggle, the Highlander Institute offers innovative teaching and learning methods that significantly impact the growth and performance of Diverse Learners. By connecting research and best practices with motivated educators and leaders, the Highlander Institute has become a catalyst for inspiring substantial and sustainable changes in the way Diverse Learners are supported in school. Critical hallmarks of our projects include data-driven differentiation, relentless progress monitoring, protected time for teacher collaboration, explicit instruction, research-based interventions, and heightened accountability structures.

Our Diverse Learning Services

Transformative Consulting: Our district and school-based partnerships have inspired significant gains in student proficiency while supporting high impact shifts in teacher practice. Our talented team offers support and infrastructure from the big picture district level down to the classroom and intervention level and everywhere in between.

We support projects in the areas of:

Elementary Literacy Reform
Elementary Math Reform
Response to Intervention Systems
Using Data to Differentiate Instruction
Technology Tools to Support Diverse Learners
Aligning Curriculum to the Common Core State Standards

Research & Development: We leverage the latest research and the creative, innovative minds of our team to design initiatives that transform schools, address complex challenges and pilot high potential concepts. Central to all of our projects is a commitment to increasing outcomes for students.

We can help:

Conduct comprehensive Needs Assessments
Develop detailed strategic action plans
Design, implement and evaluate pilot initiatives
Lead district schools in a charter transformation process
Conceptualize and realize innovative new education models

Professional Development: Topics are tailored to district, school and teacher needs and are delivered in the form of workshops, seminars, facilitated meetings, embedded modeling, conferences; we work within the opportunities and constraints present in our partner schools and districts. Professional Development workshops may be open to the public; sessions may be scheduled on demand. Through our special relationships with high quality training programs around the country, the Highlander Institute offers specialized professional development in Orton-Gillingham, Project Read strands, and Keys to Literacy.

Conferences & Workshops: Diverse Learners Conference, Project Read

We can help: The Highlander Institute values collaborative relationships between diverse stakeholders in an effort to produce policy, advocacy, training and reform initiatives that have broad impact and are widely sustainable. We work to further the causes of accessibility, empowerment and excellence in education. Contact us to learn how we can improve student outcomes in your school or district.

Diverse Learning Blog

What is an EdCamp?

On November 3, 2012, a collaborative effort that included the Highlander Institute, hosted the first ever EdCamp in Rhode Island at Rhode Island College! Now, you may be asking.. read more

Reading and the Brain

In October of 2011, Dr. Christopher Kaufman, Ph.D., licensed Psychologist and author of Executive Function in the Classroom, discussed how reading comprehension and the brain work together at the University of.. read more

The Highlander Institute’s Work with Fort Barton School

Via Julia Steiny and http://www.golocalprov.com The Highlander Institute has developed a process that helps all students – whether their struggling, academically gifted, or in between – get whatever they specially need... read more

Diverse Learners Conference

On Saturday, November 3, the Highlander Institute will be hosting the Diverse Learners Conference. The conference will be held at the URI Providence Campus, (80 Washington Street, Providence, RI) and.. read more

Common Core or Guided Reading

-By Timothy Shanahan, University of Illinois at Chicago (From ShanahanonLiteracy.com) Recently, I’ve been fielding questions about guided reading (à la Fountas and Pinnell) and the common core; mainly about the differences in how they.. read more

Highlander Dissemination Project Yields Strong Year 1 Results

As part of a two-year charter dissemination project funded by RIDE, Highlander facilitator Dawn August has supported school-based literacy reform initiatives at Whiteknact and Oldham Elementary schools in East Providence.. read more

Ensuring Mastery of Early Numeracy Skills

Research has clearly demonstrated the value of integrating Curriculum-Based Measurement Assessments (such as AIMSWEB, EasyCBM, TEN, DIBELS) in elementary classrooms to measure performance and growth in both math and literacy. .. read more

“Decision Driven Data Collection”

Whether it’s due to a misunderstanding of its purpose or the fact that it takes too much prep and classroom time, formative assessment is often lost at the bottom of.. read more

Highlander Dunn Celebrates Fort Barton’s Reading Scores

TIVERTON — Test score success at Tiverton’s Fort Barton Elementary School is being touted by the Rhode Island Literacy Project (RILP) as evidence of the benefits of school-based literacy reform... read more

Highlander Dunn Partner Schools See Significant Literacy Gains!

While NECAP scores remained flat at the elementary levels across the state, the four partner elementary schools of the Rhode Island Literacy Project (run by the Highlander Dunn Institute) have.. read more