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| Chicago Academy for Advanced Technology: An Urban School From Scratch |
| Sunday, May 30, 2010 |
| 4:30 PM–5:50 PM |
| Texas Ballroom Salon E (Grand Hyatt) |
| Area: EDC; Domain: Applied Behavior Analysis |
| Chair: Bradley G. Frieswyk (BGF Performance Systems) |
| Discussant: Charles T. Merbitz (Chicago School of Professional Psychology) |
| Abstract: The Chicago Academy for Advanced Technology (CAAT) is a recent addition to the Chicago Public School system. The students at CAAT must strive to navigate and succeed in an educational environment. There are competing external and internal environmental factors that influence their behavior inside of the school. These vary from gang allegiance and recruitment pressure, economic and social stratification, home stability, peer pressure and academic contingencies. The staff members at CAAT have tried many strategies in attempts to increase correct responding in the classroom. Some of these strategies include utilizing a personalized system of instruction, homogeneous groupings, and transfer of training when coaching teachers. Many attempts to manipulate the social contingencies inside and outside of the school setting have also been implemented. The school’s response to these environmentally motivated behaviors must first be predicated on the safety of the students at-large and then focus on antecedents and consequences that will result in a direct and permanent change of behavior, both academically and socially. The current topic is to discuss the different strategies that may be utilized in a public school setting to ensure that the principles of behavior analysis are appropriately being employed at the level of public education. |
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| The Chicago Academy for Advanced Technology’s Instructional Environment: Manipulating Contingencies for Success in the Classroom |
| NICOLE ANN CISSELL (The Chicago School of Professional Psychology), Matthew Hancock (Center for Polytechnical Education), Teisha Jones (Chicago Academy for Advanced Technology), Bradley G. Frieswyk (BGF Performance Systems) |
| Abstract: The Chicago Academy for Advanced Technology (CAAT) is a recent addition to the Chicago Public Schools. Located on the south side, the school’s aim is to increase the rate of student progress within and across content areas. The staff members at CAAT have tried many strategies in attempts to increase correct responding in the classroom. One area of concern has been the task of grouping students homogeneously within subject areas according to the student’s current level of responding. This requires ongoing analysis of the individual’s data. This goal of homogeneous groupings requires the teachers to frequently reorganize the classrooms and the students’ schedules. Another effort on the part of our staff and teachers has been to implement a personalized system of instruction. Teachers must then be able to pinpoint the students’ current levels as well as any changes in curricula that may need to occur. In this sense, the coaching that must occur for the initial training to transfer must be frequent and in-depth. The current topic is to discuss the different strategies that may be utilized in a public school setting to ensure that the principles of behavior analysis are appropriately being employed at the level of public education. |
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| Social Environment Inside and Outside of the School |
| TEISHA JONES (Chicago Academy for Advanced Technology), Matthew Hancock (Center for Polytechnical Education), Bradley G. Frieswyk (BGF Performance Systems) |
| Abstract: This paper serves the purpose of describing the climatic conditions under which urban students have to navigate to reach and succeed in an educational environment. There are competing external and internal environmental factors that influence their behavior inside of the school. These vary from gang allegiance and recruitment pressure, economic and social stratification, home stability, peer pressure and academic competencies. The urban school is in direct competition with these atmospheric barriers which pose an immense threat to students’ matriculation through school. These factors are generally multiplied in magnitude when evaluating their impact of the educational outcomes of inner city students in high schools. Additionally, the social environment can have a catastrophic impact, oftentimes resulting in unanticipated behaviors from the students, parents and community. The school’s response to these environmentally motivated behaviors must first be predicated on the safety of the students at-large and then focus on antecedents and consequences that will result in a direct and permanent change of behavior. |
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| Building Political Support for Science-Based Teaching Strategies: The Chicago Academy for Advanced Technology |
| MATTHEW HANCOCK (Center for Polytechnical Education), Teisha Jones (Chicago Academy for Advanced Technology), Bradley G. Frieswyk (BGF Performance Systems) |
| Abstract: The Chicago Academy for Advanced Technology (CAAT) is a new, public high school in Chicago. This nonselective enrollment school is open to any student in the city interested in the school's mission and vision: to prepare all students for college, careers and leadership in the 21st century knowledge economy. CAAT admits primarily low income, minority students who's entering repertoires place them many years
below "grade level."In order to get students caught up and excelling in rigorous, problem-based learning situations and real-world projects with industry partners we have designed a program that employs tactics and strategies developed primarily in the field of applied behavior analysis. Key to implementing this model in a public school environment is developing effective political support for the implementation. This presentation will describe how the Center for Polytechnical Education (CAAT's non-profit operator) developed and
maintains political support for the implementation of science-based practices, particularly among Chicago's technology-oriented firms and the Office of the Mayor. |
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