Teachers use a research-based format to organize the delivery and assessment of classroom instruction, built around the ‘best practices' and constructivist learning research. This includes:

The cluster of Power Indicators (aka academic standards) on which the Unit Plan is based - and which students are expected to master.

Motivation activities that draw students into the Unit; determine what they already know (and do not); provide concrete experiences with the Unit content; help students set academic and person goals for the Unit; and preview the performance expectations for the Unit.

Information activities that provide students with the knowledge and skills needed to master the Power Indicators. These activities designate teacher behaviors (strategies and techniques appropriate to the Power Indicators) and student engagement (how students will process the information); the size and type of grouping; and specific learning constructs (or scaffolding) to help students process meaning featured in the ‘best practices' research, including:

1. The analysis of organizational patterns in text
2. Summarization
3. The use of graphic organizers to display understanding
4. Note-taking (as per the appropriate organizational pattern)
5. Various levels of questioning
6. Deep-level vocabulary analysis, including context clues
7. Noting similarities and differences (comparing / contrasting)

To accommodate the needs of advanced as well as struggling students, this section also features Differentiation strategies, or adjustments in:

• Time allotted
• The amount of teacher and/or peer assistance vs independence
• The amount of material or number of problems
• The level of difficulty of the material
• The level and number of concrete examples and models
• The amount of practice (more and less)
• The level of sophistication of the product

Using the Curriculum Maps, teachers develop Unit Plans to deliver and assess classroom instruction. The EdFOCUS system is drawn from the constructivist, experiential learning, and "best practices" research. The Unit Plan format is a simple two-page protocol that identifies (1) the cluster of content standards or Power Indicators comprising the Unit ( taken from the Curriculum Map ); (2) motivation activities that draw students into the Unit, determine what they already know, make clear what they are expected to accomplish by the end of the Unit; and help each set personal learning goals;(3) information activities through which students use learning constructs to acquire the new knowledge and skills needed to master Performance Indicators for the Unit; delivery strategies that are most likely to help students internalize the content; and the use of guided practice to reinforce concepts and skills; (4) assessments that formatively and summatively measure student mastery using more traditional forms such as paper-pencil tests and quizzes; and (5) culmination activities that require students to complete performance (or authentic) assessments which approximate real-life problem-solving or the construction of original products.

Differentiation

During the training, teachers are also shown how to provide for Differentiation to accommodate the needs of advanced as well as struggling students. These adjustments include various sizes and types of grouping as well as variations in

• time allotted
• the amount of teacher and/or per assistance vs independence
• the amount of material or number of problems
• the level of difficulty of the material
• the level and number of concrete examples and models
• the amount of practice ( more and less )
• the level of sophistication of the product

Increasing Student Engagement

Each Unit Plan also includes strategies to increase student engagement, including reinforcement and recognition to validate accomplishments and encourage continued effort; collaboration with other students for problem-solving to increase students' positive interdependence; and the provision of continuous and substantive feedback to encourage self-monitoring.