The Background on the Newly Revised HLC Learning Progressions
All Learners Network (ALN) originally created the High Leverage Concepts (HLC) Learning Progressions as a resource for classroom teachers, math interventionists, and special educators who create learning opportunities for their students daily. We wanted to build grade level progressions directly connected to the concepts highlighted in our High Leverage Concepts (HLCs) that would provide “road maps” for instructional decisions based on student evidence.
The new, revised, HLC Learning Progressions are an example of ALN’s commitment to keep all of our resources current. As we reviewed teacher feedback and reflected upon facilitators’ experiences with them, we became aware of the need to make the HLC Learning Progressions more accessible and useful to all educators. We also felt that the HLC Learning Progressions should support ALN’s belief which is expressed in our mantra “No Model, No Understanding”; therefore, all the of them should include examples of important models for all grade levels.
The revised HLC Learning Progressions continue to illuminate developing stages along a continuum of concepts, models and skills that lead toward student understanding and application of the HLCs. Teachers can continue to intentionally plan lessons based on where a student or students can be placed on the learning progression to help them move forward in their learning.
So what did we change?
We often heard “So, what does that look like?” from teachers using the original HLC Learning Progressions. We also noticed that although there was a common phrase (‘Students must use models….’) throughout all of the original Learning Progressions, models weren’t included to support the text. We at ALN overwhelmingly believe students should have access to and use models daily and in all activities which support learning the high leverage concepts, in fact all mathematical concepts; we didn’t provide the necessary examples of what it could look like in the first edition of the HLC Learning Progressions. In an effort to honor our belief we revised our HLC Learning Progressions to include models that match our Models for Intervention and Models for Instruction on all of the HLC Maps. The models included on the revised Learning Progressions also illuminate the Critical Strategies stated on the HLC Maps.
The new, revised HLC Learning Progressions provide CLEAR information about models and strategies that teachers can use to understand how best to support their students focused on core, prioritized content. Each HLC Learning Progression provides examples of models that are appropriate learning tools for each specific grade level. The examples of models used highlight the strategies determined to be critical in building conceptual understanding of important math concepts. The new HLC Learning Progressions also allow teachers to see how various models support strategy development. In addition, when looking at successive HLC Learning Progressions, teachers have the opportunity to see how models are vertically aligned or connect between grade levels, which allow them to build upon students’ prior experiences. The inclusion of models was the missing piece that deepen teachers’ understanding and use of these resources and the mathematics students are learning, which in turn benefits all students. That is always our ultimate goal here at ALN.
