Welcome to our new blog series all about High Leverage Practices (HLPs) for Students with Disabilities! In the upcoming series of posts, our team will be exploring how these practices can transform your teaching and learning environment based on their own experience using them in their own practice. I’m kicking off this series by giving you a clear picture of what HLPs are all about - and why they matter. I'll outline the key practices that continue to make real differences in the classrooms we serve and invite you to check out our blog every week as our team takes turns unpacking each practice in detail to offer insights and practical tips that we believe will be helpful to you for integrating these strategies into your practice like we do in ours.
What Are High Leverage Practices?
Heather Volchko, MEd, BCBA
High Leverage Practices (HLPs) are essential because they provide a research-backed framework that helps us all focus on what truly makes a difference in our teaching and learning experiences. By applying these practices, educators and school leaders can create effective, supportive, and responsive learning environments. HLPs offer practical strategies for improving instruction, engaging students, and addressing diverse needs, all of which contribute to better educational outcomes for our communities. In essence, HLPs matter because they guide educators in making informed decisions that position students for success while simultaneously positioning practitioners for success.
Overview of the HLPs
Heather Volchko, MEd, BCBA
Collaboration
Effective collaboration is essential for fostering student success, and the High Leverage Practices (HLPs) in this area provide valuable strategies for working with various rightsholders.
Collaborate With Professionals To Increase Student Success emphasizes the importance of working together with colleagues, specialists, and other educational professionals to enhance our students’ outcomes. This practice involves sharing expertise, resources, and strategies to create a unified approach to supporting student achievement.
Organize And Facilitate Effective Meetings With Professionals And Families focuses on structuring and leading productive meetings that bring together educators, specialists, and families. Effective meetings ensure clear communication, set actionable goals, and promote collaborative problem-solving to address our students’ needs.
Collaborate With Families To Support Student Learning And Secure Needed Services highlights the role of engaging families as partners in their child’s education. By working closely with families, we can better support our students’ learning, address any challenges, and access additional services and resources to benefit each student.
Together, this domain of HLPs underscores the value of collaboration in education to build strong partnerships and effective communication channels that ultimately support and enhance student success.
Assessment
As a person who relies strongly on being data-informed, I believe understanding and leveraging assessment data is crucial for effective instruction. The High Leverage Practices (HLPs) in the assessment domain provide a framework for making data-driven decisions.
Use Multiple Sources Of Information emphasizes the importance of gathering a variety of data points to gain a well-rounded view of each of our students. By considering different types of information — such as academic assessments, observations, and feedback from teachers and families — we can better identify our students’ strengths and areas for improvement.
Interpret And Communicate Assessment Information focuses on the need to share and discuss assessment results with key stakeholders, including other colleagues and families. Effective communication of assessment data helps in collaboratively developing and implementing educational strategies and programs that are tailored to meet our students' needs.
Use Assessment Data To Adjust Instruction involves continuously reviewing assessment data to evaluate the effectiveness of instructional methods. By analyzing this data, we can make informed adjustments to our teaching practices so that we can address our students' evolving needs and enhance overall learning outcomes.
These HLPs collectively support a data-informed approach to education by emphasizing the importance of comprehensive understanding, effective communication, and ongoing refinement of instructional practices to boost student achievement.
Social/Emotional/Behavioral
Having spent the far majority of my career supporting students through a variety of regulation challenges, I know creating a supportive and effective learning environment is key to student success. High Leverage Practices (HLPs) in the social/emotional/behavioral domain provide essential strategies for achieving this.
Establish A Consistent, Organized, And Respectful Learning Environment focuses on creating a classroom atmosphere that is predictable, well-structured, and fosters mutual respect. This practice helps our students feel more secure and able to focus on their learning without unnecessary disruptions.
Provide Positive And Constructive Feedback involves offering our students specific, actionable feedback that helps them understand their progress and areas for improvement. Effective feedback guides students in their learning and behavior to promote growth and reinforce positive actions.
Teach Social Behaviors highlights the importance of explicitly instructing students in appropriate social interactions and behaviors. By teaching these skills, we help our students develop the social competencies necessary for successful peer relationships and a positive classroom environment.
Conduct Functional Behavioral Assessments involves systematically analyzing our students' behavior to understand its causes and develop tailored support plans. This practice ensures that behavioral interventions are based on a thorough understanding of each student’s needs and are designed in alignment with research that promotes positive behavioral changes.
These HLPs collectively contribute to a well-managed and supportive learning environment where students receive the guidance they need to thrive, both, academically and socially.
Instruction
Artful, effective instruction hinges on a well-rounded approach and the twelve High Leverage Practices (HLPs) in the instruction domain provide a multifaceted series of approaches that guide us in delivering meaningful learning experiences with our students.
Identify And Prioritize Long- And Short-Term Learning Goals involves setting clear and achievable objectives for, both, immediate and future student learning. This practice helps us focus our efforts on what is most important and align our instruction with our students’ needs and academic growth.
Systematically Design Instruction Toward A Specific Learning Goal emphasizes creating well-structured lesson plans and activities that are directly aimed at achieving targeted learning objectives. This approach ensures that every aspect of our instruction is purposefully aligned with our desired outcomes.
Adapt Curriculum Tasks And Materials For Specific Learning Goals involves modifying instructional resources and tasks to better meet the needs of divergent learners. Tailoring materials to specific goals helps make learning more accessible and relevant for all of our students.
Teach Cognitive And Metacognitive Strategies To Support Learning And Independence focuses on equipping students with strategies to understand and manage their own learning processes. This practice helps our students develop critical thinking skills and become more self-sufficient learners.
Provide Scaffolded Supports highlights the importance of offering structured yet temporary assistance to help our students gradually build their skills and confidence. Scaffolding is what supports students as they work toward independence and mastery of new-to-them concepts.
Use Explicit Instruction involves clearly and directly teaching new concepts and skills through systematic explanations and demonstrations. This approach helps ensure that struggling learners understand what is being taught and how to apply their learning effectively.
Use Flexible Grouping emphasizes the need for dynamic and adaptable grouping strategies to meet varying instructional needs. By grouping our students based on a variety of differences, we can provide intentionally targeted support and encourage truly collaborative learning.
Use Strategies To Promote Active Student Engagement involves implementing techniques that actively involve our students in their learning process. Engaged students are more likely to participate, retain information, and apply their learning effectively. Who doesn’t want that?
Use Assistive And Instructional Technologies focuses on integrating technology to support and enhance instruction. Utilizing tools and resources can help address individual learning needs and provide additional ways for our students to engage with our content.
Provide Intensive Instruction highlights the importance of offering focused, high-dosage teaching for our students who need additional support. Intensive instruction utilizing a combination of all of these HLPs is what helps address significant learning gaps and accelerate student progress.
Teach Students To Maintain And Generalize New Learning Across Time And Settings involves helping our students apply and retain new knowledge and skills in various contexts. This practice ensures that learning is not only achieved but also sustained and utilized beyond the immediate learning or rehearsal opportunity.
Provide Positive And Constructive Feedback To Guide Students’ Learning And Behavior emphasizes giving meaningful feedback that helps our students understand their progress and areas for improvement. Effective instructional feedback supports both academic growth and behavioral development.
These HLPs collectively form a comprehensive approach to instruction, focusing on goal setting, tailored teaching, and the use of effective strategies to support all our students in their learning journey. By incorporating these practices, we can enhance our teaching methods and better support student success.
Join us!
written by
Heather Volchko
Heather Volchko is a school-based consultant and program evaluator specializing in emotional and behavioral disorders, trauma-informed behavior analysis, organizational behavior management, and leadership psychology. She has been a coordinator, teacher, and paraprofessional in therapeutic, alternative, self-contained, resource, and correctional settings. Outside of her professional work, she has worked abroad with various international education organizations as well as stateside with organizations facilitating upward mobility with disadvantaged populations. Heather is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst with her Bachelors in Special Education, Masters in Educational Psychology, and is currently pursuing her PhD.
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