HISTORY OF MASHBURN INSTITUTE
Dr. and Mrs. J. D. Mashburn had never heard of learning disabilities until two of their four children were born. Despite obvious intelligence, the two youngest children struggled with reading from an early age. The Mashburns eventually discovered that Zack and Molly had learning disabilities related to reading. According to Dr. Mashburn, the children’s struggles with reading nearly devastated their lives as teachers mistook their disabilities for a lack of trying.
Dr. Mashburn decided that helping his children was not enough. Dr. Mashburn has stated emphatically, “I won’t be satisfied until every school in Arkansas has at least one teacher who has been trained in this program and is helping students with learning disabilities.” Dr. and Mrs. Mashburn decided to establish the Christine Greenhaw Mashburn Institute named in honor of Dr. Mashburn’s mother. The institute was designed to bring authorities on learning disabilities to UCA to educate teachers about students with special needs. The Mashburn Institute partnered with Dr. Don Deshler, a nationally recognized authority on learning disabilities from the University of Kansas.
In 1991, the University of Central Arkansas used the cash value of a $1 million life insurance policy the Mashburns purchased to host the Mashburn Institute for the purpose of providing classroom teachers and administrators with research-based instructional strategies for use with students at-risk to fail or fall behind. Nearly 400 educators have successfully participated in the Mashburn Institutes during the past 17 years. Consistent with the vision of Dr. and Mrs. J. D. Mashburn, the academic achievement of thousands of adolescents who struggle with learning in Arkansas middle and secondary schools has been dramatically improved as a result of the skills teachers have acquired through the Mashburn Institute.
The No Child Left Behind legislation calls for teachers to use “scientifically based instructional practices.” Subsequently, instructional practices developed by the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning (KU-CRL) have been the cornerstone of the training provided at the summer institutes. The education/research team at the University of Kansas has developed a research-based instructional model called SIM that represents the Strategic Instruction Model.
(For more information about the Strategic Instruction Model, access the website, www.ku-crl.org, or call 785-864-0617).
SIM: THE STRATEGIC INSTRUCTION MODEL
The overall goal associated with the Strategic Instruction Model is to enable students who have been at risk for failure in school settings to learn new skills and to transfer these new skills into their home, work, and community settings. The Strategic Instruction Model consists of three components:
- Strategic curriculum for teaching students how to perform in academic settings.
- Strategic instruction incorporating teaching behaviors that have been found to be effective in helping at-risk students learn new skills.
- Strategic environment procedures designed to help teachers create an atmosphere that encourages the use of new learning processes.
RESEARCH SUPPORT
The instructional materials used to support the practices outlined by the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning (KU-CRL) have been rigorously field tested and validated by teachers in real classrooms. This process has included responding to suggestions from educators on the practicality of the proposed instruction as well as carefully scrutinizing research data on the procedures’ effectiveness with regard to student performance. Approximately 160 articles have been published regarding the efficacy of the instructional practices developed and implemented by the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning.
(For more information, call 785-864-4780. CRL will provide an article list for a nominal fee.)
THE MASHBURN INSTITUTE: MEETING TODAY’S CHALLENGE
The national and state failure rate among adolescents is alarming. While statewide progress is occurring, too many adolescents are failing or falling behind their peers in academic performance. UCA’s Mashburn Institute has become increasingly proactive in solving the academic challenges among adolescents. The institute has been instrumental in creating a variety of interventions designed to eliminate such challenges.
UCA/ADE Arkansas Adolescent Literacy Intervention
The Arkansas Adolescent Literacy Intervention is one such effort. A partnership between UCA’s Mashburn Institute and the Arkansas Department of Education has been forged to address the present challenges. The partnership stems from the long-term overriding goal of UCA’s Mashburn vision to build a capacity throughout the state of Arkansas to prepare classroom teachers to use scientifically based instructional practices to improve outcomes for students prone to fail or fall behind. Instructional practices developed by the Kansas University – Center for Research on Learning have been the cornerstone of the instructional methodologies provided at UCA’s Mashburn Institute.
The Arkansas Department of Education – Literacy Division and the Arkansas Department of Education – Special Education Division awarded the University of Central Arkansas Mashburn Institute $279,000 and $259,000 respectively during the 2006-2007 school years to help reduce the frequency of school failure among adolescents in Arkansas. The $538,000 grant awards are designed to support scientifically based professional development to improve teachers’ knowledge and skills at the middle and secondary levels.
During the 2007-2008 school year, the Arkansas Department of Education - Literacy Division and the Arkansas Departmnet of Education - Special Education Division have awarded an additional $483,000.00 to sustain the intervention effort implemented in 2006-2007.
At the present time, literacy specialists, k-12 literacy coaches, special educators, general content specialists, and alternative educators representing multiple school districts and education co-ops are participating in professional development activities. Approximately 60 educators are involved in developing skills designed to help students become more effective and successful learners using a variety of scientifically based learning strategies. Approximately 45 more educators are involved in developing scientifically based content enhancement routines designed to help the educators more effectively organize and teach content difficult for students to learn. A percentage of the participants are also participating in professional development activities designed to help them become certified professional developers. A major focus for the present initiative is to develop certified professional developers who will help sustain the present efforts of the initiative.
The Dean’s Symposium University Initiative
The methodologies used within the Arkansas Adolescent Literacy Intervention are also an integral part of a second effort. The Dean’s Symposium sponsored by the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE), Special Education State Program Development through a grant from the Arkansas Governor’s Developmental Disabilities Council is coordinating and conducting professional development for higher education faculty to address the preparation of pre-service teachers in meeting the unique needs of all students. The plan is for 16 universities represented by four faculty members per university to participate in this professional development during the next two years. This on-going professional development at the teacher preparation level will ensure that inclusive education become an integral part of the regular education and special education curricula within the university environment. The alignment between the two initiatives will provide teacher graduates opportunities to learn scientifically based knowledge and skills congruent with the knowledge and skills learned by those teaching in the public schools at the present time. Such an alignment will better prepare university teacher education candidates to meet the unique needs of all students.
UCA’s Mashburn Institute is making plans with the ADE to continue building statewide capacity to help educators work more effectively with adolescents who struggle academically. The present effort must be sustained to close the performance gap between adolescents prone to fail and adolescents prone to excel. Many adolescents who fail or fall far behind become increasingly disconnected from the very fabric of the school environment. They develop a sense of hopelessness and fall prey to gangs, delinquency, and crime. They become dependent upon our society rather than becoming adults our society can depend upon. The nation is calling for more scientifically based practices to address the present challenges. State departments are calling for more highly qualified teachers to use research based practices. The three present initiatives reflect UCA’s effort to facilitate change for Arkansas adolescents. The partnership forged by UCA’s Mashburn Institute with the Arkansas Department of Education can have a significant impact on Arkansas education. The residue of such an impact can reduce the drop-out rate, increase the graduation rate, promote economic benefits, and bring a sense of hope to a greater number of adolescents. Adolescents who fail stop dreaming. UCA’s Mashburn Institute initiative strives to help all adolescents to dream and to dream big. Dr. Mashburn has asked for no less.
(For more information about the Mashburn Institute, contact Dr. Mark J. Cooper, Director of the Mashburn Institute, at 501-450-3171 or e-mail at mcooper@uca.edu.)
