Acceleration Roadmap

The Acceleration Roadmap is a tool for teachers and leaders in Massachusetts to support acceleration of student learning in the 2021–22 school year. While all students were impacted during the 2020-21 school year, the pandemic exacerbated many existing inequities and opportunity gaps. This roadmap is designed to provide a focused and phased approach to supporting students as they return to school in the new academic year. Below you will find two versions, one designed specifically for classroom educators and one for building administrators.

Implementation Support

School Leader Drop-In Professional Development: Learning Acceleration

The Drop-in Professional Development sessions for school leaders builds off of the professional learning sessions DESE and TNTP provided over the Summer of 2021. Prior to attending your first session, you may wish to familiarize yourself with the resources from the summer series on this page.

During the first 90 minutes of each session, school leaders will alternate between experiencing the new learning as a teacher and as a building leader. This time will be spent focused on the instructional topic, along with interwoven themes such as key conditions for accelerated learning, mindsets, and making connections to how the learning will best serve diverse student groups and their unique needs. The final 30 minutes of each session will be spent processing the learning experience in small groups and brainstorming with peers (by grade band) how they will take the learnings back to their schools. During this processing period, participants will plan for how they can begin to apply and cultivate new practices in their own school, discuss the implications of these practices, and brainstorm how to monitor and track teachers' growth and improved student outcomes.

Session Title	Objectives	Register to Attend Option A	Register to Attend Option B
Session 1 Ensuring access to high-quality, grade appropriate assignments.	Explain the importance of high-quality grade appropriate assignments for learning acceleration and student growth Evaluate the quality of assignments to ensure all students have access to high-quality grade appropriate content. Determine how to identify the most critical prerequisite skills and knowledge for each grade level and subject area.	Tuesday, October 19, 2021 3–5pm (Session 1A Focus on Math) Registration Link	Thursday, October 28, 2021 12–2pm *(Session 1B Focus on Literacy)* Registration Link
Session 2 Sparking student success right away: How to build and fortify background knowledge to accelerate learning.	Clarify the role and importance of schema building to accelerate learning. Identify criteria for effective "success starter" strategies Apply new learning to analyze sample lessons and design effective schema building strategies	Tuesday, November 9, 2021 3–5pm Registration Link	Thursday, November 18, 2021 12–2pm Registration Link
Session 3 Designing Strong Instructional Scaffolds for Tier 1 Instruction	Explain how learning acceleration supports students with diverse learning needs Analyze an approach for intentionally planning scaffolding strategies according to content area, learning context, and students' needs. Examine how to anticipate and plan for potential barriers to learning by designing flexible lessons and learning environments that address the needs of historically marginalized students.	Thursday, December 2, 2021 3–5pm Registration Link	Thursday, December 16, 2021 12–2pm Registration Link
Session 4 Developing Academic Vocabulary and Discourse to Accelerate Learning	Examine effective strategies for authentic and meaningful academic language development Identify the conditions necessary to prepare students to engage in effective classroom conversations Analyze examples of collaborative conversations that bridge language development and knowledge building.	Thursday, January 20, 2022 3–5pm Registration Link	Thursday, January 27, 2022 12–2pm Registration Link
Session 5 Ensuring Students have Access to Strong Instruction (Part 1— Literacy)	Engage with TNTP's Instructional Walk-through tool Analyze examples of strong instruction	Tuesday, February 15, 2022 3–5pm Registration Link	Thursday, February 24, 2022 12–2pm Registration Link
Session 6 Ensuring Students have Access to Strong Instruction (Part 2— Math)	Engage with TNTP's Instructional Walk-through tool Analyze examples of strong instruction	Tuesday, March 8, 2022 3–5pm Registration Link	Thursday, March 17, 2022 12–2pm Registration Link
Session 7 Formatives Assessments and Feedback: Implementing Strong Instructional Feedback to Accelerate Learning	Clarify the role of formative assessments in improving student learning outcomes Examine effective strategies for providing instructional feedback Plan for how you can begin to apply and cultivate these practices in your own school.	Tuesday, April 12, 2022 3–5pm Registration Link	Thursday, April 21, 2022 12–2pm Registration Link
Session 8 Student Motivation: Giving Students Valuable Work and Greater Responsibility	Describe the connection between a student's confidence, perceived value of a task and the impact on motivation. Examine shifts and strategies for effective collaborative student work opportunities	Tuesday, May 10, 2022 3–5pm Registration Link	Thursday, May 19, 2022 12–2pm Registration Link

Implementation Resources / Quick Links

Related Research

Summer Series Recordings

Use the links below to view recordings of the 2021 summer series implementation support sessions.

Building Leader Professional Development Series

Classroom Educator Professional Development Series

Last Updated: October 14, 2021