How ELA Curriculum and EdReports Reviews Have Evolved

In this episode of EdVoices, we sit down with Jenni Aberli, an educational program specialist with 30 years of experience in education and a long-time EdReports reviewer. Jenni shares her journey from rural classroom teacher to district-level ELA curriculum specialist, offering valuable insights on the importance of properly vetted instructional materials, how to support teachers in implementing a new curriculum, how high-quality instructional materials can work together with teacher creativity, and how EdReports' newly updated ELA review tools reflect the latest research.

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FULL TRANSCRIPT

Alexis Gentry   00:07

Hi, I'm Alexis, and this is the EdVoices Podcast. And today we are joined by educational program specialist, long time EdReports reviewer and ELA educator, Jenni Aberli. Jenni, thank you so much for being on the podcast.

Jenni Aberli   00:20

Hi, Alexis. I'm really glad to be here today. 

Alexis Gentry   00:24

Awesome. Well, to start out, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey in education?

Jenni Aberli  00:29

Sure, I will try to keep this short! I think this is my 30th year in education. I spent probably my first 10 years in the classroom and a very rural school, first, and then a suburban school, and then I transitioned to Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville, Kentucky, served as a classroom coach there, and then moved to the district level as the high school ELA curriculum specialist, which means a lot of different things in a lot of different places. For me, that meant I was in charge of all of our high schools’ ELA programming, curriculum, and professional learning, about 25 high schools in our district. So it was a big job. 

Then right after 2020 I transitioned to work for a nonprofit in our state, The Collaborative for Teaching and Learning, and we focus on working with schools, not just in Kentucky, but throughout the country. And really our focus, my focus, is working with the adolescent literacy model—we call it “ALM”—and really supporting teachers and how to help kids become better readers and consumers of text. 

And we do other things too, but that's that's where I really focus in. I've also spent a lot of time during my career working on just becoming more knowledgeable about all things, ELA and literacy, reading and writing and speaking and listening, that's really become my passion, especially these last, I don't know, 15 years or so, is just really helping teachers become better at their craft and how to reach our students, because teaching is very different than it was when I first started.

Alexis Gentry   02:25

Absolutely, it seems like, I mean, your passion is very clear. Was that part of what inspired you to become an EdReports reviewer in the first place? 

Jenni Aberli   02:33

Absolutely, so I had just transitioned into the role of specialist in when the Common Core came in. Kentucky was one of the first states to adopt and so I became really involved in trying to learn more about those standards. I worked with Achieve the Core, went to a lot of trainings through them. And something started happening where all of these textbooks came out with the stamp on them that said “Common Core aligned”, and they weren't. They just had that stamp so people would purchase and that was very frustrating to me, as someone who was in charge of trying to help teachers make sure instruction was aligned to the standards. 

And so then I learned about this new group called EdReports and what they did, and I just had to be a part of that, because I wanted to be part of the solution to helping make sure materials were truly aligned, and I didn't have the skills to do that on my own. I needed to learn what I didn't know, and what I needed to know, to help make sure teachers had good quality materials in hand. So that's where it all started for me.

Alexis Gentry   03:54

That's so cool. Yeah, you've been with us through many iterations of the review process. How do you feel that the process has evolved or has improved over the years?

Jenni Aberli   04:05

I think [there’s] definitely [been] an improvement, but really it's been very good from the beginning. I remember coming on board at the start, and just so much training that we were involved in to help make sure that we were well equipped to review materials, to know the expectations of what reviewing looked like. You know, we had to be prepared to spend hours and hours of time going through each and every page—and how to work together virtually, because that was relatively new at the time, with other reviewers who were from different parts of the country and had different experiences. 

But what I really have appreciated along the process is we never felt alone. We felt very well prepared and trained, but sometimes there are things in curriculum that just make you pause, and you're not sure what to do with that, but we could always go back to, and have the support of, somebody from EdReports to help us navigate through those difficulties. I know that our new, updated version of the review tool just got released, so I am excited to see some changes in that. I know it's more aligned to what our most recent research has to say, which is one thing I appreciate about EdReports—always trying to align with research. 

And personally, I'm excited to see more of those multilingual learner supports being reviewed. I know that in some of the districts that I work with now, that's been my passion the past year or so, is trying to figure out ways that we can help the classroom teacher who has not been trained in helping multilingual learners get better at supporting them in becoming literate. And I know that's a really hard lift for teachers, and I appreciate that EdReports has seen that need and has gone after that in the updated version of the review tool.

Alexis Gentry   06:30

Absolutely, yeah, I think so much of the core of it is really about serving all students, and that absolutely includes multilingual learners. So it's definitely a welcome change to update and make sure that that is more of a priority for sure. How do you feel that districts have been able to help teachers in using quality materials, in selecting, through the whole process? What do you think the role of districts has been? 

Jenni Aberli   06:59

Yeah, I'm really excited that—I think EdReports has become a common household name with schools and districts now. I know that when I first started working with EdReports, a lot of people did not know what EdReports was. I would go in classrooms and I would see a few things, teachers using old textbooks, or even more so than that, a lot of teachers just Googling units that they could teach. I won't mention anything by name, but a lot of just online, unvetted curriculum.

And so I would go into classrooms and see these handouts. They were really pretty, but there was nothing aligned to standards there. It was busy work for students. I would go into classrooms and see high schools using fifth to sixth grade level texts with their students, and just trying to help teachers understand the shift to using grade level text, the shift to how to help students who aren't on grade level be able to read and understand those texts. So that's sort of where I started with this—started learning about EdReports, learning how to do a better job of evaluating curriculum. And at that point, a lot of times it was: they had what they had. But how can you take it and make it better, so that it's better aligned? 

I had the privilege of being asked several years ago—I guess 2019, I think, is when I started—in our state of Kentucky, we had a governor's task force for statewide curriculum development, so I was asked to be a part of that, with some superintendents, with some other curriculum folks around the state. And I remember sitting in some of those first meetings, and they were talking about designing curriculum, and in my head, I'm thinking, why aren't we looking at high quality instructional resources that are already out there? 

Because a lot of our teachers, number one, they don't have the background or the skills to design a high quality curriculum, nor the time, because it's hard work. And so at that point, that's when I just spoke up and said, What about EdReports? Have you heard about this thing called EdReports? And at that time, nobody in my state really knew what it was. So I'm like: check out this link. I believe KDE, Kentucky Department of Education, doesn't give schools a list of curriculum, but they do encourage schools to look at EdReports to determine what is high quality curriculum.

And, yay! That's a great start, but that's not the end of the journey to implementation. That's just step one. And I think one of the biggest challenges that we face in schools and districts face in this process is helping teachers and schools make connections across different expectations and requirements, right? So we might have a high quality curriculum, but we also might have other things within our states or districts that are expectations of teachers. So I think it's really important that we help teachers see connections among all of those and how all of them working together can be helpful for students in student learning. 

I think that's sort of the space where I live in right now, because I work with a lot of different schools and districts, and they all have different expectations. And having lived in the district world where there were a lot of different expectations, I just see the power of helping teachers understand and see how things work together, because otherwise it's: “we've got to do this and this and this and this,” and it's overwhelming, like nobody can do all of that realistically, so just helping make connections is important. 

Alexis Gentry   11:46

We often say curriculum is not a silver bullet—it's a part of the larger piece. And you know, you kind of touched on it a little bit there. But what do you feel is the role of curriculum in the overall path to student success?

Jenni Aberli   12:03

So it's the “what,” right? The curriculum is the “what,” but the “how” matters as well. And I think it's lovely that, when you purchase or adopt a curriculum, they come in and they offer some training for teachers right at the beginning of the school year. But then, unfortunately, that's sort of where the training stops, and that should be where the training starts. Because a lot of the curriculums—and having reviewed, there's a lot. So much. 

And I get it—like we're wanting to meet the needs of our special education students, and our multilingual learners, and our advanced students, and our students who are just maybe behind in reading. And we want to have reading and writing and speaking and listening and vocabulary and language and grammar—and, and, and! So it's a lot for a teacher to navigate, and they really need ongoing professional learning to help them figure out how to choose because, realistically, doing it all—it's just unrealistic with the amount of time teachers have with students, so they're going to have to learn how to choose and how to navigate. 

And I think that's where the journey starts. You—teachers, schools—can adopt a curriculum, but the journey begins with implementing. And so it's the “what” and the “how” working together, and that ongoing support from someone who can help them make those choices. Also, I think we're all smarter together. And I hate to see a teacher working in isolation. It gets very lonely, and you have questions and you're not sure, but if you can work with or partner with a teacher, or a PLC, or teachers from one school, or work with teachers from another school, just having thought partners to help break down this big curriculum can be really helpful for teachers along the process. 

I did a webinar recently with Dr. Tom Guskey, who's done a lot of work out of the University of Kentucky. And one thing that he said that kind of stuck with me in thinking about adopting curriculum, is we should know pretty soon whether or not it's working. I had always heard that there's like a three year time period for us to be able to really know if a curriculum is working, and I still believe that to some point—like, it takes time. Change takes time, but a teacher needs to have those little checkpoints along the way to know if it's working, and so that just gave me time to pause and reflect on: okay what might be those little checkpoints that we can use six weeks, in three weeks in, to know: how are we doing? Because we can't wait for three years.

Alexis Gentry   15:12

For sure, absolutely. Yeah, I think it's the combination you mentioned—like the professional learning aspect of it, and then being able to sort of assess, like, is this working? So many of those things, like, you can pick something great, but you need to know how to use it, and then you need to make sure that it's working. Yeah, it's kind of all of those elements together, you know. And I love that you mentioned the collaborative aspect of that as well. I know you mentioned, like, with the reviews, the review teams being a very collaborative process, you know, being able to bounce those things off of someone, and being able to do that thought partnership is so valuable to this work, because it is a lot to tackle by yourself, for sure.

Jenni Aberli   15:50

It's really good to have different perspectives from different parts of the country and from different walks of life and experiences, lots of deep conversations and very, very intentional conversations about whether or not things would meet the criteria of the rubric. 

Alexis Gentry   16:15

Yeah, absolutely. I think, you know, if the goal is to serve all students, it's great to have outside perspectives or diverse perspectives within the reviewer groups as well. You know, you really want to cover that through all areas, absolutely. So, as we start to sort of wrap up here, we've loved having you review with us and do so many things with us. What is something that you are most proud of in your work with EdReports?

Jenni Aberli   16:45

So let me just start with: I'm proud to be a part of the EdReports network. I'm very proud of this work. You know? I just remember coming into education when there was nothing like this, nothing to help teachers determine what was high quality. And then here comes EdReports, that’s not connected to any curriculum, just wanting to do what's best by teachers and educators. So I appreciate that work and being a part of the network. 

I think one of the things that I'm most proud of is being able to be a part of the first, inaugural EdReports Klawe Fellowship. That work was amazing, and it just helped me see how committed EdReports is to educators and students and making sure everyone has access to high quality instructional materials. What I really gained from the Klawe Fellowship is confidence and skills to help me do a better job of advocating for high quality instructional materials within my district, within my state, wherever I can, and that's really become a passion for me.

I was connected to a great group of colleagues that were a part of that, and EdReports provided some amazing connections and professional learning experiences to help me do that work. And so that's something that I'm really proud of that I learned, and it has served me well in my roles, and something that I'll carry with me forever as an educator, because I'm extremely passionate about—as all or most educators are—making sure we do the best that we can by our students.

I know at the end of the day, you know, we're not going to make everybody happy. That's true with anything in life, and there are going to be people who question the integrity or the quality. I will never question that of EdReports, because I've been a part of the process. Things are very transparent, and the group has, we all have this growth mindset. Continuous improvement is the goal here, to always do what's best by teachers and students. So I'm super proud to be a part of a network that does that. And it's just, I think, providing a much needed service.

Alexis Gentry   19:22

Yeah, I think, you know, was there any particular moment—because you've worked with so many teachers and educators—was there any particular moment where you saw the inspiration, like a teacher where the materials really connected with them, and they were able to say, “Oh, this suddenly makes sense here. And I'm able to help students this way”? I know sometimes we've had educators talk about times when, like, a student will connect with a book or something, and it's the first time that the student was really inspired to read. But from the other side of that, with some of the teachers and educators that you worked with, have you seen any specific times where there's been like, “Oh, now I'm able to do this because of these quality materials”?

Jenni Aberli   20:09

Yes, you know, I was an English teacher, so I know sometimes English teachers are the worst when it comes to using a textbook. Like we all have our favorite books and literature that we want to teach. And I remember working with a particular teacher who did not really want to use this high quality curriculum. And I said, “You know what? Just give it a try.” So the teacher did, and we sat side by side and kind of went through this unit, the texts that were there. 

I think a lot of teachers feel like if you use a textbook or curriculum, you don't have choice. But the beauty of this particular example was the teacher saw that they did still have choice, and because the high quality resources, specifically the texts, were already there for the teacher, they didn't have to spend the time looking and digging for the text. They had a great place to start, and they used some of the suggestions from the curriculum. But this was a really strong teacher, and they used some of their own ideas and skills—that “how” piece—to deliver and to help students engage with the text. 

So that was an exciting part for me, helping a teacher understand that just because you're using a high quality instructional curriculum or materials, doesn't mean that the magic of teaching is gone. It just frees you up to not have to go searching and looking for everything. It's right there for you, and you get to adapt it and modify it and use your magic with it to make it even better for students. And that's what I tell teachers a lot. Using HQIM doesn't mean you don't have choices. It just means you have more freedom to spend focusing on the delivery for students. So, you know, we can use strategies, and we can use things that make it even better.

Alexis Gentry   22:24

Absolutely, yeah, it's not “instead of” creativity from a teacher, it's “to assist with” creativity.

Jenni Aberli   22:32

Yes, you know, I heard something years ago, and I use this all the time. It's not “this or that,” but “both/and.” And, I just think that's very powerful. You don't have to make those choices—you can make them work together, which kind of circles back around to what I said at the beginning. You know, helping teachers see how everything doesn't have to live in isolation. It can work together to make things even better for students,

Alexis Gentry   22:059

Absolutely, well, Jenni, thank you so much. This has been such an inspiring conversation, and you are such an inspiring educator. Thank you very much for being our guest today and for participating with us. You just recently published a blog on our resources section, and we will put a link to that in the description and the show notes, and we just really appreciate you being on here.

Jenni Aberli   23:24

Thank you for inviting me. I have loved talking to you and getting to think back on my years with EdReports and I look forward to many years to come doing this great work 

Alexis Gentry   23:36

Absolutely, well, thank you, everyone for watching, for listening—please, like, subscribe, leave us a comment, and we will see you in the next episode!