History-making father-son duo David and Charlie Levine will guide educators at FETC with ideas to keep students from falling behind.
The Levines are the first father-son duo to present together at the Future of Education Technology® Conference. David, the principal at Meadowbrook Elementary School in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, will discuss how instructional coaching empowers teachers to meet the demands of their increasingly challenging profession. Charlie, the founder of the organizational tool MyTextMate, will talk about how to help students overcome with information overload.
“More than ever, it is very challenging to be a successful teacher—a challenge more likely accomplished with support from instructional coaches and supportive administrators,” says David, who will present “Experiences of a First Year Elementary School Instructional Coach” with his school’s coach, Lilliam Guilbee-Cruz.
The 2023 Future of Education Technology® Conference, which takes place live and in person Jan. 23-26, 2023, in New Orleans, will be Charlie’s first conference as a presenter while David also appeared at last year’s FETC. “FETC’s mission aligns with our shared value of promoting quality education for all students, so we’re excited to be a part of it,” the pair shared in an interview with District Administration.
Charlie’s session, “Relieving Students of Information Overload With Personalized Text Messages,” will cover how students can use MyTextMate to create and schedule texts that remind them of their assignments and other responsibilities. “A student who is texted exactly what they need to do and anticipate doing will have greater academic success than a student who is not,” Charlie says.
He created the platform to help keep track of his own assignments in college. “The sense of relief was immediate,” he says. “My grades improved and my confidence soared.”
Father-son duo share goals
The Levines share a goal of helping students stay on track, saying that David’s experience provides Charlie with a unique perspective to better understand the needs of educational leaders and institutions. “As research and technology advance, it is important for educational institutions to combat the widening student achievement gap by making these resources readily available,” they add.
David’s elementary school, which is part of Broward County Public Schools, is a Title I building where the majority of students qualify for free and reduced lunch and over 85% are learning English as a second language. The leadership team at Meadowbrook now comprises a primary literacy coach, an intermediate literacy coach, a math coach, an Autism Spectrum Disorder coach, and ESOL coordinator.
FETC 2023
The Future of Education Technology® Conference takes place live and in person Jan. 23-26, 2023, in New Orleans. Register now!
The coaches support teachers by providing feedback on instruction, participating in data analysis sessions and building supportive relationships that foster a caring culture and climate, David explains. “Collectively, utilizing these practices, we’re seeing growth in our progress monitoring results, gains on formal and informal assessments, and realizing significant student achievement gains in reading, writing, math, and science,” he explains.
David Levine’s keys to successful instructional coaching are:
- Building trusting relationships
- Being a listener
- Helping teachers understand standards and curriculum
- Helping teachers utilize resources
- Providing authentic feedback on instruction and classroom management
His role in the process is to listen, commit to being a lifelong learner, be visible in classrooms to provide ongoing feedback to teachers, and facilitate collaboration, he concludes.
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