Position: Primary Autism Center Program Teacher
District: Denver Public Schools, Denver, CO
Colleen Washburn is a Primary Autism Center Program teacher in the Denver Public School District in Denver, Colorado. Denver Public Schools is the largest school district in Colorado and is one of the fastest growing districts in the nation.
One of the biggest challenges as a teacher is consistently tracking and understanding data, managing behavior, and collaborating with other paraprofessionals and teachers. However, Ms. Washburn has found that with RethinkEd she is able to “keep up with extensive data collection and use this data to guide effective student behavioral interventions.” Over the past two years, Ms. Washburn has successfully used RethinkEd in her classroom.
Daily, Ms. Washburn uses the RethinkEd platform as her primary classroom autism center program. It has been incorporated in her daily behavior tracking routine for various students within the program. This data is used to create and supplement behavior plans, as well as guide the use of interventions. The data created through the Rethink Program has also allowed her to supplement IEP’s with easy to understand information for parents. This helps strengthen communication with parents because she is able to show them concrete data in the form of graphs and charts.
She began using the program with only a few select students however she quickly realized the benefits of the program like downloadable data charts and consistent data tracking on the RethinkEd App. Now, she uses it for her entire teaching caseload and is able “to track the effectiveness of strategies, as well as determine a pattern for student behavior.” Over the past year Ms. Washburn has implemented several different RethinkEd strategies for her students in order to find optimal behavior plans. She has even seen the beginning stages of positive changes in student’s behavior!
Together, Ms. Washburn and her paraprofessionals utilize RethinkEd to track behavioral data in the classroom. She says the ability to work with her paraprofessionals and track the effectiveness of behavioral interventions implemented in the classroom is the most valuable aspect of Rethink. Collaboration using the RethinkEd platform allows data collection to be taken in various settings and by various individuals ensuring that students are appropriately generalizing skills. They do this by utilizing the RethinkEd App on the iPad. The App allows them to easily collect data, continuously review data to see progress, and quickly see if an intervention is not supporting a student’s need. RethinkEd has helped support student learning and engagement in the classroom.
Online training videos have taught Ms. Washburn and her paraprofessionals how to use, implement, and understand the program. Prior to RethinkEd she and her paraprofessionals had difficulty organizing data and taking it with fidelity. The RethinkEd App supports Ms. Washburn and her paraprofessionals with real-time data collection including numerous behaviors for several students. It allows them to take ownership of data collection and helps to provide a better picture of the students’ progress throughout the entire day. RethinkEd resources and strategies continue to support Ms. Washburn and her classroom allowing her to focus more on what she loves—molding students’ lives.
