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I
nstitute participants shuffled through a pile of small fluorescent-colored shapes,
looking for a way to put the pieces together. A puzzle of sorts, this was an exercise
in developing a framework for systemic reform. Each piece had a label–curriculum,
assessment, instruction, professional development, student learning. The teachers and
administrators connected the pieces with pipe cleaners to present their view of how
different components of reform operate together as part of a system.
Sounds simple, but the discussion and final creations served to highlight the complexity of systemic reform. Of course the 139 educators at the Alliance Schools Summer Institute already knew that. They are familiar with the challenges to achieving school improvement and are tackling many of the obstacles. The goal of the exercise and the four-day institute was to help participants develop a better understanding of the systemic nature of school reform and to provide a process and tools for developing a reform plan. The approach to school reform advocated by the Alliance engages school-based mathematics and science teams in an inquiry process. (See Figure 1.) "The process begins by building school-wide commitment to a vision and a set of standards for student learning. Once agreed upon, standards raise expectations for all students, focus improvement efforts on results, and offer a yardstick to measure progress. Next steps are to collect and analyze data about student learning, define a learner-centered problem to solve, set student learning goals, plan for and take action to improve the system, and monitor results. Based on feedback about results, the team makes changes, uncovers new problems, and continues the improvement cycle."1 Developing the Plan Each of the 34 new Alliance Schools has a leadership team of teachers and administrators responsible for developing and implementing a reform plan. Although many teams had thought about their plans prior to the institute, the four days of content and planning sessions gave participants time and a process for focusing and designing their reform activities. At the institute the school teams began the planning process by evaluating their math and science reform progress within four key areas–standards; curriculum, instruction, and assessment; professional development; and equity. Teams were asked to assess their school’s current position on a continuum of standards implementation that is divided into five categories.2 |
Each category lists a number of indicators. For example, indicators for predominance of a standards-led system in the area of professional development include: Developing a reform plan can be overwhelming. The self-assessment activity helped the teams focus their efforts. As they worked on their plan, the teams set a SMART goal, a target that was s pecific, measurable, attainable, related to student learning, and trackable. The goal also had to be centered on student results rather than staff efforts. With a written SMART goal providing direction, the teams could begin developing action plans. The models developed at the start of the institute served to remind the teams that in order to meet the goal, they needed to think systemically. Their actions must reflect how improving student learning is connected to improving curriculum, instruction, and assessment; professional development; and equity. During the final sessions of the Institute, it was clear that the teams were energized by their plans. When asked what they were taking back to their schools, many of the participants commented that they were leaving with the belief that "it was doable." By articulating attainable goals and identifying specific actions, the teams felt enthused rather than overwhelmed. The challenges and obstacles to implementing the plans during the year may cause some to lose a little confidence, but the network of schools and the resources of the Alliance will provide support as the teams strive to meet their goals. The planning process briefly described in this article is detailed in Using Data; Getting Results: An action guide for school-based mathematics and science education reform teams by Nancy Love. The publication is forthcoming from the Regional Alliance. 1. Love, N. (1998). "Keep your eyes on the prize: Student learning". Hands On!, 21(1), 16-19. [TERC, Cambridge MA] 2. The Regional Alliance adapted the self-assessment instrument from a tool developed by the Education Commission of the Satate (ECS). |