Embedding Navigation in School Improvement

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Embedding Navigation in School Improvement

• Arcella Hall
• Director of Secondary Reinvention
• District and School Improvement, OSPI

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Nine Characteristics of High Performing Schools

• A clear and shared focus
• High standards and expectations for all students
• Effective school leadership
• High levels of collaboration and communication
• Curriculum, instruction and assessments aligned
  with state standards

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Nine Characteristics of High Performing
Schools(cont.)

• 6. Frequent monitoring of learning and teaching
• 7. Focused professional development
• 8. A supporting learning environment
• 9. High levels of family and community
  involvement

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1. Clear and Shared Focus

• What is your schools clear and shared focus?
• All students?
• High Achievement?
• College, Career and Citizenship ready?

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2. High standards and expectations for all
students

• Teachers and staff believe that all students can
  learn and meet high standards.
• Recognizing barriers, providing support
• Students are offered an ambitious and rigorous
  course of study.

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3. Effective school leadership

• Instructional and Administrative leadership
• School culture conducive to learning and
  professional growth
• Distributed leadership teachers, counselors,
  students take leadership roles

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4. High levels of collaboration and
communication

• Strong teamwork among teachers across all grades
  and with other staff.
• Everyone is involved and connected to each other,
  including parents and members of the community to
  identify problems and work on solutions.

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5. Curriculum, instruction and assess-ments
aligned with state standards

• The planned and actual curriculum are aligned
  with the essential academic learning
  requirements.
• Research-based teaching strategies and materials
  are used.
• Staff understand the role of classroom and state
  assessments, what they measure and how student
  work in evaluated.

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6. Frequent monitoring of learning and teaching

• A steady cycle of different assessments identify
  students who need help.
• More support and instructional time is provided
  (during and outside of the school day.)
• Teaching is adjusted based on frequent monitoring
  of student progress and needs.
• Assessment results are used to focus and improve
  instructional programs.

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7. Focused professional development

• A strong emphasis is placed on training staff in
  areas of most need.
• Feedback from learning and teaching focuses
  extensive and ongoing professional development.
• The support is also aligned with the school or
  district vision and objectives.

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8. A supporting learning environment

• The school has a safe, civil, healthy and
  intellectually stimulating learning environment.
• Students feel respected and connected with the
  staff and are engaged in learning.
• Instruction is personalized and small learning
  environments increase student contact with
  teachers.

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9. High levels of family and community
involvement

• There is a sense that all have a responsibility
  to educate students, not just the teachers and
  staff in schools.
• Families, businesses, social service agencies and
  community colleges/universities all play a vital
  role in this effort.

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How Does Navigation 101 Align with the 9
Characteristics of Effective Schools?

• In pair or groups of 3 discuss which
  characteristics seem to align with aspects of
  Navigation 101?
• In 7 minutes be ready to share with the larger
  group.

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School Improvement Planning Process

• Assess readiness to benefit
• Collect sort and select data
• Build and analyze the school portfolio
• Set and prioritize goals
• Research and select effective practices
• Craft action plan
• Monitor implementation of the plan
• Evaluate impact on student achievement

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Collect, sort and select data(connected to
Navigation 101)

• Data related to student achievement
• Failure rates
• Transcript analysiscollege readiness
• Vocational completers data
• SAT/ACT scores
• Gatekeeper course enrollment data
• WASL scores
• Etc.

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Collect, sort and select data(connected to
Navigation 101)

• Perception data
• Staff beliefs re All children can achieve at
  high levels
• Student beliefs re aspirations, goals, respect
  (do they feel respected/do they respect
  teachers), do they have an adult in the school
  who cares about them
• Parent views of the school do teachers care
  about their child? What are their goals for their
  children
• Etc.

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Collect, sort and select data(connected to
Navigation 101)

• Data around school climate issues
• Bullying harassment
• School attendance and discipline
• Levels of staff trust
• Personalization of student learning

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Collect, sort and select data(connected to
Navigation 101)

• Data around equity and achievement
• Achievement scores disaggregated by ethnicity
• By program ELL, Free and Reduced, Special Ed
• Parent conference attendance by ethnicity
• Post-secondary education by ethnicity
• Post-secondary remediation rates by ethnicity
• HS dropout data by ethnicity/program

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Set and prioritize goals (connected to
Navigation 101)

• School Improvement goals should be
• SSpecific and clearly stated
• MMeasurable and based on data
• AAttainable and realistic
• RRelated to student achievement and performance
• TTime bound

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Set and prioritize goals (connected to
Navigation 101)

• Sample goals aligned with Nav. 101
• To improve by 10 the supportive and personalized
  learning environment results as measured in
  Spring 2008 EES staff, student and parent surveys
  on specific questions related to Supportive
  Learning Environment.
• Strategy 1.1 Continue the development and
  implementation of an effective advisory program.
• Strategy 1.3 partner with the families of our
  students by forming supportive relationships and
  common expectations of school success.

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Set and prioritize goals (connected to
Navigation 101)

• Sample goals aligned with Nav. 101
• Students will demonstrate taking responsibility
  for their own learning through the development of
  their own Student Learning Plan as demonstrated
  by improvement of 10 in school-wide baseline
  data for attendance, tardies, discipline, grades,
  credits, etc. for each of the next three years.
• Strategy 2.2 Implement and support Student
  Learning Plans in advisory classes.

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Set and prioritize goals (connected to
Navigation 101)

• Sample goals aligned with Nav. 101
• Maintain 95 of the students in each grade level
  cohort group during the 2007-8 school year.

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Set and prioritize goals (connected to
Navigation 101)

• Sample goals aligned with Nav. 101
• The parent survey results from the EES regarding
  collaboration and communication with our high
  school will increase by 30 by 2009.
• Strategy 2 To implement an advisory curriculum
  that culminates in student-led conferences to
  foster more collaboration and communication with
  parents.

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Set and prioritize goals (connected to
Navigation 101)

• Sample goals aligned with Nav. 101
• Improve student achievement through a supportive
  learning environment as measured by the
  Educational Effectiveness Survey (from 61-85 on
  staff, student and parent), graduation rate from
  74 to 80) and attendance (from 89 to 92 by
  2009.
• Strategies include advisories and student-led
  conferences

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Research and select effective practices
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The Silent EpidemicA 2006 Study of High School
Dropouts

• Why Students Drop Out
• 47 -- Classes not interesting
• 69 -- Not motivated to work hard
• 80 -- did less than 1 hour of homework/day
• 66 -- would have worked harder if more were
  demanded of them

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Reasons for Dropping Out (continued)

• 32 -- Needed to get a job and make money
• 26 -- Became a parent
• 22 -- Care for a family member
• 35 -- Academic failure
• 43 -- Attendance problems
• 45 -- Not academically prepared for high school
• 32 -- Had to repeat a grade before dropping out

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What Might Help Students Stay in School

• Most dropouts blame themselves for dropping out,
  but..
• Make school more relevant and engaging
• Enhance connection between school and work
• Improve support for struggling students
• Smaller classes, individualized instruction
• Tutoring, summer school, extra time with teacher
• Build school climate fostering academics
• Strong relationship with at least 1 adult in
  school

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What Might Help Students Stay in School

• Improve school/home communication
• Letting students/parents know about certificate
  programs leading to high wage jobs
• Schools that meet student interests
• Early warning system for students at risk of
  dropping out
• Adult advocates for students
• Graduation coaches (Georgias model)
• Academic supports

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Research and select effective practices

• Effective Parent Involvement
• Parent involvement needs to be learning-focused
• Needs to be positive about the individual student
• Needs to create a partnership with teacher/school
• Needs to be scheduled for parent convenience
• Needs to teach parents about school requirements,
  expectations, available supports,
  graduation/post-secondary systems, homework
  supports, etc.

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Research and select effective practices

• Personalization
• Breaking Ranks II Recommendations
• Develop advisories
• Promote opportunities for student voice
• Implement conferences where students take the
  lead
• Freshman orientation
• Students remain with the same group of peers over
  time
• Peer mentors
• Personal adult advocates
• Students participate in establishing learning
  goals

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Research and select effective practices

• Resiliency research successful high risk
  students
• Social Competencepro-social attitudes/behaviors
• Problem-solving skillsa set of effective
  strategies
• Autonomy-- a sense of personal power/independence
• Sense of purpose and futureoptimistic/goal
  directed
• Relationship with a meaningful adult who holds
  the child in high regard

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Monitor Implementation

• Navigation 101 data collection supports School
  Improvement Plan implementation requirements
• Parent conference attendance numbers and rates
• Parent, student and staff satisfaction with
  student led conferences
• Enrollment in gatekeeper courses
• WASL student achievement data
• Graduation rates
• Post-secondary remediation rates

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Navigation 101 and School Improvement

• Questions?
• Arcella Hall
• Director of Secondary Reinvention, OSPI
• Arcella.hall_at_k12.wa.us
• 253-593-2078 (w)