change catalyst capacity building guide(1) · 2018. 2. 14. · you to effect deep, sustainable...

Engage i measure i empower i transformthe learner first.™

Change

Catalyst

capacity

Building G

uide

© Copyright 2018 The Learner First.

Licensed only for use in schools and districts

partnering with The Learner First™

1

Introduction 2

How Do You Mobilize Change? 2

Overview 3

Section 1: Guiding Concepts 4

Genuine System Change Requires a Mind Shift 4

Culture Iceberg 4

Assumption Shatterers 5

The Journey to System-Wide Deep Learning Is Collaborative 9

Five Key Capabilities 10

Change Teams 13

The Inquiry Process 15

Change Model Design 17

Section 3: A Combined Framework 18

Section 4: Tools for Measuring Success 19

Authentic Mixed Method Assessment 19

Student Success Rubrics 21

School Capability Surveys 22



School Change Plan 24

Section 5: Timeline 24

Section 6: Summary 26

Copyright © 2018 The Learner First. All rights reserved. When forms and sample documents are

included, their use is only authorized by educators and school sites that have a partnership with

The Learner First™. Except for that usage, no part of this guide may be reproduced or utilized in

any form, including for profit.

Printed in the USA

Appendices 28-100




2

Introduction

The purpose of this guide is to describe a philosophy, approach, and methodology that will allow

you to effect deep, sustainable change throughout your system. By following this Capacity

Building Guide, you will be learning to do the work of a Change Catalyst.

This guide will enable you to work with schools, school districts, and states to help build their

knowledge, skills, and capabilities in serving the needs of every learner. You will learn a systems

approach of organizational change, affecting the organizational culture to embed lasting change

and continuous improvement.

You will gain the tools necessary to assist schools in evaluating how well they are serving the needs

of their learners, diagnosing areas most in need of improvement, and providing them with tools

for system-wide change. Through this change process, we help develop the culture (at the school,

school district, and state level) that supports the capabilities necessary in meeting the needs of

every single learner, ensuring that they are engaged and contributing members of the world.

You will gain these skills through being immersed in a philosophy and holistic way of thinking about

the student that involves:

• Designing learning that is relevant to the student’s world—teaching to their hopes and

dreams, what they aspire to do and who they aspire to be.

• Assessing student performance by looking at a broad range of evidence that includes more

than test scores.

• Creating learning environments characterized by a culture of belonging, high expectations,

and collaboration.

• Aligning all levels of the system—cutting through system noise with a laser-sharp focus on

student learning.

How Do You Mobilize Change?

The underlying philosophy is that every student can and will achieve success if we, the adults, get

this right. It’s not the students failing in the system; it’s the system failing the students. This

perspective, used in conjunction with an inquiry-based change process, enables a shift in thinking

which leads to changes in beliefs, behaviors, and practices.




3

We believe that implementing the right mix of approaches lifts key capabilities, which lead to

student achievement (achievement being broadly defined as more than test scores). This logic is

simply summarized as:

A simplified logic model for system change.

Overview

This approach is not just another one-size-fits-most professional learning initiative for schools. It

will enable you to guide each individual school through a systematic process of diagnosing its own

needs and priorities, choosing the right set of change levers, and effectively leading the entire

change process all the way through to accelerated outcomes for learners.

As a Change Catalyst you will work in conjunction with district and school leaders to support and

influence the creation of the system conditions necessary for change and to build the capacity of

teachers to shift learning and teaching practices. You will gear up whole school districts to ensure

all of its learners achieve, especially those subgroups that have been underserved by the system for

years.

You won’t just build state, school district, and school knowledge, skills, and capabilities; you will

build meta-capabilities—the knowledge and skill they need to successfully develop capabilities on

their own. Each school will develop the systems, tools, know-how, and guided experience to repeat

this process for themselves as they address successive priorities.

Sound interesting? Thought provoking? Exciting? Well it is! Igniting the potential of every learner

and aligning the system processes to make that happen is what fuels this work. This Capacity

Building Guide outlines the approach and processes we use to help schools put The Learner First.

© Copyright 2018 The Learner First. Licensed only for use in

schools and districts partnering with The Learner First™ 4

The first section lays the conceptual groundwork for the Change Catalyst approach and outlines

the models that frame our process (Culture Iceberg, Assumption Shatterers, the Five Key

Capabilities). The second section describes The Learner First change process. The third part

provides a logic model for how everything we do fits together (conceptual frameworks + change

process + tools). The fourth section describes the tools used to achieve change. The final sections

provide specific details to implement the work and a general timeline and appendix of the tools

themselves.




28

Appendices Appendices 28 Appendix A: System Capability Rubric 29 Appendix B: Deep Learning Development Rubric 41 Appendix C: Collaboration Deep Learning Progression 44 Appendix D: Deep Learning Assessment and Measurement Protocols 48 Appendix E: Change Teams 53

Getting Started 54 How the Process Works 55 At the Classroom Layer 56 At the School Layer 57 At the District Layer 59 At the System Layer 60 Initial Change Team Meeting 62

Appendix F: School Capability Baseline Snapshot 66 Resources: 67 Suggested Meeting Outline: 67 Capability Baseline Snapshot Results 70

Appendix G: Student Success Rubrics 73 Competence and Application of Grade Level Math Concepts 74 Enjoyment of reading and reading at grade level 76 Thriving and Succeeding in High School 79

Appendix H: Synthesizing Evidence to Make an Overall Judgment: The CORE Approach 82 When generating ratings, bear the following in mind: 83

Appendix I: Individual Action Plans 85 Individual Action Plan Example 1: A Discussion Tool for Learners, their Parents, and their Teachers 86 Individual Action Plan Example 2: Learner First Student Overview 88

Appendix J: Whole System Change Plan 91 The Learner First’s Whole System Approach 92 What is a Change Plan? 92

change catalyst capacity building guide(1) · 2018. 2. 14. · you to effect deep, sustainable...

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