Minnesota’s Lighthouse High
Schools
Connecting Action and Research
Building the Foundation:
Data retreats
Building the Foundation:
Data retreats
Taskforce
Building the Foundation:
Data Retreats
Taskforce
Breaking Ranks
Foundational Pieces:
Data Retreats
Taskforce
Breaking Ranks
Newmann Framework
A Unifying Framework for School ImprovementBased on the research of Fred Newmann
The key is to integrate cultural and structural conditions to focus on intellectual quality and professional community in a sustained way.
Professional Community• Clear shared goals for
student learning• Collective &
collaborative responsibility among staff
• Reflective professional inquiry among staff
• Opportunities for staff to influence school’s activities & policies
Program CoherencePrograms for student & staff learning are coordinated, focused on clear learning goals, & sustained over a period of time.
Cultural Conditions• Primary concern for the intellectual quality of
student learning• Commitment to high expectations for all students,
regardless of individual differences• Support for innovation, debate, inquiry, & seeking
new professional knowledge• Ethos of caring, sharing, & mutual help among
staff, & between staff & students, based on respect, trust, & shared power relations among staff
• Strong, mutually influential relationship between the school & the parents & community (Fullan).
School Capacity• Teachers’ Individual Knowledge, Skills & Dispositions• Professional Community• Program Coherence• Technical Resources• Principal Leadership
Professional development is more likely to enhance capacity when itaddresses several aspects of capacity instead of focusing only on teachers’ knowledge, skills & dispositions.
StudentAchievement
Technical ResourcesHigh quality standards & assessments, curriculum, books & other instructional materials, lab equipment, computers, adequate workspace, remodeled physical facilities, etc.
Principal Leadership
• Principal is very influential in life of the school & is a critical force in the school’s capacity.
• Principal has primary legal authority to positively affect each aspect of school capacity.
Teachers’ Individual Knowledge, Skills &
Dispositions• Staff are competent in
instruction & assessment which is centered on curriculum appropriate for their particular students
• Staff hold high expectations for all students’ learning
Sources
1. Fullan, M., Rolheiser, C., Mascall, B. & K. Edge (2001). Accomplishing large-scale reform: A tri-level proposition. Retrieved from http://sustainability2002.terc.edu/invoke.cfm/page/70/show/print.
2. Newmann, F. et al (2000). Professional development that addresses school capacity. Paper presented at the American Education Research Association annual meeting, New Orleans.
3. Newmann, F. & Associates (1996). Authentic achievement: Restructuring schools for intellectual quality . San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. B. Aune, MDE 6/16/05
InstructionalQuality
Instruction & Assessment
School StructuresPolicies & Programs (e.g., homework policy, prof. development program, length of school day & class periods, etc.) that provide—•Sustained time for instruction, planning, staff development, & student advising•Interdependent work structures for staff, esp. teaching teams & committees for schoolwide decision making•School autonomy from regulatory constraints•Small size for school & instructional units
State & district level policies and programs also affect school level structures (Fullan).
Broad Goals:
Build SEA capacity to facilitate high school redesign
Support systemic high school redesign through action research
Finding the Schools:
Site leadership team Data collection and analysis School improvement plan
development and refinement Evaluation of grant activities Public reporting of results
Building SEA Capacity
Facilitators partnered with school teams
Periodic training and work sessions
Site visits and team retreats
Working with Data:
From reporting outcomes to documenting implementation
From sharing practice to sharing knowledge
