What It Takes to Leave No Child Behind:

The Role of School Boards in Closing the Achievement Gap

Pedro A. Noguera, Ph.D.

Stienhardt School of Education

New York University

Public Schools and American Democracy

• US established public schools before most other nations

• Schools were envisioned to serve as the “equalizer of opportunity”

• The expansion of public education is linked to the expansion of American democracy

The challenge:

• Achieving Excellence and Equity• Closing the achievement gap• Addressing the needs of poor and disadvantaged

children• Addressing the needs of struggling schools• Unpredictable Financing - Doing more with less• Public frustration is growing

Public Education is Under Attack

Poverty is Increasing

• 22% of all children in US live in households with incomes that fall below poverty line– National Poverty Center, Univ of Michigan

• 2nd highest child poverty rate among wealthy nations – UNICEF

• 50 million people, 16% of population in poverty, US Census 2012– California, District of Columbia, Arizona, Florida and

Georgia have highest rates.

Schools can’t address challenges related to poverty alone

Failure of Policy

• Present emphasis on high stakes testing ignores key ingredient - quality instruction

• Flawed theory of change - accountability through pressure and humiliation alone will not work

• We have no accountability for elected officials who fund the system

• No standards for essential inputs - facilities, teachers, learning materials

What should we be doing?

• Policy - What it takes to leave no child behind– Address non-academic needs of students

• Health, housing, nutrition

– Provide real help to struggling schools – Capacity building

– Set state standards for schools similar to FDA

– Hold all stakeholders accountable

– Learn from success and focus on key ingredients – improved teaching, parent and community engagement, internal accountability

What we should be doing

• Educational Practice– Diagnostic assessment – early intervention– Real world application of ideas in the

curriculum– Bring coherence to the educational plan

followed by schools– Move from remediation to acceleration– Focus on quality control through evaluation

Five Essential Ingredients for School Improvement

Organizing Schools for Improvement, 2010 – Bryke, et.al.

1) A coherent instructional guidance system 2) Development of the professional capacity of faculty 3) Strong parent-community-school ties4) A student-centered learning climate 5) Leadership that drives change

Students in control of learning at Hollenbeck Middle School, LA

What School Boards Can Do

• Keep priorities straight - support for high quality teaching and learning must be first.– Recruit and support competent and qualified staff -

review hiring procedures– Publicize your district’s success– Provide incentives for teachers with track record of

effectiveness - bonuses, recognition, focus on morale– Provide opportunities for ongoing site-based

professional development• Link instructional strategies to standards

What else school boards can do:

• Ask the right questions:

– Are current strategies working? Where is the proof?

– Why are they working in some places but not others?

– Are budget priorities consistent with educational priorities?

• Hire effective educational leaders

– Who provide a clear, coherent and compelling vision

– Excellent communication and management skills

• Know when to stay out of the way

– Prevent educational issues from becoming politicized

• Build civic capacity to support public schools– Draw on community resources to support schools

Brockton scholarship winners 2013

Maintain a Holistic Vision