1. The Ambush of Education:
5 Disturbing Ways America Fails Educators
Startling information about the trends that are crippling our educators and strategies they can use to take charge

2. Researched and produced by Empire Research Group
Sponsored by:

3. Why did we commission a study?
We understand the overwhelming challenges facing educators today
We engaged an independent research firm to investigate critical impact trends and identify solutions steps that can help educators rise to the challenge

4. Areas Covered The education landscape
The 5 Disturbing ways America fails educators
Practical strategies and actions that educators can use to cut through the complexity and reach their goals

5. The Current Landscape

6. How does education in the U.S. compare
U.S. students are the “C” students of the world, neither leading nor trailing in reading, math, or science
Consistent “A” students in international assessments include Finland, Korea and Singapore
Are these comparisons accurate indicators?
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, PISA Results

7. The U.S. spends more per child
The U.S. spent $8,750 vs. $7,500 in Finland, for example—but the figures can be misleading
Finland's government provides equal per- pupil funding, unlike disparities between Beverly Hills public schools, for example, and schools in poorer districts
How far a dollar actually goes is another issue. Average 2 bedroom apartment:
Helsinki: $800
Washington D.C.: $3,298
New York/SoHo: $6,983
New York/Harlem: $2,331
Source: What Makes Finnish Kids so Smart? Wall Street Journal, February 29, 2008; REIS; Rental Report 2010, Real Estate Group NY, March 2010

8. U.S. compared to Finland
Finland is largely homogeneous, and has a strong national culture
In U.S. schools 9.7 million children speak another language at home
Finland gives teachers and school administrators complete control and does not mandate standardized testing, unlike NCLB woes in the U.S.
NCLB: No child left behind (educational act)
Source: Finland: What’s the Secret to Its Success? PBS, September, 2008

9. U.S. compared to Finland
"In most countries, education feels like a car factory. In Finland, the teachers are the entrepreneurs,”— Schleicher, OECD
Teachers in Finland must hold a masters degree, but since college is free, this is not a barrier
Unlike the U.S., the profession is among the most respected, parents are highly supportive and discipline problems are rare
OECD means:
Source: What Makes Finnish Kids so Smart? Wall Street Journal, February 29, 2008

10. Violence is not the same
75 percent of public schools recorded violent incidents of crime at school in the U.S.
In 2007, rates of violent crime victimization at school were higher than away from school
Finland and other leading countries in international assessments do not track serious crime at school because the incidence is so low
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, The Condition of Education 2009; Center for Disease Control, Understanding School Violence, 2008

11. Bullying comparison Finland: 11% Korea: 17% U.S. bullying: 59%
Comparisons of moderate to frequent bullying underscore the difference:
Finland: 11%
Korea: 17%
U.S. bullying: 59%
In the U.S., 160,000 students go home early on any given day because they are afraid of being bullied
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, The nature and Extent of bullying at school, Drake, Journal of School Health, 2003

12. Comparisons within the U.S.—easier?
One study created a fictional school that researchers called “Mayberry”
Based on test scores, achievement gaps and yearly progress, they found that “Mayberry’s” status would be very different from state to state:
In some states, “Mayberry” would be high performing school held up as a role model
In other states, "Mayberry” would be a crisis school in danger of being closed!
Source: Achievement Gaps and the Proficiency Trap, Michael Dahlin and John Cronin, Kingsbury Center at NWEA

13. “Mayberry”—superstar & miserable failure
This chart shows what the achievement gap would be if fictional Mayberry were located in different parts of the country. Same school, same metrics, widely different attitudes about how the school is doing.
The conclusion: “Simply put, NCLB makes it impossible to determine whether schools are actually making any progress”
Source: Achievement Gaps and the Proficiency Trap, Michael Dahlin and John Cronin, Kingsbury Center at NWEA

14. The 5 Ways America Fails Educators
Shrinking budgets, expanding expectations
The 3R’s: Ridiculous Role Reversal
Lack of support
Political ambush
The only thing in abundance: Criticism

15. Failure #1:
Shrinking budgets… —expanding expectations

16. American Recovery & Reinvestment Act
The ARRA increased federal funding to schools by 235%
Cumulative funding shortfall is still estimated at $85.6 billion
91% of the average district’s funding is state and local
87% of superintendents receiving ARRA funds noted that federal dollars were offset by state and local cuts
Source: U.S. Department of Education, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Impacts; One Year Later: How the Economic Downturn Continues to Impact School Districts, AASA, October 27, 2009

17. The funding equation is more complex
93% of districts report budget cuts at state or local levels
Unemployment is at its highest level since 1948, creating stress and poverty among families
Homelessness among families rose by 42% in 2009
It costs 50% more to educate a child in poverty than a child of middle-income
Source: Homelessness Up in Suburban U.S., NewsMax, Feb. 18, 2010; Economic Snapshot for February 2010, Center for American Progress, February 24, 2010; Poverty in America, United States Government Office of Accountability, January, 2007

18. NCLB increases expectations
The NCLB mandates have increased expectations to levels that many experts label ‘impossible’
Impossible tasks prompt desperate action: Mass firing of hundreds of teachers and principals in efforts to avoid sanctions and preserve federal funds
The mass-firing tactic is used to ‘turn around’ schools annually
Source: An Impossible Job? The View from the Urban Superintendent’s Chair; Wallace Foundation, July 2003

19. Can we retain “highly qualified teachers”?
Two thirds of schools eliminated teachers for the 2009/10 year
83% expected further jobs to be eliminated in 2010/11
Teacher attrition is up by 50% over the last decade
1/3 of new teachers leave the field after 3 years
46% are gone within 5 years
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, How the Economic Downturn Continues to Impact School Districts, AASA, October 2009

20. 3R’s—Ridiculous Role Reversal
Failure #2:
3R’s—Ridiculous Role Reversal

21. Remember when educators…educated?
“Accountability has promoted a profoundly anti-intellectual definition of education” –Diane Ravitch
Increased ‘accountability’ and pressure to “run more like a business” thrusts new roles onto educators:
Marketing, Customer Service, Fundraising and even Chief of Security:
55% of schools have security cameras
85% record crimes at school
87% have violence prevention practices
Source: 'The Death and Life of the Great American School System' by Diane Ravitch

22. Mandate: Run like a failing business?
50% of businesses fail within their 1st year and lack of capital is a leading reason
76% of districts describe themselves as ‘inadequately funded’
21% face short-term borrowing to meet payroll and accounts payable in 2010
Source: Why Small Businesses Fail, U.S. Small Business Administration

23. What does ‘the customer’ think?
45% of districts reported that even with federal monies, they were unable to save art, music and physical education programs
When asked how important it is that students get exposure to arts, drama and athletics, 72% of parents considered it very important
What kind of business could possibly cut ‘services’ that 72% of its customers consider ‘very important’?
Source: State House News Poll, Parent Attitudes, September 2007

24. Failure #3:
Lack of Support

25. The gap in parent involvement
-48%
Parent involvement is linked to better grades, test scores, attendance, behavior and graduation rates
Only 20% of schools have PTA units
From 12.1 million active parents in 1962, PTA membership plummeted to 5.8 million in 2008
Gaps in parent involvement mirror achievement gaps with up to a 50% difference in participation rates across ethnic and socio-economic groups
Source: PTO Today, February 2008; U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2009

26. What do teachers say? HELP
78% say that lack of parental support is an ever-present concern
52% do not believe they can count on parents to support discipline efforts
77% would be “substantially more effective” if they didn’t have to spend so much time on disruptive behavior
1 in 3 have considered quitting the profession because student discipline and behavior have become intolerable
HELP
Source: Teaching Interrupted: Do Discipline Policies in Today’s Public Schools Foster the Common Good?, Public Agenda, 2004

27. Outreach efforts don’t get an “A”
A national study of schools in 35 states found:
Only 3% described results of their parent outreach efforts as “excellent”
Less than 15% described them as “very good”
40% reported “inadequate” or “no funds” for outreach or partnership development
Source: Special Report, 2009 School Update, Johns Hopkins University

28. Failure #4:
Political Ambush

29. Education lobby information
Political influence spending on education has risen alarmingly over the last decade
Lobby spending increased over 500% between 1998 and 2008 (federal only)
There were 1,471 education lobbyists to the federal government in 2009
State lobbying efforts are even more fierce, but not as transparent because many states do not require disclosure
Source: Education: Long-Term Lobby and Contribution Trends, Open Secrets, April, 2010; Center for Responsive Politics

30. Business influence on education policy
Big business is influencing policy through their foundations, but not always responsibly:
"With so much money and power aligned against the neighborhood school, public education itself is at risk”—Diane Ratvitch
Example: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation:
Spent $2 billion on a program to break up large schools into small ones
Changed their minds, concluding small schools couldn’t provide enough resources and opportunities
Abandoned the project, leaving the schools in complete disarray
Source: 'The Death and Life of the Great American School System' by Diane Ravitch, Professor of education at New York University with more than 35 years of research in education

31. Has the take-over of education helped?
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics

32. Why isn’t anyone listening to the experts?
Source: How Principals and Superintendents See Schools Today, Education Insights, 2006

33. Failure #5:
The only thing in abundance: Criticism

34. The only thing in abundance: Criticism
“Education leaders are under attack. We are the marks when society has failed our young people and the news media needs a target. We are easy scapegoats” —The School Administrator Editorial
"The job is impossible, the expectations are inappropriate, the training is inadequate, and the pipeline is inverted” —Paul Houston, AASA
Source: Leadership’s Time is Now, The School Administrator, November 2005 Number 10, Vol. 62

35. Blamed for a system that cripples them
A multi-year study found that the majority of superintendents agree— they believe the job to be “undoable”
The study concluded:
“What we hear in the voices of these superintendents is their frustration that their commitment to teaching is over whelmed by political demands. They are set up to fail and then condemned depending on the community’s mood”
Source: An Impossible Job? The View from the Urban Superintendent’s Chair; Wallace Foundation, July 2003

36. To summarize, America fails educators by:
Reducing budgets while constantly expanding expectations and roles
Putting the weight of society’s problems on their shoulders while undercutting their support
Allowing politicians control instead of education experts
Blaming educators for a system they didn’t design that cripples their ability to educate

37. However, there are steps that educators can take to cut through the complexity and take charge

38. 5 Steps to Success Strategic thinking Maximize fundraising
Improving test scores—foundation over technique
Effective parent engagement
Catalyze alliances

39. Step #1:
Strategic thinking

40. Strategic thinking: not an event
‘Strategic planning’ is an event—strategic thinking is a daily mindset
When problems are legion and time is at a premium, strategic thinking is critical to success
Strategic thinkers seek multiple impacts from each tactical action
The first step is to change focus from ‘action’ to ‘impact’

41. Impact, not just action
For example, the ‘action’ of holding a fundraising event can be strategically designed to create ‘impact’ on:
Student skills and behavior,
Parent engagement
Community support
Raising money
Every simple, routine action can be modified for impact on larger goals
Rethinking routine actions/interactions to maximize impact opportunity has a powerful cumulative effect

42. Simple actions, cumulative impact
For example, sending out the lunch menu may be informative to parents and students. Can it also be made to:
Improve health and attendance by highlighting foods that improve skin, hair, muscles
Advertise events and goals to raise awareness/participation
Contain a link to a “How you can help us reach our goals” section of your website

43. Step #2: Maximize Fundraising

44. Maximum impact, minimum time
Time expenditures to organize lower-return fundraisers can be the same or more than options that produce higher return and higher impact
Fundraising events designed to be novel and fun generate wider participation, as well as favorable publicity

45. What types of events bring people out?
Studies show that Arts events have the largest turnout outside of sporting events
They also offer the widest opportunity for expanded impact:
More than 65 distinct relationships between arts and desired outcomes (both academic & social) have been documented
Surprising links have been found in increasing student motivation, persistence and ability to accept constructive criticism
Sports
Source: Building Participation, The Urban Institute, July 2004; Deasy, Don’t Axe the Arts!, National Association of Elementary School Principals, Volume 82, Number 3 , January/February 2003; Critical Evidence: How the ARTS Benefit Student Achievement, NASAA, 2006

46. Why do they come?
You know why you want them to come—but understanding their motivation is critical
Interestingly, although ‘support the community’ scored high for all groups, it scored highest for low income and minority groups
48% higher
Your messaging about events should correspond with the motivations of the target audience for maximum impact
Source: Building Participation, The Urban Institute, July 2004,

47. Make it strategic, ‘special’ and personal
Research indicates that the most promising strategies involved:
Programming in which children had fun and were helped in making academic and social progress
Scheduling ‘special’ events that promoted high attendance
Providing food
Offering performances and exhibits of youth’s work
Source: Special Report, 2009 School Update, National Network of Partnership Schools, Johns Hopkins University

48. Step #3: Effective Engagement

49. First: Access before engagement
“Parent involvement encompasses a multitude of complex phenomena—family structure, culture, ethnic background, social class, age and gender represent only a few of the factors” –Boethel
There is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ engagement playbook—but, all strategies must start with access. The key question is:
How can we create access to positive interactions with parents?
Experts say that novel and non-traditional avenues can increase your access
Source: Scribner and Scribner (2001); 2003 synthesis, Diversity: Family and Community Connections with Schools, Boethel

50. Second: They MUST feel welcome
Non-traditional interactions can create a key success component— the feeling of “welcome”:
Invite families in to eat lunch with children
Host special events and activities that include the whole family
Meet on ‘their turf’ by hosting events or meetings in community forums like churches, youth organizations and libraries
Add multi-cultural components
Source: High-performing schools serving Mexican American students: What they can teach us, ERIC Digest, A Strategy Brief of the National Center for Family and Community Connections with Schools, Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, September 2005

51. Third: Follow-up—it’s not a one-time-event
Initial Access: A fun event gets many attendees
Handouts/parent literature disseminated
Upcoming desired interactions advertised
Teachers/principals use informal setting to begin relationships with targeted people
Follow up to create ongoing engagement
Homework assignments that require parent/child interaction tied to event
Photos, prize winners, ‘shout-outs’ posted on school website (next to ‘reminders’ or key info)
New relationships followed by personal note or to further the bond
Source: High-performing schools serving Mexican American students: What they can teach us, ERIC Digest, Scribner & Scribner, 2001; Diversity: Family and Community Connections with Schools, Boethel, 2003; A Strategy Brief of the National Center for Family and Community Connections with Schools, Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, September 2005

52. Understand belief systems to expand impact
86% of parents agree that arts education improves a child’s attitude toward school
54% rate the importance of the arts a “10” on a 1-10 scale
79% of parent believe that it’s important enough for them to get personally involved in increasing the amount and quality of arts education
Source: Critical Evidence: How the ARTS Benefit Student Achievement, NASAA, 2006; Critical Links: Learning in the Arts and Student Academic and Social Development, AEP 2002

53. Step #4: Improving Test Scores

54. Beyond the ‘techniques’: connect motivators
Regardless of ‘programs’, ‘techniques’ or ‘instructional plans’ one fundamental truth applies:
Test scores cannot be raised without motivated students and teachers
Increasing the foundational building block of motivation is critical to success

55. Research shows key student motivators:
Teacher enthusiasm
Perceived relevance and importance of material
Self-motivation and perception of control
Emphasizing personal responsibility and collaboration over teacher power
Changing "you must," to "I think you will find. .." or "I will be interested in your conclusions about…”
Belief: "Students who believe that they can do well are much more likely to be motivated in terms of effort, persistence, and behavior than students who do not expect to succeed"
Source: Pintrich, P.R. (2003), A motivational science perspective on the role of student motivation in learning and teaching contexts, Journal of Educational Psychology, 95 (4), ; What Motivates Students, Maryellen Weimer, Ph.D. , July 2009; Lowman, 1990

56. Teacher motivation: connecting the dots
When asked: “Given a choice between two schools in otherwise identical districts, which would you prefer”
Source: Lessons Learned: The Special Challenges of Teachers; The National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality, 2007

57. Teacher motivation: Respect and Support
More than anything else, teachers want respect and support from administration, parents and students
Source: Lessons Learned: The Special Challenges of Teachers; The National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality, 2007

58. Step #5: Form Success Alliances

59. Critical alliances: families and community
“Partnerships among schools, families, and community groups are not a luxury—they are a necessity” –Henderson, Mapp and Davis
The value of strong, reliable, productive relationships in the local community are clear but how are they developed?
One factor is often overlooked and underutilized
Source: School-Family -Community Connection: Looking at the Larger Picture, A Review of Current Literature, National Center for Family and Community Connections with Schools at SEDL

60. Long term alliances through catalysts
Catalyst relationships can help access or solidify parent and community relationships
Short-term, one-time or intermittent relationships that provide access to other relationships or networks
Consider the size of the network being accessed or the amount of people you can gain access to and influence with to determine priority

61. Catalyst relationships, what to look for
Reliable, sterling reputation
Help you innovate
Able to draw many people that you can then create or solidify relationships with
Multi-dimensional impact areas, such as:
Fundraising
Parent engagement
Learning and academic goals
Building work ethic, self-esteem and social skills in kids

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