1. Austria‘s Lower Secondary School Reform „Neue Mittelschule“ (NMS)

2. The Austrian School System: High Level of Parent Choice Kindergarten Academic secondary school Lower secondary school Primary school Academic secondary school Technical & vocational colleges Intermediate tech/voc school Prevocationa l Apprentice schools Years 1-4 Years 5 -8 Years 9-12/13 School leaving certificate „Matura“ Federal legislation, state provincial administration Federal legislation & administration Equity issues in lower secondary due to selection at age 10

3. Terminology  NMS-EB (Entwicklungsbegleitung) = external consultancy team/guidance during pilot phase 2008- 2012; continuity through know-how transfer to National Center for Learning Schools (CLS) established in 2012.  Lerndesigner = teacher leader/change agent, evidence-informed qualification program focused on equity and student achievement 2-year curriculum (equals 12 ECTS credits), feeds into a MA program, now a joint program between CLS & Pädagogische Hochschulen (regional level)

4. The NMS Story: Goals = equity & excellence 2008 Legislation for NMS Reform Pilot passed in Parliament; Project Team installed Generation 1 with 67 schools begins pilot External consulting NMS-EB initiates first network meeting with school leaders NMS-Platform is provides courses, documentation & networking online 2009 NMS-EB initiates Lerndesigner role; first national Lernatelier in January Momentum grows; 177 schools apply to participate in Generation 2 and begin in September. All state provinces are now involved in the pilot phase. Two state provinces (Vorarlberg & Burgenland) are near 100% participation. 2010 Generation 3 with 76 schools joins the pilot phase. NMS-House illustrates key skills & knowledge for curriculum & instructional development Parent survey shows high satisfaction; Online Platform for parents is opened

5. The NMS Story cont'd 2011 Generation 4 with 114 schools joins the pilot phase Political will to reform lower secondary grows: “The NMS increases chances for all youth” 2012 Generation 5 with 264 schools begin in September. Coalition partners define legislation; mandate passes Parliament in April. Pilot phase ends; implementation begins. External consulting NMS- EB in its final year; National Center for Learning Schools is created to maintain continuity & continue development National NMS Congress in Vienna; 900 participants from Generations 1 – 5 and system partners 2013 Generation 6 with 254 schools ready to start in September Lerndesigner- Network focus for Austria’s project in OECD ILE Phase 3 Know-how transfer to system; new teacher education curriculum, Master degree program for Lerndesigners begins, CLS continues development online and in face- to-face events with system partners First annual NMS Symposia for Lerndesigners post-qualification. Plus of 11.38% in qualification for academic-track schools among NMS graduates 2012/13

6. From Pilot to Implementation: Complete 2020 Pilot Phase G6 274 2013/2014 Implemen- tation Phase G7 Ca. 200 2014/2015 G8 Ca. 200 2015/2016

7. Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture Dr. Claudia Schmied, Minister NMS-Project Team, Dept. I/2 Helmut Bachmann & Andrea Werner- Thaler External Evaluation BIFIE (national testing & school effectiveness research) Erich Svecnik, Günter Haider Ferdinand Eder, Angelika Petrovic, Helmut Fend Pädagogische Hochschulen (Teacher Education) PH NMS-Coordinators Information & Debate Reports available in the NMS archive (German) www.bmukk.gv.at/nms www.bmukk.gv.at/nms Brochures, DVD, information platforms www.neuemittelschule.at www.nmsvernetzung.at Implementation in all compulsory lower secondary schools; pilot classes in academic-track schools (opt-in) In cooperation with: School Boards & School Inspectorates State-Level NMS-Coordinators NMS Think Tank School Principals Teachers Students Parents & Guardians National Center for Learning Schools Christoph Hofbauer & Tanja Westfall-Greiter in cooperation with PH-Lower Austria & University of Innsbruck + Regional Competence Teams NMS Ministry Project Structure

8. Gateway to web resources and platforms http://www.neuemittelschule.at/ [4 min video]

9. The NMS Community & Partners: University Colleges of Teacher Education + State School Boards

10. Success Factors  Pilot legislation § 7a  stability  Project team at Ministry  leadership  Pilot schools required majority among school staff and parents to begin  momentum  New roles for teachers  teacher leadership  External consultancy NMS-EB  system learning  Strategies that worked:  Change agents (Lerndesigners)  National networking events  Evidence-informed qualification  Online platform for networking & dissemination

11. Current Challenges  New requirements in NMS mandate  confusion, difficult transition for pilot schools  Teacher compensation does not accommodate new social architecture in schools (teacher leaders)  effectiveness depends on school  „Pension wave“ in next 10 years (76% in NMS)  new starts for some schools  Attracting 8-year academic schools to opt in  selection  Firewalls between policy & practice  alignment & compliance  Response lag in teacher education  qualification burden on continuing education / CLS