Addressing the Achievement Gap: New Hope for K-12 University Partnerships Dr. Bernard Oliver, Director/Professor Dr. Diane Archer-Banks, Program Coordinator Diana Melendez, Doctoral Candidate Sophie Maxis, Graduate Assistant Jacqueline Basallo, Graduate Assistant Mary Ann Primack, Graduate Assistant A paper presented at the 48 th Annual FASCD Conference Nova Southeastern University, Orlando Campus November 30, 2007

OVERVIEW  Introductions  High School Reform - Diane Archer-Banks  Ninth Grade and Transition to High School - Sophie Maxis  Establishing Support for Beginning and Experienced Teachers - Diane Archer-Banks  Connecting Parents to Schools in Challenged Communities - Diana Melendez  Achievement Gap Strategies – Diana Melendez  A Final Outcome: Scholarship Support and Postsecondary Attendance – Jacqueline Basallo

Factors Associated with School Success  Guaranteed and viable curriculum  Challenging goals & effective feedback  Parent and community involvement  Safe & orderly environment  Collegiality & professionalism  Instructional strategies  Classroom management  Classroom curriculum design  Home Environment  Learned intelligence & background knowledge  Motivation (Morel, 2006)

Factors Influencing Achievement Before/Beyond School  Parental participation  Student inability  Birth weight  Lead poisoning  Hunger/Nutrition  Reading to young children  Television teaching  Parent availability (ETS, 2003)

Factors Influencing Achievement School  Rigor of curriculum  Teacher quality  Teacher experience & attendances  Class size/technology assisted instruction  School safety (ETS, 2003)

Key Practices to Raising Student Achievement in High Schools  High expectations  Vocational/Career studies  Academic studies & contextualized teaching  Challenging programs of study  Integration of school-based and work based learning  Teachers working together (learning communities)  Engaged students  Academic/Career guidance  Extra support for all  Continuous improvement data!!! (SREB, 1998)

Successful “Beat the Odds” Schools Instruction  Clear goals  Strong classroom management  Differentiated instruction (based on data)  Opportunity to learn (challenging & standards based (Morel, 2006)

Successful “Beat the Odds” Schools School Environment  Clear rules for behavior  Parental involvement  High expectations - academic press (Morel, 2006)

Successful “Beat the Odds” Schools Professional Community  Targeted professional development  Collaborative work -professional learning communities (We versus me)  Teacher leadership opportunities (Morel, 2006)

Successful “Beat the Odds” Schools Leadership  Clear/common vision, school mission  Clear focus for resources  Maintaining instructional practice  Organized change (policy & culture) (Morel, 2006)

9 th Grade and Transition to High School Key Point  Transition is a process, not an event (Hertzog & Morgan, 1999)

Key Points for Transition Strategies  Should be age-appropriate and continue to the end of 9 th grade  Transition teams to include all stakeholders (parents, teachers, administrators, students from middle and high school level)  Transition activities must start early in eighth grade and occur about once a month  Middle and high school principals need to collaborate with stakeholders in the planning of transition activities  Professional learning communities to address the distinct needs and develop action plans of teachers and administrators from middle and high school levels (NASSP, 2006)

Indicators of Successful Learning Communities  Collaborative leadership for student success  Principals are highly committed to shared leadership that focuses on mission, vision, curriculum/instruction, assessment and professional development  Collaboratively developed values about adolescent learners and success  Strong community of learners (students, teachers, administrators, parents and community members) working together to determine needs, strategies and nurture learning  Fostering a culture of cooperation, trust, respect, support and appreciation  Organizational structures provide opportunities for frequent and meaningful participation in leadership and decision making  Time, resources, professional development and support necessary to facilitate collaboration (NASSP, 2006)

Key Points for Framework  Teams should have meaningful discussions about pedagogy, student behavior and academic performance  Allow for reflection and dialogue that support best practices  Teaming lessens the feelings of isolation in teaching profession  Training should support collaboration  Stakeholders should be involved in process to address at least three critical questions: What are students expected to learn How will it be known when they learn it How to respond when students don’t learn it (Mcintosh & White, 2006)

Key Points for Framework  Core freshman area within school (classrooms, locker, principal, counselor, common lunch period)- freshman “academy”, “center’, “wing”, “house”, seminar  Teams of core ninth grade teachers  Common preparation time for core ninth grade teachers  Strong collaboration between middle school and ninth grade counselors (McIntosh & White, 2006)

Support for Novice and Other Teachers  4 to 5 days of orientation at the beginning of the semester  Strong administrative support  Continuous professional development  Modeling of effective instructional strategies during mentoring and in-service trainings  Structured mentoring program  Opportunities for novice teachers to observe successful veteran teachers  Small learning communities that provide networking opportunities and commitment to teacher success (Wood, 2005; Wong, 2004) (McIntosh & White, 2006)

Support for Novice and Other Teachers Wood, 2005; Wong 2004)

Schools and Families  Students/schools with engaged parents  earn higher grades/test scores  enroll in higher level programs  more likely to be promoted  have more regular school attendance  have better social skills, adaptive behavior, etc.  attend post secondary schools  stronger teacher-parent relationships  improves overall quality of schools (Henderson, Mapp 2002)

Achievement Gap Strategies  Focus on early childhood education  Well prepared/experienced teachers for Black children  Reduce class sizes (particularly in early grades  Equitable grouping practices  Adequate representation across the curriculum  Bridge home and school cultures by adopting instruction and schooling to students background  High expectations  Strong accountability  Student support programs  Desegregate schools and programs (Thompson & Quind, 2001)

Related Florida Recommendations  High school diploma based on student interest  Recognition for different levels of proficiency  Focus on middle school academic skills  Focus/emphasis on transition from 8 th to 9 th grade  Research base professional development  Instructional leadership for principals  Smaller learning communities  Parental involvement (Florida Department of Education, 2006)

UF Alliance: Our Core Values  We believe that culturally responsive schooling is conducive to student success.  We believe that early outreach and college awareness enhances college participation.  We believe in equal access and opportunity to post- secondary education for all students.  We believe that all students deserve a high quality and well-balanced education.  We believe that parents and families are key partners in the educational process.  We believe that mentoring and academic support are necessary for student success.  We believe that all students have the individual talents and abilities to succeed.

REFERENCES (1998) Outstanding practices: Raising student achievement by focusing on the 10 key practices. Atlanta, GA SREB Black, S. (2004). The pivotal year. American School Board Journal: Alexandria, VA: National School Boards Association. Blankstein, H. M. (2004) Failure is not an option: Six principles that guide student achievement in high performing schools. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press Hertzog, C.J. & Morgan, P. L. (1999). Transition: A process, not an event. Reston, VA: National Association of Secondary School Principals. Krantrowitz, B. & Wingert, D. (May 2006) What makes a great high school. Newsweek, May 8, Mcintosh, J. & White, S. H. (2006). Building for freshman success: High schools working as professional learning communities. American Secondary Education, 34, 40-49

REFERENCES Neild, R. C., Stoner-Eby, S. & Furstenberg, F. (2001). Connecting entrance and departure: The transition to ninth grade and high school dropout. Presented at Harvard Civil Rights Project Conference on Dropouts in America, Harvard University, January 13, 2001). Schlechty, P. (2005) Creating great schools: Six critical systems at the heart of educational innovation. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Boss Wurtzel, Judy (2006) Transforming high school teaching and learning: A district-wide design. Maryland: The Aspen Institute (2005) An action agenda for improving America’s high schools. Washington, D.C. : Achieve Inc.

REFERENCES 2005) A call to action: Transforming high school for all youth. Washington, D.C.: Institute of Educational Leadership (2006)Success in sight: A comprehensive approach to school improvement. Denver, CO: MCREL (2006) High school reform: Task report and recommendations. Tallahassee, FL: Florida Department of Education 2006) Breaking ranks in the middle: Strategies for leadingmiddle level reform. Reston, VA: National Association of Secondary School Principals. 2002) Outstanding practices: Opening doors to the future, preparing low-achieving middle grades students to succeed in high school. Atlanta, GA: SREB.