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Children First: The Education Plan for the District of Columbia Public Schools

Board of Trustees Bruce K. MacLaury, Chairman Julius W. Becton, Jr. Maudine R. Cooper Peter A. Gallagher Elliott S. Hall Nathaniel Howard M. Charito Kruvant Don Reeves Emily W. Washington

Board of Education Don Reeves, President Wilma Harvey, Vice President Benjamin Bonham Rev. Robert Childs Angie King Corley Terry Hairston Tanya Vidal Kinlow Linda H. Moody Ann Wilcox Jay Silberman Sandra Butler-Truesdale Christina C. Young, Student Representative

Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Vision
Goals
Outcomes
Roles in Reform
Strategies for Reform
The Education Action Plan
Appendices

Executive Summary
The Education Plan for the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) is organized around three goals from the Goals 2000 State Education Plan:

• Student Achievement
• Quality School Staff
• Governance and School Autonomy

In moving toward the accomplishment of these goals, the plan sets forth four major strategies:

• build and strengthen literacy for all students;
• reform the curriculum to meet national standards;
• hold all staff to high performance standards; and
• target assistance to schools that are not making progress.

The Education plan is grounded in reading and literacy as the priority strategy for education improvement. All students must be able to read well and independently in order to be successful in school, and in their lives.

The second major strategy is to reform the District's curriculum so that it meets national standards. Students must be challenged to reach high standards of performance. If we expect students to perform, and provide them with tools, assistance and effective teaching, they will succeed. The curriculum reform includes describing what students should know and be able to do in core subject areas, and how their knowledge and skills will be assessed.

In order for students to reach high standards of performance, teachers and all DCPS staff must be held to high standards of performance, which is the third major strategy of the education plan.

Schools are to be the accountable units for delivery of effective instruction. The fourth strategy is to monitor school progress and to provide assistance to schools that are not performing.

The Education Action Plan delineates a comprehensive set of objectives, tasks and activities which will collectively provide a variety of opportunities and sound educational experiences for all students. Each major strategy has 3n ultimate benchmark which is the culmination of a series of benchmarks ndicated at the conclusion of the Action Plan. Appended are a glossary of cey initiatives, and the organization chart for the office of the Chief Academic Officer.

Vision
The children of the District of Columbia are our most precious human resource. We envision schools that are collegial communities of professional and intellectually-prepared teachers and administrators who teach to world-class standards in a safe and caring environment in which children master the academic, technological, and social competencies that give them real choices in life and provide bridges to further education, productive work, and responsible citizenship.

Goals
Goal I. Student Performance
Ensure that all students are taught to worldclass standards to prepare them for productive work, further education adn responsible citizenship.

Goal II. Quality School Staff
Provide an academically competent, well-trained and caring staff and hold them accountable for results.

Goal III. Governance and School Autonomy
Promote school autonomy and accountability through decentralization and greater parental choice.

The Goals 2000 State Education Plan serves as the foundation for the DCPS Education Plan. Every activity in the Education Plan is directly tied to the improvement of teaching, learning. and local school accountability.

Outcomes
Successful students attending and graduating from the Public Schools will become:

• QUALITY PRODUCERS who exercise persistence and effectively communicate, compute and use technology, information and different forms of creative expression.
• SELF-DIRECTED LEARNERS who exhibit a love for learning, know how to learn, and demonstrate a sense of wonderment, curiosity and enthusiasm for new experiences.
• KNOWLEDGEABLE PROBLEM SOLVERS who think independently and consider and apply a broad range of options and strategies in defining and resolving problems.
• INFORMED DECISION MAKERS who anticipate the consequences of their actions, maintain healthful habits, and exercise integrity and sound judgment in making consumer and life decisions.
• COLLABORATIVE LEADERS who use effective leadership and group skills to define work and community goals, initiate their accomplishments, enhance personal and others' self-esteem, and foster and sustain cooperative relationships within culturally diverse settings.
• COMMUNITY BUILDERS who are responsible citizens and contribute their time, energies and talents to improve the health and welfare of themselves and others in their local and global environments.

Roles in Reform:

• STUDENTS attend school regularly, seek knowledge, ask for assistance.
• TEACHERS stay motivated, grow as professionals, respect, encourage and see the individuality of each student.
• PRINCIPALS lead, guide, plan and facilitate implementation of effective instructional program.
• PARENTS participate in child's education, come to school often, monitor student progress, participate in activities, support local school organizations.
• ADMINISTRATORS plan, implement, monitor, support, support, support.
• PTAs/HSAs participate, interact, provide support, communicate, ask questions, advocate.
• LSRTs unify, work with school staff to develop school plan, monitor progress, make recommendations.
• BOARD OF TRUSTEES provide oversight, broad advocacy, set policy.
• BOARD OF EDUCATION advise, advocate, interact with community.
• PUBLIC AGENCIES plan and work collaboratively for service provision. Share resources.
• PRIVATE/CORPORATE INVOLVEMENT provide external support, program opportunities, externships, internships,mentoring, incentives, resources.

Part 1.
Strategies for Reform

The Time is Now!

The District of Columbia will become a standards-driven, performance- based educational system. Over the next three years, DCPS will increase student achievement, employ a quality staff, and run excellent schools by concentrating on four major strategies:

• Build and Strengthen Literacy Skills for all Students
• Reform the Curriculum to Meet National Standards
• Hold all staff to high Performance Standards
• Target Assistance to Schools that are not Making Progress

  Build and Strengthen Literacy Skills for All Students

  1. Set reading targets for all students and help them to reach grade level and beyond.

  2. Require all students to read books from required reading lists at each grade level.

  3. Require all teachers to teach reading skills at every level and in every course.

  4. Deliver staff development and training on teaching reading at the elementary and secondary levels.

  5. Fully implement the system-adopted reading program at the e/em entary level.

  6. Assess student progress regularly and use appropriate intervention strategies when students require additional resources and time.

  7. Implement a scheduled 90 minute block for reading and literacy activities at the elementary level.

  Benchmark: All students read on or above grade level by the end of the third grade.

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  Reform Curriculum to Meet National Standards

  8. Adopt challenging curriculum for all students in core subject areas of English, mathematics, science, history, geography, government/ civics, the arts, world languages, and health promotion and wellness.

  9. Connect school-to-work and careers for all students.

  10. Prepare all students to use technology that will help them succeed at school and in the work place.

  11. Deliver staff development and training to teachers in how to use the new curriculum.

  12. Promote parent, community and corporate involvement as a resource to help students meet higher standards.

  13. Target and integrate special resources to Title 1, special education and language minority students to increase achievement levels.

  Benchmark: All students perform on or above grade level in mathematics by the end of the eighth grade.

  ---

  Hold All Staff to High Performance Standards

  14. Adopt clear and rigorous standards of competency for hiring and evaluating all staff.

  15. Connect evaluation of staff in local schools and central offices to student achievement.

  16. Establish executive and principal leadership programs that build and strengthen instructional, management, public relations, and communications skills and competencies.

  17. Establish certification and recertification requirements that are clearly connected to student achievement.

  18. Deliver mentoring and support programs to new teachers.

  Benchmark: All staff members are certified in their area of responsibility and meet or exceed the standards set for performance.

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  Target Assistance to Schools that are Not Making Progress

  19. Establish performance standards for all schools and hold them accountable to those standards.

  20. Promote increased autonomy for local schools that meet and exceed performance targets.

  21. Restructure schools that do not meet targets by adopting proven instructional models and practices.

  Benchmark: All schools meet or exceed performance targets.

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  Part 2.
  The Education Action Plan
  
  The Education Action Plan is organized around Student Achievement, Quality School Staff, and Governance and School Autonomy which are the three major goals from the Goals 2000 State Education Plan which directly impact teaching, learning and delivery of educational programs. The action plan delineates the objectives, tasks and activities for reaching these goals. There is also an indication of the correlation of these objectives, tasks and activities to the major reform strategies.
  
  Also listed in the Action Plan are responsible offices and target deadlines for completion of the tasks. Following the action plan are benchmarks which serve to chart progress toward strategic accomplishment of the goals. The appended organization chart for the office of the Chief Academic Officer provides a reference for responsible officers.

  Education Action Plan Definitions
  

  The Education Action Plan is a hierarchical arrangement of goals, objectives, tasks and activities. The following definitions have been adopted:

  
  

  Goals are statements of the ultimate purpose toward which efforts are directed. Goals are somewhat analogous to a compass which points in a general direction, i.e. increased academic achievement. There are three major goals in The Education Plan -- student achievement, quality school staff, and governance and autonomy.

  Objectives are general statements which provide greater specificity to goal statements. Each goal will have at least one (1 ) objective, or as many as ten (10) objectives. Objectives begin the process of breaking goals into manageable, measurable parts.

  Tasks represent the "working" or "implementation" level of the work, and provide absolute definition and clarity to the assignment. Within this Action Plan structure, tasks mandate that responsible units, target completion dates, and resources be specified for each task.

  Activities are statements intended to provide units, and therefore specific individuals, with assigned roles and responsibilities with regard to fulfilling each task. This is the level at which individual accountability will be focused. Each activity provides the following information:

  Responsible Office: The specific unit responsible for the action. The following acronyms are used within the plan.

  CAO: Chief Academic Officer
  CCR: Corporate & Community Relations
  CEO: Chief Executive Officer
  CFO: Chief Financial Officer
  CHRO: Chief Human Resources Officer
  Cl&A: Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment
  COO: Chief Operations Officer
  ES: Elementary Schools
  ESS: Educational Support Services
  
  MS/JHS: Middle Schools/Junior High Schools
  SE: Special Education
  SHS: Senior High Schools
  SP: Special Programs
  
  

  Target Completion: The date of expected completion, provided that resources are allocated as specified.

  Strategy: Each activity is tied to a larger goal. This column rovides a direct reference to the larger purpose of the activity.

  APPENDICES

  Glossary of Reform Initiatives

  Organization Chart (Office of the Chief Academic Officer)

  Reform Initiatives
  
  

  Three general initiatives will guide education reform: (1) Performance-Based Education with Literacy as its primary focus; (2) Secondary schools organization reform; and (3) governance and local school autonomy.

  
  1 Performance-Based Education
  
  

  Performance-Based Education (PBE) is the basics and beyond. PBE is standards-driven and incorporates curriculum assessment and instruction that are aligned with standards. PBE requires all schools to use the new standards-based curriculum and supporting documents to guide instruction and assessment. The framework documents include content standards based on national standards, and performance indicators for grades 3, 5, 8 and 11. Supporting materials provide grade-by-grade and course responsibilities, sample units of study, and an index to materials that support student achievement of the standards. The PBE initiative also requires that teachers and administrators engage in professional development to deepen their understanding of and commitment to rigorous, inquiry-based, content-rich, teaching and learning. PBE has a role in the following areas:

  
  
  • Literacy is the most important education improvement strategy and represents a concentrated city-wide effort to build and strengthen literacy levels for ALL students. Reading is fundamental to student success in school, so teaching reading represents one of our most important jobs.The goal is to develop each student's ability to read, write, and speak in English, and to compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job and in society. In the DCPS curriculum framework documents, literacy is addressed through the foundation skills that all teachers, at every level and in every subject area, must teach. The Literacy focus includes staff development and training in teaching reading, utilization of research-based programs like Reading Recovery, intervention strategies for students who are behind in skills development, and cooperating with corporate, governmental and community groups to provide tutors and mentors.

  • The Mathematics, Science and Technology Initiative (MSTI) improves scientific literacy for all students and significantly increases the number of students pursuing higher education and careers in mathematics, science, engineering and technology. The initiative employs development of prototypes at the elementary, middle and senior levels; rigorous staff development for teachers and administrators in mathematics and science content, performance-based instruction and assessment, and technology integration.

  • The Arts and Humanities Initiative partners the DCPS with cultural institutions of the city so that all children will experience the arts and humanities in a sustained, systematic fashion that enriches and enhances their learning. The initiative includes the creation of prototype schools in the arts and humanities; publication of a directory of arts and humanities programs in the District of Columbia; arts and humanities investigations by students; and an arts for all program.
    
    

  • The Diversity Initiative recognizes that schools must provide equal educational opportunities to all students, particularly those with limited English proficiency Over 8,000 students in the DCPS are classified as language minority students and over 5,000 of them need extra assistance to enable them to meet the high standards that are expected of all students.

    
    

  • Special Education reform will create and expand services to children with disabilities throughout DCPS. The goals are to: (1) reorganize special education services to better meet the needs of students; (2) initiate new programs to improve and expand services; (3) integrate students to the greatest extent possible into regular instructional programs; and (4) reduce the number of DCPS students placed in private settings.

  • Student Efficacy focuses on promoting resiliency in students so they can overcome the obstacles and challenges they face in their every day lives. Through the implementation of research-based supports, strategies and structures, the initiative helps students gain self- confidence, acquire multiple strategies for resolving conflicts, and develop leadership skills. Parents and guardians are involved in these programmatic supports.

    
    

  • 2 Secondary education reforms

    Secondary schools will be organized to form smaller communities of learning which are more sensitive to student developmental needs. The conversion of all junior high schools to middle schools will be implemented.

    
    
  • Middle Learning Years
    

    As the system moves from a junior high to a middle school structure, systemic and comprehensive professional development and training are provided to school staff and school communities. Middle schools typically are organized to address grades 6-8. Beyond the revised organizational structure which groups students more in keeping with their physical, social, psychological and emotional development, is the philosophical approach which greatly differs from typical junior high programs. The Middle School philosophy and Middle Learning Years agenda focus on creating smaller learning communities, interdisciplinary teaming, exploratory programs, flexible scheduling, issue-oriented curriculum, and a student-centered environment in schools.

    
    
  • Senior High Schools Renaissance 2000
    
    

    Renaissance 2000, the basis for reform of the District of Columbia Public Schools senior high schools, requires a redesign of the comprehensive high school as we know it. Using Research from the National Center for Research in Vocational Education (NCRVE) published in its report "New Designs for the Comprehensive High School,. high schools are to design comprehensive, innovative instructional programs that respond to the characteristics of 21st century schools that improve outcomes for students, and that connect schools to careers. This strategy is closely tied to School-To-Work planning in the District.

    
    3. Governance and local school autonomy

    
    

    Local school will become the accountability unit for delivery of instruction as they assume. more autonomy. Several initiatives are intended to grant schools more autonomy as they meet performance targets and to provide assistance for schools that are not performing:

    
    

  • Enterprise Schools and School-Within-School Charters provide schools that have demonstrated success in meeting student achievement targets and have effective local school management with increased autonomy.
    
    

  • Targeted Assistance Schools (TAS) are schools that have been identified for special assistance because they have low levels of student achievement as measured on standardized tests and are in need of additional support to enhance the quality of instruction and improve student performance. In order to improve performance levels at the Targeted Assistance Schools, a five-part strategy is employed to include planning, training, consulting, facilitation, and connecting the TASs with powerful instructional models such as Success for All, and the Modern Red School House. -In combination, these strategies assist administrators, teams of teachers and support staff to develop the skills, information, and attitudes needed to meet performance targets.

    © Copyright 1997 The Washington Post Company

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