A new report by LFA and Grunwald Associates, with support from AT&T, examines how parents perceive the value of mobile devices, how they see their children using mobiles, and what they think of the possibilities for mobile learning.
District wide strategies
Success Stories
Story posted August 18, 2010. For additional information and updated results, read the Learning First Alliance interview with St. Tammany Parish Public School System supervisior of administration John Swang.
Results:
• As of 2009, the district had saved more than 4.4 million dollars in energy costs and eliminated emissions of more than 53 million pounds of CO2
The National Center for Education Statistics reports that schools budgeted $7 billion for energy costs in 2001, but spent $8 billion. Since then, energy costs per student have been rising at more than six times the rate of inflation. In 2009, the American Association of School Administrators reported that rising energy costs are dramatically affecting district budgets nationwide, with significant negative impacts on student learning.
Over the last several years, energy costs for the St. Tammany Parish Public School System, with 54 schools and 35,000 students, have rapidly risen, creating great apprehension that important instructional and operational functions in schools would have to be reduced or eliminated. On average, the cost of energy was increasing by ...
When "City Connects" Helps the Whole Child, Achievement Gaps Shrink
Story posted June 18, 2010
Results:
• The intervention moved students at the 50th percentile up to or near the 75th, and students at the 25th up to or near the 50th
• While the intervention ends in 5th grade, positive effects continue to be seen in middle-school test scores
An innovative program out of Boston College is making a big difference for children in 11 Boston elementary schools. City Connects (CCNX) works with the schools to link each child to a "tailored set of intervention, prevention and enrichment services located in the community."
Its efforts have gone a good distance towards closing achievement gaps between the low-income children in the program and children who meet state averages. CCNX's results offer powerful support for what should be common sense: When we address the challenges poor students face both within and beyond schools, they flourish.
A rigorous study (PDF) of the program's outcomes tells a pretty stunning story:
- The beneficial impact of BCNX [the former name of CCNX] on student growth in academic achievement (across grades 1 to 5) was, on average, approximately three times the harmful impact of poverty.
- By the end of grade 5, achievement differences between BCNX and comparison students indicated that the BCNX intervention moves students at the 50th percentile up to or near the 75th percentile, and the students at the 25th percentile up to or near the 50th.
- For multiple outcomes, the treatment effects were largest for students at greatest risk for academic failure. For example, English language learners experienced the largest treatment benefits on literacy outcomes, by third grade demonstrating similar report card scores to those proficient in English in comparison schools. In fact,as a result of BCNX, there was no longer an achievement gap between these students.
- After grade 5, the lasting positive effects ofthe BCNX intervention can be seen in middle-school MCAS scores. The size ofthe positive effect of BCNX ranged from approximately 50% to 130% as large as the negative effects of poverty on these scores.1
We recently caught up with two of the program's leaders: Dr. Mary Walsh, its Executive Director, and Patrice DiNatale, its Director of Practice.
Public School Insights: What is City Connects?
Walsh: City Connects is a systemic, evidence-based approach to school-based student support. It involves assessing, in conversation with teachers and other school staff, each child in the school at the beginning of the school year and then developing a tailored student support plan based on that student's strengths and needs in four areas: academic, social emotional/behavioral, health and family.
That support plan involves accessing services, supports, resources and enrichment for the child, both school-based resources as well as, and importantly, community resources. A trained professional with a Master’s degree—either ...
A Village Route to Early Childhood Education
Story posted February 23, 2010
Results:
• Participants outperform their peers on fall DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) testing in kindergarten
• Significant academic and social gains are seen at the individual level
In the 1990s, we at Davenport Community Schools noticed a trend: Children were coming to kindergarten unprepared to learn. A troublingly low number of our district’s children (more than half of whom receive free or reduced price lunch) had preschool experience. Recognizing the importance of early childhood education in ensuring students are ready to succeed in school and life, we developed the Children’s Village.
The Structure
Children’s Village, launched in 1998, includes formal preschool classes and all-day, year-round programming serving children from six weeks to five years old at five sites. We encourage participation by families of all economic and social backgrounds. Services are in great demand—we have a waiting list of hundreds of families.
Funding this model was a significant challenge. We historically had two targeted sources of ...
Getting Buy-In from Everyone in the System
A profile of Prince George's County Public Schools, Maryland
Story posted December 22, 2009
Results:
• Attendance at district welcoming events has increased from 500 parents to 20,000 parents in only three years
• In 2008-2009, the district logged over 70,000 instances of fathers' involvement in nonsports-related events
• District staff have observed that schools with higher family participation rates show greater gains in AYP
There is widespread consensus that family engagement is a critical ingredient for children’s school success “from cradle to career.” Research suggests that family engagement promotes a range of benefits for students, including improved school readiness, higher student achievement, better social skills and behavior, and increased likelihood of high school graduation.
Even though it is clear that family participation in education matters, many schools and districts struggle to develop engagement strategies that work. There are, however, a number of districts across the country that are actively working to develop comprehensive, systemic family engagement approaches that stress shared responsibility, involve a full range of school and district personnel in designing and implementing strategies, and deliberately link family engagement to student learning. One such district is Prince George’s County Public Schools in Maryland.
Prince George’s County represents a diverse district, serving a student population that is 73% African-American and 18.5% Hispanic, and where more than 50% of elementary and middle school students receive free or reduced price lunch. The district is particularly strong at creating “demand parents” who can navigate the educational system and demand the best from ...
Beyond "Heroes and Sheroes": The Success of Montgomery County Schools
Story posted December 2, 2009
Results:
• District students graduate college at double America's overall graduation rate
• About 65% of the graduation class has taken an AP exam
Editor's note: Dr. Jerry Weast has presided over a decade of strong and steady gains in Montgomery County, Maryland. How did his district do it? Not by using any of the cure-all strategies that have captivated the national media.
Weast recently told us the story of his school district's success. Several big themes stand out:
- Stop the blame game and start collaborating. Big fights between administrators and teachers are catnip to reporters, but they don't do much for children.
- Set common goals and figure out how to reach them. In Montgomery County, everyone could agree that students should leave high school ready for college.
- Create a system that helps everyone be successful. It's not enough to let 1000 flowers bloom.
- There's more to equity than equality. Weast describes a "red zone" where most of the county's low-income children live. It's not enough to treat those children and their wealthier "green zone" peers equally. The children in the "red zone" need much more systemic support.
There's much more to Dr. Weast's vision than I can sum up here. Here's the story as he told it to us in a phone conversation last week:
There are some structural issues in the way that we are thinking about American education. You see little Kindergartners come to school, and they believe that they can learn anything. Their parents do too. And so does everybody else who meets them. But a few years later, because of the sorting process and the type of structure that they are in, a lot of that belief is taken away and there are huge achievement gaps.
Then you see beginning teachers. They come in and they feel like they can take on the world and do anything. But within ...
Story posted November 5, 2009
Results:
• Native American math performance increased from 1080 to 1397(on Oklahoma's API scale of 1500) over the past two years
• Native American reading performance increased from 1059 to 1272 over that time
• Native American families feel more connected to the district
Bruce Belanger seems to be caught in the “wow effect.” When he speaks of the rapidly mounting success among Native Americans in Weatherford Public Schools (WPS), it’s hard for him to keep his enthusiasm from boiling over.
As director of special education, federal programs and testing at WPS, it falls to Belanger to find ways to improve student achievement. And for the past two years, good things just keep rolling in for Native American families in the district.
Central to this success are two related initiatives: a Native American Task Force (formed in October 2007) and a Community Conversation program funded by a National Education Association grant from the Public Engagement Project/ Family School Community Partnership, implemented with ...
Expecting Success: College in the High School
Story posted April 30, 2009
Results:
• All students met the Washington State Assessment of Student Learning graduation requirements in reading and writing in 2007 and 
2008, up from 59% and 53%, respectively, in 2003
• Graduates are accepted to and attend colleges throughout the nation
• In 2008, Bridgeport High School was selected as one of America's Best High Schools by the U.S. News & World Report.
Many Bridgeport School District students dreamed of attending college. Sadly, for most, dreaming was all they could do because they couldn’t afford tuition, fees, or books. Nor was the 150-mile round trip to the nearest college possible. More than 80 percent of Bridgeport students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, 87 percent are Latino, and most are prepared to become migrant farm laborers, like their parents. The Bridgeport School Board chose a different career path for them, and, in the process, introduced the College in the High ...
Bridging the Gap Between Preschool and Kindergarten
Story posted January 13, 2009
Results:
• More than 50% of entering kindergarteners know the alphabet, up from 4% seven years ago
• Only 2.1% of kindergarteners needed specialized educational services in May 2008, down from 12% in 2002
• 73% of first graders were reading at grade level in 2008, up from 52% in 2002
Through an innovative partnership between the Bremerton (Washington) School District, Head Start, and community preschools and childcare centers, more than 50 percent of youngsters in this small urban school district start kindergarten knowing the alphabet.
But that wasn’t always the case. Just seven years ago, only 4 percent of Bremerton’s incoming kindergarteners knew their letters, compared to 60 percent of children nationwide. Bremerton’s students, 59 percent of whom come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, were behind the academic curve even before they stepped into a classroom. ...
Closing the Gap: A Union/District Partnership Spells Success for Low-Income Kids
Story posted October 9, 2008
Result:
• Three years into the program, 6th grade test scores had risen between 39% and 53% at all participating schools
As superintendent of the ABC Unified School District in Southeast Los Angeles, Ron Barnes knew that averages can be deceiving. Home to one of the highest-performing schools in California, his school district's test score averages stood up well against state scores. Yet this small, urban district's overall high performance rate concealed large discrepancies in achievement.
In fact, six of the district's poorest schools struggled to meet reading goals. With a 90 percent minority population, high poverty rates and English Language Learners comprising more than half of their enrollments, these schools faced tough challenges.
To address the large achievement gaps between schools in the district, the ABC Federation of Teachers (ABCFT) partnered with Barnes and members of the school board in 1999 to equip teachers and leaders for success. ...
A Partnership of Expertise and Knowledge
Story posted September 17, 2008
Results:
• 78% teacher retention rate, up from 68% in 2001
• 96% teacher retention rate in Hard-To-Staff Schools last year
• Principals report that student achievement in classrooms with new teachers equals that in veteran teacher classrooms by the second and third benchmark testing periods each year
Hampton City Schools (HCS) in Hampton, VA, face challenges common to many districts around the nation. A combination of early retirement, low salaries, inadequate education funding, and concerns about teachers' quality of life makes recruiting and retaining teachers difficult. At the same time, rising student enrollment has increased demand for more teachers. The result? The number of teachers with zero years experience grows each year.
...
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A VISION FOR GREAT SCHOOLS
On this website, educators, parents and policymakers from coast to coast are sharing what's already working in public schools--and sparking a national conversation about how to make it work for children in every school. Join the conversation!
