1. Effective Schools Summit June 2016

2. Outcomes Review the current and upcoming criteria for Failing Schools
Explore various data resources currently available to schools and districts
Discuss the process for using the Goal Action Plan as a tool to assist in the school improvement process
Identify 3 big areas of focus for the school year
The participants will…

3. “Failing” Schools as defined by the Alabama Accountability Act of 2015
A public k-12 school that is either of the following:
(a) Is designated as a failing school by the State Superintendent of Education,
(b) Does not exclusively serve a special population of students and is listed in the lowest six percent of public k-12 schools based on the state standardized assessment in reading and math.

4. Business Rules for Calculation to Meet Section 1 (5) (b) of ACT 2016-434:
Determine current/open schools and remove any school that exclusively serves a special population.
Determine the bottom six percent of Alabama schools for school year based on the state standardized assessments in reading and math.
Data sources: ACT Aspire, Alabama Alternate Assessment, and the ACT Plan
This list will be revised annually in accordance with the law.
*Please note: Next year’s list will be calculated based on the ACT ASPIRE 10 instead of the ACT Plan. In addition, Reading will be used instead of English.

5. Developing a Data Driven Process for Continuous School Improvement

6. Transforming education is about conversation, exploration, debate, and occasional dispute.

7. It is irresponsible for a school to mobilize, initiate, and act without any conscious way of determining whether such expenditure of time and energy is having a desirable effect.
-Carl Glickman
An organization’s results are determined through webs of human commitments born in webs of human conversations.
-Fernando Flores
Things get done only if the data we gather can inform and inspire those in a position to make a difference.
-Mike Schmoker
People without information cannot act. People with information
cannot help but act.
-Ken Blanchard

8. Data and the Improvement Cycle

9. The Improvement Cycle How will we evaluate our effectiveness?
Where are we now?
(Analyze Data)
Where do we want to be?
(Set Goals)
How will we get there?
(Plan)
How will we monitor our progress?
(Implement)
How will we evaluate our effectiveness?
(Evaluate)
The
Improvement
Cycle

10. Multiple Measures of Data and the Continuous Improvement Process

11. Multiple Measures of Data
Learners & Parents
Support Systems
Education Professionals
Schools & Systems
Student Achievement
Learning Gains
Achievement Gaps
College & Career Readiness
Demographics
Perception
Family Engagement
Graduation Rate
Drop Out Rate
Attendance
Discipline
Intervention
Enrichment
Guidance & Counseling
Health & Well-Being
Teacher Attendance
Administrator & Teacher Effectiveness
Recruitment & Retention
Culture & Climate
Community Engagement
Professional Development
Continuous Improvement Plan
School Finance

12. Developing a Data Driven Process for Continuous School Improvement

13. Developing the Process
Non-Negotiables
Demonstrate a commitment to the process.
Provide structured and protected time to analyze, collaborate, and plan around data.
Develop effective processes for conducting meetings.
Ensure that each data meeting results in an action plan.
Provide follow-up and support.

14. Developing the Process
Data Leadership Teams
Facilitator-Sets the tone and guides the discussion.
Assistant Facilitator-Assists and supports as needed.
Record Keeper-Records and shares notes with participants.
Participants-Make the meetings productive by being actively engaged in all discussions.

15. Developing the Process
Norms for Data Discussions
Create an atmosphere of continuous improvement.
No judgments. No blaming.
Disagree openly, but fairly.
Be open to others opinions and ideas.
Publicly support all group decisions.

16. Questions for Consideration
Does the district/school have a comprehensive and structured process for the use of data to guide improvement efforts?
Does the district/school have a data leadership team in place?
Is data used to identify and prioritize needs?
Do school leaders and teachers have instant access to a range of data to inform the improvement effort?
Does the district/school provide professional development for the effective use of data?

18. Using the Goal Action Plan for Continuous School Improvement

19. Why Use Goal Action Plan??
Help with transition to e-prove
Focus on 3 “big rocks”
Allows school & district officials to think about best actions to lead to improvement

20. Goal Action Planning
Uses quantitative and qualitative data to identify needs
Helps with determining and delegating next steps
Allows focus on limited number of goals and strategies
Requires support, monitoring, and adjusting to changes in the data
Creates supportive learning environments for everyone in the “school system”
Goal action planning is a process that…

21. Components of a Goal Action Plan
Goals
Strategies and Action Steps
Person(s) Responsible
Timeline
Evidence of Implementation
Progress Monitoring
Outcomes

22. Goal Action Plan Template
Action Team Facilitator:
Action Team Members:
Goal
Student Goal:
Practice Goal:
Strategies & Action Steps
Person(s) Responsible
Timeline
Evidence of Implementation
Progress Monitoring
Date:
Data Source
Progress Notes
Outcome Summary
Goal Met
Yes/No
Goal Action Plan Template

23. Goals Clearly defined and based on needs identified by data.
Prioritized based on importance and urgency
Limited in number (no more than 3-5)
Developed to be ambitious but achievable.
Focus on increasing student learning AND changing adult practices.
Goals are …

24. Person(s) Responsible
Action Team Facilitator – leads the team and meetings
Action Team – those involved in the development and monitoring of implementation
Team Members – guide the implementation and adjustment of strategies and action steps

25. Timeline
Establishes checkpoints along the way to ensure implementation and adjusting of strategies and action steps
Provides accountability measures to make us do what we say we need to do

26. Evidence of Implementation
Data should be collected on the practices of the adults, not just on student performance (cause/effect).
How will we know if the instructional strategies and action steps are being implemented effectively and appropriately?
What data should we collect?
How often?
How do we report this data back to the staff?
Collect data on adult implementation indicators as well as student performance indicators

27. Progress Monitoring
How and when will we measure progress?

28. Progress Monitoring Monitor the implementation of strategies
Evaluate the impact of the strategies on student learning
Provide feedback to staff on the implemented strategies and the impact on student learning
Assess the effectiveness of professional development supports
Progress monitoring allows the team to

29. Evaluating Effectiveness
What was the impact on student learning?
What was the impact on adult practices?
Did we achieve the desired results?
What are the next steps?
The improvement cycle ends with evaluating the effectiveness of the plan in moving us toward the overall goal. During this time the team will review and revise outcomes in light of recently attained progress monitoring data. This involves the team being able to answer the following questions…

30. Goal Action Planning enhances your CIP process
Goal Action Planning enhances your CIP process. It is not something you do in addition to your CIP.

31. The Goal Actions Plans should be completed and posted in ACIP by September 1, 2016.

32. SDE Support The Goal Action Plan will…
Guide discussions between RSCs, district and school teams about support.
Provide focus for our work around district and school developed priorities.

33. Developing and Writing Goals for Continuous School Improvement

34. When you know your "why," your "what" has more impact….

35. External - State/District Required Internal - School Developed
Data Sources
External - State/District Required
Internal - School Developed
Other Student-Level Information - Demographics and Background
(15 minutes)
Data Inventory – If we asked our teachers if students are tested enough, what would they say? We spend a great deal of time collecting data, but do we know what data we actually have? A data inventory provides a summary of all the types of data that are available in your school.
There are 3 types of data sources:
external assessments (state/district required)
internal assessments (school developed)
other student-level information (demographics and background)

37. What data to use? Reading and Math Formative/Benchmark Assessments
ASPIRE
Discipline Reports
Attendance Reports
Graduation Data
College Remediation Data
EOCTs
Report Card Grades
Other Formative Assessments
Classroom Rounds Evidence
ASSIST Surveys

38. “Schools don't need more things to do
“Schools don't need more things to do. They need to do less with greater focus.”
From Instructional Rounds in Education

39. Three Component Framework
Instruction
Learning Supports
Academic
Learning Culture
Management
Professional Development

40. Principles of Effective Schools

41. Essential Task: Use data to develop realistic and attainable goals.
 Goal Setting
Essential Task: Use data to develop realistic and attainable goals.
The development of goals should be made in consideration of desired outcomes, staff and student capacity, time constraints, and available resources.
SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time bound.

42. Well-written goals will have the following characteristics:
Specific. Goals should be detailed and explicit.
Measurable. Goals should articulate a desired outcome and how that outcome will be measured.
Attainable. Push yourself past your comfort zone, but be realistic and attainable.
Data-Based. Goals should be based on evidence of need.
Few. The number of goals should be kept to a minimum that is realistically attainable.
Time Bound. Create a sense of urgency by defining when the goal will become reality.
Collaboratively Developed. Goals should be developed with input from all stakeholders.
SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time bound.

43. ACIP Goal Action Plan Goal Objective Strategy Activity Goal Strategy
Action Step

44. Create ORGANIZATIONAL Goals in ACIP (even if they are academic in nature)

45. More ACIP Tips

46. Strategies and Action Steps
Strategies are the ADULT actions that will impact student learning.
Action Steps are those incremental tasks that help to implement strategies and move toward achieving the goal.
Strategy: All teachers will teach strategically, in all classes, daily.
Action Steps:
Teaching With Purpose: All content-area teachers will open each lesson with a student-friendly objective, or essential question, which will be revisited throughout the lesson for understanding (formative assessment).
Differentiated Instruction: All teachers will use various strategies to explore or explain the lesson (technology, integrate new information, explore predictions, student response groups, teacher-student conferencing, writing labs, portfolio assessments, graphic organizers, etc...). Math teachers should include explicit instruction using the four steps “I do, we do, ya’ll do, you do” when introducing and re-teaching.

47. Action Steps “Teachers/Administrators will…”
use number talks daily to reinforce basic math skills and close skill gaps for struggling students.
provide intervention opportunities daily for students identified as experiencing difficulty in math and/or reading.
include authentic writing activities in science/social studies every Monday/Wednesday.
conference individually with students at least once a month.

48. Strategy and Action Step Reminders
Effective Strategies and Action Steps:
Are specific, clear, measurable
Include but are not solely centered around remediation/intervention
Help accomplish the goal
Address core instruction
Require evidence that is observable in a classroom, not just found in a box
Involve more than just math and language arts teachers
Should focus on increasing student learning AND changing adult practices
Are attainable-due to time constraints, available resources, and staff/student capacity

49. Goal: Students will improve reading and writing proficiency.
Goal: Students will engage in math talks regularly.
Strategy: Teachers will better teach struggling students.
Action Step: Teachers will run Global Scholar data reports every Tuesday.

50. Continuous Improvement Goal Planning
Do’s
Involve the entire faculty in the process
Ensure goals are realistic
Revisit often to update and revise as needed
Develop goals with checkpoints throughout the year
Don’ts
Allow one or two people to devise the plan
Include goals that are unlikely to be attained
Put the plan on the shelf for the school year

51. Benchmark Assessments
A Year-Long Journey
May - September
Attend Training
Disaggregate Data
Get Input From Faculty
Write the Plan
August - April
Set up Documentation
Communicate the Plan
Check Documentation
Benchmark Assessments
Update as Necessary
Keep the Plan Alive
Why is getting the team right so important? Because over the course of a whole year, this team does more than write the plan. They (click) read and go over each one….

52. Sustained Model of Continuous Improvement Answers Five Questions:
Where are we now?
Where do we want to be?
How will be get there?
How will we monitor progress?
How will we evaluate our effectiveness?

53. Divide into school/central office teams
Work Session
Divide into school/central office teams
Using planning tool and/or GAP, discuss:
What are the challenges/opportunities?
What data will be needed?
Who are the needed team members?

54. Questions?

55. Time to Move is Now….