Improving Low High School Reform

With data driving instructional practices students achieve more, and with students achieving more school move closer

All students deserve a rewarding learning experience regardless of race, gender, economic status, or physical disability, for this reason Walnut Ridge Elementary school implements researched based practices such as differentiated instruction to help meet the individual needs of our students. Teachers are being made aware of the fact that diversity can have a detrimental impact on learning. Through the implementation of differentiation, we are able to expand the learning experiences for all diverse populations, thereby expanding educational opportunities for our students.

Achieving a school district’s mission and vision requires the commitment of its stakeholders. In order to involve them in the process, it is necessary for educational leaders to “motivate staff, parents, students, board and community members” (Educational Leadership Constituencies Council, 2002, p. 4). The transformational leadership theory emphasizes the importance of educational leaders acting as role-models in order to motivate and inspire the school community. This approach has the potential to involve all stakeholders, leading to increased student success (Bush, 2007). The Assistant Director of Special Education in Northwest ISD directly supervised the school district’s assessment staff. Her education, experience, and passion set an example for her subordinates, stimulating them to achieve more, leading to her promotion to Executive Director of Student Services.

Data collection has been around for years in one form or another. The implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act stimulated dedicated educators to learn the correlation between data driven decision-making and successful school improvement plans. The legislative goal was to ensure academic success across all socioeconomic frontiers. Districts across the country were steered into driving their instruction with data and teacher collaboration. This has lead to districts that have successfully found the correlation between data driven decision-making and success.

In looking at the needs of an entire school, it is important to examine the needs of each individual student. It is known that not every student learns the same and achieves the same; therefore, each intervention should be personalized for the individual students. For the past two years, Whitley County High School has developed an intervention model that focuses on the middle tier of students. It is thought that these students can be instructed at a level that brings them out of the middle

The major emphasis in education for the 21st century is on data driven accountability measured by student performance on standardized testing. National and state expectations require students to demonstrate mastery of curriculum objectives. Instructional objectives are the focus of the building principals to show measurable student progress. The improvements are evaluated based on data and monitoring of the curriculum.

Teachers are able to target the learning gaps by developing a plan of action based on the needs for our students. Verbiest (2014) and Hershkovitz (2015) argue data is used to tailor (how we sever students, how we offer support, types of support, what resources we need to invest on, whether we take a student to students needs with our school psychologist) instruction for students in all content areas in an effort to increase student achievement. As a result, the school can provide specific professional learning, support, and resources to teachers based on the needs and areas of weakness of our students (Fox, 2001). As lifelong learners, teachers recognize that their professional practice continues to evolve as they reflect and act on new information. If teachers have information that helps them confidently identify the root of educational challenges and track progress, they can more readily develop action plans that will have a positive impact on their students’ achievement (Halverson et al.,

In chapter 5, Reforming America’s Schools, I learned many things that affect me as an educator. An important fact that interests me was that there are four goals that schools should follow. The first one is academic, including a broad array of knowledge and intellectual skills. The second one is vocational, aimed at readiness for the world of work and economic responsibilities. The third one is social and civic, including skills and behavior for participating in a complex democratic society. The fourth one is personal, including the development of individual talent and self-expression. This will affect me as an educator so that I can follow and do my best to complete these goals. Now I am aware of what should be done in a classroom.

Our teaching experience revealed the discrepancies between student academic achievement gaps and curriculum mandates required by generally standardized education policies. Many of their students were from low-socioeconomic backgrounds where high-end educational resources needed to function in the general education environment are often not available in spite of the federal mandates indicating all children have the right to a fair and equal opportunity learning experience.

Good leader needs to be able to identify teacher capabilities, and in what capacity they best fit in the school to reach the organization 's goals and provide resources to help teachers, and grow their capacity to become effective. According to Mantz, the tricky part is putting enough pressure on them for continual growth in meeting the vision of the school, progressing quickly, but not to the point where teachers become overloaded, and want to quit. Two years ago, the district had five teachers resign mid year. Teachers need to be pushed to meet the desired results, but there must be a balance, or they leave. Increased professional development after classroom observations has helped teachers strengthen capabilities through evaluations. Teachers make goals, then, are provided formative feedback early in their teaching experiences, which builds capacity, and provides more flexibility in the master schedule.

Data-driven instruction means teaching needs to be based on data. The No Child Left Behind Act holds schools and districts responsible for student’s achievement, which implemented schools to collect, store, and manipulated data to modify the instructions. Teachers are held responsible for student reaching their goals. The teacher is able to show improvement by using the data that is collected. In attention, the teacher is about to use the data to show improvement. The data could also be used to modify instructions. The teacher is able to use the collected data to modify instruction to meet the students’ needs. For example, if the teacher is collecting

Teachers never have enough time to accomplish all of the things that they are responsible for during a day. However, it is important for them to have personal performance goals formulated around managing, engaging, and growing students. Establishing goals and working on them systematically throughout the school year with guidance from administration allows for professional growth throughout the school building. One of my many take-aways from the book Leverage Leadership was that great teachers use data driven instruction, receive a lot of feedback, and consistently focus on short and long-term performance goals (Bambrick-Santoyo, 2012).

The United States educational system has realized moments in its history when educational reform was the answer to the perceived social and economic issues plaguing the country (Strickland, 1985). In 1892, the National Education Association created a committee to determine what should be taught in American schools. Specific courses of study were identified that addressed two basic components. Specific courses of study were deemed necessary for students to find success when attending college. It was also determined that students should have a well-rounded education that provided relevance for the academic topics that would be studied (Tenam-Zemach & Flynn, 2011). The quality of instruction seemed not to be the issue. One-room schoolhouses

Schools are facing major issues due to several reasons discussed by superintendents and principals. These issues hinder the learning curriculum standards set by the government. The No Child Left Behind Act is a mandate set forth by the federal government. “The major focus of No Child Left Behind is to close student achievement gaps by providing all children with a fair, equal, and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education.” But they still face a dilemma, they need talented leaders to meet the challenges of schools and districts. In order to fulfill the Act set forth by the government, these talented leaders are essential for schools in order to fulfill the “promise of excellence and opportunity for all children”. There are numerous issues discussed that have been found to have the most impact on school and district improvement. The first is money and mandates, not to my surprise. Insufficient funding is the biggest challenge faced by superintendents and principals. Even when the money is there, the mandates pose a problem. It’s like a circle of issues that they cannot get out of. There

Education reform is a topic that every student, parent and teacher should be interested in because it effects everyone in the community. Many different approaches to education reform have been tried, and even though they seem to work for the time being, there are always more improvements that need to be made. One of the best ideas that has been discussed in the most recent years is getting the parents and students more involved in the actual reform process. Many school administrators see a problem with involving students, even though they are the ones most affected by the changes within schools. Student’s opinions should be taken into consideration because they are the ones who see what happens inside the school and within the classroom, and are the most affected by it. Involving parents and students in the reform of their schools will improve the quality of education, improve parent and teacher relationships and reduce parent and student complaints.