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Preview ERIC ED484555: Assessing School Preparation for New & Diverse Students

Assessing School Preparation for New Diverse & Students December 2004 Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory This publication is part of a series from NWREL to assist in school improvement.Materials are available in five areas: Re-engineering Assists schools,districts,and communities in reshaping rules,roles,structures,and relationships to build capacity for long-term improvement Quality Teaching and Learning Provides resources and strategies for teachers to improve curriculum,instruction,and assessment by promoting professional learning through reflective,collegial inquiry School, Family, and Community Partnerships Promotes child and youth success by working with schools to build culturally responsive partner- ships with families and communities Language and Literacy Assists educators in understanding the complex nature of literacy development and identifying multiple ways to engage students in literacy learning that result in highly proficient readers,writ- ers,and speakers Assessment Helps schools identify,interpret,and use data to guide planning and accountability NWREL School Improvement Indicators Package The NWREL Assessment Program is developing a series of three school assessment systems to help schools address: a) school reform and improvement activities, b) improvement of schoolwide and classroom practices to better meet the needs of new and diverse students, and c) how teacher teams can identify and improve classroom practices that support new and diverse students. The three indicator products are: Indicators of School Readiness for Reform (2003) This first indicator product in the series describes the Survey of School Capacity for Continuous Improvement which is an online teacher survey to help school staff members investigate a number of school practices and structures that are often areas of concern for school faculties when they consider embarking on or sustaining school reform and improvement efforts. Factors such as school leadership, teacher collaboration, personal commitment, quality curriculum, high expectations for all students, and community support often help or hinder these efforts. The survey results help staff members develop a shared understanding of these characteristics at their school and provide a stimulus for frank discussions. The results help school staff members determine if they have a positive climate for change and where to focus attention to improve the conditions that foster successful reform initiatives and promote ongoing improvement. Assessing School Preparation for New and Diverse Students (2004) This manual describes the School-PASS (School Practices for All Students’ Success) Survey, an online survey and planning process to allow schools to assess and improve their current services to meet the academic and social needs of new and diverse students. Specifically, schools will learn more about their students and how to identify and prioritize areas for school improvement activities. The five stage planning process is: a) obtain schoolwide staff buy-in, b) collect and analyze student data, c) complete School-PASS Survey, d) discuss and analyze School-PASS results, and e) develop a Schoolwide Consensus Action Plan. Assessing Instructional Change in Diverse Classrooms (draft 2004) The third assessment product which describes the Teacher Assessment Survey will be available in 2005 to help teacher teams identify and implement needed training on specific classroom practices that support diverse students. The teachers begin by identifying their priority needs and proposing a professional development program to address those needs. A number of tools and processes assist each teacher to determine personal needs within those areas and to participate in professional development with these needs in mind. The level of implementation in the school is enhanced through peer modeling and peer coaching. The first two assessment products engage school staff members in collaborative planning and problem-solving at primarily a schoolwide level. Their results can better enable teacher teams to work with the third product to implement recommended classroom practices. However, the successful implementation of the third product is not dependent on the use of the first two. Assessing School Preparation for New and Diverse Students Gary Nave Lena Ko December 2004 Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory Portland, Oregon Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory 101 SW Main Street, Suite 500 Portland, Oregon 97204-3213 503-275-9500 www.nwrel.org [email protected] Center for Research, Evaluation, and Assessment Assessment Program © Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, 2004 All Rights Reserved This project has been funded at least in part with Federal funds from the U.S. Department of Education under contract number ED-01-CO-0013. The content of this publication does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. Department of Education nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. ISBN 0-89354-088-9 Contents Preface.................................................................................................................................v Acknowledgments.............................................................................................................vii Chapter 1 Introduction to the School-PASS Survey...........................................................1 School-PASS Framework: School Services to Student Needs.......................................2 School-PASS Survey......................................................................................................4 Cognition and Language Development......................................................................5 Health and Physical Development..............................................................................5 Social and Emotional Development............................................................................5 Motivation and Academic Engagement......................................................................5 Family Function and Support......................................................................................5 Peer and Community Culture......................................................................................6 Chapter 2 School-PASS Planning Process.........................................................................9 Chapter 3 Research Background.......................................................................................19 Educational Challenges of New and Diverse Students.................................................19 Race, Culture, and Language....................................................................................20 Class and Socioeconomic Status...............................................................................21 Highly Mobile and Immigrant Students...................................................................21 Addressing the Academic Achievement Gap...............................................................22 Deficiency Explanation.............................................................................................23 Difference Explanation.............................................................................................23 Power Difference Explanation..................................................................................24 Complex Interaction Explanation.............................................................................25 Research Background for School-PASS Survey Categories........................................25 Cognition and Language Development....................................................................27 Health and Physical Development............................................................................28 Social and Emotional Development..........................................................................28 Motivation and Academic Engagement....................................................................29 Family Function and Support....................................................................................30 Peer and Community Culture....................................................................................31 Resources by Topic.......................................................................................................32 Educational Challenges of New and Diverse Students.............................................32 Race, Culture, and Language....................................................................................32 Class and Scocioeconomic Status.............................................................................32 Highly Mobile and Immigrant Students...................................................................33 Addressing the Achievement Gap............................................................................33 Deficiency Explanation.............................................................................................33 Difference Explanation.............................................................................................33 Power Difference Explanation..................................................................................33 Complex Interaction Explanation.............................................................................34 Research Background for School-PASS Survey Categories....................................34 Cognitive and Language Development.....................................................................34 Health and Physical Development............................................................................34 Social and Emotional Development..........................................................................35 Motivation and Academic Engagement....................................................................35 Family Function and Support....................................................................................35 Peer and Community Culture....................................................................................36 Chapter 4 Annotated Resources........................................................................................37 Resources Focusing on Student Developmental Needs................................................38 Resources on School Practices for Student Success.....................................................39 Bibliography.....................................................................................................................45 Appendix A: School-PASS Survey..................................................................................57 Appendix B: School-PASS Sample Survey Report for Field Test Sites..........................69 Appendix C: School-PASS Sample Materials..................................................................86 C-1: Student Data Review Form...................................................................................87 C-2: Eighth Grade Blue Teacher Team Summary Report............................................89 C-3: Final Schoolwide Planning Session Agenda........................................................91 C-4: Top Challenge Items—Voting Ballot...................................................................93 C-5: Sample Resources Matrix.....................................................................................95 Tables School-PASS Domains: Students’ Need Areas for School Success...................................4 School-PASS Planning Process..........................................................................................9 Staff Member Involvement in School-PASS Planning Process by Role and Stages........10 Obtain Schoolwide Staff Member Buy-In........................................................................11 Collect and Study Student Data........................................................................................12 Respond to School-PASS Survey.....................................................................................13 Discuss and Analyze School-PASS Survey Results.........................................................14 Develop Staff Member Consensus on Action Items.........................................................16 Figures School-PASS Framework: Relationship of School Services to Student Needs.................3 Sample Items From School-PASS Online Survey..............................................................7 PREFACE Purpose This manual introduces and describes how to implement the School-PASS (School Practices for All Students’ Success) Survey and planning process that allows schools to assess and improve their current services to meet the academic and social needs of new and diverse students. The manual describes a five-stage planning process and provides detailed steps to implement each stage. The five stages are: a) obtain schoolwide staff member buy-in, b) collect and analyze student data, c) complete the School-PASS Survey, d) discuss and analyze School-PASS Survey results, and e) develop schoolwide consensus action items. In addition, annotations are provided for a number of available resources that schools may find helpful in any planning related to serving their new and diverse students. Rationale The need to improve academic achievement among diverse student populations is one of the most persistent and challenging issues education faces today. For many school communities, the number and percentage of new and/or nontraditional or diverse students rises each year. Schools are faced with meeting the learning needs of these new and diverse students and are struggling to find new ways in which to do so. This is the second in a series of three assessment systems developed by the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (NWREL) Assessment Program to assist school staff members in systematic planning for school improvement to meet the needs of all students. Design The School-PASS Survey and planning process were designed from a conceptual framework to guide schools in shaping policies and practices to fit the needs of all students. This framework is supported by the Contextual Systems Model (Pianta & Walsh, 1996) derived from developmental systems theory. It describes the school, family, and community as systems; and students as individuals operating within a set of systems and contexts. Survey items represent best-practice from research literature for various diverse student populations. These best practices are summarized in chapter three of this manual. The survey and planning process were field tested in three sites, which led to modifications that improved their clarity and use. Application The planning process is a schoolwide effort involving the school’s administrators, teachers, and counselors. There are four levels of participant involvement in the School- PASS planning process. Staff members participate either: a) individually, b) as part of a teacher team, c) as part of a school leadership team, or d) as a member of the full staff ©Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory— December 2004 Assessing School Preparation for Meeting the Needs of New and Diverse Students v member team. The School-PASS Survey and planning process described in this manual are designed to help schools: • Learn more about who their new and diverse students are and their current levels of school engagement and achievement • Learn about the structure and function of the school as a whole in relation to supporting new and diverse students • Develop a schoolwide shared understanding of how well they are currently supporting new and diverse students • Identify and prioritize areas for school improvement in meeting student needs • Locate resources, professional development, and materials to help implement the plan ©Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory— December 2004 vi Assessing School Preparation for Meeting the Needs of New and Diverse Students

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Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.