proficiency

“Proficiency for all”Closing the Achievement Gapin the Boston Public SchoolsSuperintendent Thomas W. PayzantMay 10, 2004: 

“Proficiency for all” Closing the Achievement Gap in the Boston Public Schools Superintendent Thomas W. Payzant May 10, 2004

Various Achievement Gapsexist and persist in theBoston Public Schools andin most urban school districts,most notably with regard to:: 

Various Achievement Gaps exist and persist in the Boston Public Schools and in most urban school districts, most notably with regard to: PROGRAM: between Special Education students & English Language Learners and Regular Education students RACE: between Black & Latino and White & Asian students Also: SOCIO-ECONOMIC and GENDER

Sample achievement gap by program:MCAS Grade 8 Mathematics passing rates: 

Sample achievement gap by program: MCAS Grade 8 Mathematics passing rates Regular Education = 57% passing English Language Learners = 37% passing Special Education = 11% passing

Sample achievement gap by race:MCAS Grade 8 Mathematics passing rates: 

Sample achievement gap by race: MCAS Grade 8 Mathematics passing rates Asian = 87% passing White = 72% passing Hispanic = 39% passing Black = 36% passing

In addition to these Achievement Gaps specific to program and race,the BPS is focused on a broader gap:: 

In addition to these Achievement Gaps specific to program and race, the BPS is focused on a broader gap: The gap between where students are and where they ought to be in achieving proficiency.

Our commitment is to closing the achievement gapby moving all studentsfrom Level 1 & Level 2to Levels 3-4on MCAS.: 

Our commitment is to closing the achievement gap by moving all students from Level 1 & Level 2 to Levels 3-4 on MCAS.

Sample achievement gap by race:MCAS Grade 4 ELA proficiency rates: 

Sample achievement gap by race: MCAS Grade 4 ELA proficiency rates White = 52% proficient / advanced Asian = 44% proficient / advanced Black = 21% proficient / advanced Hispanic = 20% proficient / advanced

Sample achievement gap by program:MCAS Grade 10 ELA proficiency rates: 

Sample achievement gap by program: MCAS Grade 10 ELA proficiency rates Regular Education = 47% proficient / advanced English Language Learners = 16% proficient / advanced Special Education = 5% proficient / advanced

No Child Left Behind (NCLB)has accelerated the urgency ofclosing the achievement gap.: 

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has accelerated the urgency of closing the achievement gap. By 2014, every student in every school must reach proficiency. The accountability measure – Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) – is driven by annual targets to meet this goal. To make AYP, a school must demonstrate improvement in the aggregate and among all subgroups (race/ethnicity, program, native language, income).

NCLB also focuses on key strategiesto close the achievement gap:: 

NCLB also focuses on key strategies to close the achievement gap: Measuring student progress Using data and research-based instructional strategies Increasing student attendance Helping teachers become “highly qualified” Empowering parents Promoting early literacy

Recent efforts to confrontthe BPS achievement gap:School Committee’sCommunity Forum SeriesCommunity Coalition onClosing the Achievement GapSuperintendent’s Leadership Team subgroups:Achievement GapEnglish Language LearnersSpecial Education: 

Recent efforts to confront the BPS achievement gap: School Committee’s Community Forum Series Community Coalition on Closing the Achievement Gap Superintendent’s Leadership Team subgroups: Achievement Gap English Language Learners Special Education

Boston’s approach to improving achievement among all students:: 

Boston’s approach to improving achievement among all students: Standards-based, data-driven reform Whole School Improvement through the Six Essentials Focus on Literacy and Mathematics instruction Coaching / CCL Readers/Writers Workshop Sheltered English Instruction and other options for English Language Learners High School Renewal

Here in Boston and inother urban school districts,there are examples to provethat achievement gaps can be narrowed and closed.: 

Here in Boston and in other urban school districts, there are examples to prove that achievement gaps can be narrowed and closed.

Schools with diverse studentpopulations are making progress in narrowing the gaps.Boston Public Schools making AYP:: 

Schools with diverse student populations are making progress in narrowing the gaps. Boston Public Schools making AYP: in both Math and ELA: 25 schools in Mathematics: 12 schools in English Language Arts: 19 schools

Schools with greatest improvement among African-American students:May 2003 – English Language Arts MCAS: 

Schools with greatest improvement among African-American students: May 2003 – English Language Arts MCAS School CPI* change BCLA 20.6 Harbor MS 19.6 Perry ES 18.6 Tynan ES 18.1 Dorchester HS 17.5 Dearborn MS 16.3 Umana/Barnes MS 16.2 Brighton HS 15.3 Boston Public Schools (all) 4.4 * Composite Proficiency Index

Schools with greatest improvement among Hispanic students:May 2003 – English Language Arts MCAS: 

Schools with greatest improvement among Hispanic students: May 2003 – English Language Arts MCAS School CPI* change Lyndon K-8 32.2 Brighton HS 28.0 Winship ES 26.1 Charlestown HS 25.7 BCLA 22.5 Dorchester HS 21.0 Umana/Barnes MS 19.3 South Boston HS 18.2 Boston Public Schools (all) 6.0 * Composite Proficiency Index

Schools with greatest improvement among students with disabilities:May 2003 – English Language Arts MCAS: 

Schools with greatest improvement among students with disabilities: May 2003 – English Language Arts MCAS School CPI* change Tynan ES 44.8 Dorchester HS 27.2 Brighton HS 23.2 Gavin MS 22.6 Umana/Barnes MS 21.1 BCLA 20.2 Conley ES 16.5 Quincy ES 16.4 Boston Public Schools (all) 5.6 * Composite Proficiency Index

Closing the gap:MCAS Grade 7/8 English Language Arts: 

Closing the gap: MCAS Grade 7/8 English Language Arts From 1998 to 2003, the gap between the lowest- and highest-scoring racial groups narrowed from 23 percentage points to 13. (passing rates: 57-80% vs. 79-92%)

Closing the gap: The Class of 2003 and Competency Determination (CD): 

Closing the gap: The Class of 2003 and Competency Determination (CD) From May 2001 to December 2003, the gaps among racial groups in the Class of 2003 earning CD (passing Grade 10 Math and ELA) have narrowed considerably.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 1. Acknowledge that the achievement gap exists and affirm our commitment to closing it. We must identify the scope of the challenge and declare it a top, urgent priority in every classroom of every school.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 2. Establish and maintain HIGH STANDARDS and HIGH EXPECTATIONS across the board. All adults and students must believe and act on the belief that every student is capable of achieving at high levels.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap “I was glad when the word went out that schools needed to have high expectations for all children, that no kids should be labeled uneducable and written off. We would discover that every kid is smart – if we could tap into their smartness and make it work for them. “If we weren’t succeeding with all kids, then it was the schools that had to change – us, their teachers, our routines, our books, our ideas. And maybe we had to change dramatically if we were out to do a job that schools were not originally intended to do.”   -- from In Schools We Trust, by Deborah Meier, co-principal, Mission Hill K-8 School, Roxbury

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap APPROACH: Require professional development for all staff in every school focused on high expectations for student learning.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 3. Take a “whole school” approach to closing the gap. All students, staff and parents must be integrated into the school’s culture and its improvement strategies. Teachers and students in regular education, special education and ELL classrooms must be held to the same standards and expectations.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap APPROACH: Include regular education, special education and ELL staff in: Instructional Leadership Team (ILT) Whole School Improvement Plan (WSIP) development and implementation Collaborative Coaching and Learning (CCL) and other professional development activities

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 4. Support principals and headmasters in leading the work. The role of the school leader is key in setting the tone and raising expectations school wide.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap APPROACH: Focus August Institute for all Principals and Headmasters on strategies to close the achievement gap, including: Raising expectations and academic rigor Replicating best practices Engaging family and the community Fostering racial and cultural competency

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 5. Engage families and the community. Schools alone cannot close the gap. Classroom learning must be reinforced at home and in the community. Schools, parents, higher ed institutions, CBOs and others must work together to address students’ full range of academic and social needs.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap APPROACH: Prioritize Family & Community Engagement in the BPS, including strategies to: Improve communication with families Involve parents in student learning Create “family-friendly” schools through effective School-Family-Community partnerships Restructure Family Resource Centers

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 6. Use a variety of assessments to measure student progress and improve the quality of instruction. Test results and classroom work help us understand what students are learning and not learning. These assessments tell us which instructional practices are more successful than others.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap APPROACH: Ongoing measurement of student learning through formative assessments, MCAS tests, classroom work, etc.  Ongoing analysis of student work through MyBPS Assessment and other means to identify progress and gaps  Ongoing reflection on and modification of teaching practice to strengthen instruction

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 7. Equip teachers with a variety of instructional strategies to address the broad range of students’ learning styles and needs. Instruction must be adaptable to students’ abilities.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 8. Change belief systems by demonstrating evidence of success. Professional development must focus on best practices that raise expectations by proving that success is possible.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap “Teachers who have been helped to improve their classroom practices can have ‘seeing is believing’ experiences that challenge their prior biases.”   -- from “Teachers’ Perceptions and Expectations and the Black-White Test Score Gap,” by Ronald F. Ferguson

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap RESOURCE: Efficacy Institute Partnership with schools in Cluster 7 to: accelerate improvement in achievement and launch community campaign for proficiency

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 9. Foster a school climate that is positive, safe, and nurturing. Classrooms and school buildings must be supportive learning environments that are welcoming and respectful to students, staff and families.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap RESOURCE: Student Researchers for High School Renewal (SRHSR) School Climate survey: Student-Teacher Relationships Student-Student Relationships School Environment

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 10. Identify students at greatest risk of failure and provide them with additional instruction time.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap APPROACH: Maximize instructional time in Literacy and Mathematics through: Transition services and summer school Revised school schedules – e.g., double blocks of Math and ELA Out-of-school time aligned with BPS curriculum – including Supplemental Educational Services (SES)

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap APPROACH: Complete, implement and monitor Individual Student Success Plans (ISSPs) for all students at Levels 1 and 2 to identify students’ particular learning needs and targeted strategies to reach proficiency Revise on-line ISSP template

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 11. Make classroom learning culturally relevant. Curriculum and classroom activities must be relevant to a diverse urban population of predominantly low-income youth of color.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap “In a society that places such priority on racial identity, we are naïve if we attempt to ignore race. “Teachers who are prepared to help students learn cultural competency are themselves culturally competent.” - Gloria Ladson-Billings

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 12. Recruit, hire and retain diverse teams of teachers and administrators.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap APPROACH: Expand efforts to recruit and hire people of color and bilingual / bicultural educators as teachers and principals.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap 13. Secure and allocate appropriate resources.

Strategies to close the achievement gap: 

Strategies to close the achievement gap APPROACH: Vigorous advocacy for additional public resources (local, state and federal) to ensure adequacy of funding Continued and expanded partnership with private corporations and foundations Monitor and align current resources

NEXT STEP:: 

NEXT STEP: Develop system-wide SY04-05 professional development plan for Principals and Headmasters Teachers and Paraprofessionals Central Office Staff focused on closing the achievement gap through high expectations and cultural, racial and linguistic diversity.