With school improvement initiatives, quality trumps quantity every time. Today, a vast array of techniques, plans and initiatives purport to improve student performance. But a "shotgun" approach—trying many strategies at once without the deep focus they need to succeed—always falls short. The Focus Model solves this growing problem with a method for carefully implementing research informed initiatives proven to work and getting the most out of them, detailing: From Standards to Learning Intentions—Defining with clarity the skills your students most need now Criteria for Success—Defining with clarity what it will mean for students to have mastered skills Critical formative analysis of students — Taking formative assessment to a systemic level of implementation Impact-Professional Learning Communities (I-PLCs)—Collaborating with colleagues so that the focus is learning for both students and the adults With The Focus Model, your school and system will benefit from the truth that less is more in planning for improvement. "Here′s a first-synthesis of today′s best suggestions about how we can make school improvement a reality instead of a hope. A seasoned, perceptive author has assembled an excellent collection of school-improvement tactics that are demonstrable winners." —W. James Popham, Emeritus Professor UCLA "If the US implements the Common Core Curriculum it will require a constructive alignment between the standards, the teaching, and the assessment. Jones highlights these latter two critical parts of schooling in a way that not only makes the alignment constructive, but he increases the probability of acceleration in student learning." —John Hattie, Director Melbourne Education Research Institute Victoria, Australia