Aiming High

Aiming High
Author: Bernie Norton
Publisher: Hippocrene Books
Total Pages: 188
Release: 2002
Genre: Education
ISBN:

This publication is a guide for districts and schools moving toward a standards-based educational system. The information is based on a model developed in California. Chapter 1 explores the concepts and research underlying standards-based education. Chapter 2 guides the reader through standards, tests, and accountability measures. Developing a school-community culture to support the standards movement is the focus of chapter 3. Chapter 4 directly addresses the issue of classroom implementation. Strategies for creating a context for instruction and assessment are outlined in chapter 5. Chapter 6 presents an array of academic supports that high schools can implement to ensure students' opportunity to learn, institutionalize equity, and maximize student achievement. Chapter 7 presents ways to increase the bonds between students and the school. Chapter 8 presents the components of a family and community support system that helps all students master the standards. Chapter 9 focuses on the special needs of English language learners. Chapter 10 reviews the types of data schools can collect, the need for data disaggregation, approaches to data analysis, and strategies for using findings to continually improve schools. An appendix contains a reflection tool to determine a school's progress in implanting a standards-based system. A glossary as well as an extensive list of selected references are also included. (WFA).

It's about Time

It's about Time
Author: John Rogers
Publisher:
Total Pages: 27
Release: 2014
Genre:
ISBN:

This report draws on a statewide survey to examine how learning time is distributed across California high schools. The survey, conducted by UCLA IDEA during the 2013-2014 school year, included a representative sample of nearly 800 teachers. Survey findings highlight inequalities in the amount of time available for learning across low and high poverty High Schools. Community stressors and chronic problems with school conditions lead to far higher levels of lost instructional time in high poverty high schools. The study methodology is appended. [For the executive summary, see ED574619.].

Inside High School Reform

Inside High School Reform
Author: Jordan E. Horowitz
Publisher: WestEd
Total Pages: 91
Release: 2005
Genre: Education
ISBN: 0914409220

What happens when some of the lowest-performing high schools in the state of California make a commitment to reform themselves? This book goes inside the reform efforts of 28 high schools where educators collaborated to fundamentally change expectations for students -- in effect, to prepare all students for postsecondary education. By challenging the status quo, teachers and administrators set out to strengthen their delivery of services so that all students, especially those traditionally denied access to college, would leave their care with more options for college and for life. Reported here are the conclusions from formal evaluations over the past ten years of high school reform shepherded by the California Academic Partnership Program (CAPP). CAPP schools are each funded for three to five years, with grants of about $100,000 a year, to make fundamental changes for their students. As these schools discovered, not all changes are equally valuable, but some are simply essential. In the words of the educators themselves and through the perspectives of CAPP advisors who monitored the programs,Inside High School Reformlays out some of the apparently universal lessons of making the reform changes that matter.

It's about Time

It's about Time
Author: J. Rogers
Publisher:
Total Pages: 2
Release: 2014
Genre:
ISBN:

California high school teachers are constantly racing against the clock. They are expected to provide a strong college preparatory curriculum, promote critical and creative thinking, and meet students' social and emotional needs. Learning time is an essential resource for addressing all of these goals. But, it seems to be in short supply in many California high schools. This brief highlights core findings from "It's about Time: Learning Time and Educational Opportunity in California High Schools"--a report that draws on a statewide teacher survey to examine how learning time is distributed across California high schools. The survey, conducted by UCLA IDEA during the 2013-2014 school year, included a representative sample of nearly 800 teachers. Throughout the report learning time across three groups of high schools are compared: (1) Low Poverty Schools (0-25% of students receive Free or Reduced Price Lunch); (2) Low and Mixed Poverty Schools (0-50% of students receive Free or Reduced Price Lunch); and (3) High Poverty Schools (75-100% of students receive Free or Reduced Price Lunch). [For the full report, see ED574620.].

Unlocking Doors and Expanding Opportunity

Unlocking Doors and Expanding Opportunity
Author: Education Trust--West
Publisher:
Total Pages: 12
Release: 2011
Genre:
ISBN:

This report finds that only five in ten graduates were college-ready in the districts studied and presents data finding that only one in ten graduates were both college and career-ready. Latino, African-American, and low-income students fared far worse than their more advantaged peers. The report calls for a more integrated and equitable approach to college and career preparation so that high schools serve to open doors to both college and career options for all students. The report examines barriers to college and career readiness. It finds that many students are barred from college eligibility because of high school grading practices, poor articulation between the elementary, middle, and high school levels and the persistence of tracking students. The report reveals that many students leave high school without completing career pathways because Career and Technical Education (CTE) courses are insufficiently sequenced to foster real workplace skill development. Further, the report surfaces disturbing equity issues, demonstrating that students of color and low-income students are disproportionately tracked into less-rigorous academic courses and CTE classes, whereas their more affluent peers are more frequently tracked into college preparatory courses. Indeed, the report reveals that the opportunity to take the coursework necessary to apply for college is not offered to all students and is offered at far lower rates to Latino and African-American students. The report highlights the potential and promise of the Linked Learning high school reform approach to address many of these problems. Linked Learning melds college and career readiness through an integrated high school curriculum that prepares students for both college and career options. However, the report highlights a number of important equity issues that must be addressed in order for Linked Learning to fulfill its promise. (Contains 2 tables, 4 figures and 12 notes.).

Second to None

Second to None
Author:
Publisher: Hippocrene Books
Total Pages: 64
Release: 1992
Genre: Education
ISBN:

A vision of the new California high school is presented in this document, which outlines the principles of school reform. The key to successful restructuring lies in developing a comprehensive reform statement based on the following components: creating curricular paths to success; developing powerful teaching and learning; establishing a comprehensive accountability and assessment system; providing comprehensive support for all students, including language-minority students and those at risk of failure; restructuring the school; and creating new professional roles. Each of the components is detailed in individual chapters. Recommendations are made to generate investment and to develop new attitudes that focus on student learning outcomes. Information about the California High School Task Force is included. (Contains 68 references.) (LMI)

Levers for Change

Levers for Change
Author: EdSource, Inc., Palo Alto, CA.
Publisher:
Total Pages: 2
Release: 2007
Genre:
ISBN:

This executive summary of a 28-page EdSource report highlights three powerful levers that state policymakers and local schools can use to strengthen high school curriculum. These levers are: (1) California's Academic Content Standards; (2) Eligibility to Attend the State's Public Universities, and (3) Career and Technical Education. It also discusses a "multiple pathways" approach to better prepare all students for college and career. This approach rejects the historic division of the high school curriculum into two tracks, one for college-bound students and another focused on career preparation. Instead, advocates for this approach suggest that high school curricula can be made to be engaging and rigorous such that they prepare students for postsecondary education and for a career after high school.