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Learning to Improve. MCLA December 2, 2016. “The chronic failure of promising reform ideas” “The history of American education includes a graveyard of good ideas condemned by pressure for fast results.” Hiebert , Gallimore , Stiger. School-within-a-school Merit pay & financial incentives
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Learning to Improve MCLA December 2, 2016
“The chronic failure of promising reform ideas”“The history of American education includes a graveyard of good ideas condemned by pressure for fast results.” Hiebert, Gallimore, Stiger • School-within-a-school • Merit pay & financial incentives • Teacher evaluation & employment tied to student growth • Data-driven decision making; SMART goals • Downsizing schools; consolidating districts; site-based management • School choice • Charter schools • Proficiency-based diplomas
“Consistent and sustained improvement has been hard to achieve in education. The policies and programs educators are asked to implement and the tools they are asked to use often don’t help schools improve.” “…launched a major change strategy in public education with a lack of requisite knowledge, skill, and organizational capacity…” “…jump quickly on a solution before fully understanding the problem to be solved…[we end up with] solutions in search of problems to solve.”
What problem does proficiency-based diplomassolve? What problem is student achievement-linked teacher evaluation supposed to solve? What problem does charter schools solve?
Implement fast, learn slow VS Learning fast to implement well
Networked Improvement Communities(NIC) A= what teachers learn daily B= learning within a district C= learning across districts B A A A B B A A A A A A B A A A
Level C Learning • Learning is based on a well-specified common aim (standards and transparency) • Detailed, specific answers to: 1)What is the specific problem we’re now trying to solve? 2) What change might we introduce and why? 3) How will we know if the change is actually an improvement? • Rapid tests of change that enable learning-by-doing, incorporating what’s been learned before taking the next step, and developing the know-how needed. Iterative cycles that build on what was learned. NOT a pilot! • Variability in local conditions, strengths, and needs are crucial data for everyone. • The overarching purpose is to create standard work processes that we know solve the problem. • Networked Improvement Communities (NIC’s) are the cross-district structures used to learn, refine, and bring changes to scale across the entire system.
A NIC is: • Focused on a well-specified common aim. • Guided by a deep understanding of the problem, the system that produces it, and a shared working theory to improve it. • Disciplined to develop, test, and refine interventions. • Organized to accelerate the interventions to support integration into varied contexts.
Steps • Members identify problems associated with evidence of proficiency in December regional meetings. • The board learns the process and discusses its implications for MCLA. (1-27-16?) • We look for funding if we decide to try this. • Heidi finds a support system and/or a coach! • A “network initiation team” creates the initial charter: • Learns the process • Articulates the problem to be solved • Analyzes the system that produces current undesirable outcomes • Develops the aim statement • Identifies specific changes that might address the problem • Finds support (financial, political, and relationships) and recruits additional members with necessary expertise and commitment. • The network forms and supports the collective will to solve the problem.
