Efficiency Chapter 14 in Guthrie

1. EfficiencyChapter 14 in Guthrie Dr. Len Elovitz

2. “Where we spend our educational dollars does make a difference in accomplishing our educational goals.” • Owings and Kaplan

3. ISLLC Standard 3 • A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all students by ensuring the management of the organization, operations and resources for a safe, efficient, and effective learning environment

4. Coleman Study - 1966 • Authorized by Civil Rights Act of 1964 • How much student learning and achievement (outputs) would result from a given number of resources (inputs). • Inputs mattered little when compared to SES of parents

5. Other Studies • Some found positive correlations between school spending and student outcomes • Verstegan found a very strong relationship between school spending and adult earnings

6. E.A. Hanushek • Meta-analysis of existing studies • Found that the relationship between school spending and student achievement was not strong or consistent

7. William Bennett • Secretary of Education 1985-1988 • School spending was unrelated to student achievement based on SAT scores • Found highest scores in low spending states – i.e. IA, ND, SD, UT • Midwestern States use the ACT only students applying to very competitive Eastern Colleges take the SAT

8. Hedges et. al. • Reevaluated Hanushek’s data and concluded that “… money does matter after all.” • Other studies using different controls found a positive relationship • VaTechstudy found significant increases in student achievement with increased instructional expenditures

9. Verstegan found that overall school spending was responsible for about 1/3 the variance in achievement scores • Greatest achievement growth found when increased spending went directly to the delivery of quality instruction

10. Teacher Quality • Current research indicates that the quality of Teachers and teaching are the greatest determinants of student success

11. Darling-Hammond • Formal Teacher preparation accounts for 40-60% of the variance in student achievement when controlling for demographics • She identified the following quality factors related to increased achievement:

12. Quality factors • Verbal ability • Content Knowledge • Education methods coursework related to their discipline • Licensing exam scores of basic skills and teaching knowledge • Skillful teacher behaviors

13. Ongoing Professional development • Enthusiasm for learning • Flexibility, creativity and adaptability • Teaching experience (only 3 yrs) • Higher order questioning

14. Texas Study • Students with effective teachers for 3 years reading scores went from 59th to 76th percentile • Students with ineffective teachers for 3 yrs. Dropped from the 60th to 42nd percentile

15. Tenn. Value Added Study • Groups started out the same in 4th grade Math • Group with effective teachers for 3 yrs - 83rd percentile • Group with ineffective teachers for 3 yrs – 29th percentile

16. NAEP Studies • Effective teachers make a difference in minority student achievement • Students of teachers who majored or minored in what they taught outperformed their peers by approximately 40% in math and science

17. Implications for finance • Recruit and hire the most effective teachers (have qualities listed above) • Retain the best teachers • Improve the marginal teachers • Get rid of poor teachers

18. Professional Development • NAEP studies – PD in the following leads to increased achievement in Math: • Cultural diversity • Teaching techniques for LEL students • Teaching techniques for special education students

19. Other Benefits • Develop constructs around a common language – ITIP experience and the academy • Teachers gain confidence about their teaching skills • Reflect on their own practice • Seek out collegial and professional advice

20. Teachers are more apt to adopt new instructional practices if PD is sustained over time and related to the district curriculum - IPS experience – Science in Roxbury • Motivational Speakers • Pigeons • Smorgasbord

21. Evaluating PD • Kirkpatrick – the 5 levels • Does it result increased student achievement

22. Reduced class size • All else being equal, smaller class size allows teachers to give more individual attention • California legislature appropriated $1 billon in 1996-97 to lower K-3 class size in K-3 from 30-20 (increased teacher need 38% and resulted in a decline in quality) • New York did the same • In 1999, President Clinton’s budget included $12 billion to decrease K-3 class size

23. Does the cost of reducing class size produce enough achievement to justify the cost or are there other more cost-effective methods? • Tenn. Student-Teacher Achievement Ratio (STAR) • Over 12,000 primary grade students – Homogeneous population • Over 4 years • Highly controlled • Attending smaller K-3 classes for 3 yrs. Resulted in significant gains in all subjects through grade 8 • Greatest effect was on Minority and urban students

24. Other studies • A synthesis of over 100 studies suggests that the most positive results for lower class size appear in K-3. • Several studies show diminished gains in the later years • Reduced class size has less of an effect than other less expensive interventions. • Of 27 alterable variable, class size ranked 25 as a means of increasing student achievement

25. Overall reducing class size without increasing teacher quality appears to be both expensive and ineffective • What should your class size policy be? • Roxbury – K-3 = 19, 4-6 = 22, 7-12 = 24 all were +or – 4 • Oucchi TSL

26. School Size • Smaller schools have shown favorable results • Can be very expensive • Smaller groupings of students • Teaming • School within a school • Smaller Learning Communities • Barker & Gump - a school should be of a size where all students are necessary for its enterprises

27. Teacher Salaries • It makes sense that increasing teachers salaries will improve the quality of the teacher pool, but can the districts choose the best from the pool? • No relationship has been found between teacher salaries and student achievement. • Merit Pay - “… never dies and never works.”

28. School Facilities • Good facilities appear to have a positive effect on teacher effectiveness and student achievement. • Earthman found a 5 to 15 percentile point difference in standardized test scores for students in well maintained buildings with comfortable room temperatures, good lighting, low noise levels, sufficient space and good roofs. • Student achievement in newer buildings appears to be better than older.

29. Conclusion • Hire and keep high quality teachers • Provide meaningful professional development • Decrease the teacher-student ratio in the primary grades • Reduce the TLC • Maintain comfortable and safe buildings