The Center on School Turnaround (CST)

Four Domains Workshop

San Francisco, CA

August 16 – 17, 2017

Contents

Page

Introduction

How to Use This Guidebook

Event Materials

Day 1: Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Opening Session: Welcome and Introductions

Theory of Action for a Differentiated System of Support 8:45am – 10:00am

Strategic Performance Management in the System of Support 10:00am – 10:30am

Breakout 1: Developing a Needs Assessment & District Readiness 10:45am – 11:45am

Breakout 2: Developing a Needs Assessment & District Readiness 12:30pm – 1:30pm

Supporting Improvement Efforts: District and School Improvement Planning and Processes 1:45pm – 2:45pm

Evidence-Based Improvement 3:00pm – 4:00pm

Activity: Participants Takeaways 4:00pm – 4:30pm

State Team Planning and Reflection 4:30pm – 5:15pm

Day 1 Wrap Up 5:15pm – 5:30pm

Day 2: Thursday, August 17, 2017

Overview of Day 2 9:00am – 9:30am

Performance Management and Implementation Drivers 9:30am – 11:00am

Reflection: Connecting the Dots 11:00am – 12:00pm

Lunch 12:00pm – 12:45pm

Team Time Developing Alignment and Coherence 12:45pm – 2:00pm

Next Steps Community of Practice 2:00pm – 2:30pm

Wrap-Up 2:30pm – 3:00pm

Introduction

The challenge to make dramatic and sustainable improvements in our lowest performing pre-K-12 schools first gained national attention in 2001 with the advent of No Child Left Behind and its restructuring mandate. In 2009, the Obama administration extended that challenge, making rapid and significant school improvement, commonly referred to as school turnaround, a top priority under the U.S. Department of Education’s School Improvement Program and its Elementary and Secondary Education Act waivers. Despite a continued and intense local, state, and federal focus on turnaround over the past 15 years, improvement efforts have yielded mixed results, with individual turnaround schools appearing as islands of excellence in a sea of otherwise frustrated expectations.

Rapid improvement can be bolstered or stalled by the system within which a school operates, a system that, in addition to the school itself, encompasses the state education department and the local district. To the extent that this broader system — state, district, school — is recast to actively support dramatic school improvement across the board, it will allow us to progress beyond the current state of having islands of excellence to a point where all schools are able to provide all students with the education that they deserve.

To support educators in creating such systems, the Center on School Turnaround at WestEd (CST) has developed a framework to assist states, districts, and schools in leading and managing rapid improvement efforts. The framework shares, in practical language, the critical practices of successful school turnaround in four domains, or areas of focus, that research and experience suggest are central to rapid and significant improvement: turnaround leadership, talent development, instructional transformation, and culture shift. At a more fine-grained level, the framework then offers examples of how each practice could be put into action at each level of the system.

The framework was created by a CST task force, with input from CST’s leadership team as well as from members of the Network of State Turnaround and Improvement Leaders (NSTIL) Advisory Council, which includes SEA personnel from across the country responsible for school turnaround in their respective state. The framework is based on lessons learned from the research on turnaround, including improvement work under NCLB and promising practices from among the SIG efforts, as well as from the experiences of CST’s turnaround experts and partners.

When conscientiously and collectively placed into action, the practices identified within the domains may lead to progress across those areas. Implemented effectively, the practices in the framework should not only help students assigned to failing schools, but, by creating a system that better supports students in these schools, should also have a cascading effect that improves the ecosystem of all schools. The intended audience for this framework are SEA staff and district and school leaders.

Purpose of Meeting:

  • Assist states in rethinking their systems of support by addressing the questions outlined below.
  • Establish a community of practice among states to build their capacity to build local district capacity to manage improvement processes.

As states are rethinking their systems of support for district and school improvement, key considerations include:

  1. How could a framework such as CST’s Four Domains for Rapid School Improvement provide a structure for the state’s system of support? For the district’s improvement process and the district’s system of support? For the school’s improvement process?
  2. How might a Needs Assessment inform a district or school improvement plan and process? How are a Needs Assessment template, instruments, and analysis tools created? By whom?
  3. How does the Improvement Cycle apply to the interrelated roles of the state, the district, and the school?

The Improvement Cycle:

a)Assess Needs (including determining readiness)

b)Create Plan (informed by needs and evidence-based practices)

c)Implement Plan (short-cycle or long-cycle)

d)Monitor work (performance management)

e)Adjust course (performance management)

  1. How are evidence-based practices taken into consideration when a district or school improvement plan is created?
  2. How does the state determine a district’s readiness for especially demanding change initiatives, and how does the state “get districts ready” when the need is apparent?
  3. How are the methods of strategic performance management (SPM) incorporated into a state system of support and district and school improvement processes? How are “interlaced data” and “responsive supports” embedded in state systems and utilized by districts and schools?

How to Use This Guidebook

The following pages include prompts for you to list key content points for each working session, along with corresponding questions and resources that are designed to facilitate conversation and assist in implementation processes for both school turnaround efforts and equitable access. During the sessions, use the space in the guide to note primary points and content that align and can inform existing state and district efforts. Specific implementation planning resources are included for use each day during the Working Sessions for State Teams portion of the agenda.

The prompts and resources are not intended to limit the discussion but rather to serve as facilitators of conversation should teams need assistance. It is understood that states or districts may be at different stages of their efforts, so feel free to discuss the questions in each section that are most applicable to the state or district context.

Event Materials

Supporting materials for all plenary and breakout sessions are available on the Center on School Turnaround’s website (

Day 1: Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Opening Session: Welcome and Introductions

Purpose of Meeting and Overview of Agenda

Description: The purpose of the meeting is to assist states in rethinking their systems of support by addressing the questions outlined below and to establish a community of practice among states to build their capacity to build local district capacity to manage improvement processes.

Presenter:Carlas McCauley, Director, Center on School Turnaround

Theory of Action for a Differentiated System of Support 8:45am –10:00am

Description: This session is designed to provide an overview of the state’s role in supporting districts and schools in improvement as outlined by the Every Student Succeeds Act. This session will also facilitate a discussion around the approach for a state system of support for district and school improvement that incorporates the Center on School Turnaround’s framework for the four domains of rapid improvement into a state’s theory of action.

Presenters:Lenay Dunn, Assistant Director, Center on School Turnaround

Sam Redding, Associate Director, Center on School Turnaround

Resource:Four Domains for Rapid School Improvement: A Systems Framework

Notes:

Key Points:
Guiding Questions:
  • What are we trying to do?
  • How are we planning to do it (including the who)?
  • At any given point, how do we know whether we are on track?
  • If not, what are we going to do about it?
Discussion Notes:

Strategic Performance Management in the System of Support 10:00am – 10:30am

Description:This session is designed to introduce the strategic performance management framework methods into a state’s system of support. The session highlights the need to interlace data and responsive supports while providing an example of the Center on School Turnaround four domains as strategic performance management strategies.

Presenters: Allison Layland, Education Specialist, FLICC and Consultant, Building State

Capacity and Productivity Center

Mark Williams, Consultant, Center on School Turnaround and Building State

Capacity and Productivity Center

Resource:Casting a statewide strategic performance net: Interlaced data and responsive supports

Resource:Four Domains for Rapid School Improvement: A Systems Framework

Notes:

Key Points:
Guiding Questions:
  • What are we trying to do?
  • How are we planning to do it (including the who)?
  • At any given point, how do we know whether we are on track?
  • If not, what are we going to do about it?
Discussion Notes:

Breakout 1: Developing a Needs Assessment & District Readiness 10:45am – 11:45am

Description: These sessions are designed to assists states in better understanding how a needs assessment and district readiness assessment could assist them in informing areas of focus and differentiation for a statewide system of support through the development of CST’s four domains for rapid improvement.

Objectives:

In this session, participants will work collaboratively to:

  1. Engage in a brief discussion to better understand how a needs assessment and district readiness assessment could assist them in informing areas of focus for a statewide system of support
  2. Discuss how the data attained through a needs assessment and district readiness assessment could assist in informing differentiated support for districts and schools.

Breakout #1 (10:45am – 11:45am)

  1. Developing a Needs Assessment

Presenter:Sam Redding, Associate Director Center on School Turnaround

  1. District Readiness

Presenters:William Robinson, CST Partner and University of Virginia, Darden School

Dallas Hitt, CST Partner and University of Virginia, Darden School

Resource:Using Needs Assessments for District and School Improvement

Resource:Four Domains for Rapid School Improvement: A Systems Framework

Notes:

Key Points:
Guiding Questions:
  • What are we trying to do?
  • How are we planning to do it (including the who)?
  • At any given point, how do we know whether we are on track?
  • If not, what are we going to do about it?
Discussion Notes:

Breakout 2: Developing a Needs Assessment & District Readiness 12:30pm – 1:30pm

Breakout #2 (12:30pm – 1:30pm)

  1. Developing a Needs Assessment

Presenter:Sam Redding, Associate Director, Center on School Turnaround

  1. District Readiness

Presenters:William Robinson, CST Partner and University of Virginia, Darden School

Dallas Hitt, CST Partner and University of Virginia, Darden School

Resource:Using Needs Assessments for District and School Improvement

Resource:Four Domains for Rapid School Improvement: A Systems Framework

Notes:

Key Points:
Guiding Questions:
  • What are we trying to do?
  • How are we planning to do it (including the who)?
  • At any given point, how do we know whether we are on track?
  • If not, what are we going to do about it?
Discussion Notes:

Supporting Improvement Efforts: District and School Improvement Planning and Processes1:45pm – 2:45pm

Descriptor: This session is designed to assist SEAs to better conceptualize how they might develop school improvement plans that could inform support for districts and schools to better jumpstart the process of planning for success, building momentum, and, ultimately, turning themselves around.

Presenters:William Robinson, CST Partner and University of Virginia, Darden School

Dallas Hitt, CST Partner and University of Virginia, Darden School

Resource:A Rubric for Assessing School Improvement Plans for Rapid Improvements

Notes:

Key Points:
Guiding Questions:
  • What are we trying to do?
  • How are we planning to do it (including the who)?
  • At any given point, how do we know whether we are on track?
  • If not, what are we going to do about it?
Discussion Notes:

Evidence-Based Improvement3:00pm – 4:00pm

Descriptor: This session is designed to assist states in determining an SEA approach to the inclusion of evidence based improvement and planning through the best practices lens and the selection of strategies aligned to the CST four domains of rapid improvement.

Presenters: Lenay Dunn, Assistant Director, Center on School Turnaround

Kathleen Ryan Jackson, CST Partner and the National Implementation Research Network

Resource: Evidence-based Improvement Guide, WestEd

Notes:

Key Points:
Guiding Questions:
  • What are we trying to do?
  • How are we planning to do it (including the who)?
  • At any given point, how do we know whether we are on track?
  • If not, what are we going to do about it?
Discussion Notes:

Activity: Participants Takeaways4:00pm – 4:30pm

Descriptor: This session is designed to assist participants in identifying major takeaways of the day

Presenters: William Robinson, CST Partner and University of Virginia, Darden School

State Team Planning and Reflection 4:30pm – 5:15pm

Objectives:

In this session, participants will work collaboratively to:

  1. Engage in a brief discussion to better understand how the topics discussed throughout day one could assist in informing a systemic approach to implementation of the four domains and the development of a differentiated system of support?
  1. Theory of Action for a Differentiated System of Support(Teams are asked to work through the questions outlined on the Theory of Action Worksheet)
  2. Day 1 Reflection Question(Teams are asked to discuss the questions outlined in the reflection questions worksheet)

Day 1 Wrap Up5:15pm – 5:30pm

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Day 2: Thursday, August 17, 2017

Overview of Day 29:00am – 9:30am

Day 1 State Team Reflections

Descriptor: States will have time to reflect on questions from day one while working in state teams.

Performance Management and Implementation Drivers9:30am – 11:00am

Descriptor: This session is designed to assist states in developing a deeper understanding of the strategic performance management process and how to engage others in developing such understanding through the example of the CST framework for the four domains for rapid improvement.

Presenters:Allison Layland, Education Specialist, FLICC and Consultant, Building State

Capacity and Productivity Center

Mark Williams, Consultant, Center on School Turnaround and Building State

Capacity and Productivity Center

Resource:Four Domains for Rapid School Improvement: A Systems Framework

Reflection: Connecting the Dots11:00am – 12:00pm

Descriptor: This session is designed to offer reflection cutting across the topics to support intentional dialogue among participants in effort to further discussion as states work within their state teams.

Presenter: Carlas McCauley, Director, Center on School Turnaround

Lunch12:00pm – 12:45pm

Team Time Developing Alignment and Coherence12:45pm – 2:00pm

Step 1: Reflecting and Connecting

Reflect:Review your notes across the past day and half: An SSOS with a theory of action; assess need (diagnosis), create and implement plan and monitor and adjust. Consider the following discussion questions:

•What topics or comments raised by the speakers resonated with you?

•What are some of the implementation challenges and successes that resonate?

•Did opportunities for alignment across initiatives emerge that you had not considered previously?

•How will aligning these efforts advance or hinder successful implementation?

Reflection Notes:

Connect: Discuss the following prompt with your team:

  • When you envision your state’s school improvement efforts, what are the overarching goals of the work?

Connection Notes:
Step 2: Taking Stock

In this step, participants will discuss current efforts to those aspirational efforts outlined over the past compare the status and goals of programs, policies, and initiatives across school improvement efforts.

Activity: Each team to discuss current efforts across the areas outlined over the past day and half of the work. Each team should identify the current efforts underway (see Table 1). Team should chart the discussion on chart paper to record the notes.

  1. Each team member will share a status update of state efforts related to the breakout session topic. The status update should be a high-level conversation to identify areas of concerns and opportunities across school improvement:
  2. Briefly describe the specific programs, policies, or initiatives from school improvement related to the topic.
  3. If possible, describe the identified goals, objectives, and benchmarks that evaluate efforts.
  4. Briefly discuss the successes and challenges in implementation of the specific programs, policies, or initiatives.

Table 1. Taking Stock

Topic / Current Status of State Efforts Related to the Breakout Session Topics
Theory of Action for a differentiated system of support
Needs Assessment
District Readiness
District and School Improvement Planning
Evidence Based Improvement
Performance Management and Implementation Drivers
Step 3: Constructing a Vision for the Future

One of the primary goals of this convening is to explore and develop strategies for “implementing and sustaining” the four domains for rapid improvement and developing a differentiated system of support for schools and districts. As such, each team should work to develop a vision for the future.

Activity: Each team to discuss a vision for the future across the areas outlined over the past day and half of the work. Each team should identify a vision for the future (see Table 2). Team should chart the discussion on chart paper to record the notes.

  1. Each team member will share a status update of state efforts related to the breakout session topic. The status update should be a high-level conversation to identify areas of concerns and opportunities across school improvement:
  1. Briefly describe the specific programs, policies, or initiatives from school improvement related to the topic.
  2. If possible, describe the identified goals, objectives, and benchmarks that evaluate efforts.
  3. Briefly discuss the successes and challenges in implementation of the specific programs, policies, or initiatives.

Table 2. Vision for the future

Topic / Vision for the future related to the Breakout Session Topics
Theory of Action for a differentiated system of support
Needs Assessment
District Readiness
District and School Improvement Planning
Evidence Based Improvement
Performance Management and Implementation Drivers

Connect: Discuss the following prompts with your team: