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Produce and implement an effective school improvement plan.
Many schools need to use the next two years to turnaround or reinvent themselves. A compelling new vision can serve as the motivation for transformation. When skillfully facilitated, the process of preparing and implementing a vision and improvement plan serves as a powerful impetus for substantive change. Such a plan is an essential foundation for any significant improvement.

Resources required
To achieve the goals set forth in this plan, the school leadership team, staff, and community representatives work with an experienced consultant to facilitate the development of the school plan, support the implementation process, coordinate selection of appropriate learning processes, and assess results in terms of change in educator practice and impact on student learning. Resources required for this strategy include time for leadership team training and planning, content consultants, time during the school year for team and schoolwide learning, facilitation and support from a school improvement expert, and a rigorous evaluation.

Outcomes

• An assessment and data analysis that outlines a set of measurable staff and student performance goals;
• A vision that incorporates quantitative as well as qualitative goals for student performance;
• A ruthless assessment of the current strengths and weaknesses as measured against the vision;
• Identification of the 3-4 research-supported strategies the faculty can use to ensure immediate as well as long-term change;
• Delineation of the knowledge and skills adults will acquire;
• A public monitoring system; and
• A system for supporting and celebrating improvements as results dictate.

NSDC in the field

Creekside Elementary School, Stockton, CA
NSDC has been engaged in continuous, long-range planning with Creekside Elementary School in Stockton, California, since 2003. What began as a weekend professional development session on differentiated instruction has resulted in an ongoing partnership between the school and NSDC. Creekside initially approached NSDC to design a professional development program focused on changing teacher practice and increasing student achievement. NSDC’s consultant provided on-site support at Creekside two to three times during the school year for nine days each, providing both one-on-one and grade-level coaching support that included data analysis to determine student needs, learning how to differentiate lessons to meet the needs of diverse learners, modeling lessons in the classrooms, designing tiered lessons, examining student assessments to guide instruction. As a result, teachers changed their practices and student achievement continued to increase. NSDC has since expanded its relationship with Creekside, working with the school leadership team to develop grade-level S.M.A.R.T. goals based on student data for planning school-centered professional learning. Creekside’s current instructional coach is a graduate of NSDC’s Academy for Staff Developers.

Northwest Allen County Schools, Fort Wayne, IN
NSDC worked with Northwest Allen schools district-wide to build effective school improvement plans. Built in to these plans was an evaluation component the district could use to measure the effectiveness of its plans and the steps being taken to meet curricular, instructional, and student-achievement objectives. The district has shown a great commitment to engaging teachers about what students are expected to learn, and developing common curriculum across the district that includes assessments for measuring student learning. Northwest Allen has also become a leader in developing teacher leaders throughout the district.