School Board Academy 2014-2015 In cooperation with the Tennessee Department of Education
Vision for Excellence
Vision for Excellence
School Board Academy
Agenda
8:00 a.m.
Welcome and Overview
8:15 a.m.
Exercising Board Leadership through the Visioning Process
9:15 a.m.
Board’s Role in Creating a Vision
9:45 a.m.
BREAK
10:00 a.m.
Public Education in Tennessee
12:00 p.m.
LUNCH
1:00 p.m.
Translating Vision into Action
2:15 p.m.
BREAK
2:30 p.m.
Ensuring Vision Becomes a Reality
3:45 p.m.
Wrap-up and Evaluations
4:00 p.m.
Adjourn
To access the digital version of this notebook, please visit www.issuu.com/tsba.
Vision for Excellence
Table of Contents
Exercising Board Leadership Through Visioning Process
1
Board’s Role in Creating a Vision
7
Public Education in Tennessee
13
Translating Vision Into Action
18
Ensuring Vision Becomes a Reality
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EXERCISING BOARD LEADERSHIP THROUGH THE VISIONING PROCESS School Boards As Leaders School boards are charged with the responsibility of educating all children to their full potential. In a time of rapid social, economic, and technological change, the board’s responsibility is greater than ever. School board members, both individually and collectively, must be leaders in their school system and in their community. A board exercises leadership within the school system when its members can combine their talents to: • Create-on behalf of and with extensive participation by the entire community-a vision of the district’s education future • Set common goals congruent with that vision and prioritize them • Establish a structure to achieve its vision, developing educational standards designed to meet the needs of all students and an assessment program designed to determine district and student progress • Enact fair, workable, and carefully considered policies • Hold the board and all staff members accountable by monitoring student achievement, evaluating board and district programs in light of student achievement goals, providing appropriate training opportunities, and keeping the public informed about the status of education programs and progress • Align personnel and financial resources with the district’s vision and standards • Ensure a safe and orderly climate in which students can learn and teachers can teach • Serve as advocates for children and for the public schools through collaborative relationships designed to bring people together • Question, revise, refine and revisit in order to ensure continuous improvement (Source: Becoming A Better Board Member, NSBA, Third Edition, 2006)
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Vision: The Board’s Work The board’s work is about vision, the mental picture of what the schools and district would be if everything were perfect. It’s a mental image of success. Effective school boards commit to a vision of high expectations for student achievement and quality instruction and define clear goals toward that vision. They have strong-shared beliefs and values about what’s possible for students and their ability to learn, and of the system and its ability to teach all children at high levels. Effective boards are data savvy; they embrace and monitor data, even when the information is negative, and use the insights to drive continuous improvement. Effective boards also align and sustain resources, such as professional development, to meet district goals. To ensure that the board’s vision becomes reality, the board should develop a strategic plan and establish policies for implementation. The board’s community leadership function involves building the public support necessary to implement the vision. Boards exercise leadership by holding themselves and staff accountable for monitoring student achievement, evaluating board and district programs in light of student achievement goals, providing appropriate training opportunities, and keeping the public informed about the status of education programs and student progress. Boards need to lead as a united team with their superintendent to ensure the vision is implemented. Why do boards need a vision? A clear and compelling vision is necessary for districts to achieve excellence. Districts that can see beyond the present and create a vision for the future reach heights that surpass the expected or even imagined. Management guru Peter Drucker wrote:
Every few hundred years in Western history there occurs a sharp transformation. We cross ... a divide. Within a few short decades, society rearranges itself- its worldview; its basic values; its social and political structure; its arts; its key institutions. Fifty years later, there is a new world. And the people born then cannot even imagine the world in which their grandparents lived and into which their own parents were born.
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We are living through one of these periods of transformation. As boards create vision statements, they need to ask, “Are we educating our students with educational constructs that were created for their parents and grandparents? Do students feel disconnected from the current approaches to learning?”
What is Vision? Vision is not about what we are, but what we want to be. It captures a critical dimension of dynamic systems. For school boards, it is about where you are going and what kind of district you are trying to create. A positive vision is future-focused and seeks to shape events rather than simply let them happen. Vision is the ability to see and create the future education system you desire. While current realities you face are important, vision means having a clear image of what “better” looks like -- and taking the necessary governance steps to get there. Positive and inspiring visions require the widespread involvement of those whose lives will be influenced and shaped by vision. Powerful visions are the product of endless hours of discussion and dialogue among key stakeholders. Without involvement, there is unlikely to be much commitment on the part of those upon whom we must rely to achieve it. Your vision is not the same as your mission statement. The mission statement is a simple explanation of purpose -- the reason a school district exists. A mission statement clearly explains the needs the district fulfills, whom these needs are fulfilled for, and how these needs will be met. What does having a vision do for the board? It helps you think beyond your boundaries; provides continuity for your planning; identifies direction and purpose; alerts stakeholders to needed changes; promotes interest, commitment, and laser-like focus; encourages and builds confidence; builds loyalty through involvement; and results in efficiency and productivity. What can kill a board’s vision? Commonly it is tightly held tradition, fear of ridicule, complacency among some stakeholders, short-term thinking, and naysayers.
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Sample Mission Statements To prepare all students with the skills they need to be confident in academics, sophisticated in learning, and global in orientation. To provide instruction by a diverse group of effective teachers that capitalizes on students’ native attraction to interactivity and learning by doing. To provide for all students exemplary programming that instills wonder, values discovery, and encourages problem solving. To prepare all students with not only the basic areas like math, reading, and writing but also how to think and communicate in ways that will help them thrive. To empower all students to communicate, collaborate, and learn globally. To help students prepare for work, active citizenship and college using a combination of classroom work and community internships.
Vision for Excellence
The Value of a Shared Vision and Core Values Developing a shared vision that reflects your school community’s core values and beliefs is the starting point for a school board and its focus on student achievement. This shared vision is the kernel of the mission and goals that direct board and staff actions and gains the entire community’s commitment to improving achievement for all students. Engaging the entire community in creating the vision generates support for getting the resources- both financial and human capitalnecessary to make it a reality.
Knowing what you really value, individually and collectively, guides your aspirations and your mission as a district. It also guides your behavior. This sma II set of principles should not be confused with specific cultural or operating practices, nor are they short-term goals. In visionary school districts, core values don’t need a rational or external justification because they don’t sway with trends or fads and they don’t shift with different priorities in education. These five to six guiding tenants are the foundation for the way the district acts, how it treats people, and what it will do to achieve the vision and mission.
Building a shared vision requires you to agree on your core values and beliefs. Core values drive the vision. They underlie the work to be done, define how individuals interact with each other, and help determine the strategies necessary to fulfill the mission. Core values are the belief systems that motivate a person or group to choose one alternative over another. They are guiding principles that remain constant even when the mission and vision may change.
Your vision should inspire, look ahead, and lead. Defining your vision is taking charge of your destiny. For districts, that destiny must be improving achievement for all students. A vision with anything less than student achievement as the top priority cannot fulfill the public education’s core mission.
Creating A Vision Vision becomes reality through the daily actions of everyone in the organization. In a school district, “everyone” includes employees, parents, community advocates, businesses, government agencies, and higher education. Engaging the community makes the vision more likely to be accepted and encourages the behaviors necessary to achieve the vision. As a board of education, it is your responsibility to work with the community to develop student achievement as the top priority. Achieving such total commitment requires multiple steps. First, gather input to identify the community’s core beliefs and common values. Once those are defined, develop a process for drafting a vision statement. After the draft statement is written, test it by seeking feedback to ensure it reflects the community’s core beliefs and inspires a commitment to improving student achievement. When the vision statement is complete, the dissemination process begins.
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Communicating the vision to the entire community is essential. As board members, you must articulate the vision’s main points at every opportunity, both when you are together and when you are in the community. By constantly repeating, reinforcing, and embracing these main components, you will develop the constancy of purpose necessary to sustain the vision. This work takes persistence. Knowing that your board is committed to investing the time necessary to achieve the vision will motivate staff to be committed to working as hard and as long as necessary to be successful. Your constancy of purpose and commitment to your district’s long-term change gives staff the encouragement to try new ideas that may need time to become successful. Long-term results require long-range thinking and commitment.
Here are several key questions to ask as you work toward a shared vision for your district: 1. Do you use data to tailor solutions based on the needs and assets of each school and its community? 2. Is your accountability system based on best practice and sound research? 3. Do you embrace vigorous standards? 4. Do you recognize that sustained or pervasive underperformance cannot be tolerated? 5. Do you see that advocacy is the only way to shift state and federal policy matters from mandatory prescriptive programs to providing assistance and resources to spur innovation? 6. Are you a catalyst for innovation with a customer service approach to the education of every student? 7. Do you realize year-round or other non-traditional school calendars and extended days and years will be common in the school district of the future? 8. Do you see the need to expand innovation to business operations and infrastructure (outsourcing, facility sharing, job sharing, etc.)? 9. Do you respect the fact that parents and students have choices? 10. Do you see the need to provide a portfolio of public school options in your jurisdiction to help parents and students determine their best option? 11. What is the ideal school year? 12. What is the ideal school day? 13. Do you think the curriculum that your students need most can be taught effectively within a traditional classroom setting? 14. How much freedom should students be given in deciding when, where, and how they connect to learning? 15. How do we ensure that all children have access to the full range of connective technologies and are taught the skills necessary to use them effectively? 16. Do you educate your students with educational constructs that were created to serve the agricultural and industrial ages?
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The answers to these and similar questions can help board members reflect on actions needed now to achieve the envisioned future. A well-developed and clearly articulated vision for your school system can help you see a bit farther into the distance. Defining your vision means taking charge of your destiny. For school districts, that destiny must be improving student achievement for each and every student. Anything less can’t fulfill the core mission of public education. After all, our obligation to our students is to prepare them for the world they will inherit.
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BOARD’S ROLE IN CREATING A VISION Tennessee’s Vision Far too few Tennessee ninth graders will eventually graduate from college. Currently, for every 100 ninth-graders, only 87 graduate high school. And, of those 87, only 59 enroll in a public postsecondary institution; of those 59, only 43% will complete a postsecondary credential within six years of high school. Given the fact that seven of the ten fastest growing occupations in Tennessee require a postsecondary education, this is a problem. To consider Tennessee’s vision that includes real educational reform, let us examine some of the recent events that have set our course.
This conversation was focused on challenges that included the varying expectation of students from state to state, military families’ concerns, and the low number of students ready for the college or the workforce. As a result, Tennessee decided to work on a state-led effort, coordinated by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers, to continue raising academic expectations which resulted in the development of the Common Core State Standards. In July 2010, Tennessee’s State Board of Education adopted these standards and began a phasing in of the standards in 2010-2011. In May 2014, Senate Bill 1835 required the continuation of the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) and Tennessee to initiate a Request for Proposal (RFP) process run out of the Procurement Office to select a new assessment. In the fall of 2014, a new assessment company, Measurement Inc., was selected and has begun to develop a new assessment called TnReady. In October 2014, the governor launched a public review process for Tennessee’s math and English/language arts standards.
In 2007, the National Chamber of Commerce comparison report card of key education factors in all states gave Tennessee an “F” in the category of “Truth in Advertising” due to the comparison of Tennessee proficiency (our state assessments at the time) to national proficiency (NAEP). Governor Bredesen launched the Tennessee Diploma Project in 2008, which set new curriculum standards for Tennessee students, more rigorous graduation requirements, and a single path diploma. By 2010, Tennessee students were being assessed on the new standards and proficiency results dropped statewide. It was during this same year, that Tennessee passed broad education reform legislation that ultimately resulted in the state being one of the first two states receiving “Race to the Top” funding (over $500 million). The Tennessee Department of Education and individual districts and schools set trajectories of improvement and focused activities to meet the state’s First to the Top goals. Due to the NCLB not being reauthorized, Tennessee requested and was awarded a waiver.
Tennessee’s continued focus on improving public education is helping ensure students have the best opportunities and brightest futures. Since 2010, Tennessee has made impressive gains in student learning. The percentage of Tennessee’s students proficient or advanced in grades 3-8 math have increased from 34.6% in 2010 to 51.3% in 2014. In science, the percentage of students proficient or advanced has grown from 51.9% to nearly 64% during the same time period.
During the time that this work was occurring in the state, Tennessee was helping to lead a larger conversation about how to continue to raise the bar.
Although much smaller and less impressive, Tennessee has seen some improvement in reading/ language arts and this area remains a focus for our state. Tennessee students have made gains in high school subject also. Specifically, our state has seen
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Vision for Excellence strong growth in Algebra I and II and Biology. This includes double digit gains over the past few years in Algebra and notable growth in Biology. These gains have resulted in significant increases in the number of students who are proficient or advanced in math and science from the third through twelfth grade. Statewide, there are approximately 100,000 more students who are proficient in math and 57,000 more in science. Another highlight for Tennessee over the last year has been our notable improvement in ACT.
On international assessments, Tennessee ranks 67th in reading and 80th in math out of 116 countries and U.S. states. As a state we can be proud of the phenomenal and historic growth we have made. However, we must continue our work to ensure that all Tennessee students have an opportunity at a bright future once they graduate from high school. It will be important for all stakeholders to build upon this success by accelerating academic gains for students while staying committed to student-centered decision making at the school, local, and state level. Collectively, all stakeholders are encouraged to engage in making the following priorities for improvement during the coming year:
Tennessee, along with Kentucky and Wyoming, posted strong gains between 2012-13 and 2013-14. These improvements, coupled with the significant milestone achieved by Tennessee in 2013 as noted by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) labeling our state as the fastest improving state in the nation in terms of student achievement outcomes across fourth and eighth grade reading and math, give cause for our state to be proud of the work that students, teachers, school and district leaders, and school boards have been doing.
• Select and implement high-quality assessments that are nationally benchmarked and aligned to Tennessee’s State Standards • Ensure the continued and improved implementation of Tennessee’s State Standards • Elevate the teaching profession in Tennessee to ensure that high-quality candidates pursue a career in education and that Tennessee’s current teachers receive the support they need to improve student learning • Transform instruction through high-quality school leadership that meets local needs.
In spite of these accomplishments, work remains to continue on the path that will help all students graduate with the skills and knowledge needed to be competitive with their peers across the state, country, and globe. Data from both the national and international assessments show that Tennessee students are significantly behind their peers in academic performance. Overall, only 19% of Tennessee students meet the ACT college readiness benchmarks in all four subjects.
What Can School Boards Do? • Ensure formative assessments are aligned to the state standards. • Expand professional learning opportunities for teachers and principals. • Expand teacher and student access to higher quality learning materials. • Support teacher leadership opportunities in the district. • Ensure teachers, principals, and teachers have access to data that will support student learning.
While this represents an improvement over where we have been previously, this percentage is still lower than the national average of 26%. Additionally, we have some groups of Tennessee students, including African-American and Hispanic students, scoring at even lower levels. And while Tennessee made great improvement on the NAEP between 2011 and 2013, state scores are still below the national average.
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National Vision There have been significant developments in education in recent years, including the implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), and the Race to the Top and School Improvement Grants. There is a crisis in educational funding in many states precipitated by the nation’s economic downturn, increasing concerns that the United States may be failing behind other nations in education and workforce preparedness, and pervasive discussions of linking teacher evaluations to student performance and growth. (Source: International Center for Leadership in Education) Tennessee is a leader in education nationally. Tennessee has been in the forefront in educational policy reform, including educator evaluation, differentiated compensation, and other issues impacting its students’ success. The state also was one of the first to submit and be granted a waiver from No Child Left Behind/ESEA in 2012. Currently, Tennessee is engaged in developing another No Child Left Behind/ESEA waiver application as well as influencing the reauthorization of the law. Although state level funding remains a concern in this economic climate, Tennessee has continued to focus on improving opportunities for its students. The national vision, as well as Tennessee’s, recognized that the future growth and stability of our global economy depends on the ability of education systems around the world to prepare all students for career opportunities and help them attain higher levels of achievement. This would result in meeting the demands of the 21st Century learners and employers. Although the vision is then global, the path to 21st Century education requires a local journey; one that recognizes and responds to specific challenges and opportunities. (Source: Cisco Systems, Inc., “Equipping Every Learner for the 21st Century”)
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VISION SELF ASSESSMENT Use this tool to assess your initial understanding of vision and to get a sense of where you are as a board on this essential work. Indicate the degree to which your board/district/staff has achieved the following elements toward establishing a vision to improve student achievement. Fully Achieved
Mostly Achieved
Stakeholder representatives (school board, senior leadership, district staff, school staff, employee organizations, parents, community advocates, higher education, business leaders, and students) helped create the vision. As a board we have discussed the core values of our school district, supervisory union/employee groups, and community, and these values are reflected in our vision. Our board has established a written vision that commits to student achievement as the top priority of the school board, staff, and community. Our vision is clearly articulated and known to all community members who have a vested interest. We frequently revisit and reaffirm our vision to ensure our constancy of purpose/ Our vision is the foundation for all long-range, strategic planning, and policy decisions. Our vision is the guiding force that sets the framework for how we operate as a local district and supervisory union. We base our resource and budget decisions on our vision. Everything we do as a a board of education aligns to achieve our vision.
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Partially Achieved
Beginning to Achieve
Don’t Know/ Unsure
Vision for Excellence
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE SCHOOL BOARD AND SUPERINTENDENT IN VISION AND PLANNING The School Board • Approves a strategic planning process to include the community in creating the vision for student achievement. • Adopts the vision. • Adopts board goals that support the vision. • Communicates the vision. • Keeps vision at the forefront of all decision making. • Adopts policies needed to achieve the vision. • Allocates resources based on the vision. • Monitors progress toward vision.
The Superintendent • Recommends a visionary strategic planning process to the board that incorporates • participation by a broad swath of the community. • Ensures the integrity of the planning proEnsures staff development to carry out the planning process. • Ensures the recommendations of the strategic planning team are presented to the board for action. • Coordinates periodic review of the strategic plan. • Ensures short- and long-range vision plans are developed and carried out at both the district and school levels. • Develops performance indicators, based on data, to measure progress toward the board’s vision for student achievement. • Conducts work sessions with the board to increase its understanding of progress needed.
• Recommends performance indicators for board action. • Works with the board to identify its role in supporting the vision. • Works with the board to develop plans for carrying out its goals. • Communicates, through the district’s communications plan, the vision to the staff and community in a team approach that incorporates board participation. • Prepares and disseminates information about progress toward the vision. • Uses the vision to guide priority recommendations to the board. • Uses the vision to guide decisions throughout the organization. • Recommends policies needed to support the vision. • Conducts periodic review with the board to identify additional policies or revise existing ones. • Recommends resources needed to support the vision through the budgeting process. • Conducts periodic review with the board to identify resources and funding needed. • Brings data to the board periodically that enables the board to review student achievement progress. • Recommends changes based on data.
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POSSIBLE AGENDA ITEMS RELATING TO VISION A)
Dialogue and work session with staff and community representatives to create Vision and Mission statements
B)
Formal adoption of Vision and Mission statements and establishment of yearly goals
C) Discussion and action on the superintendent’s recommended strategic plan for the district D) Strategic Plan Review √ Are we meeting our timetable? √ Plans for assessing successes and shortcomings √ Yearly update of district goals E)
Community open forum on the district’s vision, mission, and goals
F)
Reports from community advisory committees
G)
District’s communications plan and public relations activities
H)
Recognition events for students and staff who exemplify the district’s vision
I)
Superintendent’s report on school improvement plans
(Source: The Key Work of School Boards, NSBA, 2009)
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PUBLIC EDUCATION IN TENNESSEE
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2014-15 STATE OF EDUCATION IN TENNESSEE PROGRESS REPORT Since 2009, the State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE) has published an annual report on the state of education in Tennessee. These reports provide an update on the work taking place to improve student achievement in Tennessee, highlighting successes and challenges faced over the past year and setting education priorities for the coming year. These priorities are developed collaboratively through conversations with teachers, principals, district leaders, business leaders, policymakers, and state-level education leaders. The recommendations set forth in each of these priorities intend to guide the work of education partners in Tennessee in the coming year, all with the ultimate goal of improved learning for students. This progress report outlines actionable steps that Tennessee’s education partners must take to accomplish the priorities established in SCORE’s 2014-15 State of Education in Tennessee report.Throughout the year, SCORE will release an updated Progress Report, indicating where progress has been made on specific priorities and highlighting priority areas that need continued support. This Progress Report is meant to hold all education partners accountable for the work that must be done in 2015 to support continued growth in Tennessee student achievement.
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SELECT AND IMPLEMENT HIGH-QUALITY ASSESSMENTS THAT ARE NATIONALLY BENCHMARKED AND ALIGNED TO TENNESSEE’S STATE STANDARDS What Do We Need to Do? Statewide Summative Assessments: Implement a high-quality statewide assessment aligned to Tennessee’s State Standards in English Language Arts and Math.
Who Can Help? Tennessee Department of Education: Implement a high-quality, well-aligned assessment in 2015-16.
How Will We Measure Success? •
High-quality, aligned assessment implemented in the 2015-16 school year.
• Tennessee Department of Education, CORE offices, and school district offices: Provide professional learning opportunities to school leaders and teachers on the new assessment. •
Professional learning opportunities on the new assessment provided to school leaders and teachers.
School district leaders and the Tennessee Department of Education: Provide school leaders, teachers, and parents with data reports that give them the information they need to support student learning.
Comprehensive, easy to understand data reports shared with school leaders, teachers, and parents.
Formative Assessments: CORE offices: Support districts and schools in their selection of Support district and school leaders in selecting high-quality formative assessments that are aligned highquality, well-aligned formative assessments. to Tennessee’s State Standards.
•
Professional learning opportunities on formative assessments provided to district and school leaders.
•
Tool created to support districts and school leaders in the selection of formative
Assessment Study: SCORE: Conduct a study on the landscape of assessment in Conduct a study on assessment practices in Tennessee, highlighting effective district assessment Tennessee districts. practices and gathering information on the amount of testing that occurs in districts around the state.
•
Study published that provides district leaders with actionable recommendations for improved assessment practices in schools.
Community Engagement: Implement a state-level communications campaign that engages and informs the public on the importance of high-quality, aligned assessments
Expect More, Achieve More Coalition: • Launch a statewide communications campaign that engages parents and the public on the importance of • high-quality, aligned assessments.
Statewide communications campaign on assessments launched in summer 2015. Higher education institutions engage with the public and their partners on assessments.
Tennessee Higher Education Commission: Assist higher education institutions in engaging the public and their partners on the importance of highquality, aligned assessments. Technology: Provide support to districts to ensure they have access to the infrastructure and training needed to effectively implement technology-based assessments and enhance student learning.
Tennessee foundations, business partners, and CORE offices: Support district leaders in their efforts to upgrade technological infrastructure and access in schools. School districts: Prioritize the efforts of schools to provide students with early instruction on technology and keyboarding skills to prepare them for technologybased assessments and success in college and career.
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•
Upgraded technological infrastructure and access in Tennessee schools.
•
Students provided with early instruction on technology and keyboarding skills.
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TRANSFORM INSTRUCTION THROUGH HIGH-QUALITY SCHOOL LEADERSHIP THAT MEETS LOCAL NEEDS
What Do We Need to Do? Principal Preparation:
Who Can Help? State Board of Education and Tennessee Department of Education:
Promote principal preparation program approval processes that require the implementation of best practices in principal preparation.
Develop and implement a more rigorous principal preparation program approval process.
Support for Current Principals:
CORE offices:
Provide professional development and ongoing support to current principals to ensure they have the skills necessary to serve as instructional leaders in their schools.
Convene regional professional learning communities, facilitating partnerships between districts with innovative support programs for principals with other districts looking to develop such programs.
Principal Pipeline Data System:
State Board of Education: Pass a policy that requires principal preparation programs to report key metrics and indicators to the state on an annual basis.
Create a data system that provides more comprehensive information about principal preparation programs, current school leader performance, and the nature of the principal labor market to better inform improvement practices in the principal pipeline.
How Will We Measure Success? •
New principal preparation program approval process developed and implemented.
•
Regional professional learning communities convened to develop models for principal support.
•
Policy passed requiring principal preparation programs to report data to the state annually.
•
Comprehensive data system on the principal pipeline created.
Tennessee Higher Education Commission: Compile these indicators and metrics to create a comprehensive data system on the principal pipeline.
Principal Evaluation:
CORE offices:
•
Statewide communications campaign on assessments launched in summer 2015.
Expand training and support for district leaders on the principal evaluation.
Expand training and support for district leaders on the principal evaluation.
•
Higher education institutions engage with the public and their partners on assessments.
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TRANSLATING VISION INTO ACTION From Vision To Practice Your vision cannot end with a written statement. Organizations that complete the writing process and believe that they have a vision are mistaken. They have a vision statement. Writing is only the beginning. Moving the vision from paper into practice is the real challenge. A powerful vision should guide the district’s strategic planning process. A vision without a plan to achieve it is like a great movie title with no script. This is where the board starts developing a mission statement, which is the focal point of all goals, objectives, and strategies undertaken by the board, administration, and teaching and support staffs. It should be concise and understood by every district employee. The vital nature of the statement is that it reflects the district’s true mission with integrity, clarity and inspiration. To fulfill its purpose, a mission statement must be memorable and capture the purpose for which a district exists and its function. As a board develops its mission statement, it should consider the following criteria: 1. Does the statement capture the essential nature of the district’s reason for being? 2. Is the statement student-oriented as opposed to being inwardly or organizationally bound? 3. Does the statement represent a relatively stable anchor point for the district, one that will not require frequent change? 4. Does the statement describe the desired result rather than focusing on activities? 5. Does the statement reflect the district’s values or philosophy relevant to today and the future
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Sample Vision Statements To create a school district that is focused on personalized learning so that our students will be successful in college, career, and life. To create a school district that prepares students for what they will encounter in life beyond their K-12 experiences. To create a school district that prepares students for our changing world. To create a school district thot is highly regarded for its academic excellence and for improving the community in which it operates. To create a school district that produces very high levels of student achievement and helps make its community a more pleasant place to live.
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Assessment and Accountability
Tennessee is currently revising its accountability model within a waiver application of the No Child Left Behind/ESEA and will be submitting the application to the U.S. Department of Education during the spring of 2015. Numerous stakeholder groups have been involved in crafting proposed changes to Tennessee’s accountability model. Should No Child Left Behind/ESEA be reauthorized in the immediate future, additional efforts will be made to refine Tennessee’s accountability model accordingly.
The passage of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in 2001 was a reauthorization of the Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and it changed the role and the importance of standards and assessment in public education. NCLB required all states to define standards, develop annual measures of student achievement in reading and in mathematics for all students grades 3-8, establish proficiency targets for schools and report the results on an annual basis. These targets were determined based upon a progression of growth that would ensure that 100% of students would be proficient by the year 2014. Meeting these targets became the basis for determining Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). (Source: The Key Work of School Boards, NSBA, 2009) In 2012, Tennessee became one of the first states to be granted a waiver under the No Child Left Behind Act which changed the targets for schools and districts. The accountability system now in place has two overriding objectives: 1) growth for all students, every year and 2) closing the achievement gaps, by ensuring faster growth for those students who are the furthest behind. Districts are held accountable for holding the majority of their performance goals, as opposed to the NCLB model requiring 100% proficiency for all student groups. Districts may be classified as Exemplary, Needs Improvement, or In Need of Sub-Group Improvement. The accountability system is directly aligned with the district’s strategic planning process. Although all districts are eligible for Exemplary status, each must meet goals for both achievement and narrowing the gaps to earn this status. Districts in need of improvement will develop strategic plans focused on addressing gaps of greatest need and work closely with the Tennessee Department of Education’s CORE Offices.
In November 2014 Tennessee completed the process to replace the state’s current TCAP assessments in English/language arts (ELA) and math. The new measurements of learning for ELA and math will be called Tennessee Ready (TNReady). These ELA and math assessments, administered by Measurement Inc., were selected through a fair, thorough and transparent process established by the General Assembly and administered by the state’s Central Procurement Office. The winning proposal for Tennessee’s future assessments not only received the highest rating from a content and technical standpoint but did so at the lowest cost of any of the finalists. TNReady will be administered beginning the 2015-16 school year and will assess Tennessee’s state standards in ELA and math.
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Additional information regarding TNReady includes: • By Tennessee, For Tennessee: Tennessee educators – both at the K-12 and higher education levels - were significantly involved in the selection process and chose an assessment that is both fully aligned to the state’s academic standards but also adaptable to future improvements. Tennessee will make decisions about item selection, test length and composition, and scoring. In the future, Tennessee will decide on changes to the test based on changes to standards, and Tennesseans will be engaged in item development and review. • Higher Expectations and Critical Thinking: TNReady will expand beyond just multiple choice questions to include: writing that requires students to cite text evidence at all grade levels; questions that measure math fluency without a calculator; and questions that ask students to show their work in math with partial credit available. • Resources for Parents and Teachers: Online tools will be available for schools and teachers to develop practice tests that can provide students, teachers, and parents with valuable and immediate feedback. These resources will be available before the end of the 2014-15 school year. • Comparability: While the assessments will be unique to Tennessee, TNReady will allow Tennesseans to compare our student progress to that of other states. Through a partnership between Measurement Inc. and American Institutes for Research, TNReady will offer Tennessee a comparison of student performance with other states, likely to include Florida and Utah. • Training: The Tennessee Department of Education will provide training for educators across the state during the summer of 2015. • Test Administration Scoring: TNReady will have two parts. The first portion, which will replace the state’s current comprehensive writing assessment, will require extended written responses in ELA and math and will be administered in February/March. The second portion will include selected responses, such as multiple choice and drag-and-drop items, and will be administered in April/May. • Technology: TNReady will be administered online and available for use on multiple devices with minimal bandwidth. As most states move their tests for all grade levels online, we must ensure Tennessee students do not fall behind their peers in other states. However, all districts will have the option of administering paper-pencil exams. Additional information can be found at http://tennessee.gov/education/assessment/TNReady.shtml.
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Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS) TVAAS is a statistical method used to measure the influence of a district or school on the academic progress (growth) rates of individual students or groups of students from year-to-year. The TVAAS method uses previous test score data to plot a “growth pattern” for students. Think of academic growth in terms of a child’s physical growth. Growth is measured by how much gain or progress an individual student or group of students make over time. Growth measures do not assume all students start the school year at the same academic level. By measuring the academic achievement of students and the academic growth of students, schools and teachers will have a more comprehensive picture of the effectiveness in raising student proficiency. TVAAS public site can be accessed at http://www.state.tn.us/education/mdata.shtml.
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DIGGING INTO THE DATA
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ENSURING VISION BECOMES A REALITY Board Accountability Leaders in public education can only meet today’s challenges if they can clearly see the “tomorrow” they seek to create. That might sound simplistic, but it takes hard work to convert foresight into reality. Accountability means taking your fair share of responsibility for outcomes. Being accountable means that you answer not only for your actions, but also for the results of your actions. Accountability includes taking credit for achieving the desired results and accepting responsibility when targets are missed.
School boards need to ensure that they do the following: 1. Establish an accountability process based on the board’s strategic plan with measurable criteria and an annual review. 2. Participate in work sessions to understand accountability measures, including data analysis and how the board administration and staff should use this information. 3. Ensure that the superintendent’s evaluation includes accountability measures. 4. Ensure effective and timely communications on the accountability system and progress. 5. Ensure that an annual report is developed containing data on student achievement and district performance data related to goals and standards. 6. Ensure funding for implementation of accountability measures. 7. Use student achievement results to drive decision-making. 8. Ensure compliance with state accountability measures.
Your state school boards association is a good source of expertise in assessing your mission and vision statement and also assisting with strategic planning. Because this is a complex process, it might be helpful to have an informed, objective voice to lend a different perspective.
Alignment of Strategic Planning, Vision, and Accountability Tennessee schools have participated in school improvement planning process for several years. This work is now closely aligned with the schools’ and districts’ targets as defined within the state’s accountability process. Targets are aligned with goals and activities and are revised continuously in collaboration with the Tennessee Department of Education in an effort to ensure that each school and district reaches its Annual Measurable Objectives (AMOs). The Centers of Regional Excellence (CORE) Officies, a regional arm of the Tennessee Department of Education, work closely with the districts to ensure this process of strategic planning and accountability results in higher student learning for all students. The Board’s Strategic Plan should support the district and school planning process as outlined above, and it should be aligned with school/ district data while moving the district toward accomplishment of its vision.
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Implementing Your Vision Saying it and writing it down is only the beginning. School leaders who complete the writing process and believe they have a vision are mistaken. What they have is a written vision statement. Moving the vision from paper into practice is the real challenge. A powerful vision should guide the strategic planning process for the school district. After your board and superintendent have widely disseminated the vision statement, the next step is developing a strategic plan. A beautiful vision without a plan to achieve it is like a great movie title with no script. In creating a strategic plan, the board-staff leadership team must develop a process to identify goals that mark progress toward the vision and strategies to achieve the goals. Staff is responsible for creating work plans to implement the strategies; reviewing the goals, strategies, and work plans with the board; and reporting regularly on progress, needs, and adjustments to continue moving toward the vision. Your vision also should influence the policies the board adopts and procedures the superintendent develops to implement the policies. School boards should consider a periodic, systematic review of policies to assure consistency with your adopted vision. That kind of check-in is worthwhile because it keeps you on track and signals to staff, students, and the community that the board is committed to its vision. School leaders must pay close attention to the culture they create. For good or for ill, culture can permeate classrooms, directly affecting teaching and learning. The blend of school board policies and superintendent’s procedures sway the district’s climate. But the content of those policies and procedures is not the only consideration. Leadership behaviors and the demeanor of the board and superintendent’s staff speak volumes as you carry out your responsibilities. Ultimately, the way board members work with each other and treat staff sets a leadership tone that affects the behaviors and attitudes of staff and students. Getting that wrong can potentially undermine the positive efforts that go into embracing a vision. In sum, ensuring that public education will meet emerging challenges requires a clear vision for the work and operations of school boards in the future. With that vision before us, we can shape strategies that make boards more relevant, credible, and effective leaders of public education.
“We should try to be the parents of the future, rather than the offspring of our past.” - Miouel de Unamuno
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Sample Goals and Strategies Goal: To offer high-quality student programming so that graduates are prepared to enter the workforce or to successfully complete postsecondary education. 1. Provide personalized learning for all students. 2. Support progression based on mastery of individual student goals. 3. Embrace a collaborative culture by leveraging and maximizing parent and community partnerships to support accelerated student success. 4. Create a parent scorecard for families and the community to increase transparency with regard to student and school performance. 5. Implement a plan to transition to student-based budgeting, where funding is directly tied to students and their individual needs. 6. Require students to play a key role in setting their goals along with their teachers, advisors, counselors, and parents. 7. Provide student and families with choices and meaningful opportunities to improve their school experiences. 8. Ensure all classrooms are wired global places that encourage interactivity and learning by doing. 9. Provide a curriculum that balances individualization and vetted best practices. 10. Design classroom instruction to be a hybrid offace-to-face and online. 11. Design classroom instruction according to individual learning goals and assessment for competency. 12. Ensure all classrooms are using electronic tools for instruction. 13. Utilize digital textbooks. 14. Ensure that technology proficiency and digital citizenship literacy are part of the learning experience for each student. 15. Maximize all data sources to improve instruction for students.
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16. Ensure that every child is taught by an effective teacher. 17. Ensure that every school is led by an effective principal. 18. Increase literacy proficiency. 19. Increase math proficiency. 20. Utilize instructional coaches and intervention processes (example: RTI - Response to Intervention) to support at-risk schools and students. 21. Create or expand on-line and distance learning programs. 22. Support “Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)� education opportunities for students. 23. Design and deliver multiple career pathways that lead to industry certifications and post-secondary credit upon graduation.
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Sample Goals and Strategies (continued) Goal: To provide high quality effective teachers and administrators. 1. Require teachers to frequently assess student academic growth to constantly inform their instruction. 2. Provide teachers with opportunities to network and collaborate with external organizations to enhance student learning experiences. 3. Provide teachers with research-based ideas for the most effective instructional practices. 4. Recruit, retain, and empower excellent teachers who are adept at personalizing learning experiences for students. 5. Provide principals with the autonomy to innovate and demand excellence from their faculty and staff. 6. Hold principals accountable for meaningful school improvement and rapid turnaround for chronically under-performing schools. 7. Ensure that every principal demonstrates how they provide opportunities for student, parents, and teachers to contribute their talents, skills, and experiences to support school improvement. 8. Shift the role of teachers and administrators to a focus on serving learning as collaborators. 9. Develop professional learning communities in all schools. 10. Support leadership development for aspiring, new, and veteran school leaders. 11. Partner with higher education institutions and other state approved teacher and lecture prep institutions to ensure that teacher candidates are of the highest quality and aligned with district needs. 12. Transform the traditional role of the central office from a top-down management system to a system designed to provide meaningful support to schools and effective accountability for school performance. 13. Support the evaluation system for teachers and principals to ensure professional learning that results in increased student achievement.
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14. Link professional development to teacher effectiveness based on student performance measures. 15. Implement strategically-aligned performance incentives. 16. Develop, implement, and refine differentiated pay plan. 17. Provide instructional and data coaches to assist teachers. 18. Provide teacher induction or support services for novice and low-performing teachers. 19. Develop and implement professional learning communities. 20. Provide school leadership training programs. 21. Provide professional development and coaching programs for current administrators. 22. Provide leadership coaches/mentors for principals, especially in low-performing schools.
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Sample Goals and Strategies (continued)
Goal: To seek the involvement and participation of the entire community in the learning process. 1. Ensure that all schools are the center of community learning locally. 2. Leverage community assets and resources to build community schools that provide full-service supports for students and families. 3. Provide schools as a place for community convening and for citizens to acquire new knowledge and skills.
Goal: A board committed to excellence in education and aware of its responsibilities. 1. Have every board member participate in annual professional development. 2. Maintain ongoing review and development of pertinent policies. 3. Conduct at least one retreat for the entire board and superintendent each year. 4. Involve community and business leaders in the development of the board’s vision and strategic plan. 5. Develop and monitor standards for student and system performance.
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Vision for Excellence _____________________ District
Executive Summary of 2014 Report Card Data
_____________________District Executive Summary of 2014 Report Card Data 2013-14 K-8 Attendance ____
Notes: Make notes as needed on this side.
2013-14 9-12 Attendance ____ 2013-14 9-12 Cohort Dropout Rate ____ Ethnicity Stats: English Learner %: Economically Disadvantaged %: Students with Disabilities %: Per Pupil Expenditures: Number of Teachers: Graduation Rate (List by category below): Grades 3-8: TCAP Academic Achievement Math 3-8 Reading 3-8 Social Studies 3-8 Science 3-8 Value-Added
2013
2014
State 2014 A/57 B/52 A/57 B/54
2013
(Grade/Gain)
2014
State 2014
(Grade/Gain)
A/2.9 B/.2 B/1.3 B/.8
Math Reading Social Studies Science Grades 9-12: ACT 3 Year Average Composite English Math Reading Science/Reasoning
District
State 19.3 18.9 18.7 19.4 19.1
Current Year Composite English Math Reading Science/Reasoning
Grades 9-12: ACT College Readiness Benchmarks Category District Percentage All 4 Categories English Math Reading Science
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District
State Percentage 16 56 27 33 25
State 19.3 18.9 18.8 19.6 19.2
Vision for Excellence _____________________District
_____________________ District of 2014 Report Card Data Executive Summary
Executive Summary of 2014 Report Card Data
Monitoring Our Data: To Make Informed Decisions, Executive Summary Activity, Part 1
What are your initial thoughts? Concerns? How does your data align with the state? With other districts around you or that you admire? What other data sources do you have available?
What Might be Your Goals/Action Steps? Executive Summary Activity, Part 2 What questions do you have? What are your thoughts related to goals and priorities for your district as you consider the state/national/global issues and vision activities studied? Do your goals align with TSBA’s Sample Planning Elements for Boards of Education? What other people or partners can assist in the work of accomplishing your goals and priorities? What are your resource constraints?
What strategies might the Board consider to utilize the data in setting its course?
How can the Board and district/school leaders work together to meet its goals and align with the district’s vision?
How will this learning impact your role and function on the Board?
How will the Board set priorities given these data?
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This is a publication of the Tennessee School Boards AssociationŠ 525 Brick Church Park Drive Nashville, TN 37207 www.tsba.net