A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Introduction

Schoolwide programs address the educational needs of children living in impoverished communities with comprehensive strategies for improving the whole school so every student achieves high levels of academic proficiency. The 1994 reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) through the Improving America's Schools Act (IASA) challenges states and districts to upgrade schools that serve disadvantaged students. As a result of the reauthorization, schoolwide programs have the flexibility and resources to undertake much-needed whole school reforms. Schoolwide programs are not new, but the 1994 reauthorization creates new opportunities for school professionals to use multiple program and funding sources to transform teaching and learning for every child, especially for those at greatest risk of school failure.

Schoolwide programs have great latitude to determine how to organize their operations and allocate the multiple funding sources available to them. They do not have to identify particular children as eligible for services or separately track federal dollars. Instead, schoolwide programs can use all allocated funds to increase the amount and quality of learning time. In this way, they can embrace a high-quality curriculum, according to a comprehensive plan that ensures children meet the state's challenging academic standards.

In response to IASA, states are revamping traditional curricula to meet more ambitious standards. Teachers are renewing and enhancing their professional skills according to plans that they define and in programs they may lead. Instructional practices based on current research are stimulating higher-quality teaching and learning. Technology is bringing the world outside of school into classrooms, providing students with tools for testing and demonstrating their thinking in new ways. Narrowly conceived multiple-choice tests for measuring academic progress are being replaced by a combination of traditional and open-ended assessments. These assessments challenge students to demonstrate what they know and can do in new ways, through student-written books, research studies, and computer-based mathematical and scientific models. Community mentors become involved in supporting students' transition from school to work. As part of schoolwide programs, schools create comprehensive improvement plans that show how every student benefits from these resources.

Schoolwide programs are not entirely new under IASA. Since 1978, they have been an option for high-poverty schools that received federal funds under Title I of ESEA. However, the 1994 reauthorization made the schoolwide option more widely available by extending eligibility to schools that serve at least 50 percent low-income students. In addition, the amended legislation permitted schools and districts to augment state and local reforms by combining funds from federal education programs for which they were eligible. It also increased the number of middle and high schools that are served under Title I and consequently could qualify for the schoolwide option.

How to Use This Idea Book

Implementing Schoolwide Programs is a two-volume Idea Book developed and disseminated under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Education. Here in Volume I: An Idea Book on Planning, we highlight effective methods and useful resources for planning schoolwide programs and for measuring their success in a cycle of continuous improvement. The companion, Volume II: Profiles of Promising Schoolwide Program Practices, provides detailed examples from schoolwide programs at eight schools in 1998. The purposes of these Idea Books on schoolwide programs are to suggest ways in which schools can take advantage of the new opportunities available under ESEA for schools serving high concentrations of poor students and to help educators realize that they have far greater latitude in developing their schoolwide programs than many have recognized. Too often, new schoolwide programs have not been implemented as intended—that is, with meaningful planning procedures and efforts to track progress of the entire school. These resources are designed to help schools and communities work together to strengthen education so that students achieve challenging academic standards.

The schools selected as resources for both volumes of this Idea Book demonstrated the following qualities: (1) a record of improving student performance; (2) cohesive planning; (3) a comprehensive, standards-based curriculum; (4) highly qualified staff who were committed to building a culture of learning; and (5) family, school, and community partnerships that helped to sustain the school's academic achievements. The selected schools serve ethnically and socioeconomically diverse communities across this country. Many have been recognized by the U.S. Department of Education's Blue Ribbon Schools Program or by the National School Recognition Programs.

Through interviews with principals, federal programs coordinators, and teachers in schools with comprehensive plans and evidence of initial program success, we examined the various paths schoolwide teams take as they move through the conceptualization and planning stages. In addition, we reviewed research on comprehensive school reform, looking most closely at planning strategies, leadership initiatives, and academic programs that promote long-term improvement in student achievement. Finally, numerous resources are available in print, on Web sites, and on commercial videotape that illustrate how schools can implement comprehensive reform collaboratively with parents, their children, and community representatives. Many of these resources are listed at the end of this volume.

Section I explains what schoolwide programs are; it describes the goals and benefits of the option, essential elements and processes, guiding principles and practices of good schoolwides, and the state and district role in schoolwide programs. Section II offers a brief overview of the schoolwide planning process. It covers the major elements of schoolwide plans that are stipulated by federal law and pays special attention to the combination of funds available to schoolwide programs, a key part of the planning process. Section III explores in depth the steps involved in planning schoolwide program change: (1) establishing a planning team, (2) conducting a comprehensive needs assessment, (3) clarifying needs and identifying research-based strategies, (4) setting schoolwide program goals, (5) writing the plan, and (6) finalizing the plan. Section IV describes high-quality technical assistance and support that is available to help plan schoolwide programs. Section V addresses accountability issues and ways in which data about student achievement and school progress can be used to continuously improve schoolwide programs and practices.

think about this. . .

Learning as a Schoolwide Community
City View Elementary School, Worcester, MA

When district coordinator John Corcoran invited a City View Elementary School team to learn about becoming a schoolwide program, principal Donald Shea saw the advantages immediately: A schoolwide program is designed for "all the students in our school [who are] at risk, so we can use [our federal] funds to benefit all of them." The school enrolls 650 students in grades K-6. Fifty percent of the students are Hispanic, 43 percent are white, 5 percent are African American, and 2 percent are Asian. Approximately 61 percent come from low-income families.

Although innovation was not new to City View, thinking comprehensively about whole school reform was. Initially cautious, teachers liked the idea of designing a program to fit their students needs. During all of 1993, City View staff, parents, and community members visited other exemplary schools, examined data about their school, and surveyed stakeholder groups. Poring over the results at the large conference table in their faculty workroom, they overhauled the school's approach to programming.

The resulting plan focuses on building literacy, experience-based learning, and a safe and nurturing environment. The academic programs, written by teachers to reflect the state curriculum frameworks, encourage students to use reading, writing, and math to approach problems creatively, independently, and cooperatively. According to the faculty's plan, the staff believes that "decision making, problem solving, and effective communication are at the heart of the curriculum. Children...learn in the styles that work best for them [and] take time to think and develop the confidence to try new things."

Teachers combine several research-based instructional models to support curriculum change in all content areas, before, during, and after school—even in the summer. Nationally researched programs that City View adopted include Reading Recovery; Dimensions of Learning, a cross-disciplinary thinking skills development program; A World of Difference, a national prejudice-reduction and diversity awareness program; and the computer-based Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) program, which promotes critical thinking. Teachers also use research on best teaching practices to design their own programs. One of these, Project D.R.E.A.M. (Developing Reading Excellence and Mathematics) uses team teaching in literature and math to encourage critical thinking skills and parent/student sharing.

The schoolwide program creates flexible staffing patterns. Experienced faculty facilitators provide in-class reading, math, and science support and serve as mentors to colleagues. Five teachers serve as part-time reading teachers, and a Spanish language teacher helps students in the K-6 bilingual program. Teachers also lead staff development programs. City View is a professional development school for a local teachers' college. New faculty members have mentors, and seasoned professionals conduct training at school and at state and national meetings.

Parents participate in planning and daily decision making. The school keeps them informed through notices, newsletters, conferences with teachers, and telephone calls. A parent compact defines school and home responsibilities to promote children's learning. The community contributes to City View by funding special programs and providing mentors and tutors. A local health service offers programs for students and a biotechnology research organization supplements classroom science materials and gives hands-on science lessons to upper grade students.

[Acknowledgments]

[Section I - What Are Schoolwide Programs?]