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

Baskin Elementary School
San Antonio Independent School District
San Antonio, Texas

Key Programs: Everyday Math, Balanced Literacy, Waterford Early Literacy Intervention Program (kindergarten)

Background

Baskin Elementary School, in San Antonio, Texas, with 419 students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade, looks like thousands of schools across the country. It is a one-level red brick building flanked on one side by portable buildings and on the other by the faculty parking lot. The flag pole and school sign stand on opposite sides of the school?s front yard. Upon entering the school one sees that the inside is as typical as the outside: the cafeteria is to the right and the library (two converted classrooms) is to the left. A long hallway divides two rows of classrooms. A brightly colored mural adorns the wall next to the main office.

Population Served

Baskin Elementary School is typical of many schools in at least one other respect: the student population has dramatically changed during the last decade. In the early 1980s the student population was predominantly white and middle class. By the early 1990s, however, it was predominantly minority and economically disadvantaged. Many of the students and their families live in the 28 "Section 8" (federally subsidized) apartment complexes located throughout the school?s attendance area. Ninety-two percent of the students receive free or reduced-price lunches in the federal school lunch program.

Although the population changed in the early 1990s, the school?s organizational norms and practices remained similar to those found in many schools throughout the country. Teachers worked diligently, but they were isolated in their classrooms, receiving little direction for focusing their work and even less support for doing it. There was no forum for teachers to engage in serious discussions about their work or to talk about their struggle for accountability with a changing student population. As one teacher recalled, "We considered ourselves a good school, yet we knew we weren?t being successful with the children. We didn?t know what to do. So we stayed in our classrooms and worked really hard. We didn?t talk about it."

Another teacher referred to the tone and focus of the school in years past by commenting, "We had good teachers who taught the children but there was no real accountability. Once the state started making us accountable, we were lost as to what our focus was going to be. We had no idea about what we should be emphasizing and what should be taught at which grade level."

Even though many things remained the same, there was one important change as the population shifted: many of the teachers lowered their expectations for student learning to minimal levels. For example, teachers reported that they stopped assigning homework and sending books home because they said, "[We] did not trust the students to return them." They rationalized that education was not a priority for the students and their families because they were more

concerned about where they were going to get their next meal or the money to pay the phone bill. The school personnel distanced themselves from any collective responsibility for creating a school life that was meaningful, challenging, and fulfilling to students.

Academic Improvement

Student academic performance and behavior tended to confirm the teachers? perceptions. In 1994, student scores on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS), the statewide criterion-referenced test, reflected a huge gap in the performance of white and non-white students. For example, 81.3 percent of white students achieved the passing standard on the reading assessment, while the percentage of African American students reaching the same standard was 56.3 percentage points lower. Similar gaps existed among other groups of students in reading, mathematics, and writing. There were other indicators of problems. For example, one teacher recalled, "There were major discipline problems and students cursed at the teachers."

By contrast, four years later, in 1998, the school received an exemplary school accountability rating from the Texas Education Agency. This meant that at least 90 percent of all students, at least 90 percent of the African American students, at least 90 percent of the Hispanic students, and at least 90 percent of the low-income students passed the reading section, the writing section, and the mathematics section of the test. Only 15 percent of all schools in Texas received the exemplary rating in 1998.

Even though TAAS scores evidence improvement throughout the San Antonio School District and throughout Texas, the increase in achievement at Baskin Elementary was far greater than district or statewide changes. (See Table 5 below.) The increase in scores is even more compelling when one considers that the percentage of economically disadvantaged students at Baskin increased from 88.7 percent in 1994 to 92.0 percent in 1998 and the mobility rate increased from 35 to 49 percent.

Table 5: Percentage of Baskin Elementary Students Passing All Three Sections of the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills

² Although only 80 percent of African American students passed all sections of TAAS in 1998, more than 90 percent of African American students passed the reading section, more than 90 percent passed the mathematics section, and more than 90 percent passed the writing section. Thus, the school earned the exemplary accountability rating.

Along with an increase in academic achievement, positive student behavior increased as well. According to teachers, "Behavior problems became almost non-existent."

One teacher said, "It is amazing how when you focus on something different, the behavior problems become so minute. Once the focus of the school changed, the focus of the students changed."

Organizational norms and practices have also changed dramatically during the past four years. Teachers and administrators engage in regular and public conversations about classroom practice and student performance. They plan together and share ideas and resources. They visit each other?s classrooms, observe, ask questions, and advise one another about their teaching practices. When there are problems in student performance, they individually and collectively work to understand why and to find solutions. For example, when male students were consistently performing at higher levels in mathematics than the female students, teachers immediately began studying research articles on the subject and working together to develop strategies, including team teaching and peer mentoring, to ensure that all students excelled in mathematics.

Starting Points

In 1994, Baskin Elementary received an acceptable accreditation rating; however, the school was perilously close to a low-performing rating. The poor performance of African American students would have warranted the lower rating, except the state policy allowed exceptions for situations in which the number of students tested in a population group was fewer than 30. Only four years later, the school was among the elite of schools in Texas earning an exemplary rating. The transformation of Baskin Elementary School to an exemplary school occurred through the convergence of three levels of reform: (1) state-level initiatives, (2) district-level initiatives, and (3) campus-level initiatives.

State-Level Initiatives

During the last decade, Texas has shifted its education policy from a focus on regulation to one of flexibility and accountability. Undergirding this shift in policy is the assumption that all students can achieve the state?s academic standards, and all schools should be held accountable for the academic performance of every student.

In Texas, schools and districts are given one of four ratings ranging from low-performing to exemplary based largely on student performance on the TAAS (Texas Assessment of Academic Skills), the state?s criterion-referenced assessment. Dropout data and attendance data contribute to the determination of school and district ratings. School TAAS data are reported for all students and separately for four population groups: African American, Hispanic, white, and economically disadvantaged students. To achieve a given rating, the percentage of students in general and the percentage of students in every population group must exceed a passing standard determined by the state. The criteria for achieving acceptable and recognized ratings have increased annually during the past four years, requiring a larger percentage of students to pass. Sanctions for low performance include public notice and hearings and a possible loss of governance to the state. In short, positive school and district ratings depend upon the extent to which every child in the school and district achieves academic success.

The state?s accountability system has served as a powerful motivator for change at Baskin Elementary. More specifically, it has served as a camera. Initially, it provided school staff members with a picture of student performance that, in the words of two teachers, "made us uncomfortable and determined to change. [The accountability system] made us see that we were not serving our entire student population."

As the school began to change, the state accountability system provided a frame that helped the school create a clear image of what the school wanted to achieve in the future. School personnel noted, "It wasn?t only the gap between white and non-white students, but all of our students were not where we wanted them to be." Thus, the state accountability system provided an image of the goal: a school in which virtually all students, regardless of race or socio-economic status, achieved high academic standards.

District-Level Initiatives

In 1994, the newly appointed superintendent, Diana Lam, launched a series of reforms designed to "transform the San Antonio Independent School District into a learning organization." Several of these initiatives greatly influenced the direction Baskin took, particularly during the first years of reform. The first of these initiatives was the organization of the district?s schools into four learning communities (as opposed to sub-districts), each with an instructional steward (as opposed to area superintendents) and staff to lead and support schools in instruction, curriculum, and professional development. The administration building became the "learning community center."

The metaphors of community and stewardship were not merely figures of speech but were intended to launch changes in how educators viewed themselves and their work and how they interacted with one another. For example, Robert Alfaro, Sr., the instructional steward of the Brackenbridge/Edison/Jefferson Learning Community (of which Baskin Elementary School is a member) described his role as that of a teacher and mentor. During the weekly meetings with the principals, only 30 minutes would be spent on administrative issues and the remainder of the time would be devoted to working together on curriculum and instruction. In addition, books on a variety of topics such as leadership, school reform, and educational trends were shared and discussed.

Specifically, the instructional steward saw his role as one of helping, teaching, and guiding principals to find new ways of seeing, understanding, and acting. He stated:

One of the most important aspects of my work is to build the capacity of the principals to constantly question what they are doing and how their actions affect children and teachers. I try to help and to teach them to make instructional decisions instead of operational decisions and to recognize the difference between them. I also try to guide them through different ways of presenting data that are non-threatening to teachers but that still provide a way of looking critically at what is and what is not happening at their school. My job is also to help them build strong networks within their schools, to build the kind of support structures that you need in order to teach and reach every child.

Three other initiatives also played important roles in the transformation of the school:

• a district directive that all schools engage in an intensive self-reflective process and choose a comprehensive reform model that would best meet the needs of their students;

• an extensive district-wide professional development program for the implementation of comprehensive school-reform efforts; and

• the assignment of an instructional coordinator at each school.

These initiatives will be discussed in greater detail in later sections.

Both teachers and administrators at Baskin Elementary School recognized the critical role that the district has played in the transformation of their school. One teacher explained:

The transformation of our school just didn?t start here. It started with the new superintendent. When she first became superintendent, she had this meeting with all of the teachers and she told us that we could become the first urban district where all students achieve above the state and national standards and that in order to do so would require making some major changes. She is the one that put the fire underneath us. Her mantra that year was, ?Whatever it takes.? We took that to heart.

Campus-Level Initiatives

In 1994 Baskin Elementary received a new principal, Nancy Warren, along with a new part-time administrative aide, Carmen Payne (who became principal in 1996). The administrative aide position was intended to assist the principal with various management and administrative tasks. At the direction of the superintendent, the new principal, administrative aide, and the teachers at Baskin Elementary School engaged in a comprehensive needs assessment and thoroughly investigated several comprehensive school reform models but did not find one that specifically met their needs.

Rather, the administrative staff and several teachers had a vision of the school becoming, they said, "a center where adults as well as children are active participants in a learning community." Moreover, they said they wanted, "[to create a] learning environment in which both students and teachers experience and build on success," they would have to find ways for teachers to focus on their own learning as well as student learning. They developed a simple plan to provide support to teachers as they began the process of transforming their classroom practice and their relationships to each other and to the students.

This plan has evolved into the school?s unofficial model of comprehensive school reform. Principal Payne explained, "We don?t have a particular model but we have pieces of different designs." The key components of this framework are: (1) distributed expertise and leadership; (2) curriculum organization, alignment, and assessment; (3) collective responsibility for student learning; (4) reflective dialogue; and (5) increased teacher efficacy.

Changing the Organization of Schooling:
Distributed Expertise and Leadership

During their first year together, Principal Warren recognized that Payne had a strong instructional and curriculum background. Warren asked her to focus on providing instructional support to teachers. The principal then assumed most of the managerial and administrative duties of the position, including conducting teacher evaluations so that Payne could develop a "non-threatening, trusting relationship with the teachers," Warren said.

Payne?s role became that of an instructional peer coach, mentor, and collaborative colleague for the teachers. She spent most of her time training, coaching, and offering technical assistance to teachers. She supported the teachers use of quality instructional strategies and she often demonstrated or modeled effective teaching practices.

The following year the district created the position of instructional guide and the school was then entitled to a full-time instructional guide and a part-time administrative aide. After discussing it with the faculty, Warren and Payne requested and received permission from the district to combine the two roles, thus saving approximately $30,000 each year to purchase additional instructional materials and provide substitutes so that teachers could engage in joint planning. The division of labor, however, was essentially the same. Although the two focused on different tasks, they worked as a "unit and took time every day to confer and debrief with each other," they said. Both Warren and Payne reported that they learned a great deal with this arrangement.

This simple division of labor provided a powerful example to staff members. Teachers and other school members frequently referred to how Warren and Payne complemented each other?s strengths and worked as a team. This notion of "distributed expertise and leadership" soon became one of the most powerful norms in the school. For example, the fifth-grade teacher who excels in math took the lead in helping her colleagues with mathematics instruction. The school secretary, considered a resident expert in technology, helped by using the Internet to find information for teachers about subjects they were teaching. The physical education teacher worked closely with the grade level teachers in identifying areas in reading that students were having difficulty mastering and incorporated those skills during health and physical education classes. Numerous other examples could be cited but the point to be made is that teachers and administrators believed that everyone has something significant to contribute and that everyone can provide instructional leadership.

The administrators converted a large classroom in the center of the school into a teacher workroom. The workroom provided a space for teachers to come together, share ideas, and learn from each other. This was not a typical teacher workroom with a copier and worktables but one that was more like a library or conference room. A number of tables had been grouped together to form a large square table where 30 or so individuals could sit comfortably around it. Shelves had been installed around the room and filled with a large number of books and journals; some of the books and journal were from the instructional guide?s personal collection and others were bought with the $30,000 saved from combining the administrative positions.

Teachers were especially proud of this room and described it as being "even better than Brighter Child (a local favorite teachers? bookstore)." They also appreciated being able to check out the books and journals by simply signing their name on a sheet of paper.

With the distribution of expertise and leadership came long hours of hard work. Indeed, many of the teachers routinely worked a couple of hours after school, and they often worked during the weekend. Despite the long hours, not a single teacher complained of "burn-out." When asked about the absence of burn-out, teachers said they knew they were making a difference in the lives of the students. By seeing students change and grow as a result of their efforts, the long hours were bearable. Also, both teachers and administrators drew strength from each other to withstand the frustrations and disappointments that so often accompany school reform. Hard work became easier because it was a part of a team effort. Everyone worked hard to support each other, to support the team. Importantly, the school administrators modeled a strong work ethic and evidenced a willingness to go beyond what was required to support teachers and serve students well. As one teacher explained:

Ms. Warren and Ms. Payne set the example for us. Many evenings they are here until ten o'clock and they work long hours on weekends. Although they expect a great deal from us, they go out of they way to support us when we have to conduct personal business. If I tell them that I have to go to a doctor's appointment they find someone to take care of my class or many times, they cover my class for me.

Many long hours were spent in the teacher workroom. In time, the room became one of the most important spaces in the school. It was in this room that school members met to celebrate successes, examine failures, analyze data, and invent new approaches to supporting each other and their students. It was also in this room that the alignment of the curriculum began.

Changing Academic Instruction:
Alignment of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment

Both administrators recognized that the traditional school schedule constrained teachers from engaging in meaningful conversations and collaboration about curriculum and instruction. The first step in fostering collaboration required developing a weekly schedule that ensured a block of uninterrupted planning time for each grade level with the instructional guide. These bi-weekly 90-minute sessions became known as Collaborative Planning and focused on "compacting the curriculum around themes at each grade level." The collaborative sessions began to change and reflect issues and concerns beyond determining the weekly curriculum such as curriculum alignment and assessment.

The process of curriculum alignment began gradually with teacher representatives from each grade level identifying science topics that could be integrated into thematic units. As teachers reviewed the curriculum, they realized that certain objectives were taught at every grade level while others were totally ignored. In some cases, the expected level of understanding of a specific science concept looked virtually the same at two or more grade levels. This discovery raised serious concerns and had a significant impact on the way teachers thought about the curriculum that was being taught across grade levels. As a result, teachers began professional conversations around such issues as standards, spiraling science strands, and the extension of specific topics. The teacher representatives learned to see beyond their own grade-level curriculum and work toward an aligned schoolwide science curriculum. In the process of creating an aligned science curriculum, teachers learned to work together and to make research-based instructional decisions. This process was replicated to align and evaluate the curriculum in other subjects.

Shortly after aligning the science curriculum, the district provided a half-day "brainstorming session" for all administrators and third through fifth-grade teachers for the purpose of developing a "road map for student improvement in mathematics." The Baskin staff was well prepared to take advantage of the brainstorming session, perhaps because of their successful experience in aligning the science curriculum and because of a useful mathematics seminar teachers had recently attended. Armed with new math strategies and a common focus, the teacher representatives identified gaps in the current mathematics curriculum, "problem-solved obstacles that would hinder implementation," and developed an assessment tool that teachers could use to monitor student growth. As teachers began to analyze student test data and identified mathematics objectives that students failed, an additional step was added, fine-tuning the curriculum. Grade-level teams now began to closely examine the mathematics curriculum and make adjustments that addressed the needs of their students. The needs of students began to direct the decisions made by the teachers about curricular and instructional strategies. As Payne explained:

The results were phenomenal. Student performance increased steadily as teachers continued to "fine-tune" the curriculum. In half a year teachers had increased student math performance significantly. By the end of the year, student performance in mathematics had increased over twenty percent. Teachers were now convinced that their students could attain academic success.

The following year, teachers set higher expectations for the students in mathematics and once again students met their expectations. Today, teachers continue to maintain high expectations for all of their students and to work toward finding a way to ensure that success is possible for every child. Other curricular areas were examined and school-wide approaches were developed, using student performance data (annual and longitudinal) and researched-based models in literacy and mathematics.

Changing the School Climate

The climate at Baskin was influenced through the development of a collective responsibility for student learning. Teachers came to feel a sense of responsibility for the academic success of all of the students. Also, the climate was influenced by the development of a reflective dialogue among the faculty around instructional issues. As trust increased, teachers were more willing to share instructional issues and reflect on how they might improve their practice. Additionally, the climate was influenced by the development of a greater sense of effectiveness among teachers. Through professional development, time spent together, and the support of school leaders, teachers came to believe that, together, they could dramatically improve the achievement of Baskin students.

Collective Responsibility for Student Learning

Significant gains in student achievement continued and in 1996 the school advanced to the state?s recognized rating which meant that 80 percent of the students had passed each of the TAAS sub-tests. Teachers were convinced that their efforts made a difference in the lives of their students. They set a new goal: exemplary status. Numerous meetings were held during which student performance data were discussed openly and honestly. Teachers reported that they did not feel "threatened by these discussions" because of the norms of collaboration that had been established early on. For example, administrators always began the meetings by asking permission to share the data across grade levels and stating:

We are going to look at the data, not to make or pass judgment on the individual teacher but to help each other with the areas where we are having difficulty. Those of us who can share some insight about how to help each other can help everyone grow and all the students will be more successful.

The following year the school again received a recognized rating and did not meet its goal of achieving exemplary status. School members decided to meet over the spring break at the home of the instructional guide for a "no fault-finding, problem-solving session." Almost everyone on the staff, including the school secretary, attended the meeting. As they carefully analyzed student performance data once again, they identified a small group of students across grade levels that was not performing at the expected levels in some or all of the sub-tests. They developed a number of strategies to create more learning opportunities for both teachers and students. Everyone at the meeting volunteered and accepted additional assignments for the remainder of the semester. At the end of the meeting teachers recalled, "We were laughing and crying and hugging one another. We even high-fived each other. We realized we could all be winners. We didn?t have to blame anyone but simply work smarter."

This meeting was important not only in developing a plan for raising achievement, but also for increasing the level of collective responsibility for student learning and the level of trust that existed among school members. At the meeting, the school personnel had once again publicly acknowledged and assumed responsibility for the learning of all the children in the school. As one teacher explained, "We truly care about the success of each child, and a student who is not learning is everybody?s problem. We feel we are a team and we are going to do whatever it takes."

The sense of collective responsibility meant that every teacher had a stake in each child?s success, but also, they had a stake in every other teacher?s success. As another teacher explained:

The other day we had a networking meeting and some of the teachers said that they were having trouble teaching context clues. Later that day I was reading one of those teacher magazines and I found a whole section on teaching context clues so I made a copy for everyone in the school, including the principal. I think all of us do things like that. We don?t think of it as our classroom and our own personal problem. We share information and we help each other.

The meeting was also instrumental in generating a new level of trust among school members. Although teachers had been told numerous times by the administrators, "TAAS is a measurement of the school?s programs, not the individual teacher?s abilities" some of the teachers said they felt a sense of "silent peer pressure" to perform at certain levels. A few of the teachers wondered what would happen to them or to other teachers if they were not able to maintain the high standards set by the school. They were somewhat apprehensive about attending the meeting. At the meeting, however, as the teachers and administrators pored over student performance data, no mention was made of individual teacher performance but instead the discussion centered on ways to help one another and the students. In fact, the meeting started with a celebration of the hard work that had been done the previous year.

The norms of collegiality and collaboration in the school were now stronger than before. Teachers understood that giving and receiving help was not a sign of failure or incompetence but simply part of the school?s quest for continuous improvement. As one teacher explained:

Maybe at another school a teacher will be afraid to say she doesn?t know something for fear that she is going to be perceived as incompetent. We don?t have that barrier here. We all help each other. After teaching the upper grades for a long time, I was really struggling when I started to teach second grade. The other teachers offered to tutor me. We did team teaching and they actually tutored me.

Teachers reported that they were "closer than ever before" and found themselves being more open and honest with one another. One teacher described an incident in which she disagreed with and inadvertently offended another teacher during one of the networking meetings. She said, "The teacher came up to me after the meeting and told me she was really angry about what I had said and that she wanted to talk with me. We did and that was the end of that. And that?s the way we deal with disagreements. We talk about it and continue working together."

At the end of that year the school achieved its goal of exemplary status. The deepening levels of mutual support, respect, and trust that developed among the school members have led to conversations that have played and continue to play a critical role in the transformation of the school. Initially, discussions among school members centered around grade-level issues and concerns but as teachers came to view themselves as part of the same endeavor, the conversations broadened to include school-wide organizational teaching practices and their impact on student learning and performance. The principal said, "Eventually it became necessary to create a second opportunity where teachers could discuss and problem-solve instructional issues across grade levels. We created networking sessions held after school on a regular basis." It was during the networking sessions that teachers began to engage in reflective dialogue on a consistent basis.

Reflective Dialogue

The principal, during the initial interview, frequently and consistently used the term "conversation." When asked about the use of this term instead of other commonly used terms such as "communication" or "discussion" she began by explaining that she wanted to engage and treat the teachers the way that she hoped teachers would engage and treat their students. She wanted the teachers to treat their students with the utmost respect and to encourage and support them in their learning. She did not want to simply give information to teachers or to tell them what to do, but to engage with them in a reciprocal exchange of ideas, debate, and compromise.

During a follow-up interview, the principal indicated that three years of training in cognitive coaching had influenced and shaped many of her views about leadership and professional development. She explained that cognitive coaching is organized around three major goals: (1) establishing and maintaining trust, (2) encouraging mutual learning, and (3) enhancing growth toward "holonomy" (holonomy is used to represent the twin goals of individual autonomy and collaboration). The role of the coach in cognitive coaching is helping individuals thrive, not only on their own terms but also as members of the school community.

The influence of this training is most evident in the way that the principal conducted the networking sessions. During these sessions, teachers were encouraged to frame problems, examine existing practices critically, and decide whether to keep or adapt elements that met the needs of their students or to reject those that did not. Teachers were also encouraged to think creatively and experiment with new ideas. One teacher said, "One of the things that we don?t do at this school is to think that we can be more successful by simply adding programs. We are constantly looking at what we are already doing and refining it and thinking of ways to make it better."

According to the teachers, the principal models this reflective behavior. When the school receives a district directive, she will talk with the teachers and ask, "Will this [directive] help us or hinder our progress?" Invariably the discussion will focus on students. If the directive does not meet student needs, the principal finds a way to negotiate an alternative with district leaders. The district applauds this type of reflection and questioning. The instructional steward asserted, "My role is to push the principals to question. I want them to understand that every decision and every choice they make affects student learning. That is what accountability is all about."

As the teachers continued to engage in reflective dialogue, they changed the way they related to students and how they taught. They no longer viewed themselves as "dispensers of information." One teacher said:

After I tried some of the teaching strategies we talked about during our planning, collaborative, and networking sessions, I realized that the children were learning better. They were being challenged and I didn?t give them the answers for everything. They were giving me the answers and were beginning to think on their own. I noticed it was a much better way of teaching.

Teachers also changed the way they grouped students for instruction; using assessment strategies to determine which instructional group best met the academic needs of their students. Students moved in and out of flexible groups as their achievement levels changed. For example, students who were in at-risk situations received small group instruction (three-to-one ratio) after school twice a week. Teachers used weekly assessments to determine the focus of these sessions.

Students at each grade level who scored 79 percent or less on the math and reading portion of the TAAS were grouped together for daily instruction. One grade-level teacher and a supporting professional member worked closely with these students for a set period of time. In addition, reading and math events were held for students who scored 80 percent or above on the TAAS. During these sessions, students were encouraged to do collaborative problem solving with their teachers or with other students.

These flexible-grouping strategies provided multiple benefits for both teachers and students. Teachers had additional opportunities to observe each other teach and to consult with one another. Similarly, students were able to develop close relationships with more than one teacher and to interact with other students in the school. In addition, students were provided with multiple opportunities to learn at their own pace. As a result, many students were able to increase their level of academic achievement and there were many "student success stories." One of the teachers related a story that had special meaning for her:

When Andy came to my room he did not care what happened to him. Andy started attending the Aim High tutoring [small group tutoring] held after school and he was always the first one there; he also came early every morning. On the day of TAAS testing [math portion], he was really nervous but after a while he calmed down. I later noticed he was writing a lot so I glanced at his work and saw he was writing a paragraph for each problem he was solving. He was providing a rationale for each of the steps he was using in solving the problems. At the end of school year, Andy and his parents came to see me. They wanted to thank me because for the first time he had received the support and the opportunities needed to be successful.

Increased Teacher Efficacy

When the two new administrators arrived at the school they found hard-working teachers who felt overwhelmed by the problems children were bringing to school. Many of the teachers perceived they were working alone and felt uncertain about their ability to teach the children. The administrators said that during the first year they engaged in numerous conversations with teachers "to convince them to focus on what they could control and to ignore what they could not."

A turning point was the viewing of a video on paradigm shifts and the conversations that followed. The teachers realized that, in many ways, they could create their own future at the school. They slowly stopped seeing obstacles and instead saw challenges and opportunities to learn to work more effectively. Indeed, during a meeting with all school staff members, one of the teachers said, "We are like a good athletic team. When we step out onto the field, we know we are going to win. Whatever challenges come our way, we know we are going to be successful." After the teacher made this comment, the teachers spontaneously burst into applause, cheering, and laughter.

How was this sense of efficacy and commitment developed at the school? The district-wide and on-site professional development activities coupled with the collaborative and network sessions and the recognized and the exemplary ratings certainly all played important roles in creating the individual and collective sense of efficacy one finds at the school. The teachers, however, identified other factors that led to change and improvement.

The new administrators, upon their arrival at the school, initiated a practice of going out to eat once a week with school staff members. As one teacher explained, "This was a time when we began to see and know each other as individuals and to trust each other. We began to feel safe with one another and so it made it easier to learn from and with each other."

This time spent together helped build a sense of trust and unity that led teachers to believe they were not alone. As another teacher explained, "By doing things outside of school we learned to trust each other. I know I am not alone and that if I need help or support everyone in the school is there for me. This sense of togetherness gives me a strong sense of security to try new things? to take risks."

As the teachers changed the way they related to each other and to students, the students changed, as well. For example, students no longer went to the adults in the school to announce that they "had been good" but instead now shared their test scores and grades with each other and talked about what they were learning. Students were not only proud of their own accomplishments but also those of their peers.

Other factors contributed to this sense of efficacy throughout the school. Staff members believed that Payne and Warren provided leadership in a manner that helped them to understand their students and embrace the changes that were necessary to transform their school. According to teachers, their leadership "was not the charismatic type of leadership one is always reading about," rather it was a type of quiet and subtle leadership that gently reminded them of the mission of their school and helped them to re-connect to one another and to their students.

Both principals downplayed their roles in the transformation of Baskin Elementary School; instead they credited the teachers, parents, staff, students, and district leadership for the school?s success. However, both principals had well-defined notions of leadership and acted accordingly. They both felt strongly that they had a moral obligation to see that children were well served and that teachers were supported in their efforts on behalf of the children. Specifically, Payne said:

Leadership involves trusting the people who work with you, honoring their strengths, providing them opportunities to grow in new areas without the fear of failing, and including them in the decisions that affect them and their students. I believe that every individual has within him or her the potential to make a significant contribution to others and as a principal, I strive to create opportunities for all staff members to develop and share their talents.

Indeed, both leaders created a critical set of supportive conditions where both children and adults could grow, create, and take risks in an environment of safety. As has been mentioned, they created the role of instructional guide (before the district did) so teachers could have support and learning opportunities at the school. They also provided space, time, and opportunities for teachers to engage in collaborative planning, reflective dialogue, and team teaching. Teachers were also given numerous opportunities to attend district-wide "content-deepening" sessions and other professional development activities.

Both principals described their primary role as that of teacher and learner. They led largely by example. They taught the skills needed to build a learning community and tried to model trust, authenticity, commitment, and partnership. Through both words and actions, Payne and Warren conveyed to the teachers that they trusted and respected their abilities to teach the students. One teacher, in particular, noted that her sense of efficacy was strongly influenced by this assumption of competence. She related:

During the first week of my first year of teaching I learned that 85 percent of my students had never passed the TAAS. I felt so overwhelmed that when I arrived home that evening I cried. I wanted my students to be successful but I didn?t know if I could help them. The next morning I told Carmen Payne that I wanted to resign. She listened attentively to my fears and concerns and then she gently reminded me that I was not working alone at Baskin and that she and others would help and support me. After I calmed down, she suggested that we review the data and we discovered that the students were weakest in the areas of measurement and geometry. We worked together and generated a number of strategies to help the students. She never told me what to do but instead encouraged me to find my own solutions. I didn?t quit and today 100 percent of my students pass the TAAS.

Changing Relationships with Parents and the Community

The learning community concept at Baskin involved students, teachers, and administrators, but also extended to parents and community members as well. Indeed, both the administrators and teachers were working to form partnerships with parents and transform the school into a "learning center" that fostered the well being of the community and its people. Teachers and administrators envisioned the school becoming a place that would be open during the evenings and on weekends with many opportunities for faculty, parents, and students to learn and work together.

From the beginning, however, the new administrators knew they would have to win the confidence and respect of a group of parents who had long been displeased with the school. In the early 1990s this group of parents recognized that many of their children were not receiving a quality education. The parents were concerned that some of the teachers did not seem to know how to relate to the children and often seemed to come to class unprepared to teach the children.

Some of the parents withdrew their children from the school and enrolled them in private schools, but many others chose to continue sending their children to Baskin. The new administrators reached out to these parents. They made the school more welcoming to parents and more accessible by scheduling meetings when it was most convenient to parents. For example, early morning meetings were held in the library and teachers and administrators stood outside the school and invited parents to come in and have coffee and doughnuts as they dropped off the children in the morning. Videotapes were shown of classes, new instructional programs, and strategies so parents could be more informed about the school?s instructional program. At these early morning meetings administrators and teachers were also available to answer questions or listen to concerns. Parents also knew that they were welcome to observe classes. Several times during the year parent-teacher conferences were scheduled in the evenings and childcare services were provided.

At Baskin, parents are not viewed simply as supporters, but also as planners and partners in the instructional process. Several parents are members of the Instructional Leadership Team (ILT). At first, parents were reluctant to express opinions and to participate in making decisions, but as trust was established, parents grew more confident. One of the parents on the ILT said:

At first I didn?t say much during these meetings but the other team members made me feel that what I said was important. Whenever I didn?t understand an issue or instructional strategy they would explain it to me. I now feel more confident in expressing my views and I know what I say is taken seriously. I have gained enormous respect for the work of the teachers and the principal. I see how they struggle to make the right and best decisions for the children.

Although the school still has not become the learning center that the administrators, teachers, and parents envision, it has made tremendous progress in connecting to the community. Parents and community members are proud of the progress the school has made. One of the parents said:

I deliver computer equipment to all the districts in the San Antonio area. Several years ago I delivered about thirty or so computers to a school in a northeast district and I saw the difference in their school and our school. Our school had a few computers and they had so many more computers. I began to feel really bad because I saw I wasn?t providing for my children the way I should. You see, I thought if I made more money we could live in Alamo Heights and my children could go to that school and get a really good education. But now that Baskin is an exemplary school I feel so proud and happy. My children are getting a good education even though we live in a poor neighborhood.

Conclusions

In sum, both administrators and teachers at Baskin Elementary School exemplify what Burns (1974) refers to as "transforming leadership." They engage with one another in such a way that they raise one another to higher levels of personal and professional development and accountability. Their separate dreams and aspirations of making a difference in the lives of their students have become fused and it is this common purpose that gives heart and meaning to their work. Moreover, both teachers and administrators recognize that they must keep learning and changing so that they can continue to provide a quality education for their students and it is this commitment to mutual learning that binds the group together.

[Harriet A. Baldwin Elementary School]

[Burgess Elementary School]