Case Study Interview: District with a Challenge/Sabine Parish, Louisiana
The district's school improvement plan is focused on raising student achievement in English language arts and math, as well as strengthening school and community engagement. Sustaining financial support for needed programs and services and having adequate resources for staff development pose as serious challenges to the small district. There are major social service gaps in this rural area. There are virtually no recreational or leisure outlets. The schools have, for the most part, had to fill those gaps.
The district's school improvement plan is focused on raising student achievement in English language arts and math, as well as strengthening school and community engagement. Sustaining financial support for needed programs and services and having adequate resources for staff development pose as serious challenges to the small district. There are major social service gaps in this rural area. There are virtually no recreational or leisure outlets. The schools have, for the most part, had to fill those gaps.
- Windy Lopez, Senior Manager, Community Affairs, Scholastic
- James Wagley, Supervisor of Student Services, Sabine Parish School District
- Clay Corley, Director of Student Services, Sabine Parish School District
Institute Syllabus
Session 5
School Transformation is About Systemic Change
Key topics explored:
Reflect and Discuss:
Aids for Design Teams
Key topics explored:
- The challenge of getting from here to there
- Phases, steps, and linked logic models
- System change infrastructure and strategies
- The importance of expanding the accountability framework
Reflect and Discuss:
- What systemic changes are necessary for fully integrating a comprehensive system of learning supports into school improvement policy and practice?
- What mechanisms are necessary in effectively pursuing transformative change in schools and districts?
- Begin to formulate a plan for creating the readiness and commitment of staff and other stakeholders for moving forward to develop a comprehensive system of learning supports. If you are ready to move forward, establish a planning team and continue the process after the session.
Aids for Design Teams
- Generic outline for a design document for a comprehensive system of learning supports http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/studentsupport/toolkit/Genericoutline.pdf
- Templates for preparing sections of the design document http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/studentsupport/toolkit/sectiontemplates.pdf
- Overview of the Louisiana Comprehensive Learning Supports System
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/summit2002/lalearningsupport.pdf
- Case Study Interview: District with a Challenge/Sabine Parish, Louisiana
- Sustaining and Scale-up: It‘s About Systemic Change
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/Newsletter/Fall04.pdf
- Systemic Change for School Improvement
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/systemic/systemicchange.pdf - Change Agent Mechanisms for School Improvement: Infrastructure not Individuals
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/systemic/change agents.pdf - Rebuilding Toolkit
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/summit2002/resourceaids.htm - What's the Research-base for Moving Toward a Comprehensive System of Learning Supports?
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/summit2002/WhatstheEvidenceBase.pdf - Data Related to the Need for New Directions for School Improvement
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/summit2002/data.pdf - Overview of Standards and Accountability to Encompass a Learning Supports Component
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/studentsupport/toolkit/aidc.pdf