NCA CASI e-NEWS December 2004

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e-News is a bi-monthly newsletter of the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI). The mission of e-News is to provide you with up-to-date information to aid you in your ongoing efforts to continually improve student achievement. To subscribe or unsubscribe, go to Your Profile at the NCA CASI website.

Talking to Administrators About the School Improvement Model Transitions:
Going Beyond NCLB

By Dr. Trudy Salsberry and Dr. Teresa Miller, Kansas State University
Adapted and reprinted with permission from the Spring 2004 issue of Catalyst for Change: The Journal of the National School Development Council

One model showing great promise for both meeting the 'test' of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and serving the needs of individual students is Transitions, a school improvement model developed by the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI). Developed in the early 1990s, the Transitions model was designed as a tool to assist schools with meeting the needs of each student.

The Transitions model requires the credentialing of individual students in academics, career awareness/exploration, and employability skills, and works to ensure that children are prepared to be successful as they move from home to school, school-to-school, and, ultimately, to their chosen career (NCA CASI, 2001). Click here to view a description of the requirements of the model.

Outcomes Using Transitions
In reviewing the efficacy of the Transitions model, the authors reviewed descriptive literature and conducted formal and informal interviews. Formal interviews (tape recorded and transcribed verbatim) cited in the following discussion include administrators and teachers from Grandview Elementary in Clarenceville, Michigan; Elm Dale Elementary School in Greenfield, Wisconsin; and Liberty Elementary School in Galena, Kansas. All three schools were among the first in the NCA CASI region to implement the Transitions model. The interviews revealed several promising outcomes detailed below.

Outcome 1: Transitions meets and exceeds NCLB data management requirements and requirements for student success.
The Transitions process of credentialing each student goes beyond what is required by NCLB. Susan New, Principal of Liberty Elementary School in Galena, Kansas, said, "It's kind of like we've gotten a jump start. The number one thing was that it [Transitions] focused on individual students and what we could do for them. Now, we know the kids by name; we know their needs and what helps them." Her school's profile reflects increased test scores overall and successful adequate yearly progress (AYP) in both reading and math for 2003.

Outcome 2: Transitions involves all community stakeholders.
Transitions guides school leaders through a process of building support-first with staff, then parents, and then the larger community. Administrators who have implemented the process indicate that the process of building support is lengthy, but results over time in a strong commitment from the whole community.

Part of the credentialing process in the Transitions model requires parents and students to discuss the student's progress with the teacher and sign a statement indicating they understand the credentialing process. A hidden surprise of parent involvement was how informative the process was to parents. Susan New was impressed by the increased parent involvement, "You can't believe how many people take off work for the conferencing. They have set that day aside and are excited about finding out information. Our community is more educated about the whole subject of school and education and what's going on."

Outcome 3: Transitions focuses on individual students, not just those groups of students whose scores are below the proficient categories.
Transitions requires schools to maintain records of individual student progress for all students and determine whether each student is performing well enough to be successful in the next school/life transition. After completing one full cycle of Transitions, Clarenceville teachers now have access to five years of data about their students, what interventions have been tried and the results of those interventions. Teachers meet each August to review student progress. According to Barb Church, "Each teacher gets his or her list of students who are not credentialed, and then they have time to meet with teachers from the grade before, talk with them about what they did, and then start working on the intervention plans for the upcoming year. When the student walks in the first day of school, the teacher is aware that this is a student who needs extra help and has some things in mind to start with. We also have a portfolio on each student…all of these data are available for each teacher."

Outcome 4: Transitions goes beyond the teacher quality issues mentioned in NCLB to increased teacher empowerment and growth.
Hiring highly qualified teachers is an important step in increasing student achievement. However, those teachers must also be empowered to change the system within their schools. Schools using the model affirmed the increase in teacher empowerment that results from using Transitions. At Elm Dale Elementary, the teachers came to the principal with the suggestion of adopting the Transitions model. Teacher Deborah Mitchell shared, "Teachers saw the benefits and we became a teacher team of leaders. Staff involvement was better and it helped us get better at what we do with kids."

As teachers began talking with other teachers, they began to have a better understanding of their role in improving individual student achievement. The articulation conversations [between grade levels and sending and receiving schools] helped them make changes in their classrooms and the school structure to improve student achievement. Subsequent conversations allowed teachers to interact in new ways with specific data about individual student performance. Grade level discussions took on a new look as the awareness increased as to what was going on at each grade level. Teachers began sharing new ways to help with the grade levels/outcomes where students were struggling.

Outcome 5: Transitions causes shifts in the infrastructure of the entire organization.
The Transitions process causes staff members to examine systems and develop changes to allow more quality time to work with and for students. The Liberty Elementary School staff worked together to arrange for set early release times in the master schedule. At Clarenceville, Michigan, Barb Church indicated, "Teachers now use their professional growth time for articulation between grade levels and for assessment work needed to assess and credential each student. Money was put into the budget to do whatever we needed to do, including stipends to pay teachers, which said, 'we value your time.'"

Outcome #6: Transitions changes the school leadership roles.
The Transitions model supports changes in the leadership structure. It is designed to be teacher-led and administrator-supported. Susan New described the changes in her role as principal. "When I moved into the principal's position, it was more of my job to provide leadership…. now my job is facilitating. I have to be a teacher supporter and help them in getting things done for kids." Ellen Demray of Grandview Elementary worked closely with her teacher leaders, knew what was going on, and looked for resources to support those efforts. She described the shift as "having to trust that my staff would make the best decisions for the children."

Summary
Numerous activities and programs currently exist to meet the guidelines for NCLB. Many are disconnected from the realities of school and are often myopic views of school improvement. The Transitions model goes beyond the minimum requirements of NCLB, is more than a compliance model, and moves the nature of teaching toward an emphasis on leadership for improved student performance. Further, it is aligned with current research about ways to improve schools and student achievement (Togneri and Anderson, 2003). The Transitions model specifies a process that is continuous, flexible, and guides institutions toward making long-term changes in their organizations. Schools seeking higher achievement for students than that required by NCLB, desiring a powerful professional growth experience for staff, and needing an increased valuing of educators' efforts by the whole community should consider the Transitions model.

Click here to view references and information about the authors. Contact your NCA CASI state office to learn more about the Transitions model - 800-525-9517.

Resources
There are many resources available for schools and districts that are focused on ensuring each child is prepared to be successful in his/her next grade or transition. We have identified several good resources from NCA CASI Transitions schools that we would like to share with you. Click here to view them.

Best Practice Sharing from a School Implementing Transitions
"School improvement does not happen in the principal's office," states Linda Wandtke, Principal of Elm Dale Elementary School. "It happens in the classroom." Located in Greenfield, Wisconsin, Elm Dale serves 425 students in grades K-5. The school is implementing NCA CASI's Transitions school improvement model. Since 1997-98, the school has experienced statistically verifiable gains in student performance in reading, language, and math. Click here http://www.ncacasi.org/publications/eseries/2004-01-bfax.pdf to find out how the school has achieved these results.

Mayfield City School District
Located in the eastern suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio, Mayfield City School District is actively pursuing Transitions and District Accreditation. Click here to read an interview with Superintendent Dr. Phil Price where he describes how he is using these two frameworks as long-term planning tools to exceed the requirements of NCLB and apply for his state's quality award.

Gadsden School District
Gadsden Independent School District serves approximately 13,000 students in one of the poorest areas of New Mexico. All of the district's elementary and middle schools are Title I Schoolwide Projects. The district looks at No Child Left Behind as a challenge, a challenge to make sure that all of its students receive a top-notched education and are progressing to the best of their abilities. Teachers, principals, and central office administrators have designed a unified instructional system focused on student learning to meet this challenge: Balanced Literacy in Two Languages. Click here to learn about the innovative ways this district is working to improve students' reading, writing, and math performance.

New Address. Our mailing address and street address have changed. Please be sure to update your records.
Mailing Address:
North Central Association
Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement
Arizona State University
P.O. Box 871008
Tempe, AZ 85287-1008

Our toll-free number remains the same: 800-525-9517. Our direct line has changed. The new number is 480-773-6900.

New Publications. We are pleased to announce two new publications designed to assist you with your assessment needs.

Register for NCA CASI's 110th Annual Meeting!
Every Student Every Step of the Way
April 17-20, 2005 - Chicago Downtown Marriott, Chicago, IL

Call for Presenters and Sponsors
NCA CASI is accepting presentations for the 110th Annual Meeting. To submit a presentation, visit www.ncacasi.org/event/meeting/cfp. We are also accepting organizations interested in sponsoring a booth or event at the meeting. For information on sponsorship opportunities, visit www.ncacasi.org/event/meeting/sponsor.

District Accreditation Workshops. NCA CASI is offering numerous workshops across the NCA CASI region on our new District Accreditation framework. The workshops introduce participants to systems thinking and provide the foundation needed to pursue District Accreditation. Visit http://www.ncacasi.org/district/districtworkshops for more information.

Mark the Date: 2005 Assessment Conference
March 3, 2005
Holiday Inn South, Lansing, Michigan
Keynote speaker: Dr. Tom Guskey, Professor, University of Kentucky
Visit http://www.nca.umich.edu/assessment_conference05.html to find out more.

School Improvement Specialist Program
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln/NCA CASI School Improvement Specialist Program is designed for school improvement officials like you who are developing a comprehensive school improvement plan. Participants actually develop their plan as they work through the program with insight and feedback from faculty and other participants. When the program is complete, participants have a model to implement, 12 graduate credits and the School Improvement Specialist credential from NCA CASI. New course sequences will begin each spring and fall semester. You still have time to join your colleagues in the next cohort, starting January 10. Visit http://extended.unl.edu/ncaimprove for more information about the program and how to enroll.

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North Central Association
Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement
P.O. Box 874705
Tempe, AZ 85287-4705
800-525-9517
http://www.ncacasi.org