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<br />Page 24 - Tri-City Newsletter, May/Julie 1985 .
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<br />Effective Schools/Schoo.llmprovement Process
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<br />Even in the best of schools,
<br />there is room for improve-
<br />ment. With that in mind,
<br />Anoka-Hennepin School Dis-
<br />trict 11 has begun an Effective
<br />Schools/School Improvement
<br />Process designed to improve
<br />all schools throughout the dis-
<br />trict.
<br />The School Board gave final
<br />approval recently to a plan that
<br />will serve as a blueprint for im-
<br />plementing the Effective
<br />Schools/School Improvement
<br />Process in Anoka-Hennepin.
<br />Effective Schools is a com-
<br />prehensive systematic "pro-
<br />cess for improving schools,
<br />but, Superintendent Lewis
<br />Finch stressed that "it's not a
<br />magic recipe that you apply to
<br />schools to solve all your prob-
<br />lems. It's time consuming and
<br />it takes a lot of work'- It is a
<br />,continuing process - .not
<br />something you do and then
<br />move on to something else."
<br />In brief, Effective Schools is
<br />a process designed to help
<br />schools identify educational
<br />practices in their own build-
<br />ings that are not effective and
<br />replace them with practices
<br />that will' increase student
<br />achievement.
<br />"A lot of ideas for improving
<br />schools are bein.g tossed
<br />around, including the Gover-
<br />nor's proposal for an open
<br />vouchure system," said Dr.
<br />Finch, referring to Governor
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<br />Rudy Perpich's plan that
<br />would 'allow students to at.
<br />tend the school of their choice
<br />anywhere'in the state.
<br />But of all the plans put forth
<br />to improve schools, the Effec-
<br />tive Schools/School Improve-
<br />ment Process through which
<br />Anoka-Hennepin is working is
<br />"the only one that is support-
<br />ed by research," according to
<br />Dr. Finch.
<br />"There. is documented evi-
<br />dence 'and experience to show
<br />that it really does work. Effec-
<br />tive Schools results in increas-
<br />ed student achievement."
<br />Researchers first defined an
<br />effective school as one in
<br />which students reach a high
<br />level of achievement, and, that
<br />level of achievement does not
<br />vary significantly from one
<br />segment of the population to
<br />another. That means minority
<br />students can do as well in
<br />school as whites, females as
<br />well as males, and low income
<br />students as well as those from
<br />middle and upper class
<br />families.
<br />After observing schools that
<br />they believed were particularly
<br />effective, researchers listed
<br />the characteristics those
<br />schools had in common - char-
<br />acteristics that seemed to set
<br />them apart from schools that
<br />were not as effective.
<br />Those characteristics, now
<br />included as part of the Anoka-
<br />
<br />Hennepin plan, are:
<br />-positive school climate
<br />-clear and focused school
<br />mission .
<br />. ~strong instructional lead-
<br />ership .
<br />-high expectations for suc-
<br />cess
<br />-opportunity to learn - ef~
<br />fective instruction
<br />-frequent monitoring of
<br />student progress
<br />-parental and community
<br />understanding and support
<br />"Effective Schools does not
<br />represent a drastic departure
<br />from what we have been do'
<br />ing," said Superintendent
<br />Finch. "I see it as an umbrella
<br />or coordinating factor for
<br />things we have been doing for
<br />several years to improve our
<br />schools." He cited such
<br />things as the strong emphasis
<br />the schoel district places on
<br />staff development programs
<br />aimed at making teachers as '
<br />effective' as possible, a well-
<br />defined process for cur-
<br />riculum development, and an
<br />extensive Teacher Perform-
<br />ance Review System through
<br />which individual teachers are
<br />given. positive comments on
<br />ways to improve their teaching
<br />skills.
<br />Because of the large size of
<br />the school district, the Effec-
<br />tive Schools/School Improve-
<br />ment Process will be imple-
<br />mented in three phases, with
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<br />How Effective Schools Began
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<br />Back in the 1960's James
<br />Coleman issued a rather dis-
<br />turbing report that spurred
<br />educators to ,take a hard look'
<br />at schools.
<br />Coleman concluded that
<br />home and family circum-
<br />stances - rather than school
<br />and .teacher - are the greatest.
<br />determinant of a child's aca.
<br />demic success.
<br />"That idea was interpreted
<br />by some people to mean that
<br />schools really don't make a
<br />difference," said Deputy
<br />Superintendent David Wetter-
<br />gren.
<br />"Public policy makers who
<br />believed this and wanted to
<br />have an impact on kids would
<br />be inclined to put more money
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<br />into welfare programs and
<br />other things that would im-
<br />prove a child's home environ-
<br />ment and thus the child's
<br />chance of success in school."
<br />But Ron Edmonds, another
<br />prominant educator, did not
<br />believe Coleman's conclusion
<br />made much sense. Edmonds
<br />had seen successful students
<br />in schools located in some of
<br />the roughest, p'oorest areas of
<br />the country.. Unlike Coleman,
<br />he concluded that schools,
<br />rather .than homes, largely
<br />determine student achieve-
<br />ment, and, that all children can
<br />experience success in school.
<br />"In other, words," explained
<br />Wettergren, ,"Coleman said,
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<br />schools do 'make a
<br />difference."
<br />. Edmonds then studied
<br />. those successful schools to
<br />pinpoint just what factors
<br />made them successful. His re-
<br />search formed the basis of the
<br />Effective Schools movement
<br />that is now sweeping the na-
<br />tion.
<br />Armed with the knowledge
<br />that schools do make a differ-
<br />,ence, educators began to
<br />make plans for ways to im-
<br />prove their own schools. They
<br />based those plans on the char-
<br />acteristics that Edmonds
<br />identified in effective schools,
<br />thus the Effective Schools
<br />movement was born.
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<br />roughly one-third of the
<br />schools beginning the pro-
<br />gram each year. Phase I
<br />schools began the process at
<br />the beginning of this year,
<br />Phase II schools will begin
<br />next fall, and Phase III schools
<br />begin the following year.
<br />The Effective Schools Pro.
<br />cess in each school win be
<br />directed by. a "leadership
<br />team" consisting of the princi-
<br />pal and five to ten teachers.
<br />The primary task of the leader-
<br />ship team will be to study its
<br />school and' identify areas that
<br />need improvement: The teams
<br />will then develop and imple-
<br />ment plans to make those im-
<br />. provements. .
<br />This first year of the Effec-
<br />tive Sch.ools Process has been
<br />dev'oted primarily to educating
<br />staff about the process. Mem-
<br />bers of the school leadership
<br />teams and central administra-
<br />tors have attended several
<br />workshops designed to give
<br />them a working knowledge of
<br />the Effective Schools. Pro-
<br />gram.
<br />In conjunction with the Ef-
<br />,fective Schools Process, the
<br />School Board adopted a new
<br />mission statement for the
<br />district - all Anoka.Hennepin
<br />students will learn. .
<br />By next fall, leadership
<br />teams in Phase I schools will
<br />co"'d...c' b.. d"~ assess.
<br />ments to determine how
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<br />closely their schools match
<br />the characteristics of an effec-
<br />tive school. The following
<br />spring the teams will develop
<br />action plans for making im.
<br />provements in thei r schools.
<br />They will implement those
<br />plans in the fall of 1986. Phase
<br />II and Phase III schools will
<br />follow roughly the same plan.
<br />The Effective Schools Pro-
<br />cess is under the direction of a
<br />district-wide central steering
<br />committee, which consists of
<br />nine teachers, two principals,
<br />staff development coordinator
<br />and the administrator for Ef-
<br />fective Schools. Jerry Lerom,
<br />former assistant principal at
<br />Coon Rapids Junior High
<br />School, was recently appoint.
<br />ed by the School Board to a
<br />special assignment as Admini-
<br />strator for Effective. Schools.
<br />He will, work with Deputy
<br />Superintendent David Wetter-
<br />gren in supervising develop-
<br />ment and implementation of
<br />the Effective Schools/School
<br />Improvement Process.
<br />Lerom is excited about his
<br />special assignment because
<br />he believes in the Effective
<br />Schools Process.
<br />"I believe the school district
<br />has. much to gain from this
<br />process," he said. "It's not
<br />just a fad, but it is founded in
<br />research and it has proven to
<br />be a c'ed b'e ;.0::.30...... .......p..
<br />ever It has been useo.
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<br />. Mickey Barnes, Brooklyn Center, and a senior at Anoka
<br />Senior High School received a check for $75 for his slide en.
<br />try in the American School Food Service Association calen-
<br />dar picture contest.
<br />The slide depicted the YAC.O-TACO project conducted by
<br />the Youth Advisory Council at Anoka Senior High School.
<br />In addition to the check, a reproduction of his slide will
<br />appear in the association's annual calendar next year.
<br />Here Mickey poses with Esther Campbell, cook manager
<br />at Anoka Senior High School.
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<br />Wil'sonSchool
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<br />Students at Wilson School
<br />learned how much fun it is to
<br />make stories-come to life with
<br />puppets during a week long
<br />puppet workshop.
<br />The Minnesota MelikinPup-
<br />pet Theater started the week
<br />with a p'rofessional puppet
<br />show for the children in all
<br />grade levels. Then, puppeteer
<br />Crystal Livsay spent some
<br />time with each class giving
<br />students a chance to try work-
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<br />Crystal Livsay of the Minnesota Melikin Puppet Theater demonstrated how to
<br />make and use puppets during a week long program at Wilson School.
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<br />ing with simple puppets.
<br />"My biggest desire is simply
<br />to get the children willi,ng to
<br />try the puppets and the puppet
<br />theater. The children enjoy
<br />watching puppet shows, but
<br />they are a little hesitant about
<br />trying the puppets them-
<br />.selves. Some of the younger
<br />ones are almost afraid to come
<br />into the puppet theater," said
<br />Livsay. .
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<br />She showed children how
<br />simple, but very effective pup.
<br />pets can be made from com-
<br />mon objects such ,as small
<br />paper sacks, socks, gloves
<br />and even a pair of old bedroom
<br />slippers.
<br />Many students made their
<br />own puppets and then went in-
<br />to the puppet theater to use
<br />them in shows for other stu.
<br />dents.
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