Reforming Districts: How Districts Support School Reform. A Research Report. Document R-03-6

Autor/inn/en	McLaughlin, Milbrey; Talbert, Joan
Institution	Center for the Study of Teaching and Policy, Seattle, WA.
Titel	Reforming Districts: How Districts Support School Reform. A Research Report. Document R-03-6
Quelle	(2003), (40 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
Schlagwörter	School Restructuring; Educational Change; School Districts; Outcomes of Education; Organizational Objectives; Teacher Administrator Relationship; Central Office Administrators; Strategic Planning; Labor Turnover; Educational Improvement; School Surveys; Leadership; Case Studies; California + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Schulreformplan; Schulumwandlung; Bildungsreform; School district; Schulbezirk; Lernleistung; Schulerfolg; Business goal; Unternehmensziel; Strategy; Planning; Strategie; Planung; Teaching improvement; Unterrichtsentwicklung; Führung; Führungsposition; Case study; Fallstudie; Case Study; Kalifornien
Abstract	School districts have participated in multiple rounds of education reform activity in the past few decades, yet few have made headway on system-wide school improvement. This paper addresses the questions of whether districts matter for school reform progress and what successful "reforming" districts do to achieve system change and to navigate the pitfalls associated with system change efforts. Using multi-level survey data and four-year case studies of three reforming California districts, the paper offers new evidence of district effects on school reform progress and improved student outcomes and develops a picture of a reforming district. The reforming districts featured in this analysis offer instructive exception to conventional wisdom--or myths--about district reform. One myth predicts that teachers and principals will resist a strong district role. Yet, our research provides evidence that a weak central office in fact limits schools' reform progress, while a strong district role is effective and welcomed when it uses a strategic conception of responsibilities and leadership between system levels. A second myth about district reform holds that turnover or personnel "churn" will derail efforts to establish and sustain a consistent reform agenda. While this statement is true in many instances, in two districts studied, turnover in top leadership positions did not trigger significant change in district priorities or norms because planning processes and inclusive communication strategies over time had embedded them in district culture. A third myth asserts that local politics will defeat a serious reform agenda; yet, leaders in each reforming district articulated unambiguous goals and priorities and, with strong board support developed over many years, were able to navigate local political waters and protect a strong district role. Each of the reforming districts studied was a self-conscious "learning organization," investing in system-wide learning--in the central office, in schools, in cross-school teacher networks, and in units such as the business office that typically are excluded from professional development focused on instruction. This research suggests that taking the district system as the "unit of change" is essential to advancing equitable and sustainable reform. (Contains 3 figures and 1 table. Appended are: (1) Teacher Survey Scales; (2) District Administrator Survey Scales; (3) District Reform Indicators: Intercorrelations; and (4) District Demographics and Reform Indicators.) (Author).
Anmerkungen	Center for the Study of Teaching and Policy (CTP). University of Washington, Box 353600, Seattle, WA 98195-3600. Tel: 206-221-4114; Fax: 206-616-8158; e-mail: ctpmail@u.washington.edu; Web site: http://www.ctpweb.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10