Search

School communities in both urban and rural settings need trauma-informed (TI) supports; however, the adversities experienced and access to student supports may be unique to rural school communities. In addition, the contextual challenges experienced by rural schools and communities, as well as the strengths that can be drawn from them, will require adaptations of the TI approaches. Therefore, this brief seeks to highlight the need for, and the importance of, implementing TI approaches in rural school communities, and shares recommendations for planning and implementation by schools and districts. The brief is intended for educators, leaders, and practitioners at the school, district, and state level who are in the initial stages of considering TI approaches and/or planning the implementation process. Section I provides an overview of the research on adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and the effects of trauma on learning and development. Section II provides an overview of TI approaches and critical components. Section III highlights ACEs and trauma-related issues experienced in rural school communities, offers strategies to implement the key elements of TI approaches, and addresses some of the potential challenges. Section IV discusses the implementation of TI approaches in rural contexts.

This report reviews the characteristics of 21 instruments that measure student engagement in upper elementary through high school. It summarizes what each instrument measures, describes its purposes and uses, and provides technical information on its psychometric properties. [For the full report, see ED514996.]

Stereotype threat arises from a fear among members of a group of reinforcing negative stereotypes about the intellectual ability of the group. This report identifies three randomized controlled trial studies that use classroom-based strategies to reduce stereotype threat and improve the academic performance of Black students, narrowing their achievement gap with White students. The three studies found positive impacts on the academic performance of Black students for the following social-psychological strategies: (1) Reinforce for students the idea that intelligence is expandable and, like a muscle, grows stronger when worked; (2) Teach students that their difficulties in school are often part of a normal learning curve or adjustment process, rather than something unique to them or their racial group; and (3) Help students reflect on other values in their lives beyond school that are sources of self-worth for them. It is noted that while the strategies use established procedures that can be emulated by teachers and administrators, they also require thought and care on the part of schools and teachers in applying them in their particular situations. Limitations of the studies are also identified. Three appendices are included: (1) Research on the Relationship between Stereotype Threat and Black Students' Academic Performance; (2) Methodology; and (3) Article Screening and Study Quality Review Protocols. (Contains 2 notes, 3 figures, 2 boxes and 7 tables.) ["Reducing Stereotype Threat in Classrooms: A Review of Social-Psychological Intervention Studies on Improving the Achievement of Black Students" was written with contributions from Bianca Montrosse, Karla Lewis and Kathleen Mooney. For the summary report, see ED506003.]

Stereotype threat arises from a fear among members of a group of reinforcing negative stereotypes about the intellectual ability of the group. This report identifies three randomized controlled trial studies that use classroom-based strategies to reduce stereotype threat and improve the academic performance of Black students, narrowing their achievement gap with White students. The three studies found positive impacts on the academic performance of Black students for the following social-psychological strategies: (1) Reinforcing for students the idea that intelligence is expandable and, like a muscle, grows stronger when worked; (2) Teaching students that their difficulties in school are often part of a normal learning curve or adjustment process, rather than something unique to them or their racial group; and (3) Helping students reflect on other values in their lives beyond school that are sources of self-worth for them. It is noted that while the strategies use established procedures that can be emulated by teachers and administrators, they also require thought and care on the part of schools and teachers in applying them in their particular situations. ["Reducing Stereotype Threat in Classrooms: A Review of Social-Psychological Intervention Studies on Improving the Achievement of Black Students" was written with contributions from Bianca Montrosse, Karla Lewis and Kathleen Mooney. For the full report, see ED506004.]

This descriptive report examines the strategies of the six Southeast Region states (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina) to improve high school graduation rates and student achievement and to increase the number of students leaving high school with the skills and knowledge necessary for the twenty-first century. These state-level strategies are organized into six themes or "levers for change": (1) Standards and assessments (Alignment of standards and assessments with expectations for post-secondary education and with twenty-first century skills); (2) Course requirement (Revised graduation requirements to include courses required for college and mandatory course sequences that make a stronger connection to work readiness); (3) Student support and access to courses (Increased student access to both the courses and the support they need through strategies such as virtual schools, support for Advanced Placement courses, and mandated remediation); (4) Model schools and practices (Creating new model high schools, redesigning existing schools, implementing specific practices such as career academies); (5) Local capacity-building (Building the capacity of local schools and districts to support reform by providing direct professional development or providing coaches or technical assistance teams at schools); and (6) Partnerships and public involvement (Establishing partnerships to support high school reform). State leaders are using their visibility to increase attention to high schools. Deciding which strategies within each lever have the highest potential for accomplishing the desired results is a challenge. Engaging states in a systematic examination of strategies can help states make sound decisions about what policies and interventions can best improve student learning in their state. The report provides information to help states engage in such a systematic process. The list of strategies described under each lever can give policymakers ideas about approaches to consider. But the authors do not mean to endorse every strategy or approach currently being used by states. Instead, policymakers should examine the research literature to discover what studies have found about a strategy's implementation issues and its effectiveness in improving student outcomes. Based on the research, policymakers will want to consider the appropriateness of using a specific strategy to improve student outcomes. This report introduces examples of the key research for each lever. After choosing a strategy, policymakers should monitor implementation of the strategy and evaluate its outcomes. The report concludes with three examples of ways states are currently evaluating strategies in three different levers. Appendixes include: Research methodology; State profiles providing more detailed description of how each of the six states in the Southeast Region use the six levers for change; and Protocols for collecting state-level information. (Contains 19 tables, 5 boxes, and 1 figure.) [This report was prepared for the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences (IES) by Regional Educational Laboratory Southeast administered by SERVE Center, University of North Carolina at Greensboro.]

When selecting reading across the curriculum interventions, educators should consider the extent of the evidence base on intervention effectiveness and the fit with the school or district context, whether they are purchasing a product from vendors or developing it internally. This report provides guidance in the decisionmaking. This report looks at what reading across the curriculum interventions states and districts might consider in their plans to improve reading outcomes at the secondary level. Additionally, the report offers the following practical guidance to decisionmaking teams tasked with finding ways to support content-area teachers in improving reading across the curriculum: (1) Consider professional development interventions in light of a clear understanding of the changes desired and the local context; (2) Think about the selection of a professional development intervention as part of an evidence-based decisionmaking cycle; (3) Consider structuring a comprehensive planning process that goes beyond selecting a professional development intervention. Following a thoughtful evidence-based decisionmaking process should enhance the likelihood that a district or school reading across the curriculum initiative will achieve the desired outcomes. The following are appended: (1) Methodology; (2) Southeastern state summary; (3) Southeastern state profiles; (4) Intervention abstracts; and (5) Additional resources. (Contains 5 tables, 1 figure, and 1 box.) [This report was prepared for the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education by Regional Educational Laboratory Southeast administered by SERVE Center at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.]

Whether school district support and training in standards-based assessment, grading, and reporting in classrooms can change teacher practice in these areas was studied in a Florida school district. This district, Bay District Schools of Panama City, has been working with the SERVE Regional Educational Laboratory on a project that involves teachers making changes in the classroom that support standards-based assessment, grading practices, and reporting procedures. The relationship between professional development for these purposes and actual changes was studied using a variety of data sources, both quantitative and qualitative. In all, 241 educators participated over the 3-year period of the evaluation. The collected evidence indicates that teachers are making efforts to implement changes in their classrooms with support from the school district and its professional development activities. The level of this change, however, has not met current school district expectations. Because additional work, and possibly alternative strategies, may be needed, the paper makes recommendations for improved professional development. An appendix contains documents used in the studies, including data collection instruments, school district documents, and professional development resources. (Contains 11 tables, 4 figures, and 14 references.) (SLD)

This paper describes lessons learned about the district role in building teachers capacity to assess students more effectively. It also presents a framework based on experiences with school districts that demonstrates how districts leverage an interconnected system of strategies to have an impact on the quality of instruction and assessment in the classroom. Lessons are derived from research conducted at SERVE, the federally funded research and development laboratory serving the southeastern states. The major sources were a training initiative, including teacher surveys, and interviews with key informants from 15 school districts. The interconnected system of strategies derived from these sources includes those that: (1) build teacher capacity (professional development, teacher evaluation, and instructional leadership); (2) set the conditions in the district for continuous improvement (defining strategies and strategic planning); (3) support effective school improvement processes (informal school reviews and allocation of funds); and (4) monitor progress (use of assessments, use of data on classroom environments, and defining grade-level proficiency). Three appendixes contain attachments that provide supplemental information, the interview protocol and a table of districts interviewed, and the baseline classroom assessment questionnaire. (Contains 23 references.) (SLD)

This report provides an overview of southeastern state efforts to assist low-performance schools in building capacity to improve students' academic achievement. High poverty, poor economic resources, and a high turnover rate of both students and practitioners are factors that impede school improvement. High-poverty schools that do improve commonly show the following attributes: a focus on the academic success of every student, openness to experimentation, commitment to involving everyone in solutions, a sense of family within the school, a culture of collaboration and trust, and a passion for learning and growing. Examples of state assistance are presented for six southeastern states. Program designs include putting full-time teachers on contract with the state, working with and through districts collaboratively, and providing assistance at the district and school levels. The assistance process is aided when supported by district superintendents and central offices. Solutions include maintaining continuity of school staffing and ensuring that the external assistance provided allows the school to improve, instead of becoming more top-down and rigid in its organization as a reaction to being on probation. An appendix describes state/district policies that support improved conditions in high-poverty school. (Contains 13 references.) (RT)

North Carolina has been active in its legislative support of site-based management since 1989. A study of the impact of such legislation and how participatory management at the school level has influenced the state's education system is presented. The report is based on data collected for the Task Force on Site-Based Management, which was created by North Carolina's General Assembly. Surveys and focus groups, involving more than 1,100 teachers, principals, and PTA presidents, were conducted over a 2-year period to better understand the perspectives of those in local districts affected by state policies. The text examines whether site-based management is taking hold, whether it is easy for a school to move to collective responsibility, and what elements successful sites have in common, along with shared features evident in less-successful sites. The study presents the state policy context in North Carolina and relates what has been learned about implementing site-based management. The results are presented under the categories of perceptions of effectiveness, perceptions of implementation issues, decision-making power, and other areas of interest. The volume closes with an overview of how schools can get started with site-based management so that all staff are involved. (RJM)

This publication describes teacher evaluation models that support teacher development. Chapter 1, "The Need to Support Teachers' Professional Growth," discusses the importance of a collegial school environment and where most of the support will occur. Chapter 2, "Types of Teacher Evaluation," describes formative and summative evaluation. Chapter 3, "SERVE's Formative Teacher Evaluation Program," describes SERVE's program, then offers an overview of formative teacher evaluation approaches, commonalities among five formative evaluation approaches, and the kind of differences that formative teacher evaluation approaches can make. Chapter 4, "What Did Educators Have to Say About Participation in Formative Teacher Evaluation Approaches?" discusses why teachers and administrators made the change to formative evaluation, noting characteristics of participating teachers, impact on principals, impact on teachers, impact on students, and barriers and concerns. Four appendixes include: the J.H. Rose High School professional development plan; the Guilford County schools plan; Isaac Dickson Elementary School Alternative Teacher Evaluation Plan; and Edenton-Chowan Schools Alternative Teacher Evaluation Plan. (Contains 9 references.) (SM)

This publication is the result of a research and development project that involved the development of formative teacher evaluation plans at three sites: Guilford County Schools, Greensboro (North Carolina); Richland School District 2, Columbia (South Carolina); and Surry County Schools, Dobson (North Carolina). The publication is intended as a resource for school and district teacher evaluation design teams who desire to rethink the teacher evaluation process. Chapter 1 on the purposes of teacher evaluation systems explores the differences between a formative teacher evaluation system (for professional growth) and a summative system (for accountability). Chapter 2 outlines the who, what, and how of formative evaluation. Chapter 3 examines the design steps involved in developing a formative evaluation system and describes some formative evaluation systems currently being piloted in the SouthEastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE) region. Includes a 12-item annotated bibliography and ordering information. (Contains 25 references.) (ND)

The North Carolina Project for Reform in Science Education, which is part of the National Science Teachers Association's Scope, Sequence, and Coordination Project, and the importance of student test scores as an evaluation tool were evaluated. Seven North Carolina schools participated in the project's first year (1991-92), with 21 teachers, and about 1,600 sixth graders. The reform program called for science for 6 years for all students, fewer topics covered in mode depth, and a careful and coordinated curriculum with a hands-on approach and assessment examining understanding. Because the goals of the reformed curriculum differed from the curriculum on which the state-mandated science test was based, a method was developed to adjust test scores to allow for the difference and allow the test to be instructionally valid. The adjustment process protected project schools from uninformed decisions about project worth. Students in project schools performed slightly better than did students in control schools on subject matter taught more extensively in the project schools. Efforts to develop alternative assessments for the project schools are briefly described. Results highlight difficulties arising in using student testing as a program effectiveness summative criterion. Experiences show some legitimate formative functions that tests can serve. Appendix A contains a matrix of sixth grade goals by content area. Appendix B gives sample performance assessment item sets. (SLD)

This article addresses what was learned through the National Computational Science Leadership Program about involving teachers in planning high quality units of instruction around computational science investigations. Two cohorts of roughly 25 teacher teams nationwide were given opportunities to develop "replacement units." The goal was to support high school teachers in incorporating computer modeling and the complex thinking that goes with it into their teaching. Teams received some initial training, then met throughout the school year to think about the unit they would develop. During the following summer, they met for an intensive, 2-week institute and received more training on software and one-on-one consultation with experts as they developed their units. At the end of the 2 weeks, they shared their unit design and materials with the group, and units were posted on a Web site. Teachers were expected to teach the units during the upcoming school year. This paper examines: unit planning approaches (standards-based units, backwards design units, project-based units, and problem-based learning units); development of a project planning tool; one project teacher's account; and project teachers' reactions to the planning and reflection tools. An appendix presents a computational science skills unit planning and reflection matrix, using a human population studies unit as an example. (Contains 16 references.) (SM)