High Schools That Work in Massachusetts A Progress Report

Transcription

1 High Schools That Work in Massachusetts A Progress Report High Schools That Work is a comprehensive, results-based school-improvement initiative of the Southern Regional Education Board-State Vocational Education Consortium. The High Schools That Work framework of goals, key practices and key conditions is designed to blend the essential content of traditional college-preparatory studies with quality career/technical studies to raise career-bound students academic and technical achievement. 1 The initiative involves more than 1,100 public high school sites in 26 states. High Schools That Work Objectives All high school students will meet performance standards necessary for continued learning in a work or educational setting. All high school students will complete a demanding academic core and a career or academic concentration. States will provide leadership, policies and resources so that all high school students can meet High Schools That Work performance and curriculum standards. Progress in Achieving the HSTW Objectives This report describes the progress that Massachusetts is making in achieving the HSTW objectives and recommends further actions for Massachusetts to take in the future. 1. Number of High Schools Participating in HSTW Total in the state Southern Regional Education Board th St. N.W. Atlanta, GA (404) Much of the information in this report is based on career-bound students. These students are the 60 percent to 65 percent of high school students who plan to work, attend a two-year technical or community college, enroll in a four-year college or university with an open admissions policy, or enter the military after high school graduation.

2 2. Percentages of students in participating schools Goal meeting the HSTW NAEP-based performance goals 2 Reading 3 35% 39% 51% 85% Mathematics 4 41% 49% 60% 85% Science 5 36% 39% 51% 85% 3. Percentages of students in participating schools completing the HSTW-recommended curriculum 6 Language Arts 29% 40% 36% 100% Mathematics 56% 69% 80% 100% Science 47% 60% 62% 100% 4. Percentages of students in participating schools who scored below basic on the HSTW NAEP-based tests Reading 48% 49% 33% 0 Mathematics 10% 19% 6% 0 Science 19% 13% 10% 0 5. Percentages of students in participating schools who completed at least one semester of algebra or prealgebra before grade nine Not Available 47% 52% 100% 6. Percentages of students in participating schools who met the HSTW curriculum and performance goals (Award of Educational Achievement) 7 8% 16% 28% 80% 7. Percentages of students in participating schools reporting daily or weekly use of academic content to complete vocational assignments Reading 35% 38% 42% 100% Writing 40% 40% 45% 100% Mathematics 54% 52% 54% 100% Science 8 38% 32% 34% 60% 2 High Schools That Work uses National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 12 th -grade tests to measure students progress in meeting performance goals. On the NAEP scale of 1 to 500, the HSTW reading goal is 279, the mathematics goal is 295 and the science goal is Students who meet the reading goal can seek and use information from manuals, journals, periodicals and other documents; identify and solve stated problems; and recognize limitations in information. 4 Students who meet the mathematics goal understand concepts from algebra, geometry and probability; can apply those concepts to solve multi-step problems; and can explain their reasoning in a variety of problem-solving situations. 5 Students who meet the science goal can apply knowledge, skills and reasoning to interpret scientific and technical data from tables and to make inferences about outcomes of experimental procedures; evaluate the appropriateness of the design of an experiment; and interpret sci - entific text and graphs. 6 The HSTW-recommended academic curriculum includes a minimum of: four credits in English courses with the content and performance standards of college-preparatory English; three credits in mathematics, including two credits in courses with the content and performance standards of college-preparatory Algebra I, geometry, Algebra II and trigonometry; and three credits in science, including two credits in courses with the content and performance standards of college-preparatory biology, chemistry, physics or applied physics. 7 To qualify for the High Schools That Work Award of Educational Achievement, students must score at or above the High Schools That Work performance goals in reading, mathematics and science; complete four units in a vocational concentration; and complete two of the three components of the HSTW-recommended academic core. 8 The science goal is lower because there is no science base in business, a field that enrolls large numbers of career-bound students. 2

3 8. Percentages of students in participating schools who: Goal Read more than two hours a week Not Available 20% 21% 100% Completed short writing assignments daily or weekly Not Available 28% 26% 100% Did one or more hours of homework daily 55% 56% 53% 100% Had content in most courses that they had already learned Not Available 45% 68% 0% Were encouraged to take more challenging mathematics courses Not Available 38% 42% 100% Planned postsecondary study 60% 60% 64% 100% 9. Percentages of students in participating schools who: Met with their parents and a counselor or a teacher-adviser 20% 21% 23% 100% to plan a program of study Needed but did not receive extra help in mathematics Not Available 29% 22% 0% English Not Available 35% 32% 0% Took a mathematics course in senior year 80% 85% 79% 100% 10. Percentages of academic and vocational teachers in participating schools who agreed strongly that: Teachers maintain a demanding yet supportive 22% 21% 100% environment that pushes students to do their best Teachers are encouraged to teach more demanding content 37% 32% 100% Teachers and school administrators work together 23% 20% 100% to improve student achievement 11. Percentages of vocational teachers in participating schools Needed staff Had 21-plus hours reporting that they needed and received staff development in: development in the past three years Mathematics content and methods 47% 5% Reading and writing for learning 55% 7% Science content and methods 53% 4% Revising vocational courses to meet national standards 60% 9% New teaching methods for getting students to work harder 55% 6% to improve performance 12. Percentages of academic teachers in participating schools reporting that they needed and received staff development in: Mathematics content and methods 46% 4% Reading and writing for learning 54% 8% Science content and methods 46% 4% New teaching methods for getting students to work harder 56% 5% to improve performance 13. The state provides: Status Recommendation Workshops and institutes to upgrade teachers No At least two major events academic knowledge of 21-plus hours annually Workshops and institutes on new teaching methods No At least two major events of 21-plus hours annually Short-term staff development, site development Yes At least two major and networking opportunities to help school events annually leaders and teachers align their practices to HSTW 3

4 Major Challenges for Massachusetts HSTW Sites The High Schools That Work Assessment revealed four major challenges for Massachusetts HSTW sites. Improve the reading, mathematics and science achievement of all students. Only 30 percent of Massachusetts students met the HSTW curriculum and performance goals in Reading achievement. Many career-bound students do not have the reading skills needed in an information-centered economy. For example, only one-half of students met the HSTW reading goal on the 2000 assessment. Thirty-three percent of students scored below basic. Students who met the HSTW performance goals had an average score of 302, compared with an average score of 265 for the 70 percent of students who did not meet the goals. Two-thirds of students did not take college-preparatorylevel English, although 60 percent said they planned to pursue further study. Students who complete four credits in English at the college-preparatory level have reading scores that exceed the HSTW reading goal. Almost 80 percent of students read less than two hours a week outside of class. Students in Massachusetts who read less than two hours per week had an average score of 276 in reading, while students who read more than two hours per week had an average score of 292. Mathematics achievement. More than onethird of Massachusetts students did not meet the HSTW mathematics goal on the 2000 Assessment. Mathematics achievement is the best predictor of students earnings at age 25 and is a key factor in postsecondary studies. Twenty-three percent of students took general or basic mathematics courses, and they scored an average of 276 in mathematics on the HSTW Assessment. The 44 percent of students who took collegepreparatory-level Algebra I had an average score of 307. All students need access to higher-level mathematics courses. Science achievement. Only one-half of Massachusetts students met the HSTW science goal on the 2000 NAEP-based exam. More than one-third of the students did not complete the HSTW-recommended science curriculum. Taking the right courses matters, as evidenced by the 47 percent of students who took general or basic biology. They had an average score of 275 in science on the HSTW Assessment, compared with an average score of 298 for students who took college-preparatory-level biology. Raise expectations for student performance. Students need to work hard to learn. The HSTW Student Survey showed that 38 percent of students felt their courses were not challenging. Almost one-half of students had no homework or spent less than 30 minutes a day on homework. The HSTW Teacher Survey revealed that only 21 percent of teachers agreed strongly that schools maintain a demanding yet supportive environment that pushes students to do their best. More than one-half of the teachers said they needed professional development in ways to get students to work harder to improve performance. Increase the rigor of career/technical programs by getting teachers to teach the challenging reading, writing, mathematics and science content skills embedded in their programs. Only 42 percent of Massachusetts students said they were required to read technical materials weekly 4

5 and only 45 percent said they had to write weekly to complete assignments in career/technical classes. Thirty-four percent said they never or rarely had to use mathematics to complete a vocational assignment. Only 34 percent said they had to use their science knowledge weekly to complete vocational assignments. About onehalf of Massachusetts career/technical teachers said they needed professional development in reading and writing for learning, mathematics content and methods, and science content and methods. Yet less than10 percent of these teachers received 21 or more hours of professional development in these subjects in the past three years. Strengthen students transition from the middle grades to high school. More than one-third of Massachusetts students scored below basic on the HSTW reading exam. This suggests that they were not prepared to take college-preparatory-level language arts classes in high school and probably had difficulty completing reading and writing assignments in other classes. Students who took at least one semester of Algebra I in the middle grades scored seven points higher than the HSTW mathematics goal. The majority of students (64 percent) were not prepared to take Algebra I taught at the college-preparatory level in grade nine. The state can work with sites to start gear-up programs in grade seven; to get the high school and the middle grades to work together to strengthen reading, mathematics and English instruction in grades seven and eight; and to implement ninth-grade transition programs. The state also should provide professional development that would cause middle grades and high school teachers to work together to align the curriculum and develop performance indicators based on state and national standards. State Leadership, Policies and Support for High Schools That Work Schools make more progress in implementing High Schools That Work when certain conditions of leadership and support are present. Massachusetts status is summarized below. Massachusetts Meets the HSTW HSTW-recommended Conditions Status Recommendation Equivalent of one full-time state staff person No No for every 40 HSTW sites Technical assistance visits to one-third of No No HSTW sites annually Follow-up contacts provided routinely Yes Yes A minimum of $25,000 annually to each site $20,000 per site No 5

6 HSTW-recommended State Board of Education Meets the HSTW Graduation Requirements Graduation Policy Recommendation 4 credits in college-preparatory- No state requirement No level English 3 credits in mathematics, including No state requirement No 2 credits at the collegepreparatory level 3 credits in science, including No state requirement No 2 credits at the collegepreparatory level 4 credits in a career or academic No state requirement No concentration HSTW s Recommendations for Massachusetts Meets the HSTW Setting and Assessing High Status Recommendation Standards for High Schools The state sets clear, consistent, The state has developed curriculum Yes rigorous content standards for all frameworks for English/language arts, students in academic courses. mathematics and science. These frame- Accompanying exams measure works contain consistent and rigorous student achievement. content standards that are assessed in grades four, eight and 10. The state sets clear, consistent, National certification standards and No rigorous content standards for all assessments are required for auto body students in career/technical courses. and auto mechanics programs. The Student achievement is measured by state is in the process of developing end-of-program or end-of-course standards and assessments for each exams that are scored externally. career area. The state tracks and reports test The state tracks and reports tests results Yes results in academic areas by district on the Massachusetts Comprehensive and school and uses the results to Assessment System (MCAS) for langufocus on helping all students meet age arts, mathematics and science by higher expectations. district and school. Each school has an MCAS improvement target by subject area, depending on the test results. The state tracks and reports test Massachusetts does not have assessments No results in career/technical programs for career/technical programs. by district and school and holds schools accountable for using the results to focus on helping all students meet higher expectations. 6

7 Increasing Participation in High Schools That Work and Linking to Broader School-reform Efforts The state showcases successful practices from HSTW sites at annual conferences for vocational educators and schools participating in Tech Prep, HSTW and School-to-Work. The state s guidelines for Perkins Act local plans for contain several questions based on the HSTW key practices. As a result of needing to raise their MCAS scores, more schools are interested in joining HSTW. Schools that fail to meet their targets must have action plans or they will be designated as under-performing schools. HSTW sites receive assistance in developing action plans. Actions Massachusetts Can Take to Get 85 Percent of Career-bound Students at HSTW Sites to Meet HSTW Performance Goals Revise state graduation policies to require: Four credits in college-preparatory English aligned to the standards of the Council for Basic Education. 9 Three mathematics credits, including Algebra I and higher courses. Three science credits, including at least two credits in college-preparatory-level courses such as biology, chemistry, physics or applied physics, and anatomy/physiology. An academic or career concentration of four credits in addition to the academic core. At least pre-algebra before grade nine. Raise the quality of teaching in career/technical courses. Work with teacher-education institutions to strengthen the language arts, mathematics and science skills of prospective career/technical teachers. Revise certification to require future vocational teachers to acquire solid mathematics and science skills in addition to completing a teaching major. Offer at least 40 hours of professional development to upgrade vocational teachers academic skills. The professional development should include: reading for learning across content areas; mathematics content and ways to integrate mathematics into career/technical courses; and science content and ways to integrate science into career/technical courses (especially for teachers in programs that have a science base). Make career/technical achievement a part of the state accountability system by: requiring all career/technical students to take a technical literacy exam designed to assess their ability to read and comprehend technical information, to use mathematics to solve career-related problems, and to understand major technical concepts in a broad career field; reporting the results by career/technical speciality at each high school; and 9 The Council for Basic Education has developed rigorous language-arts standards that include some specificity in the amount, complexity and variety of reading and writing that should be expected of students. These standards also emphasize higher-order thinking skills in relation to reading and writing. 7

8 making the exam count by recognizing students who pass the exam and by requiring schools and programs to increase annually the number of students who make passing scores. Expand and strengthen state and local institutes and workshops to improve instruction in reading, writing, mathematics and science. Reading and writing Use the Council for Basic Education s standards to develop standards for the English/ language arts curriculum. At minimum, specify the number, type and variety of books and materials students are expected to read and analyze; the frequency, type and quality of short writing assignments; the major research papers students are expected to complete each year; and the progressive standards these assignments should meet. Conduct workshops to help teachers align all English courses to CBE standards and conduct follow-up to see if teachers assignments, students work and course exams reflect the standards. Require all students to read the equivalent of 30 books per year, including textbooks, literature, scientific articles and technical documents. Students should be able to comprehend, analyze, interpret, compare and critique works from all subject areas. Require students to write in a variety of styles weekly in all classes. Grade at least one formal writing assignment per week. Mathematics Provide professional development for mathematics teachers on mathematics content and methods and on using mathematics to complete projects and solve real-world problems. Science Make all science courses inquiry-based. Provide professional development to prepare science teachers to incorporate a variety of engaging classroom and lab activities. Provide in-depth professional development to upgrade the science knowledge and instructional skills of science and career/technical teachers. Improve the guidance system for middle grades and high school. Make parents partners in helping plan and support children s middle-grades and high school studies. Develop a system that requires high schools to involve parents in helping set post-high school goals and in planning a high school program of study aligned with these goals. Improve transition from middle grades to high school so that more students leave the eighth grade prepared to do high school work. Create an educational program to inform parents about what they can do to help their children achieve at a higher level. Expand the extra-help system for students who need assistance in high school. Require double doses of mathematics and English/language arts for students who enter the ninth grade unable to do high school work. Require summer school for entering ninthgraders who lack academic knowledge and skills. Require before- and after-school sessions to help students meet standards in core academic subjects, particularly reading and mathematics. (01V11)