Transcript LINC Advisory Committee September 10, 1998

LINC Advisory Committee
October 29, 2008
Topics of the Meeting
• Elementary Principal Survey (Preliminary
Results)
• Policy Scan
• Discussion on the Conceptual Map
• Next Steps
LINC Principal Survey
Demographics
• Sent to Illinois elementary school principals, 166
responded
• Location:
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CPS, n=8 (5%)
Collar County, 30% (n=50)
Large Town (pop. 25,000+), 13% (n=22)
Small/Rural Town (pop. less than 25,000), 52% (n=85)
LINC Principal Survey
Demographics
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Students:
– Grades served: Pre-K through 8th
– Number of enrollees: average= 487; median= 661; range 40 to 9,350
– Minorities: average= 25%
– Free-Reduced lunch: average= 36%
Pre-K programs in the district:
– Pre-K program in the district: 95% (n=156)
– In own school: 60% (n=51)
– In another elementary school: 59% (n=50)
– In another school (not elementary): 14% (n=12)
– In a district-owned stand alone building: 38% (n=32)
– Pre-K and early elementary classrooms closely located: 63% (n=100)
LINC Principal Survey
Demographics
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Principals:
– Years as principal: average= 8.6 years; range: 1st year to 33 years
– Grade levels taught:
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Pre-K: 14% (n=19)
K-3: 51% (n=70)
4-9: 70% (n=96)
High school: 29% (n=40)
Other experiences (e.g., counselor, school psychologist: 14% (n=19)
– Teaching credentials:
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Type 03: 88% (n=102)
Type 04: 12% (n=14)
Special Education: 23% (n=27)
Other (e.g., Type 09, Type 10, Type 73, Type 75,): 45% (n=53)
LINC Principal Survey
Demographics
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Teachers:
– Type 03: average= 81%
– Type 04: average= 16%
– Hiring criteria for Pre-K and early elementary grades:
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Experience
– Prior teaching experience, mostly general, but some looking for pre-K and special education
experience)
Education and Credentials
– Type 3 and Type 4
– ELL Certification
– Special Education
Knowledge
– Developmentally appropriate practices, developmental characteristics of young children, early
language acquisition
– Best instruction practices, strong pedagogy, reading and early literacy, differentiated instruction,
shared inclusion, hands-on learning, creative instruction
– Assessments, learning how to identify students with special needs
– Classroom management
Other
– Personality fit with the other faculty and staff, likes kids, works well with parents and other staff,
creative, motivated, flexible
LINC Principal Survey
Policies and Practices
• School policies and practices
– See page 5 of handout
• Curriculum & teaching practices
– See page 6 of handout
• Professional development practices
– See page 7 of handout
• Student assessments
– See page 8 of handout
• Barriers
– See page 9 of handout
LINC Principal Survey
• What policies would reduce the barriers that inhibit your
school’s ability to work with the early learning
community?
– Funding (e.g., state needs to adequately fund the schools so they can
hire the personnel and offer a high quality education, especially needed
to provide quality programs for minority students)
– Time (e.g., union contracts, too much to do to meet demands of
schools)
– Location (e.g., distance between schools and programs does not foster
collaboration, Pre-K and K classrooms need to be reunited with
elementary schools
– State, federal, and local policies (e.g., funding, FERPA, NCLB, teacher
autonomy)
– Cross-sector collaboration (share data; align transitions, standards, and
curriculum; and offer “Community inservice days” for professional
development of Pre-K and elementary school teachers)
LINC Principal Survey
Preparation and Professional Development
• Learning experiences in Type 75 and PD programs
– Pages 11 and 12 of handout
– Recommendations to Type 75 and PD programs
• Include concepts related to building the learning continuum and early
childhood education in program courses:
– Convey that cross-sector collaboration is a priority, include team-building and working with
partners/community relations in courses
– Developmentally appropriate practices, early learning standards, curricula for young children,
administrator’s role in IEPs and RTI
– Provide a course on each level of schooling (Type 75)
– Hire a faculty member/course instructor with early learning experience
• Include working with early care and education providers as experiences in
the internships (Type 75 program) and practical experiences (in PD
programs)
– Internship experiences can be carried out in an early learning center/program
– Provide opportunities for observing early care and education providers
• Provide an option for a specialized program in which candidates can choose
to focus on Pre-K- elementary, middle school, and high school (Type 75)
• Provide opportunities for cross-sector professional development in which
educational leaders and teachers from early learning and K-12 can
participate together (PD programs)
International Scan
Great Britain
• National College for School Leadership (NCSL) prepares and
trains leaders for England’s primary and secondary school
system
• Specific training for primary headmasters, specific to the
challenges and needs of primary schools.
Canada
• In fall 2006, the Canadian Association of Principals published an
issue of Early Childhood Education
Australia
• Book by Australian Primary Principals Association and Early
Childhood Australia on Your child's first year at school: A book
for parents
National Policy Scan
Kellogg Foundation sponsored Governors’ Forum on Linking Ready
Kids to Ready Schools
• Convening state policy and education stakeholders in Arizona,
Colorado, Connecticut, Ohio, and Pennsylvania
• To align programs and practices across early learning and the
early grades.
The National Association of Elementary School Principals
• Leading Early Childhood Learning Communities: What Principals
Should Know and Be Able to Do
• Standards for principal’s role with advocating, supporting, and
improving early childhood education in their schools and
communities.
The Wallace Foundation:
• Educational Leadership Action Network (ELAN) website
• Site can be found at: http://www.wallacefoundation.org/ELAN/
State Policy Scan
Iowa
• Specific criteria for principal candidates during clinical practice
that requires experience in settings for diverse populations,
students with disabilities, and students of different ages.
Ohio
• Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators is creating
statewide Ready School professional development opportunities
for K-12 administrators.
• Ohio’s Readiness School Initiative grants to ten elementary
school principals to pilot the Resource Guide in their schools.
Nebraska
• Nebraska Department of Education and Nebraska Department of
Health and Human Services sponsored a Birth through Grade 3:
Research to Practice Conference
• Addressed issues of leadership, literacy, assessment, meaningful
implementation of curriculum, and transitions from Pre-K to early
grades
Illinois Policy Scan
Standards Redesign Team:
• Develop a set of outcomes-based standards for mapping out
what skills and behaviors should guide principals from aspiring
through distinguished
Residency Redesign Team:
• Develop criteria for hands-on, practical leadership experience in
which candidate performance would be meaningfully assessed
Assessment Redesign Team:
• Develop criteria for rigorous, systemic formative and summative
assessments of candidates and graduates
• Must occur throughout program
• Should also be based on graduates’ performance in school
leadership roles
Parallel Issues
Early Childhood
K-12 Schools
Credentials
Illinois Director Credential:
http://www.ilgateways.com/con
tent.aspx?id=92
Illinois Distinguished
Principal Leadership
Institute:
http://www.ilprincipals.org/pag
es/IDPLI.html
Mentoring
Professional Development
Advisement Program:
http://www.ilgateways.com/con
tent.aspx?id=112
New Principal Mentoring:
http://www.ilprincipalmentoring
.org./
Professional Development
Gateways to Opportunity:
http://www.ilgateways.com/
Illinois Administrators
Academy:
http://www.isbe.net/ECS/defau
lt.htm
Conditions
Organizational Climate
Assessment:
http://cecl.nl.edu/evaluation/oc
a.htm
Working Conditions Survey:
http://www.tellillinois.org/
Conceptual Map
• 12 responses to the questions
• How well does the conceptual map capture key issues of the
learning continuum? What additions/modifications would you
suggest?
– Overall, positive responses to the conceptual map in capturing the key ideas
expressed during the October 7th meeting.
– Like the organization of what, who, and how
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Should we include Why?
There are other “who’s” involved, but leadership is the focus of this group
Need to be very specific about who the leaders will be and the equal value of leaders
Set up a system like PDAC in which we split off into smaller groups, develop criteria and
implementation plans, and then report back to the larger group
– Focus on a learning continuum that can be achieved by all sectors
• There will not be a one-size fits all solution (issues of local control, funding, student
population issues such as ELLs, at-risk students, special-education students, minority
students)
Conceptual Map
• In what ways does the conceptual map provide a means for moving
the work of the Committee forward?
– Provides a framework for the discussions, however it may be too ambitious to
work on all areas.
– Provides the overview of current challenges and the key components, but will
need to identify specific strategies to address these issues
– The map values birth to age 5 and K-3 equally, and need to stress that all factors
in the map are of equal importance.
– Map could help members identify the strengths, weaknesses, and accountability
for providing quality care and education.
– Conduct a gap analysis and identify which of these factors would be effective
“levers” in promoting the continuum.
– There was another suggestion that the group splits into sub-groups to identify the
strengths and weaknesses in each of the five categories and generate
recommendations or “next steps” for implementing a smooth and supportive
continuum of care and education.
Conceptual Map
• What policy recommendations would you suggest that would bring
the learning continuum and concepts identified in the map to
fruition?
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ISBE create a statewide P-3, birth to third grade, on going council to work on alignment,
leadership, preparation, training, and communication. The council would be made up of key
stakeholders from primary grade education and early care and education.
Provide financial support for local community collaborations
Define competencies and award credentials for leaders of programs serving birth to third
grade.
Link quality initiatives such as Quality Counts, QRS and Preschool for All; make the early
learning standards a quality component; require program administrators of P4A to have
appropriate qualifications and credential.
Phase in requiring Type 04 early childhood certification for teachers in K-3
Market the continuum
Need to develop expectations for a final outcome, develop action plans to prioritize
components
Next Steps
•How should we continue this work?
•Date and location for next meeting?