Resources

High School Reform/Small Schools Conversion

The issue of school size and how it affects teachers has received far less attention by researchers than the question of how school size affects students. For teachers, there are both advantages and disadvantages to small school size.  Advantages include closer relationships with students, better discipline, easier innovation and collaboration, and greater opportunity to connect with parents.  But disadvantages may include heavy workloads, less course variety, reduced opportunities to teach students from a variety of backgrounds, and higher costs.

To fulfill New Business Item 2005-72, NEA Research conducted a review of all available literature on small schools conversion   (Word, 84kb, 6 pgs). This report contains links to additional source materials.

KEYS in Action

The Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC) is supporting and promoting this innovative school improvement initiative. Read about a KEYS convocation held in Wisconsin in August 2005 in which 18 districts learned how the KEYS program can improve student achievement.

Two districts, Green Bay and Rice Lake, have already implemented KEYS, and students who need a little extra help with math are now getting it at Hilltop Elementary School in Rice Lake, Wisconsin, thanks in part to the district’s involvement in the KEYS program. Read "KEYS helps school districts unlock excellence"  on WEAC's Web site. May 2005.

"What Makes a Quality School?", from the September 2000 edition of NEA Today, examines the ways staff and students of Maryland's Walkersville Middle School are implementing NEA's KEYS Initiative.

What Makes a Good School?

What Makes a Good School?  (PDF, 26 KB, 11 pp.), from the Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards & Student Testing, uses sound research findings to identify the qualities of a successful school. Good schools, the authors say, have strong and professional administrators and teachers; a broad curriculum available to all students; a philosophy that says all children can learn, coupled with high expectations for all students; a school climate conducive to learning; an ongoing assessment system that supports good instruction; and a high level of parent and community involvement and support.

Interactive Guide to 21st Century Learning

The Partnership for 21st Century Skills is an alliance of education, business and government leaders, including NEA, addressing the education needs and challenges of work and life in the 21st century. The Partnership's Route 21: An Interactive Guide to 21st Century Learning is a collection of Web-based tools to help school-district-level groups transform existing education systems and promote literacy in information and communication technologies.

Five School Districts Share Their Strategies

A case study report from the Learning First Alliance, of which NEA is a member, shows how five high poverty school districts raised student achievement by focusing on districtwide strategies to improve instruction. Beyond Islands of Excellence: What Districts Can Do to Improve Instruction and Achievement in All Schools offers lessons from the five districts and practical steps that other school districts can take.