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Internet Resources on Large School Redesign
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Why
Redesign? Policy Brief: Relationship Between High School Size and Educational Outcomes Marc Winokur (Research and Development Center for the Advancement of Student Learning) This brief summarizes the research on the impact of school size on various aspects of schooling including behavior, involvement, achievement and violence. Transforming the American High School: New Directions for State and Local Policy by Michael Cohen (Jobs for the Future and the Aspen Institute, 2001) This report identifies key systemic policy changes that are necessary to improve American high schools, including the creation of smaller schools. The Breakup: Suburbs Try Smaller Schools by Catherine Gewertz, in Education Week (May 2, 2001) Small Schools: An Anti-Racist Intervention in Urban America by Michelle Fine and Linda Powell, in Racial Profiling and Punishment in U.S. Public Schools (ERASE Initiative, 2001) Musings in the Wake of Columbine: What Can Schools Do? by Mary Anne Raywid and Libby Oshiyama (Phi Delta Kappan Vol. 81, No. 6, 2000) The School-Within-a-School Model by Sarah Dewees (ERIC Digest, 1999) Curriculum Adequacy and Quality in High Schools Enrolling Fewer Than 400 Pupils (9-12) by Christopher Roellke (ERIC Digest, 1996) Rethinking
School:
No Two Are Quite Alike by Ted Sizer, in Educational Leadership Volume 57, Number 1 (Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, September 1999) This eloquent piece argues that we cannot teach students well if we do not know them well, and that at its heart, personalized learning requires profound shifts in our thinking about education and schooling. Rethinking the Allocation of Teaching Resources: Some Lessons From High-Performing Schools by Karen Hawley Miles and Linda Darling-Hammond (Conosortium for Policy Research in Education, University of Pennsylvania, 1997) This paper provides very practical advice to schools on how to reallocate resources. It describes case studies of five high-performing public schools that have improved student performance by organizing professional resources in innovative ways. Although the schools studied look very different from one another, they share five principles of resource allocation - fewer specialized programs, more flexible student grouping targeted to individual student needs, structures that enable personal relationships, more usable common planning and professional development time for teachers, and creative definitions of staffing roles and the work day. How
to Move From Large to Small: Models for Large School Redesign (School Redesign Network at Stanford University, 2002) This document was designed for our 2002 Summer Institute to provide basic models and research for effective large school redesign. Large-to-Small School Redesign Strategies (School Redesign Network at Stanford University, 2002) This document was designed for our 2002 Summer Institute to provide different strategies to sucessfully redesign a large school into smaller learning communities.. Downsizing Schools in Big Cities by Mary Anne Raywid (ERIC Digest, 1996) This article reviews the current movement to downsize urban schools to help educators decide whether and why to pursue such a move, and to indicate which models appear most promising. It describes a continuum from houses to mini-schools to schools-within-schools to small schools. This digest is a brief version of a longer paper called "Taking Stock: The Movement To Create Mini-Schools, Schools-Within-Schools, And Separate Small Schools" (1996). An Overview of Smaller Learning Communities in High Schools (U.S. Department of Education, 2001) This paper, which is designed to assist schools participating in the federally-funded Smaller Learning Communities program, provides good recommendations for schools that are downsizing. The program's main website also has links to other conversion resources. Breaking Up Large High Schools: Five Common (and Understandable) Errors of Execution by Tom Gregory (ERIC Digest, 2001) This is a short overview of the author's analysis of five types of errors that often occur when large high schools break up into smaller learning communities - errors of autonomy, of size, of continuity, of time, and of control. Thinking About Conversions (Small Schools Project) This 2-page document outlines nine important points to consider as large comprehensive schools begin to think about redesigning into smaller learning communities. This is a very accessible and thought-provoking tool. Organizing
and Designing Small Schools through Conversions of Questions to Consider about Conversions of Large High Schools (Small Schools Project) This 2-page document lists 22 questions to consider when undertaking a conversion. The
Facilities Question: Reducing the Negative Effects of Large Schools by Daniel Duke and Sara Trautvetter (National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities, 2001) This article reviews the research supporting small schools and explains why the arguments for large schools are relatively weak. Then it examines four facilities strategies for reducing the negative effects of school size - building smaller schools, utilizing satellite facilities, reallocating space in existing schools, and redesigning and renovating existing schools. It also discusses key design issues related to the subdivision of large schools into smaller units. Smaller, Safer, Saner, Successful Schools by Joe Nathan and Karen Febey (Center for School Change, 2001) This report provides case studies of 22 school buildings in 12 states where small schools share large facilities. New Schools, Better Neighborhoods
is a civic advocacy organization formed to promote
a vision of small, neighborhood-centered schools for California's
urban school districts. NSBN promotes the concept of designing smaller
school facilities that can build upon and accommodate existing community
land and facilities, including "joint use facilities"
where schools share buildings with other organizations and serve
as the center of their communities. The
District Role: Baltimore - Innovation High School Planning Grants: Request for Proposals (Baltimore City Public Schools and The Fund for Educational Excellence, 2003, 2004) Planning Grants for Innovation High Schools will be available for up to $20,000 for schools opening in September ’03 and for up to $25,000 for schools opening in September ’04. Planning Grants will provide support for research, planning and development of Implementation Grant applications for Innovation Schools. As many as ten total Planning Grants will be awarded. Oakland New Small Autonomous Schools Request for Proposals (Oakland Unified School District, 2002) Oakland is a national leader in the small redesigned schools movement. This request for proposals, which was developed by the school district in collaboration with the Bay Area Coalition for Equitable Schools and Oakland Community Organizations, provides an excellent model for how districts can support the creation of innovative new schools. Chicago High School Redesign Initiative Request for Proposals (Chicago Public Schools, 2002) Over the next five years, the Chicago High School Redesign Initiative is transforming five large neighborhood high schools into separate, autonomous high schools, each with no more than 400 students. This Request for Proposals includes useful lists of questions for small school design teams and large schools that want to convert to smaller schools. Bronx New Century High School Initiative (Bronx High School Superintendency, 2001) The Bronx New Century High Schools project is creating 15 new small schools over the next two years. This website describes the project. Prior Agreements with the District (Small Schools Project) This 2-page document lists questions that will help clarify district policies about school control of resources and freedom of action. The
Change Process: Understandings about School Change (Small Schools Project) This 4-page document outlines fifteen understandings to help schools and communities begin the task of rethinking their schools. So Now What? Managing the Change Process, Horace Volume 9, Number 3 (Coalition of Essential Schools, January 1993) This issue of Horace presents a framework and various approaches for managing organizational change and getting people to work together; includes resources for developing successful change strategies. Essential Leadership in the School Change Process, Horace Volume 13, Number 4 (Coalition of Essential Schools, March 1997) This issue of Horace onsiders what it takes to lead a school through change and offers suggestions and experiences that have helped school leaders find a balance between promoting change and supporting those who are going through it. Leadership for Learning: An Action Theory of School Change by Tony Wagner, Phi Delta Kappan online article (November 2001) This article describes the author's theory on how to create the conditions and capacities for sustaining change. |
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