“What is a PLC and how can I say we have one?” As relayed to the “CAR pilot” group of about 175 administrators and teachers by Pat Wright, Executive Director of the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association, this example of one administrator’s lament about today’s mandate-driven approach to education demonstrates the need to take a more comprehensive and coherent path to student learning. Initiative fatigue, compliance overload, and the ‘dance of the vendors’ have all contributed to the outsourcing of our professional practice. “People are tired of the ‘flavor of the month’ where we start things and then give up on them and try something new. During the last few years, schools have grappled with several reforms: new standards, new state assessments and new evaluation systems. The purpose of CAR, a comprehensive framework for school improvement, is to ensure that these reforms are more than issues of compliance. The CAR helps schools to connect these reforms in a way that directly impacts student learning. CAR shifts the focus from compliance and programs to teacher practice and student learning.”
The New Jersey Department of Education has identified CAR — The Connected Action Roadmap — as its vision for teaching, leading, and learning in New Jersey schools, and has now developed a pilot program utilizing the CAR framework to build the capacity of educators in New Jersey schools to work effectively in Professional Learning Communities, using the Blended Online Learning Modules to deepen their PLC work. CAR uses an easy-to-remember and easy-to-follow metaphor of a journey: Student learning as the destination, a collaboratively developed, viable curriculum as the map, PLCs as the vehicle, assessments as the guideposts, teacher/principal effectiveness as the drivers, and climate and culture as the terrain.
“CAR is not the same old same old,” Wright said. “It is not a program. It is not an initiative. CAR is not a step-by-step process that says if you just do this you will see student improvement. We have been sold that bill of goods throughout our careers. With CAR, the leadership team will engage in a process using blended learning modules to deepen conversations and develop a viable curriculum that aligns standards, student learning objectives instructional design and assessments. CAR challenges some very common long-held assumptions about practice. Without challenging the status quo, schools will never be able to ensure the highest levels of student achievement.”
The Pilot Program will run through October 31, 2016, and all training and coaching support will be provided by the FEA, the professional development arm of the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association. Thursday, February 4, 2016 marked the first day that leadership teams from 34 New Jersey schools in 31 districts met at the FEA Conference Center to embark on their journey.
The NJDOE expects that these pilot schools will experience improved educator practice and student engagement during the pilot year by using collaborative structures to enhance the design and delivery of curriculum, assessment and instruction, as well as build a foundation of shared leadership responsibilities and collective commitments to producing higher levels of student achievement.
Pilot schools will receive the following:
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Initial training and overview of the online modules and the CAR Framework
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Regional pilot cohort sessions (2)
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In-district, full-day coaching sessions (4)
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Webinars
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Organizational support
During the pilot year, the pilot schools have agreed to:
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Identify a leadership team of at least four administrators and teachers who will attend all initial trainings;
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Turn-key the training to staff members;
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Provide a minimum of one period a week for PLCs teams to engage in online and face-to-face learning to support the implementation modules;
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Provide resources and supports for PLC teams to function effectively;
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Maintain a log of significant events and activities;
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Continuously assess progress in meeting the school’s pilot goals;
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Share learning and data points with the program evaluator;
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Attend regional meetings with other pilots to share expertise;
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Engage in coaching sessions to further support the implementation; and
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Share successes and challenges with other schools interested in engaging in the modules.