Focused Instruction- Case Studies

Teaching and Learning Department

2015

Focused Instruction directly supports 8 out of 10 recommendations from the curriculum audit

Minneapolis Public Schools Curriculum Audit

In October 2008, Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) commissioned Phi Delta Kappa International Curriculum Management Audit Center to assess
the quality of the written, taught, and assessed curriculum. The organization provided specific recommendations of what MPS must do to have a
curriculum that is aligned with Minnesota state standards and the IFL Principles of Learning.
The audit recommendations were intended to help the district improve quality in the areas where deficiencies were noted. The Audit team issued
the following statement concerning curriculum:
MPS [is seeking] to break the grip of the old assumption that inherited ability places a ceiling on what a student can learn. In addition,
the district wants to work to establish the kind of curriculum and pedagogy that would ensure achievement of rigorous academic
standards by all students.
The auditors confirmed that predeterminations of the MPS were correct in pointing out that the curriculum lacks cohesion and articulation
and little monitoring is conducted of what is actually taught in the classroom. The auditors found that the curriculum is uneven in its
provision, tenuous in its quality, and ineffectual in its delivery.
Based on the three streams of data derived from interviews, documents, and site visits, the Curriculum Management Audit Team developed a set
of recommendations to address its findings shown under each of the standards of the audit. The recommendations are presented in the order of
their criticality for initiating system-wide improvements. The recommendations also recognize and differentiate between the policy and
monitoring responsibilities of the board of education, and the operational and administrative duties of the superintendent of schools.
The following table lists the curriculum audit recommendations alongside of how Focused Instruction will address the need.

Audit recommendation
Recommendation 1:
Bring district curriculum and program management and all related function under
system control and thoroughly align these efforts to the districts strategic plan
Recommendation 2:
Develop and execute a curriculum management plan to coordinate, articulate,
and align the written, taught, and tested curriculum
Recommendation 3:
Review, revise, adopt, and implement current board policies for meeting the
characteristics of sound curriculum management
Recommendation 4:
Adopt a policy governing administrative function and the management of job
descriptions
Recommendation 5:
Develop and implement a plan that provides for the systematic collection,
analysis, dissemination, and application of student achievement and program
evaluation data
Recommendation 6:
Design and implement processes that align the curriculum monitoring strategies
to the Principles of Learning model
Recommendation 7:
Immediately implement strategic plan strategies and action steps focused on
eliminating barriers to equitable access to district programs and services and
move toward closing the achievement gap
Recommendation 8:
Develop and implement policies, regulations, and plans to move from a
demonstration model of PD to a comprehensive and individualized training
program
Recommendation 9:
Review and revise intervention policy and develop clearly defined processes and
procedures to control the proliferation of program interventions
Recommendation 10:
Develop and implement a five year plan the fully aligns district resources to
strategic priorities and curricular goals and requires the use of performancebased budgeting

How it is addressed by Focused Instruction

Curriculum guides
Academic data and reporting system
Academic strategic plan
Curriculum guides
Integrated assessment plan
Instructional leadership strategy
Curriculum guides
Instructional leadership strategy
Policy alignment with board subcommittee

Integrated assessment plan

Academic data and reporting system
Data analysis and interventions model

Curriculum guides
Instructional leadership strategy

All of focused instruction supports this

recommendation

Instructional leadership strategy

Teacher evaluation*

Data analysis and interventions model

Focused Instruction process will align curriculum, professional development and assessments
Theory of Action
In June 2010, based in part on the audits findings, the Board of Directors of Minneapolis Public Schools approved a Theory of Action calling for
MPS to increase the consistency and overall quality of our instructional system, promote innovation and increase accountability to promote
higher student achievement. The Board action explicitly called for district-governed schools to become Schools of Focused Instruction, where all
students benefit from a consistent, aligned instructional system. At these schools, the district would establish high standards and a more tightly
aligned system of curriculum, professional development and assessment with the goal of ensuring that all students encounter a predictable and
consistent curriculum at every school. While increasing consistency of the what is taught in MPS, the Board of Directors stressed the inclusion
of teachers in the development process of Focused Instruction in order to preserve a classrooms creativity and flexibility.

Key benefits of Focused Instruction

Equity

Consistency in the scope and sequence will better serve students who change schools frequently
Clear articulation of the knowledge and skills students are expected to have at the end of each course supports more consistent access to
learning that is at or above grade-level, regardless of which teacher a student has or which school he/she attends

Alignment
Mapping the K-12 curriculum to the Minnesota state standards will help MPS identify gaps and provide resources to all teachers to
support instruction in areas where adopted/purchased materials do not
Unlike many vendor-provided assessments, Focused Instruction benchmark assessments (written by Minneapolis Public Schools teachers)
will provide a way to measure students progress that is fully aligned with the Minnesota standards
Instructional support
In addition to gap lessons and a standard scope and sequence, Focused Instruction will provide recommended instructional strategies,
differentiation tools for English learners and advanced learners, supporting (daily) learning targets and access to non-core resources such
as websites, videos, and simulations that have been vetted by other teachers and support teaching the standards

Focused Instruction process incorporates best practices of other aligned instruction models

The MPS approach to Focused Instruction is based on a 4-part framework which supports the areas of
planning, teaching, assessing, analyzing, all within a cycle of continuous improvement. Implementation
of this cycle in every classroom, teacher team, and school is supported by the following tools and
structures which the district will provide:

Curriculum Guides
Benchmark Assessments
Targeted Professional Development
New Student Data System (Classroom for Success)
Tiered Instruction and Common Interventions
Professional Learning Communities

Similar to other school districts across the country, MPS is incorporating core instructional components and key initiatives to improve student
outcomes and narrow the achievement gap. The table below describes various *Broad Prize winners that utilized managed (focus) instruction
components to improve student outcomes and narrow achievement gaps.

*Broad Prize case studies

The $1 million Broad Prize, established in 2002, is the largest education award in the country given to school districts. The Broad Prize is awarded
each year to honor urban school districts that demonstrate the greatest overall performance and improvement in student achievement while
reducing achievement gaps among low-income students and students of color. The Broad Prize showcases the best practices of successful
districts.

Red: different than MPS approach

District
Aldine, TX

Broad
Winner
2009

Green: same as MPS approach

Blue: desired MPS implementation strategy

Managed Instruction Components

Other Key Initiatives

Outcomes

10 year implementation of Managed

Instruction System

3 key district priorities.

School action plans along three
priorities.

Poverty is not predictive in district (80%

low-income)
50% of Aldines highest poverty schools
performed better than district on state
reading and math tests at all levels
(also narrowed these gaps even more
2005-2008)

Scope and sequence documents for every

subject and grade level- map out what
teachers will teach in 6-week cycles through
the year.
TRIAND- online curriculum and assessment
database with model lessons.
Teachers required to submit lesson plans
weekly through this system. School leaders
review lesson plans weekly in TRIAND.
TRIAND has student data from six-week
common assessments in math, science, and
reading/ language arts. Benchmark
assessments twice a year in all grades in
language arts, math, science and social
studies.
Entire system is designed to ensure educators
meet six-week curricular milestones, including
common planning time. Time to review the
results of three and six week assessments and
adjust lesson plans.
Targeted staff development where school data
identifies students who need extra help.

Principal budget autonomy when

allocations based on needs assessment.
Training on making budgetary
decisions.
Recruit teachers from top teacher
preparation institutions, university
partnerships
New Teacher Induction Academy, year
long induction academy and mentor
program with professional
development geared to the new
teacher

2005-2008 narrowed gap between

districts African-American students
and state average for white students by
14% in middle school math
2005-2008 SAT and AP participation
rose- SAT for Hispanic students rose
11%

District
Gwinett
County, GA

Broad
Winner
2010

Managed Instruction Components

Other Key Initiatives

Outcomes

Starting in 1996, Created own curriculum

Academic Knowledge and Skills (AKS) that was
designed to be more rigorous than state
standards, benchmarked against top 25
districts in the nation.

Training for school leaders and teacher

on Blooms taxonomy and Webbs
depth of knowledge

2007-2009 the gap between AfricanAmerican and white students in middle

school math narrowed by 8%

Employees in district are focused on

supporting those who teach,
understand AKS and using data to make
instructional decisions.
Top district leaders teach in QualityPlus Leader Academy

2006-2009 participation of AfricanAmerican seniors on SAT increased by

9%

13 Quality-Plus teaching strategies all teachers

are expected to incorporate into their daily
instruction

Strategic Planning with cross-functional

action teams to resolve issues that
affect whole district
Managed Performance and Flexibility
Theorystandards for all schools,
those more successful in reaching the
standards are rewarded with more
freedom and decision-making
authority. Focus on giving autonomy to
principals.

2006-2009 gap between Hispanic

student and states white students in
elementary reading narrowed by 9%

District
Boston

Broad
Winner
2006

Managed Instruction Components

Other Key Initiatives

Outcomes

Pacing guides, course descriptions,

instructional activities and sample formative
assessments for each grade and subject.

Boston Teacher Residency Program

2002-2005 increase in AP math and

English exams taken by Hispanic and
African American students up 237%
and 78% respectively

Curriculum calendars with benchmarks built

throughout the year. All teachers receive
district wide curriculum standards and pacing
guides.

Aspiring Boston Principals Fellows

Program

Mandated time spent daily on instruction in

language arts: 120 minutes and math- 70-90
minutes.

Brownsville

2008

Six-week pacing calendars that suggest what

should be taught each day. Calendars also
include objectives, materials, lesson strategies
and assessments. Flexibility to pace within the
six-week block to meet the needs of their
students.
All schools administer benchmarks twice a
year in core subjects 3-12th grade. Additional
assessments given in core subjects at schools.
Teachers receive extensive data analysis and
interpretation training which continues
through collaborative meetings throughout
the school year. Fluid student groupings to reteach

New Teacher Support Team

Small learning communities in each

high school
Mandated summer school for students
who do not meet benchmarks in
reading writing and math grades 2, 6, 7
and 8
Professional development days where
school leaders can offer professional
development to school staff based on
their specific campus needs.
Professional development linked to
district improvement plan and district
strategic priorities.
Required to use state-adopted
textbooks but may use supplemental
materials. District superintendents
collaborate to select these materials.

2002-2005 outperformed other

Massachusetts districts with similar
low-income populations in six out of six
areas
On the NAEP Trial Urban District
Assessment 4th and 8th grade reading
and math scores improved at a faster
rate than other large American cities
and faster than national average
2004-2007 gap between Hispanic
students and state average for white
students decreased by 12% in middle
school math
2004-2007 reduced gap between lowincome students and state non lowincome student by 9% in high school
reading

District
CharlotteMacklenberg

Broad
Winner
2011

Managed Instruction Components

Other Key Initiatives

Outcomes

District online data system

All educators trained in data-wise

Strategic staffing at underperforming

schools-bring in new principals and
they can bring up to 7 high performing
staff who have opportunity to earn
bonuses
(25 schools in 2011)

Narrowed gaps between white and

non-white students in district and
state:
2007 to 2012- African-American white
gap decreased by 11% in high school
reading
2007-2012 gap between African
American and the states white
students decreased by 9% in middle
school math

Previous managed instruction, all teachers

were expected to teach the same thing at the
same time- in the same way. Now, they still
are expected to teach the standards and
implement a few other practices but as
principals and teachers show their schools and
classrooms are successful- as proven by
student learning gains- they are allowed to run
them as they see fit. This has improved morale
among teachers, who had chafed against what
they saw as a cookie-cutter approach. It has
energized principals as well, because organic,
school-based innovation has become the norm
rather than the exception. Out of 178
principals, 112 have earned this freedom and
flexibility with accountability.

Weighted student funding

Parent University
Outside human capital pipelines

2012 62% of African American seniors

participated in SAT

Performance compensation
2007-2010 low-income students
performing at highest achievement
level increase an average of 6% per
year in high school math compared to
average 2% for other North Carolina
districts

District
Houston
Independent
School
System

Broad
Winner
2013

Managed Instruction Components

Other Key Initiatives

Outcomes

EdPlan System -predictive and diagnostic

assessments aligned to the Districts
curriculum standards and the Texas (TEKS)
/STAAR standards

Student Success Initiative grade level

advancement requirements

2006-2009 Graduation rate increased

12%

Teacher Evaluation with Merit pay plan

for teachers,

Decreased gap between low-income

and non low-income in high school
math and science by 50%

Scope and Sequence/ Pacing Calendars

Vertical Alignment Matrix -developmental
map of student objectives over a number of
grades
RTI System

Differentiated professional
development. For new teachers- ESL
strategies, intervention strategies,
career and tech ed
Results-driven environment,
performance tiers. 90% of highly
effective teachers retained, 54% of low
performing dismissed.

Decreased gap between Hispanic and

white students in high school math and
science by 50%
2012- 87% of students took SAT, 84%
Hispanic, 80% African American

Districts research and accountability

department conducts 40 program
evaluations annually- decide whether
to continue programs
Miami-Dade

2012

Comprehensive data warehouse with training

for teachers and admins
Pacing guides for each subject area
Framework of Effective Instruction used in
teacher evaluation

Data/ COM sessions between struggling

school principals and superintendent/
cabinet to identify issues and strategies
and provide immediate tailored
resources to implement solutions
quickly
Over 340 magnet programs in 100
schools
Promotion standards by grade level

2006-2009 Black and Hispanic

Graduation rates increased by 14%
2008-2011 SAT participation and scores
increased- for Hispanic students 6%
increase in SAT participation, 15 score
points increase
Outperformed other students in Florida
with similar family incomes

District
New York
City

Broad
Winner
2007

Managed Instruction Components

Other Key Initiatives

Outcomes

In 2002-2003, instituted non-negotiable core

curriculum in literacy and math (while 200
schools were exempt based on past success.)
balanced literacy and Everyday Math
In 2007 shifted toward more school level
decisions so they reflect individual needs of
students, but many aspects of original
curriculum reform will remain in place.

Reading/math coaches at every school

act as teacher leaders.

High school math

2003 to 2006: Hispanic-white gap
decreased by 14 percentage points.
African American- white gap closed by
13 percentage points.

Intervention directors for each region that

oversee three-tier model of intervention
programs.
Built a system-wide interim assessments for
grade 3-8 in math and language arts. Teachers
are able to access results through a web portal
that also provides instructional resources to
help address gaps in student learning.

*Retrieved from http://www.broadprize.org/

2004 implemented autonomy zone

with increased budget and program
flexibility in return for high
accountability. Renamed
Empowerment Zone and grew to 332
schools in 2007-8.

Elementary school math narrowed gap

between low-income students and
state average for non low-income
students by 6%
High school math low-income to nonlow income gap by 4%
African-American students achieving
advanced proficiency increased by 75,
Hispanic students increase by 9%