|
|
 |
|
| CASE Report
Smart Brevity ®
count: 4.5 mins...1199 words
CASE is a collective of Houstonians committed to ensuring that every student within Houston Independent School District (HISD) has the opportunity to receive a high-quality education.
If you would like to continue receiving updates, opt-in here.
|
|
New HISD Action Plan Outlines District Priorities
 HISD is expected to build upon many of its recent innovations according to a draft plan presented by Superintendent Miles last week. The new plan calls for ten different priorities, each of which are discussed here:
-
Additional NES schools
HISD plans to add at least 45 new NES campuses next year. The NES model funnels resources to the highest-need students to help close achievement gaps and improve overall student achievement. HISD will share a planning document and procure materials and equipment by April 1 and begin implementing the teachers’ professional development plan by May 1.
-
November bond election
It has been over a decade since HISD has sought a bond election, despite failing infrastructure and significant deferred maintenance.
Most school districts in Texas seek bond elections about every 5 years, which means that HISD well overdue for a bond.
HISD plans to involve the community and stakeholders every step of the way and will be seeking public input between now and July 1.
-
Higher quality instruction
HISD will ensure that students are getting the best instruction by offering teachers opportunities to get microcredentials in the most important subject areas. For example, Science of Reading, Art of Thinking, and Artificial Intelligence will all have associated microcredentials that teachers can earn that will help enhance their skills and improve student learning.
-
Strengthened principal leadership
HISD plans to have at least 70 new graduates from its Principal Leadership Academy
by next May to help ensure a pipeline of capable, qualified school leaders. HISD will also provide training on the principal evaluation system, known as LEADS (Leadership Effectiveness And Development System).
-
Improved special education instruction and services
HISD will establish “special education resource classrooms” in reading and math in an effort to improve special education opportunities and instruction. The district will also create new teams in the special education department that review each students individualized education program (IEP) during the summer of 2024.
-
Central office efficiency
HISD plans to reduce central office’s size by at least 700 positions by August 15 in an effort to prioritize resources and right-size the administration. This change will save the district $50 million allow for greater investments into classrooms.
-
K-8 reading proficiency
Reading instruction will be strengthened by implementing routine benchmarking tests and expanding Science of Reading courses. The district aims for at least 70% of kindergarten through third grade students in C-, D- and F- rated campuses demonstrate typical or above typical growth on benchmarking exams by the end of the academic year.
-
College, career, and military readiness
HISD will develop a plan by May 1 to improve its CCMR score from the TEA. CCMR is a factor in the state’s A-F school district evaluation system, so improvements here will help move the district toward a return to self-governance. HISD is also creating new programs of study designed to provide industry-aligned skills.
-
Pre-K expansion
HISD plans to add 300 pre-k seats by September 2024 and another 300 by September 2025 (600 total). The district’s other pre-k efforts include raising pre-k teacher salaries and keeping classroom student-teacher ratios as small as possible.
-
Teacher evaluations and compensation
Merit pay for teachers will be implemented by August 2025. Between now and then, HISD will draft a plan, receive feedback, and train principals on the new system. There will no cost associated with the creation of the new system.
The final version of the plan is expected to be released mid-May.
|
|
“Science of Reading” Accelerates Learning
 HISD’s “ Science of Reading
” class was highlighted in KPRC2’s most recent installment in their year-long study of Fleming Middle School. Regina Cooper, 7th-grade Science of Reading teacher at Fleming, sat down for an interview with reporter Candace Burns to discuss the new class and how it is helping to close achievement gaps and boost reading skills. KPRC2’s full story can be found here.
What is Science of Reading?
-
Science of Reading is literacy instruction that focuses on five key pillars: phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, rhyming, and fluency. Another critical element of Science of Reading is ensuring students’ access to a variety of texts, which facilitate reading practice, background knowledge, and subject-matter exploration.
-
Science of Reading is designed to be a booster class for students that need some extra help with improving their reading test scores. Students that have mastered their reading STAAR tests do not need to take the course. This means that the Science of Reading class is serving to close persistent achievement gaps and accelerate student learning in one of the most critical subjects.
Is Science of Reading working?
When asked “Are the kids learning?”, Cooper responded, “I know that something is happening here that’s creating a positive change...I can see that students are growing.”
|
|
Principal Academy Prepares Future Leaders
 One of HISD’s most promising new innovations is its Principal Academy. The Principal Academy trains aspiring principals in an apprentice-style model to strengthen its leadership capacity.
In this highly selective, year-long program, principal-apprentices shadow established principals in classrooms, learn about leadership functions such as budgeting and staffing, and receive focused training on educational leadership twice per week.
Why it matters:
The Principal Academy serves to create a bench of highly trained, qualified, and experienced principals for HISD. By launching its own leadership talent pipeline, HISD can ensure that there are always great principals emerging that will be ready to lead from day 1.
What they’re saying:
“The best part about the principal academy is it offers practical information and practical experience before you step foot as a school leader on a campus. You’re able to be a “student principal” before you have to absorb or take over the role as an actual principal.” Bryon Jones, Principal Apprentice.
|
|
Changes Coming to Summer School
 Board Q&A documents
show that summer school in 2024 will provide increased student supports that will build upon progress made during the academic year. There will be more instructional days, a standardized schedule across all campuses, and expanded course offerings.
Why it matters:
“ Summer learning loss
” is a well-known phenomenon that describes how students often lose some of the skills and knowledge they’ve acquired throughout the school year during their summer breaks. It can be a challenge to make sure that students are picking up where they left off from grade to grade, and high-quality instruction during summer school is one of the best methods schools can use to prevent this learning loss and maintain academic gains.
Go deeper:
Summer school will be recommended to students scoring under the 30th percentile and under grade level on mid-year progress exams. All pre-k and kindergarten emergent bilingual students will be offered the summer school opportunity as well. '
Going forward, summer school in HISD will be laser-focused on offering high-quality instruction in core subjects such as math, science, and English language arts so that achievement gaps can close and our at-risk students are not left behind.
|
|
Did someone forward this email to you? Subscribe here
to receive our weekly updates.
|
|
|
|
|
