Using Data To Improve Academic Achievement in Vocational Programs

      Policy Rationale and Goals: The Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) was founded in the late 1940s to address the gap in academic performance between the South and other regions of the country. Today, it is a network of state and local policymakers, administrators and educators in sixteen member states, mostly located in the southern United States.[5] SREB's mission is to help individuals in government and education work together to improve educational settings and opportunities.

      In addition to its contribution to policymaking at the state level, SREB works with educators and administrators at the local level by supporting a consortium of area vocational schools and comprehensive high schools that has grown to include schools in 22 states. The network of schools is known as High Schools That Work and participating schools agree to focus on improving the academic and technical achievement of students through adopting HSTW Key Practices for Improving Student Learning, developing an action plan, and participating in data-driven technical assistance provided by SREB.

      The state of Delaware provides one example of how a commitment to HSTW Key Practices and data-driven continuous improvement has given new life to area vocational technical schools. Five of the 29 public high schools in Delaware participate in the HSTW network. These high schools were originally county vocational high schools that provided technical training services to all students in the region. In the 1980s, declining enrollment led these schools to the decision to become comprehensive full-time high schools while continuing to provide vocational studies. As a group, the five schools committed to the HSTW model as their reform strategy. Today, "Delaware has implemented school choice statewide," according to Lewis Atkinson of the state's Vocational Technical Division. Because Delaware allows students to choose to attend schools outside of their district, schools "try to differentiate themselves." Despite the perception that HSTW is "really seen as a vocational school reform," the five HSTW schools must now turn away one of every two students who apply. Because of the importance of academics at the HSTW schools, students now realize that they can receive a quality academic education, training in a field of interest, and contextual learning that will help them make plans for the future.

      HSTW goals are to:

• increase the mathematics, science, communication, problem-solving, and technical achievement and the application of learning for career-bound students to the national average of all students, and
  
  
• blend the essential content of traditional college preparatory studies--mathematics, science, and language arts--with quality vocational and technical studies by creating conditions that support school leaders, teachers, and counselors in carrying out the Key Practices.

      HSTW Key Practices for Improving Student Learning include:[6]

1. Setting high expectations and getting students to meet them.
   
   
2. Teaching challenging vocational studies by emphasizing the use of academic content in the context of modern workplace practices.
   
   
3. Increasing access to academic studies that teach the essential concepts from college preparatory curriculum.
   
   
4. Having students complete a challenging program with an upgraded academic core and a career major.
   
   
5. Giving students access to a structured system that integrates school- and work-based learning.
   
   
6. Having teachers work together.
   
   
7. Actively engaging students in learning.
   
   
8. Involving students and their parents in a guidance and advisement system that supports the completion of an accelerated program of study.
   
   
9. Providing a system of extra help and time to help students meet higher academic and technical standards.
   
   
10. Continuously using student assessment and program evaluation data to improve programs.

      Implementation Strategy: In order to participate in the HSTW network, schools must agree to the Key Practices and a set of high expectations set forth by SREB. Schools must also commit to at least five years of school reform to replace the general education track with a curriculum that blends modern vocational studies with college preparatory courses. HSTW believes that five years is the minimum amount of time that is needed to fully implement deep changes in the curriculum, instruction, and administration of the school. Five years also gives schools the time to use data and to see progress in the achievement of their students.

      As a member of HSTW, SREB provides a variety of services to participating schools, including assistance in the development of a site action plan, a recommended curriculum that includes more rigorous academic and technical classes, staff development to implement key practices, technical assistance in evaluation, and an evaluation process to measure changes in student achievement. These services are all intended to sustain the school's effort and support HSTW beliefs that while all schools have areas to improve, they want to create the right conditions for student performance.

      SREB requires all HSTW schools that participate to systematically and rigorously evaluate their student academic achievement. Students are evaluated through the use of multiple assessments, including the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) tests; surveys of student perceptions; follow-up surveys completed one year after students graduate; transcript studies; surveys of secondary teachers, administrators and counselors; and site visits.

      Normally, districts are given the option of testing a representative sample of students using a modified NAEP exam developed for SREB. Last year, the state of Delaware decided to pay the costs of testing all vocational completers and now "has data for the complete universe," according to Atkinson, which will provide a wealth of information at the local and state levels. The student and teacher surveys provide the context for student achievement and can often point school staff in other directions: "The student survey is a wonderful resource" for finding out how "students feel about their classrooms."

      HSTW schools also agree to a site visit from a team of visitors every three years. Called "technical assistance (TA) visits," the purpose is "to help school leaders and teachers identify changes needed to achieve the HSTW program goal: improved achievement of career-bound students through blending high-level academic and technical studies." (Bottoms, 1998) Site visit teams include a team leader who is an SREB staff member or a state official, a teacher or a staff member from a different site within the state, a representative of postsecondary education, a business or industry representative, and a community member. Prior to the site visit, the school conducts a self-assessment which is shared with the team.

      The site visits last two-and-a-half days and involve a range of activities, from interviews to classroom observations to focus groups. On Day 1, an orientation with team members takes place and the school's HSTW Advisory or Site team informs the TA team about the site's accomplishments, next big steps, and major challenges. On Day 2, the TA team starts the day at 7:30 am with an organizational meeting; then begins classroom observations; and in the afternoon, interviews students, the principal, a superintendent, and the director of vocational education at the site. A random selection of teachers and counselors are also interviewed. In the evening, the TA team talks about what they have seen and begins to prepare a draft report. On Day 3, the TA team meets in the morning to discuss the final report, and an exit conference is held with the superintendent and site leaders to debrief about the visit and the TA team's recommendations. About a month later, the TA teams submits a final report to the site discussing what is being done well, what needs improvement, and suggestions for implementation.

      When asked about the impact of SREB support for the state of Delaware and its HSTW schools, Atkinson responded, "the network helps with the implementation of action plans and the site visits are very valuable to the schools. The visits were originally viewed as an `evaluation' but are now seen as staff development." Even though teachers are sometimes frustrated that "this work is never done and there are always new challenges," the network of sites are a resource, and colleagues from other states have become a valuable source of ideas to help teachers continue to strive for improvement.

      Outcomes/Lessons Learned: HSTW began with 28 pilot sites in 13 states and has grown to include over 800 sites in 22 states. For Delaware, HSTW gives teachers the opportunity to visit other schools and see how they are reforming schools in other states. According to Atkinson, "teachers are beginning to see a reward for their efforts." The recent "jump" in mathematics scores is beginning to convince teachers that improved instructional strategies are having an impact on student learning and that students can "no longer hide in low level math courses." The next steps are to improve science and English achievement in HSTW schools.

      As a result of the emphasis on data collection and use, it is widely acknowledged that SREB has one of the most comprehensive databases on vocational education in the country. Strategies that have been shown to lead to improved student achievement include practical changes such as having students spend an hour or more daily on homework. Capturing and documenting the effects of different practices has helped to improve the program not only for the participating schools but also for the broader vocational education audience. It is also one of the few programs that has long-term data regarding its successes; this data has allowed SREB and its partners to determine practices that make a real difference complete with the data to show it.

Bottoms, G. (1998). Guide for High Schools That Work technical assistance visits: January 1998-August 1999. Atlanta: Southern Regional Education Board.

Rahn, M. L. (1995). Emerging national influences in education policy. Dissertation at the University of California, Berkeley.

Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) web site. About High Schools That Work. Available on-line: <http://www.sreb.org/Programs/hstw/about//high_abt.html>.

SREB web site. Overview of key practices. Available on-line: <http://www.sreb.org/Programs/hstw/about/Brochure/brochure.html#keypractices>.

SREB web site. Overview of SREB. Available on-line: <http://www.sreb.org/Main/AboutSREB/about.html>.

[5] SREB's 16 member states are Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.

[6] Makin, Richard C., Senior Director for Management and Planning, HSTW, SREB, presentation in Santa Fe, NM, October 14, 1998.