A Policy Perspective on EnhancingWorkforce and Career Readiness

Henry Braun

Lynch School of EducationBoston College

Presented at the Building Better Students Conference

December 10 2010

What Sort of “Better Student?”• Model 1

– Greater achievement (e.g. better test scores)– Higher attainment– Meeting entry-level requirements for the next stage

• Model 2– Competencies in academic and soft skills– High levels of motivation/ engagement/ persistence– Productive habits of mind– Success at the next stage– Readiness for lifelong learning

• Model 3– ???

What is “Life after High School?”

• A world infused with technology• Demands for higher levels of literacy and numeracy • Importance of broader education/training• Value of workplace-appropriate dispositions • Dynamic, highly competitive job markets• Growing complexity of public issues• Increasing individual responsibility for well-being

Mission Control, (do) We Have a Problem !/?

• Substantial (differential) leakage in each segment of the education pipeline

• Attainment of milestones is a weak signal; i.e., pervasive and profound deficiencies at each transition point

• Continuing decline in international comparisons• No accounting at any level of important components

of a valued human capital portfolio

Myth or Reality?

• Adult literacy surveys (NALS, NAAL, IALS, ALLSS)• NAEP• PISA, TIMSS• High school graduation statistics• Remediation rates in Community and 4-year colleges• Employer surveys

6

Average literacy scores are expected to decline between 1992 and 2030, with an increase in the amount of inequality.

Less Proficient

More Proficient

The Current Landscape• Common Core State Standards College/Career Readiness• RttT: Systemic state reforms and Assessment Consortia• Reauthorization of ESEA– Key roles for standardized test results– Accountability for schools and teachers– School choice– More competitive grants?

• Ongoing state and district initiatives• Macroeconomic situation State/Local budgets• Longitudinal research studies• Action research programs

Developing a Policy Perspective on Readiness

• Consensus on general characteristics of readiness• Performance standards• Gaps: Nature, scope and distribution • Contributing factors (historical view and causal analysis)• Exemplars (positive) and existence proofs• Exemplars (negative)• Potential solutions and possible obstacles• Strategic Framework• Political considerations• Implementation planning The “real” work begins

Skill Frameworks

• SCANS• Equipped for the Future• 21st Century Skills• AAC&U

What new frameworks more fully represent what skills are needed to accommodate, negotiate and exploit ubiquitous and ever more powerful technologies… and how do they relate to the more traditional competencies?

Content Standards• Equipped for the future

– Communication skills (5)– Decision-making skills (3)– Interpersonal skills (4)– Lifelong learning skills (4)

• Workplace Basics: The essential skills employers want (Carnevale, et al.)– The three R’s– Learning to learn– Communication (listening and speaking)– Creative thinking & problem solving– Interpersonal negotiation and teamwork– Self-esteem/goal setting –motivation– Organizational effectiveness/ leadership

College and Career Readiness

• Not just an effort to “raise standards”• Signals a shift from certification of prior learning to a

prediction of future performance • Performance standards must be empirically grounded• Going beyond reading/language arts and mathematics? • Heterogeneity of prospective contexts makes uniform

standards problematic • Lessons to be learned from certificate programs

More than a Diploma: Dunbar HS (Ft. Meyers, FL)

• Career academy focused on IT clusters• Students apply by lottery• Combines academics with multiple certificate programs• Strong links to district, tertiary education providers, business• Lessons learned– Skilled and committed staff essential– Student-centered policies– Technology-infused environment– Flexibility in study paths and scheduling– Ongoing connections to the world outside

Value of External Certifications

• K-12 schooling is an “hermetically sealed” system• In many states standards are set with an eye to political

realities• Students need realistic feedback on how they are doing and

meaningful goals to strive for• Advanced Placement and corporate or trade group

certification ladders (e.g. Microsoft, Cisco, etc.) are valuable • Non-degree programs are increasingly popular

But certificates are unlikely to cover the full range of desired competencies and dispositions ….

Achievement Gaps: 8th Grade Math (2009 NAEP)

• White 293• Black 261• Hispanic 266• AI/AN 266– Lo density public 272– Hi density public 259– BIE 248

NOTE: Basic = 262 and Proficient = 299

NOTE: Within AI/AN subgroup, gaps remain after disaggregation by poverty or school location

Understanding Achievement Gaps

• League tables are of limited utility• The need for longitudinal data (trends) and multi-level

data (patterns)• Contextual information and qualitative evaluation

provide grist for grounded “causal speculation” and policy analysis

Examples (NAEP):• Linking state policy efforts to reductions in the Black-

White achievement gap• Using the National Indian Education Study to explore

variations in outcomes for AI/AN students

The Dropout Gap and an Exemplar• Overall graduation rate of ~ 70% masks substantial variation

race/gender and location– Black male (on-time) rate ~ 47%– “Dropout factories” (Balfanz)

• Baltimore story– Black male (on-time) grad rate: 51% 57.3% over 3 years– Overall (on-time) grad rate: 60% 66%– Keeping students in school (prevention), coupled with

bringing dropouts back to school (salvage)– Dropping out is not primarily a result of intellectual

deficiencies

Reducing the Dropout Gap

• Lessons learned– Gains require both policy changes and cultural shifts– Structural changes have to be complemented by personal

outreach: Engagement is a two-way street• Rochester study– Multiple risk factors can be met with “gateway protective

factors” provided by school, family, community– Student success depends on high expectations matched

with targeted support

School Improvement Models: Consortium for Chicago School Research

A theory-based and empirically validated model of the essential ingredients in succeeding with highly disadvantages student populations

• Coherent instructional guidance system• Professional capacity• Strong parent-community-school ties• Student-centered learning climate• Leadership drives change

School Improvement Models: High Schools That Work (SREB)

Multiple Pathways to reduce dropouts and to enhance preparation of non-college bound youth

• Provide students in every program of study with a rigorous academic core curriculum

• High quality career/technical course sequences that blend academic and technical content in the context of authentic work

• Equip all students with 21st century skills through engaging programs• Expect all students to meet high standards in academic and

career/technical classrooms• Provide support students need to meet readiness standards:

– Guidance and mentoring– Academic and technical assistance

Gates Foundation

• Building a platform to support high level literacy and numeracy

• Encourages technology-enabled collaboration within and among schools

• Professional development is a key ingredient• Ongoing design research that encompasses

infrastructure development, instructional design, pedagogy, assessment

State Initiatives

• California (CC readiness)• Florida (K-16 system)• Indiana (Scholarship/support program)• Oregon (Expenditure analysis)• Texas (College and career readiness standards)

Policy Targets… And Challenges

• Structure and locus of authority• Coherence in different dimensions• Capacity building at every level• Culture/Beliefs/ Inertia• Data/Evidence/Accountability

Changing Beliefs System-wide

Ontario Ministry of Education issued a white paper on special education: Essential for Some, Good for All

Resonated throughout the province at all levels: A call to action based on ethical considerations and professional responsibility

Followed up by a three year initiative with equal funding for all 72 school boards, with considerable latitude in how to invest $ to best meet local needs

Elicited a great deal of energy and creativity – buy-in was nearly immediate because of high degree of school board autonomy

Current Concerns• Ongoing tensions between the federal government and the states

regarding direction and control of education policy -- playing out in an increasingly politicized context

• Structural disconnects in educational governance and funding that impede productive collaboration

• Impact of increasing economic disparities• Over-reliance on high-stakes, test-based accountability• Implications of setting rigorous C&CR standards• Prospects for the assessment consortia• Building credible assessments for a broad range of skills and

dispositions• Failure to account for school realities• Defensive policy stances of teacher unions

Rethinking Policy Approaches

Limitations of top-down policy making

Innovation: Seeding and supporting multiple strategies

School improvement models: Shifting from fully specified rigid structures to coral reef modelsDesigning for continuous improvement and long-term sustainabilityTargeted professional development within communities of practice

Rethinking Accountability

From relying on coercion to building commitment

Applying principles of system design

Thoughtful use of high quality assessments in conjunction with relevant qualitative evidence

Comprehensive monitoring of outcomes – addressing evidential asymmetry