The following article was written by Carol Abbott, education programs consultant, Middle and High School Improvement Office, California Department of Education. It is the fourth in a series introducing the forthcoming reform project, “Taking Center Stage – Act II.”
ACSA is a proud partner in the development and release of “Taking Center Stage – Act II: Ensuring Success and Closing the Achievement Gap for California’s Middle Grades Students.”
ACSA’s commitment to this innovative, Web-based project for middle grades education includes two sessions about TCS II at the November Leadership Summit in Santa Clara.
On Thursday, Nov. 8, veteran professional development experts Rob Hoover and Michael Donhost will present a hands-on session that weaves the TCS II concepts into a session on constructing change at the site level.
On Friday, two of the California Department of Education staff who wrote TCS II and produced the videos, along with ACSA Middle Grades Council President Creig Nicks, will provide a pre-release overview of the project and its exciting Web-based features.
ACSA Middle Grades Council members have been active in developing the TCS II concept through participation in the California Middle Grades Alliance. In September 2005, ACSA members participated in a statewide Web conference that allowed regional members to provide input on the 12 recommendations that form the foundation for each TCS II chapter and related video.
Previous EdCal articles outlined the TCS II history and features, and profiled the first six chapters that comprise the sections on Academic Excellence and Developmental Responsiveness. In this issue, we explore the issue of “social equity” – the third of four parts of TCS II that mirror the organizational structure developed by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform to illustrate the criteria for high performing middle schools.
Socially equitable practices are a central part of California’s commitment to closing the persistent achievement gap. ACSA has been an advocate of equity issues for many years, and published an Equity Position Paper that is mentioned in the TCS II section on social equity. The social equity section links to all other chapters in TCS II because equitable practices lie at the heart of all curriculum, instruction, interventions, relationship building and expectations for the success of every student.
Chapter 7 – Access
The chapter on Access begins with an overview of research about the importance of the middle grades in helping to prevent students from dropping out of school. Later chapter sections cover aspects of the No Child Left Behind focus on raising the achievement of specific subgroups of students.
Since access to all aspects of a high quality education is central to closing the achievement gap, the chapter touches on a wide variety of equity issues, including facilities, qualified teachers, instructional materials, mentors, sports, enrichment activities, leadership opportunities, transportation and promotions, to name a few. It is a difficult issue that is sure to spark conversations in faculty meetings, so the linked research and examples provide helpful resources for discussion.
Chapter 8 – Safety, Resilience and Health
The chapter on Safety, Resilience and Health provides a specific lens for ensuring equity through provision of supports such as counseling, safe facilities, freedom from bullying, and community health connections. The chapter provides an overview and resources on a wide variety of topics including school safety planning, conflict resolution, threat assessment, crisis response, Internet safety, classroom management and discipline. The chapter also contains many helpful resources related to resilience and youth development research and best practices.
Each chapter includes many school vignettes that illustrate the topic in action. The document ends with appendices related to the recommendations, including teaming practices, online and print resources, the recommendations in action, and a chart of related initiatives on middle grades reform.
This article is the fourth of a five-part series about the content of Taking Center Stage – Act II. The final article in EdCal will highlight the section on Organizational Structures and Processes, which contains chapters devoted to leadership and professional development. In addition, the final article will provide details about the world premier of Taking Center Stage – Act II.
EdCal will alert readers when the preview site for TCS II goes live. Located at http://pubs.cde.ca.gov/TCSII, the Coming Soon page will allow users to log into the TCS II Web portal and join a listserv so that they get instant updates about new postings. It will also include a welcome video as well as downloadable files containing the TCS II recommendations and a promotional brochure. The site will premiere Feb. 29, 2008 during the California League of Middle Schools Annual Conference in Sacramento.