ELPA Focuses on Putting Research into Hands of Practitioners

Monday, February 11, 2008 -

 ELPA's Bruce King, James Shaw, and Allan Odden
 

Schools across the United States today face more pressure than ever to boost student performance levels and close the gaps in achievement between students of different racial/ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. While many schools are struggling to make adequate progress, others have developed strategies that are contributing to significant improvements.

Educational researchers at UW–Madison and elsewhere have been closely examining successful schools with the aim of finding lessons for others. In separate studies, Allan Odden and Colleen Capper, both professors in UW-Madison’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis (ELPA), compiled case studies that point to common factors that support successful school reform.

Odden led a team that examined school finance adequacy in Wisconsin, while Capper studied schools that have boosted performance for all subgroups.  Both found that successful schools set higher goals, make decisions based on data, provide for long-term professional development, organize school time more efficiently, offer multiple extra-help opportunities for struggling students, support a collaborative professional learning community, and tap into external expertise.

Odden, Capper, and their ELPA colleagues recognized the value of these findings and began looking for new ways to transfer the latest knowledge of what works into the hands of more practicing school leaders.

“As the top educational leadership program in the nation, we had something to say and to share about leadership preparation and practices,” says Paul Bredeson, ELPA chair and professor.

The first idea to take shape was the Wisconsin Idea Leadership Academy (WILA), a summer conference for practitioners designed to present the latest research and showcase successful schools, especially those that serve significant numbers of children from poor families and children of color.

“There are some success stories in Wisconsin that don’t get enough attention,” says James Shaw, Wisconsin’s 2001 Superintendent of the Year, who joined ELPA in 2003 as a clinical professor after 10 years as superintendent of the Menomonee Falls School District. 

“We thought it would be great to prepare leaders to replicate the successes,” says Capper, who worked with Odden, Shaw, and faculty associate M. Bruce King to organize WILA around the theme of “Doubling School Performance.”

At its debut in 2006, WILA drew 36 participants from Illinois and Wisconsin, representing 21 districts and one of the state’s Cooperative Educational Service Agencies (CESAs).  The second WILA attracted 98 participants, from Wisconsin (representing 22 districts and one CESA), Illinois, Georgia, Minnesota, Missouri, Oregon, and Virginia, along with faculty and researchers from UW–Madison and UW–Milwaukee.

At the 2007 conference, leadership teams from two districts, four elementary schools, and four secondary schools from around the country gave presentations about how they were able to close the achievement gap on state tests within the last five to seven years. ELPA professors also discussed their research with these and other schools and districts that have successfully boosted student performance.

From the start, the conference has enjoyed broad support. The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, the Wisconsin Association of School District Administrators, the Association of Wisconsin School Administrators, and CESA 2 signed on as cosponsors.
Beyond an annual conference

The ELPA team, meanwhile, set out to do something more substantial than an annual conference.  “We wanted something embedded in someone’s career,” says Shaw. Capper adds, “We wanted to target district-level leaders in a new way, with a focus on equity and social justice.”

The team, backed by the department, decided on a new cohort approach to ELPA’s existing Ph.D. program.  The group developed the initiative, called the Wisconsin Idea Executive Ph.D. in Educational Leadership Program, for the stated purpose of preparing educational leaders to dramatically improve public schools. Shaw, who earned his Ph.D. from the department in 1990, serves as director and Capper and Odden as faculty advisors.

Capper says Dane County’s superintendents greeted the concept with enthusiasm and were among those who helped to shape the structure. “They saw this as really making a difference in the schools.” 

“Our current programs are driven by our collective commitment to three critical elements – equity, inquiry, and reflective practice,” says Bredeson, adding that these elements are central to the cohort program. He sees the initiative as another way for ELPA “to connect in meaningful ways the daily work and challenges of K-12 educators to research on exemplary practices leading to success for all students.” 

Using the 2007 WILA in July as a kick-off event, the three-and-a-half-year program was launched with a diverse 26-member cohort.  Having the students begin by learning about case studies of successful schools sends an important message, Capper explains: “This is what we want you to do.”

The cohort consists of 23 current administrators and three teachers with leadership experience. More than two thirds are women.

All are passionate and assertive in pursuit of their common goals, Capper says.  “This group is committed to making a difference in schools. They’re fired up and they have high expectations. They have a sense of urgency. They’re all looking for strategies they can use right now.”

Shaw points to the major representation from the state’s two largest school districts — five each from Milwaukee and Madison — among those who’ve come together to focus on improving schools.
Committed to a mission

Cohort members say they signed up mostly because the program emphasizes social justice and equity, focuses on putting high-quality research into practice, and brings together a dedicated group of peers to work with top scholars to address critical concerns.

“Learning to apply theory to practice is a huge motivator for me as I lead the Madison Metropolitan School District in our race and equity work,” says Lisa M. Black, special assistant to the superintendent for race and equity.

“It may sound a bit geeky, but I’m thrilled to be part of such a collaborative and be in school again,” Black says. “Having access to some of the top scholars in the country, or world for that matter, is exciting. … I’m excited about being exposed to diversity of thought and experience, in addition to nurturing my passion for learning how to become a staunch advocate and leader for social justice for all students.”

“The central focus on social justice, equity and excellence in urban education … allows me to develop professional and quality insight on how to effectively engage other educators around providing a more equitable education for all students, particularly students of color and low income status,” says Eric Gallien, principal of Milwaukee’s Parkview Elementary School. “As an African American male who has experienced first hand many of the inequities that exist within K-12 education, this was a huge draw for me.”

Thus far, Gallien says, “I am thoroughly impressed with the quality of instruction and the level of commitment of the instructors to the mission of this program. I am also impressed and encouraged by the quality of the students embarked on the journey with me.”

“I was hesitant about pursuing the advanced degree because of the demands of the job and my family,” says Alan Harris, principal of Madison East High School. “When I was told about the program by a couple of professors, I was very excited.”

Harris says, “It means a great deal that the institution is interested in empowering practitioners to pursue the doctoral degree.  Just as important is the mission of the cohort to focus on the issues of minority achievement in public education.  It makes the work not only interesting but practical.”

“Although the Ph.D. at the end will be great, especially from such a highly accredited institution, that’s not really why I decided to do this,” says Sheila Briggs, elementary lead principal for the Madison school district. “I’m at a point in my career where I really need to feel like I’m moving forward in my thinking.  I feel an incredible moral imperative for making a difference in our schools.  I feel like we are nearing a tipping point, and if things don’t change soon, our institutions are going to crumble.”
 
Briggs says, “I feel like this program has been feeding my soul. I’m hopeful that I will continue to grow as a practitioner, and that the rest of the cohort will, as well.  I get goose bumps thinking about the impact this group of educators has the potential to make across all our districts.” 
How program works

During the academic year, students take two courses per semester, offered over five weekends — meeting 4-9 p.m. on Fridays and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays. During the summer, they enroll for nine credits over a 12-week schedule.  In addition, the instructors are using online teaching technology to connect with the cohort.

The coursework includes field experiences, district case studies, and the latest research on highly effective school districts and leaders.

Each student, mentored by a superintendent, must complete a project designed to significantly advance student learning. Each also must complete a dissertation focusing on a study of a successful school district or districts.

The program, as envisioned by its leaders, aims to equip each student with a sophisticated set of strategies for using data to raise consciousness about district inequities, making decisions base on data, and empirically evaluating program effectiveness. The ELPA team also expects that these educational leaders, in turn, will pass along their knowledge to others.

The instructors include faculty who are engaged in ongoing research, along with Wisconsin superintendents who lead districts that have made significant gains in student achievement. Besides Shaw, Capper, Odden, and King, ELPA faculty directly involved in the initiative include Allen Phelps, Eric Camburn, Clifton Conrad, Rich Halverson, Julie Mead, and Geoffrey Borman.

Shaw adds that Bredeson and Carolyn Kelley, ELPA’s current and former chairs, have given critical support throughout the development and launch of these efforts.

The cohort members also plan to use future WILA gatherings as an alumni event where they can get rejuvenated, report on their efforts, address problems collectively, and keep up on the latest research about district leadership for student learning.

According to Shaw, decisions on whether to make the cohort Ph.D. an ongoing program will be made later, once the initial effort has been evaluated.

In the meantime, ELPA aims to continue preparing leaders interested in dramatically improving schools and advancing equity and excellence in teaching and learning through the department’s regular Ph.D. and master’s programs, as well as through the Wisconsin Idea Leadership Academy, with the next one scheduled July 7-10.

For more information on these and other ELPA programs, check the ELPA website at http://www.education.wisc.edu/elpa

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