| How to Close the Achievement Gap?
Use the data to introduce change to measure again in an ongoing cycle of improvement.
But how do we know what change to introduce? By looking for "Best Practices" working at other schools.
Where are the Best Practices in Minnesota?
Fall 2007 - The Rural Education Dilemma - New technologies remove the middle-man from knowledge, opening the door to new education delivery models that focus on students as learners (actors) with teachers as advisors (guides). Traditional institutional models and funding streams create barriers to innovation, Rural Minnesota Journal.
Fall 2007 - Questioning Conventional Wisdom About Minnesota’s Public Schools - Describes the need to redefine the goals of public education in Minnesota and develop broader indicators of progress; provides summaries of eight model high schools, Rural Minnesota Journal.
June 2007 - The Bridge to Higher Learning: A New Vision for Minnesota’s High Schools In the Global Information Age - The new vision for Minnesota’s high schools should be to prepare every student to earn a credential or a degree at a postsecondary educational institution—whether it is a technical school, two-year college, or four-year college or university, Minnesota Association of Secondary School Principals and the University of Minnesota Consortium for Postsecondary Academic Success.
November 2006 - Effectiveness of programs to improve postsecondary education enrollment and success of underrepresented youth: A literature review - Evaluates the evidence for the effectiveness of interventions aimed at increasing postsecondary enrollment and success of underrepresented groups, in particular students of color and students from low-income families, Wilder Research.
February 2006 (Revised) - Transforming the University, PreK-12 Strategy Task Force Report, University of Minnesota (Executive Summary).
Spring 2005 - Promising Practices Project - Saint Paul Public Schools.
December 2004 - Foundations for Success in the Minneapolis Public Schools: Report of the Strategic Support Teams of the Council of the Great City Schools.
June 2003 - Robbinsdale School District Middle School Study - This comprehensive study of middle school education in the Robbinsdale School District was conducted to: 1) consider best practices in middle school education, 2) review existing practices in Robbinsdale Area Schools and 3) make recommendations that will lead to an improved middle school program.
Wouldn't it be nice of the Minnesota Department of Education created a "Center for Excellence" that funded the investigation and publication of case studies in Minnesota schools closing the Achievement Gap?
High School Initiatives at the Minnesota Department of Education.
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