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The West High School English/Math Partnership Task Force brings together a variety of educators working together to develop an instructional program that adopts state

standards, increases student competency in those standards, and increases student success for college and careers. Teachers from West High School’s English and math

departments, along with the Assistant Principal of Instruction, have created an education partnership with local junior high schools and Institutes of Higher Education in an effort to create a unified curriculum and support system for students.

The four junior high feeder schools for West High School are Curran, Actis (O.J.), Thompson, and Sequoia. Higher education partners include California State University- Bakersfield (CSUB) and Bakersfield Community College (BCC). The Kern County Superintendent of Schools and the Kern/Tulare Tech Prep Consortium are also a part of the Task Force.

West High School was established in 1965. Currently, the school serves a diverse student body numbering just under 2200. The diversity among students is a relatively recent phenomenon, resulting from the rapid growth of Kern County in the 1990’s. In 1987, 28% of the students at West were non-white, and 3% qualified for free or reduced lunches. In 1998-99, just over half of the students were non-white (52%) and 29% qualified for free and reduced priced meals.

As noted in the grant application, students at West had been underachieving as the school struggled to find it’s identity during the 1990’s. According to the 1996-97 High School Performance report, West produced fewer graduates who had met college eligibility or were participating in higher education than the statewide average. In

addition, West High School placed below state averages on SAT scores and on the STAR exams. Finally, in 1999, West High School received an API score of 530, placing it in the 30th decile statewide and in the 20th decile compared to schools with similar

characteristics.

Project objectives and activities

The West High School English/Math Partnership Task Force was formed to improve the academic achievement of West High School students by implementing a “standards- based Accountability Program that provides equity and excellence for every student.”

Working together with partners and with the CAPP office, the West High School Task Force developed a series of objectives for year one to help reach the two goals of the CAPP project: raising the academic achievement of all students and implementing a system of standards-based education in English and math. The WHS Task Force objectives for year one were:

1. increase by 10% the number of students enrolled in English/math courses that meet the A-F requirement;

2. increase by 10% the number of students mastering the A-F coursework by earning a grade of C or better; and

3. decrease by 10% the number of students requiring remedial coursework in English and mathematics at the CSU level.

In addition to these stated objectives, the Task Force called for the “rethinking” of curriculum to move West toward a system of standards-based education in English and math. Specifically, the grant proposed that English and math teachers would review the content requirements of their respective courses of study in relation to the state and district standards and redesign lesson plans to ensure that all students have access to the concepts and ideas put forth in the standards. In redesigning their curriculum, teachers would also develop appropriate assessment tools to use in measuring progress toward those standards.

A number of activities, listed below, were proposed to achieve the first year objectives of the West High School CAPP project.

Objectives one and 2:

• Decrease the number of general-level English sections, subsequently

increasing the offerings of A-F courses, to provide access to more students to A-F courses.

• Increase the number of Algebra sections, thereby allowing more students to enroll in those courses.

• Implement "C-" program with guidance counselors. Academic referrals from teachers to counselors every four weeks when a student is earning a "C-" or worse.

• Implement "Academic Make-Up Day." Every four weeks an AM activity Schedule (Tuesday mornings only) will be dedicated toward allowing students

to make up homework, missed assignments, tests, and obtain instructional help.

• Implement after-school tutoring program. Use teachers and KEMP tutors from

CSU Bakersfield to work with students.

• Provide professional development for partnership staff (CSUB, WHS, BC

(Bakersfield college) and junior high schools) in order to increase program awareness and to develop instructional strategies to assist with student achievement.

Objective 3:

• Staff mentoring development between CSUB and WHS. This will involve

teacher development specific to awareness of competency expectations for success in college and in developing instructional strategies.

• Implement SAT preparation programs.

• Implement EPT and ELM placement exams in the junior year.

• Implement Golden State Exam.

• Incorporate the MDTP test for mathematics diagnostic information. • Develop strategies to better utilize guidance counselors.

• Identify student needs through communication with the junior high schools, ELL Coordinator, and Special Education Coordinator.

In developing and designing activities to help accomplish each objective and reach the goals of the project, the CAPP project at West targets all students. In their view, the key to lasting change is to change the entire campus. According to the AP, “our goal is the inclusion of students into the opportunities of standards-based courses that provide the potential for success. So, not everyone has to go to college, but they need the skills.” Task Force members

The CAPP project at West High School is just one of several that operates under the West High School English/Math Partnership Task Force. The Kern Educational Partnership (KEP) and the Kern English and Mathematics Program (KEMP) act in conjunction with CAPP in providing support services to students.

West High School secured the KEP grant after receiving CAPP funding. KEP partners six high schools in the Kern Union High School District with the University of California at Bakersfield. The goal is to reduce the need for remediation among incoming students. West High School, along with the other five high schools participating in KEP, were identified as sites with high numbers of students needing remediation at the college level. CSUB faculty work with high school teachers to discuss how high school standards align with the CSU expectations and identify and share best teaching practices.

Additionally, trained CSU student tutors are provided to the high schools to help students strengthen their basic English and mathematics skills.

KEMP is a similar program to KEP in that the goal is to increase student

competencies by providing English and math tutors from CSUB to high schools in the Kern High School District. KEMP currently places over 75 tutors in 14 local high schools working to help future students prepare for college-level English and math.

Implementation in year one

Under the Task Force, many activities designed to help reshape the curriculum and increase student preparedness were initiated in the 1999-00 school year. Some of the activities implemented included changes in school schedule and course offerings, focused staff development regarding the new content standards, enhanced tutoring and academic support systems, and increased collaboration with local feeder schools.

Changes in curriculum

Teachers began the work early of aligning the English and math courses to the standards set by the state. In English, teachers began reviewing the curriculum the summer prior to the 1999-00 school year. Teachers broke down the current state standards for English by grade level, and worked together to determine what each grade level needed to teach. Teachers then examined their own curriculum to see how their current lessons matched the state standards, and what new lessons needed to be developed to ensure adequate coverage. Mathematics teachers were also involved in reshaping the curriculum at West. Math teachers from each subject area examined the state standards in mathematics and augmented their current lessons, making sure that future instruction encompasses the principles and standards in the California Mathematics Framework.

In addition to changing course content to align them with the state standards, other activities were implemented by the English and math departments at West High School.

English

English teachers developed rubrics and lesson plans in conjunction with the Jane

Schaeffer Writing Method. Jane Schaeffer was invited to speak to the staff at West about her program and how it can be used to assess and improve student writing skills. Through this training, and other professional development, a common English rubric was

developed for grades 7 through 16. Student examples of work at each grade level were examined and scored by each teacher to see if the rubric was reliable. This also provided an opportunity for discussion around the kinds of knowledge students are expected to master at each grade level and how the junior high, high school and college can use rubrics to assess areas of need for students.

During the second semester of the 1999-00 school year, all of the “general

education” English tracks across all grades were eliminated and replaced with a college- prep curriculum. This was based upon the successful implementation of a baseline college-prep curriculum for students in grade 9 during the first semester.

Math

A new course sequence was developed by the math department to provide students with increased access to algebra classes. This was done to help ensure that “all students have the opportunity to learn all topics contained in the HSEE, ” and to help students meet the minimum college requirements for mathematics. Four course sequences were created, which were designed to accommodate students with varying math backgrounds and capabilities. For those students requiring remediation, two of the course sequences offered a four-semester algebra course to review basic math skills and prepare students for algebraic concepts. In addition, summer school courses were offered to provide support and allow for accelerated advancement through the sequence of courses.

Math teachers participated in a workshop at Cal State Bakersfield that focused on alternate ways of teaching algebra. This included teachers from West High School, and teachers from two of the feeder schools, among other schools. Although this program was designed as part of the KEP project, the goals were similar to those of the CAPP project, and CAPP funding was used to cover the additional costs of this training. Toward that end, the staff at West have discussed ways to help solidify their students’ algebra knowledge through the infusion of algebraic concepts in other math classes, especially Geometry.

Other changes have been made at West High School outside of the English and math departments aimed at increasing student achievement. Scheduling changes were made to create more math sections to accommodate all students. This meant classes had to be taken from the Science and the Western Civilization departments. Changes in the class schedule were also planned to allow for an additional “zero period” class that could be used for tutoring or academic support. Plans were also made to move beyond English and math courses by involving Science and Social Studies teachers in CAPP meetings to begin the discussion of integrated learning. In this way, the supports provided by CAPP could be used by teachers and students in other classes.

Successes

According to the Assistant Principal of Instruction, the CAPP project made “tremendous” progress toward it’s goals during the year. CAPP leaders had at least one year of planning and development prior to the 1999-00 school year, enabling them to “develop dialogue and deliver the message to all teachers and staff.” According to the AP “this has allowed us to make changes gradually.” Furthermore, the AP notes;

In two years we have eliminated lower ability tracking and the overall GPA has gone from about 2.0 to 2.5. The thought was that if we increase the number of kids in higher level classes, we’d increase the failure rate, but that has not happened. We’ve raised expectations, and the kids are achieving. We’ve also had a drop in the retention rate; we’ve stopped kids from finding an easier way.

The assistant principal has also noticed a change in the attitudes of staff at West where expecting success for students has become “a self-fulfilling prophesy.” “Some teachers said they had to work harder at the beginning of the year but now it is paying off because they have see growth and it is more fun to teach. The students have risen to the occasion.”

One of the greatest successes has been the increased dialogue among staff.

Although increasing such dialogue was not considered a specific objective of the project, nor an activity by which each objective would be reached, the staff came together as a result of working together on CAPP and the West High School Task Force. According to the AP, “The staff are energized by the fact that we are constantly coming to the table to talk. And they are talking across the curricula, because the goal – student success – is a common one.” Teacher leaders also see more communication among staff and

departments as a result of CAPP. “The CAPP project is like a safe haven,” according to one teacher. “We can get together and have a safe exchange of ideas and professional dialogue toward the same goal. Getting to meet with the teachers and with college staff helps us move outside of our own ‘bubbles’ to see what the big picture is.”

These opportunities to talk and share dialogue came during regular project meetings and professional development opportunities organized by the WHS Task Force. There was a monthly meeting of partners, and brochures and newsletters were created to communicate to staff and parents the goals of CAPP and the TASK Force. In one staff newsletter, designed as a “series of updates to keep (staff) informed on the changes in education both at the state and national levels,” the 1999 Public School Accountability Act (PSAA) was featured. According to the newsletter, “our charge as educators is to recognize that the state of California has taken a change in direction from content-based to standards-based instruction.” Also included in the newsletter was information about the API score of West and the growth target for the current school year. “All of this PSAA stuff means that we must provide all students with the access to challenging curriculum (standards)” the newsletter reads. Further information was delivered at staff meetings, where presentations were made to all teachers appraising them of the goals of the project and the early progress made by students.

While teacher meetings and newsletters focused on making teachers aware of the PSAA requirements and the goals of the CAPP project, the professional development for teachers was designed to increase preparedness to teach a standards-based instructional program. UCLA professor Barbara Wells trained staff in the use of the Math Diagnostic Testing Program (MDTP) and Jane Schaeffer worked with English teachers on

implementing the Jane Schaeffer Writing Method. Math teachers also attended CSUB- sponsored workshops during the school year and in the summer. In addition, monthly CAPP meetings generally allowed time for the math and English departments to meet and discuss content-related issues, making sure that teachers had ample opportunity to discuss instructional strategies and other issues that were of direct importance to them and their classroom.

Obstacles

There were some obstacles in the way, most notably the lack of time, which was especially problematic because West High School and their feeder schools did not operate as part of the same school district. In addition, partners from CSUB operated on unique schedules, which made it challenging to plan meetings for all partners. Even

finding release time for the teachers at West was somewhat difficult, although the pooling of grant money included under the Task Force made it easier to allocate blocks of time for teachers to work on CAPP and Task Force-related activities.

Another slight challenge faced by the project was changing the expectations of community members towards the goals of the CAPP project. According to the AP, “we are trying to change a culture – a culture that is part of a community that does not place an emphasis on going to college. It’s hard to convince people that all kids can achieve. I’ve used my passion, and research I’ve done on lower-level tracking to convince people that the more we can get all grades to have high standards and expectations, the better off students will be.” Even some teachers were hesitant at first, according to teacher leaders. As one explained, “we are going against the grain of the past. The old way was ‘English is too hard so we must move you back.’ The new way is ‘English is too hard, so we must do more English, with our help’”

With such help, many teachers were able to “do more” for their students, although some acknowledge that there were growing pains, and that perhaps the changes came about too quickly for some teachers. As one explained, “when we dropped all the general education classes in the middle of the semester and at the semester break, it was too much. The teachers who got a lot of new kids were ticked off. And, some kids have had several different English teachers just this year.”

Unexpected outcomes

Most teachers have been very supportive of the program however, which was one of the unexpected outcomes during the first year of implementation. According to the AP, “there is less sub-group identification as a result of CAPP” and as a result, “the pulse of the campus is so different” than in the past. Most teachers bought into the program because “they have not been asked to lower their standards, merely help all kids achieve. And we’ve helped them do that by adding more support mechanisms for kids.”

Even the Kern High School District noticed some of the activities taking place at West and began emulating the program. For the first time, the district talked about the possibility of district unification, to allow for a more streamlined academic experience for students from Middle school through high school. The program, called “college

eligibility/student success” will gather teachers from several schools, including six from West High School, to discuss the ramifications of unification and what instructional changes might occur as a result. The program is headed by the former principal of West

High School. In addition, a second district committee will be created soon to investigate and develop online tutoring programs in math and English.