Background

Sierra Vista principal Suzanne Martinez has always believed that working collaboratively is the ideal way for a school staff to work. She also believes in encouraging teachers to take leadership roles and to make instructional and management decisions at the school.

When she became the principal at Sierra Vista five years ago, Ms. Martinez began to hold all-staff meetings where teachers could discuss challenges they faced and share classroom successes. She also organized faculty study groups. One group spent a great deal of time discussing the school's reading program and led the staff to adopt a new reading program during the first two years of her tenure there. Members of the reading study group received intensive training for the new program and then served as coaches to other teachers as the program was put into place.

Ms. Martinez also began to work with her staff on building a vision. She brought parents into the discussions so they could help shape the environment they wanted for their children's school. By the time Siera Vista adopted a reform model, there was a firm vision in place for the school.

Although the school's vision was a written statement, many teachers knew it by heart and all were able to articulate the vision easily. Teachers acknowledged that the school's goals and reform program were based on the vision. It appears the staff worked diligently to carry out the goals that had been agreed upon. One teacher commented, "We are doing this not just for the principal or the reform program, we are doing it for the kids."

The Implementation Process

When the school was well into the implementation process for its reform program, faculty members began to meet regularly as a large group to discuss changes being made in curriculum and instruction, to receive training needed to carry out the changes that reform calls for, and to reflect upon how well students were learning.

Teachers at Sierra Vista valued this collaboration among the staff. A fourth-grade teacher noted, "I think the collaboration that goes on makes this a good school. I feel very supported by the administration and other staff members. There's just that camaraderie. And I feel my ideas are valued." A first-grade teacher remarked, "A teacher who just wants to go in and shut herself in the classroom and work alone will not fit in at our school."

A second-grade teacher described how the Sierra Vista faculty frequently worked in groups to critique teaching and improve classroom strategies. "Maybe I will bring a unit to show the others in my group what I did. They are going to look at it critically and maybe praise it or tell me how to polish it. They are going to help look at what I've done and improve on it. The focus of the group is on kids' work so we can improve our teaching for the kids." Another Sierra Vista teacher added, "On a daily basis we're conversing as to what's working and things we need to change."

Sierra Vista teacher noted the school's approach to professional development before Ms. Martinez came to the school. "We mainly attended district training sessions," he reported. "Once in a while there would be conferences we would want to attend. These usually had to do with topics we were interested in individually or that a small group of us were interested in."

Ms. Martinez recognized that such a haphazard approach to professional development was not coherent enough for a school about to undertake a reform effort. As teachers became accustomed to working in groups and discussing issues freely, she began to lead them in discussions about training and professional development. As a group, the staff designed a professional development plan that included: 1) training from the model developer, 2) training for the reading program that the school adopted prior to undertaking comprehensive school reform, and 3) meeting together in cadres, by grade level, and as a whole staff on a regular basis to discuss their instruction and student learning.

Ms. Martinez has been working to develop a professional learning community, which she believes is the most important piece of a school's professional development program. She often leaves articles for her teachers to read related to developing professional learning communities and the benefits of such communities. Ms. Martinez also instituted a change in the school schedule by lengthening the school day by 15 minutes, so that the students could be released by noon every other Friday to allow the staff time to meet together on those afternoons.

The Sierra Vista teachers have learned to take advantage of those Fridays for planning and for discussions about their practice and the reform program, but they also have learned to make the most out of other professional development sessions. For example, when the consultants from the model developer's office come for sessions, the teachers are ready. They prepare a list of questions and concerns beforehand and fax it to the consultants to make certain those concerns are addressed.

Ms. Martinez also serves as a model to her staff with regard to professional development, evident from the following comments:

A fifth-grade teacher remarked, "Suzanne is very knowledgeable about research in education and what is happening on the cutting edge. She stays on top of the professional development sessions available to us and encourages us to attend those that fit into the professional development plan we now have."

Yet another teacher commented, "Ms. Martinez not only encourages teachers to attend professional development activities, she attends along with us."

Additionally, student achievement is continuously monitored at Sierra Vista. Grade-level teams examine different data weekly to reflect on progress and determine where instruction needed adjustment. The teams study state standardized test scores, attendance records, discipline referrals, classroom test scores, informal reading skills assessments that are conducted periodically, and student work for which they have created assessment rubrics.

"Once we got used to looking at data carefully and discussing it, we all became very sensitive to changes in student performance, and we wanted parents to stay abreast of their children's learning as well," explained a third-grade teacher. Teachers began using every available bulletin board to display their students work so that parents would have a chance to see what their children were learning. They also began sending home information regarding class progress and activities every two weeks and began encouraging parents to become involved in the school's reading program by keeping a reading log with their children.

At first, some Sierra Vista teachers were uneasy about the focus on evaluating student work, test scores and other data. Several said they felt threatened, thinking that such scrutiny would emphasize their weaknesses and make them appear to be inept teachers. "We soon got over that," observed one staff member. "We learned how to look at the test scores and other data and think about what it actually means in the classroom and how we should use that information to change our teaching."

Ms. Martinez routinely visits several classrooms every day, even if it was only for a minute or two. She uses the visits as opportunities to observe teacher and student progress and she often catches up with teachers at lunch to provide feedback or make suggestions. Several teachers said this was unnerving at first, and some took her suggestions personally. However, over time, her visits became accepted and appreciated by students and teachers. One of the recent college grads on the staff said that she is still nervous when Ms. Martinez makes a suggestion but reports, "I have learned to take her criticisms as something supportive. She genuinely wants to help us improve our teaching skills and she is just as quick to praise as to give a suggestion for improvement."

While things may sound rosy at Sierra Vista, this was not always the case. There were teachers initially resistant to the CSR program. Gradually most of these teachers were won over, but it was not, however, an easy process to get everyone on board. Ms. Martinez spent a great deal of time in discussions with those teachers resistant to change. She addressed many of their concerns regarding the program and encouraged them to talk to teachers at other schools that had similar reform programs. She also encouraged them to express their thoughts and ideas for alternate programs during staff discussions. Sierra Vista teachers who were enthusiastic about the reform program also encouraged others reluctant to go through the change process.

One of the major problems in getting Sierra Vista teachers to take on the reform program was convincing them to work the additional hours needed at first without receiving compensation. It meant early morning meetings and giving up some weekends. Ms. Martinez admitted that she had several teachers who never felt comfortable with the reform program and the additional work time it required—they have moved on to other teaching positions.

After two years implementing the reform program, Sierra Vista's standardized reading test scores rose, while math showed some slight improvement. The rise in reading scores was not surprising, given the focus on reading before the reform program's start. At the beginning of year two of the reform implementation, the Sierra Vista teachers began focusing on math in the same way they initially focused on reading. They seem confident there will be a sizeable increase in math scores.

Ms. Martinez happily points to what she considers other indicators of the program's success—teachers collaborating on lessons, coaching each other, and becoming truly excited with the quantifiable increases in student achievement (even if not as high as some had hoped.) The students seem more eager to learn and are more enthusiastic about their work, especially reading. "We're on the right track," she says. "We just have to maintain our momentum and continue to focus on how we can help our students learn more than ever."