PI: Getridge, Carolyn Demographics: The Oakland Unified School District is a minority majority system with 93% of its 52,269 students ethnic minorities, 46% of whom are AFDC eligible, while 60% qualify for free/reduced lunch. 26% are Limited English Proficient. This proposal targets African American and Hispanic students, who make up 73% of the school population, score significantly below District averages, have lower enrollment and success rates in gateway math and science courses, and have the lowest college enrollment rates. All 1200 elementary and the 435 secondary math and science teachers will participate directly, but systemic reform will impact all students and teachers. Background: The District and the six federal laboratory, university and community partners in this proposal have invested approximately $13.5 million over three years piloting best practices to develop a systemic strategy of reform. Math/science reform has been the District's primary vehicle to create a culture of inquiry at all grade levels and to implement a thinking-centered, student-centered curriculum that will lead underrepresented minorities to succeed in math and science. The District has: adopted core curricula that is aligned with state frameworks and national standards. aligned the elementary instructional program with that curricula. adopted hands-on, inquiry-based math and science texts and kits in 1992. implemented the staff development program in math and science for elementary teachers. initiated Efficacy Training, a 3 year program to train all employees in processes that maximize student learning potential and success. implemented a technology plan to support professional collaborations and inquiry-based learning. Through this effort the Distriat has gained the depth of understanding of the tremendous effort required to take reform to scale in a large, high poverty urban district. Goal/Objectives: The District's objectives fo r this five year proposal are to: Double the number of minority students who enroll in Algebra in grade 9 by year 5. Double the number of minority students who successfully complete the college preparatory a.-f. course sequence and are prepared to enter college by year 5. Increase by 1 0% the number of students who take the SAT; improve math scores by 1 0%. Increase average performance on the new standardized tests by 5 percentile points. Increase participation of minority students in AP math and science classes by 100%. The District believes that these ambitious objectives can only be achieved through sustained systemic reform. The District has the requisite leadership and political will. System-wide transformation now requires a bridge of new resources and the concentration of all existing District resources on a set of well- defined, sustained strategies that will actually impact the learning of children. Proposed Activities: The District will continue to refine science, engineering and math (SEM) standards, align policy with reform goals and complete a K-12 SEM pipeline for all students. The District is establishing more rigorous graduation requirements and re-writing policies for attendance, grading, retention and promotion of students, and accountability. Building on the successful work at elementary grades funded in part by NSF, the District will continue to implement an inquiry- based SEM curricula at the middle and senior high school levels, a process tied to 1997-98 grade reconfiguration. To sustain reform on a District wide basis, the District will build its internal capabilities to deliver services now provided to a limited number of schools by the six partners in this proposal. With its partners the District proposes (a) to create the infrastructure to ensure that classroom teachers gain in-depth experience in inquiry based instruction through meaningful in service activities coupled with in-classroom support and timely access to the appropriate materials (b) build in-house expertise in SEM content, pedagogy, mentoring and change management and (c) through these efforts train a critical mass of classroom teachers able to implement the SEM curriculum which the District then will be able to sustain through existing re-aligned staff development funds and people resources. A new Math and Science Resource Center will manage this change process, coordinate partners' support services, and implement a cost effective materials distribution system. The District will establish a continuum of student support and family involvement activities to address academic, attitudinal and socioeconomic barriers to learning. The District's new comprehensive School Improvement Systems assessment program will ensure accountability at all levels and monitor student achievement of well defined SEM benchmarks.
