Tool Kit
Resources
- Communications Toolkit - New Back to School Resources!
- Staffing High-Needs Schools
- District Success Stories
- Reading & Mathematics
Communications Toolkit
LFA's Communications Toolkit aims to help education leaders communicate more effectively about public education. Based on focus groups and polling LFA commissioned in 2004 and 2005, the toolkit offers original research findings on public opinion, a guide to promoting public schools, and language for op-eds and speeches. It includes:
- "Values, Vision and Performance: American's Hopes for Their Public Schools", a Power Point presentation on the results of LFA's original research on public opinion of public schools.
- The "Practical Guide to Promoting America's Public Schools," which is designed to help educators and others interested in education promote public education in their communities
- Sample Language for Written Materials, such as columns, articles and letters
- Sample Language for Speeches
- New! Language for Back-to-School Communications! Use all or part of LFA's new back-to-school speech for your back-to-school presentations, columns or other communications. This language outlines a vision for 21st century public schools which is already taking shape in schools across the country. It reaffirms the extraordinary mission of our public schools and encourages strong partnerships among public schools, citizens and communities. Click here to download it in a word file.
Staffing High-Need Schools
In 2005, Learning First Alliance organizations came together to produce a common framework for ensuring all students access to highly effective teachers and leaders in their schools: A Shared Responsibility: Staffing All High-Poverty, Low-Performing Schools with Effective Teachers and Administrators".
District-Wide Improvement: Success Stories
In 2003, the Alliance examined five high-poverty school districts with a strong track record of improving achievement. The resulting report, Beyond Islands of Excellence: What Districts Can Do to Improve Instruction and Achievement in All Schools, identifies a set of practical steps that schools and districts can take to move beyond a few excellent schools to success across entire systems. You can download the full report here, or you can review these related materials:
- Beyond Islands of Excellence - A Leadership Brief
- Case studies of individual districts, including: the Aldine Independent School District; the Chula Vista Elementary School District; the Kent County Public Schools; the Minneapolis Public Schools; and the Providence public Schools
Reading and Mathematics
The Learning First Alliance's publications on mathematics and science remain perennial bestsellers. Over 30,000 have been downloaded from the internet in the past four years, and we have sold thousands more in hard-copy. These publications include:
- Every Child Reading: An Action Plan, which details the Alliance's agreement on the most effect reading instruction.
- Every Child Reading: A Professional Development Plan, which provides teachers strategies improving their skills as reading instructors.
- Every Child Mathematically Proficient: An Action Plan, which advanced four research-based strategies for bringing American students to world-class standards in mathematics.
- Math tips for parents, teachers, and schools.
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Emerging Vision
On this website, educators, parents and policymakers from coast to coast are sharing what's already working in public schools--and sparking a national conversation about how to make it work for children in every school. Join the conversation! Learn more.
New Stories
Featured story
"Ensuring All Students Reach their Highest Potential in Math"
Only a decade ago, Interlake High School was the lowest-performing school in the Bellevue district. As Bellevue is an open enrollment district, Interlake parents and community members knew they needed an academically rigorous program to turn the school's performance around and draw students to the school. In 1997, Interlake implemented the prestigious International Baccalaureate (IB) Degree program and in 2003 added the Advanced Placement program.
Access to challenging high school courses has more impact on the likelihood of a student successfully completing a bachelor's degree than any other factor. While recent studies have...Read more
School/District Characteristics
Hot topics
- 21st Century Skills
- Assessment
- Community Based Learning
- Connected Community
- Data Driven Instruction
- District Wide Strategies
- Educator Preparation
- Empowering Professionals
- Engaging Environments
- Equity
- Family Involvement
- Flexible Schedules
- Healthy Kids
- Personal Attention
- Professional Collaboration
- Professional Development
- Respectful Behavior
- Rich Curriculum
- Safe Great Places
- School Community Communication
- Standards That Matter
- Technology And Learning
Visionaries
Click here to browse dozens of Public School Insights interviews with extraordinary education advocates, including: