This toolkit provides a road map for district leaders, education professionals, and community stakeholders to move from large, comprehensive high schools to smaller learning environments. The toolkit is divided into two chapters. The first takes district reform leaders and their partners through the process of planning a portfolio of excellent schools; thinking through the relationship of the district to potential partners who could become additional engines of reform. The second chapter suggests strategies for launching a portfolio of new schools, as well as how to identify and replicate success in order to sustain these new schools. Each chapter begins with a brief introduction and synopsis of the tools therein. Reform leaders, district and state policymakers, are invited to use, distribute, and adapt the tools in ways that best meet their immediate needs.
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Background and Context
One key approach to improving instruction for high school students is redesigning the environment and structure in which they learn. Creating smaller learning communities is one way schools are fundamentally reshaping that environment. Guided by a belief that student achievement will improve in a more personalized environment, advocates of smaller learning communities hope that smaller class sizes, increased teacher collaboration, comprehensive advisory systems, and a more relevant and rigorous curriculum will reap substantial gains in academic achievement.
