Reform models
Schools can implement one of four models that are approved by the state and federal government: turnaround, transformation, closure and restart.
Turnaround model: This plan requires that the district replace the principal and rehire no more than 50 percent of the staff, and improve the school through curriculum reform, professional development extended learning time and other changes.
The restart model would close a school then reopen it as a charter school.
The transformation model includes replacing the principal, but the most of the staff would remain in place. The plan focuses on improving teacher effectiveness, increasing learning time, and provide sustained support.
The schools have until summer 2011 to improve performance or a state takeover could take place.
Hammond High
Overall performance: Unacceptable
Notes: Teachers won't change
"The school has reached a crossroads where it knows it must begin to turn the gains in climate into tangible academic success. The graduation rate has risen under this administration, but the level of achievement remains very low."
"The lack of alignment of the curriculum with state standards is a major reason why students feel they achieve well in school and then go on to fail ISTEP."
"The departure of some teachers and the hiring of replacements have resulted in what one group of teachers called a 'turning of the page' in terms of the school spirit. However, they also said that a significant number of staff are still not willing to reflect upon and amend their practices."
"The marking of students' written work is unacceptable. While there is some variation between teachers, the majority of marking is infrequent and tolerant of very low standards in the presentation of work. Students may be given a number to indicate performance, but they are not clear enough what this means."
Morton High
Overall performance: Poor
Notes: Disconnect with parents, no teacher accountability
"Readiness to learn at Morton is poor. Attendance is below average. The school does not build sufficiently supportive relationships with families. Many students need more structured and effective supports for learning."
"The school does not reach out to parents enough so it places the onus of responsibility on families to contact the school, guidance counselors, or teachers if they have questions or requests for support."
"School leaders say they are taking probation seriously, but do not yet hold teachers to account for the performance or progress of their students against state or national assessments at the school, department or classroom level."
"Grading policies vary from teacher to teacher and this limits the school's capacity to measure student achievement accurately."
East Chicago Central
Overall performance: Poor
Notes: Teacher-center instruction
"East Chicago Central High School has undergone a period of profound and persistent crisis in its leadership and performance in recent years.
"The indicators of this are that student suspensions regularly exceeded 3,000 per year, achievement has remained well below state averages without any signs of improvement, and there has been a rapid turnover of principals."
"Much of the teaching in the school is too teacher-centered to develop the range of personal skills that students will need to be successful in their future lives. In many classes, they sit in rows and spend undue periods listening to the teacher or working their way through exercises."
"The administration, beset with the task of keeping the building in order, leaves teachers to work largely in isolation. Consequently, the school leaders do not remediate poor practice and disseminate that which is exemplary."
Central Elementary
Overall performance: Unacceptable
Notes: Lack of accountability
"While students settle well into school and respond to their teachers, the school is not capitalizing on their willingness to drive progress. Core instruction is insufficiently robust and significantly lacks rigor, with particular weaknesses in English language arts skills."
"Students' work is often more to do with task completion than quality ..."
The principal's low-level involvement with classroom practice leads to a lack of understanding of what is going on across the school."
"Teachers make little effective use of technology to support and enhance learning or to make additional links between the core skills of reading, writing, and math across all subjects."
"There is an almost total lack of accountability across the school from the principal down through the teachers and ultimately to the students."
"The school uses the 'enrichment' classes for the bulk of the students mainly as holding centers. They have no definable structure to them and no links to any program that would consolidate or extend students' learning in any subject."
"Parents commented on the poor quality of homework, much of which seems to be completing work unfinished in class."
Calumet High
Overall performance: Poor
Notes: Technology ignored
"Lessons lack pace, engagement and are not sufficiently challenging to students."
"There is no whole-school policy relating to lesson planning, neither is there a clear and succinct shared vision for moving the school forward in the immediate or longer term."
"Students are able to articulate at length those teachers who have high standards and those who they feel accept mediocrity. This is not to say teachers do not care about the students, but their levels of academic challenge are weak."
"Despite having many rooms equipped with technology, most teachers do not use it as a tool for extension or remediation work to challenge their students."
"Individualized learning that has its basis in data does not happen within the school."
"The numerous changes in leadership allowed too many teachers to act without guidance and purpose. Consequently, staff members have not always pulled in the same direction."
"Feedback to teachers is minimal and therefore teachers are not being helped to improve."
Roosevelt High
Overall performance: Poor
Notes: Even in face of very poor student progress ... staff resistant to change
"Suspensions are running at 10 to 15 per day, which is very high. This is by no means entirely due to serious infractions, as the school commonly suspends students for minor misdemeanors, such as not wearing the uniform correctly."
"In the lessons observed, very little teaching enthused the students and encouraged them to develop the wide range of skills that would help them to become independent learners and successful in careers. They typically sit silently in rows and listen to the teacher or work, albeit methodically and with some gains in literacy and numeracy, through worksheets and exercises"
"A substantial proportion of staff do not take an active part in building relationships with students and this is a significant reason why relationships and behavior in the school are not better."
"Even in the face of very poor student progress, a significant minority of staff are very resistant to adapting the ways they teach."
"The middle school staff work in a different part of the building to their high school colleagues and differing schedules mean that the two groups rarely meet."
"The faculty does not have a coherent approach to developing basic skills."