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Staff members at Vanguard attribute the increase in student achievement to a number of factors. Primary on the list is the use of data. Administrators at Vanguard spend a great deal of time analyzing and interpreting data and making sure that all stakeholders understand the implications of this data analysis. First, during staff development, school and district administrators spend time sharing and analyzing the data so that the teachers can use the data to inform instruction. Then this information is shared with both parents and students. In addition to their use of data, faculty members also identify strong instructional leadership, vision, consistency, alignment to standards, staff development, and collaboration as critical elements to the improved student achievement results.
It is clear to both staff and visitors at Vanguard that the strong vision provided by the instructional leader, Ms. Deloris Holmes, is a driving force of the reform effort at Vanguard. Ms. Holmes became the principal at Vanguard five years ago, and has provided focus, consistency, guidance, support, structure and discipline for both students and staff. Ms. Holmes and the rest of her administrative team spend a great deal of time in classrooms monitoring teaching and learning. They look to see that the strategies discussed at their weekly staff development meetings are being implemented. In addition, the administrators look for evidence of the Vanguard Non-negotiables (PDF). These non-negotiables are a list of clear expectations for teachers. This list of 17 items does not encompass everything that is required of a teacher, but it does cover many of the basic expectations at Vanguard. Some of the non-negotiables include:
- Write clear and concise objectives on the board daily for each subject taught
- Turn in weekly lesson plans in a timely manner
- Display current student work on boards
For those teachers that may have difficulty implementing the non-negotiables, there are safety nets in place for them at Vanguard. There are new teacher support meetings every week. Teachers are assigned mentors. There is also a buddy-buddy system where the teacher next door might assist a less experienced teacher. This support and guidance is critical as 70% of the teachers at Vanguard are on emergency credentials.
At Vanguard, there is a clear emphasis on school climate. The campus is very clean and well maintained and features a beautiful rose garden. Students greet teachers, administrators, and visitors in a friendly and respectful manner. The students begin each day with the student affirmation. The principal recites the student affirmation over the PA system and the students repeat after her. The administrators at Vanguard want students to feel confident about themselves and their abilities because this influences academic achievement.
The teachers and administrators at Vanguard encourage and develop student leadership and involvement. Teachers and administrators help the students understand that they are important to their families, to the school, to the community and to their own personal success. To this end, Vanguard has two service organizations on campus, a cadet corps, a career day, and a program for students to shadow professionals.
Data analysis is the driving force for all decisions made at Vanguard. In addition to the SAT-9, Vanguard uses data from the district's writing assessment, which is administered 4 times per year, Vanguard's local writing assessment program that is given every week, and the district's cumulative tests in language arts and math. Based on these multiple measures, the administrative team and teachers at Vanguard determine their instructional priorities. The analysis of these multiple measures and the subsequent instructional priorities then become the foundation for professional development. In addition, resources are allocated toward that instructional priority in order to ensure that all students are making academic progress. These multiple measures also inform the placement of students in programs.
Professional development at Vanguard is on-site and ongoing. Staff development at Vanguard begins each summer with a 2-day session focused on data and the instructional priorities for the year. An ongoing, weekly 2-hour staff development program follows. This program is calendared at the beginning of the year based on data and staff, student and parent needs. The teachers play a major role by telling the administrative support staff what they need.
There is very strong evidence that the staff development activities and techniques are implemented in the classrooms. Teachers are told that when administrators observe in classrooms, they expect to see implementation of those strategies that have been the focus of the professional development program. Administrators have observation forms in order to check whether or not the techniques identified during staff development are evident in the classroom.
An important feature of Vanguard's staff development program is the rotational schedule. Each week, the staff development session is held in a different teacher's classroom and that teacher is asked to give a tour, explaining everything that occurs inside of that classroom. At the end of the tour, the teachers have to do a reflection. Teachers are told that the purpose of this rotational schedule is to replicate best practices and the administrators will be looking for replication as they monitor and observe in classrooms.
Finally, with a staff where 70% of the teachers are on emergency credentials, a professional development program must include a variety of support mechanisms for inexperienced teachers. In addition to the ongoing staff development opportunities and regular observations, the administrators at Vanguard frequently teach model lessons. The administrators also conduct mini-conferences with individual teachers to discuss what is effective and what needs improvement in their teaching. Also, the administrators at Vanguard provide substitutes for teachers, so that they can go to another teacher's classroom to observe for the day. The goal at Vanguard is to do everything possible to make sure that a teacher feels at ease in the classroom.
Another key aspect of the professional development program at Vanguard is collaboration. There are a number of vehicles in place to ensure collaboration on a regular basis. Teachers work together during team meetings, grade level meetings, departmental meetings, and new teacher orientation meetings. The administrators at Vanguard facilitate the new teacher meetings. These weekly meetings take place in addition to the BTSA program. These meetings are an opportunity to ask questions and to receive information that the new teachers may be a little bit hesitant about asking during the larger staff development meeting. The administrators try to make sure are all of the teachers are in a position to do what is required of them.
At Vanguard curriculum and instruction begin with data analysis. Analyzing the data determines instructional priorities. Then, teachers meet as a whole staff, in their grade levels and in departments, using the data and the standards to establish how the curriculum and instruction will address the instructional needs of the students. After the teachers complete this task, they pace their instruction by grade level and department accordingly. This way, there is continuity of instruction. When observing in classrooms, administrators see similar curriculum and instruction as they move among different classes within each grade level. This ensures that students have equal access to the instruction and that instruction is standards-based.
The most important tool used to monitor the implementation of this consistent, standards-based instructional program is the Teacher's weekly lesson plan (PDF - 1.7mb). The principal and the assistant principal review the teachers' weekly lesson plans and meet with the teachers on a regular basis to give them feedback and recommendations for sharpening the focus of their instruction.
In addressing the needs of English Learners, the administrators at Vanguard begin by making sure that the staff understands who those students are, why those students were placed in a particular classroom, and what the needs of those individual students are. Next, the administrative team ensures that the staff has the necessary materials, supplies, and support. The Los Angeles County Office of Education has provided excellent support for the teachers at Vanguard in the area of English Learners. These workshops have helped them to design an instructional program that meets the needs of the English Learners on campus.
At Vanguard Learning Center, there are a number of safety nets that ensure academic success for all of the students. Each child is observed, evaluated, and assessed. Based on this information, students can be placed in a number of interventions including after school programs, an in-school tutorial program, a Saturday success academy, a Sylvan reading intervention program, and math intervention programs. In addition, Vanguard also has the Irvine math academy and the Mesa program on campus.
The extraordinary growth on the API has instilled a feeling of pride in the staff and students at Vanguard. When asked, however, all staff members declare that this is just the beginning for Vanguard. They say that they need to continue working hard to push the achievement to the next level.
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