Below is the text from the Executive Summary from this report. The complete report can be downloaded from the bottom of this page. Additionally, the doctoral dissertation in which this report is embedded can also be downloaded from the bottom of this page.
Duffin, M. T. (2006). Portrait of an urban elementary school: Place-based education, school culture, and leadership. Doctoral dissertation, Antioch University, Yellow Springs, OH.
Portrait of an Urban Elementary School:
Place-based Education, School Culture,
& Leadership
An Evaluation of Project CO-SEED
At the Dennis C. Haley Elementary School
2003-2006
Prepared for:
Antioch New England Institute
& the Place-based Education
Evaluation Collaborative (PEEC)
Prepared by:
Michael Duffin
& Program Evaluation and Educational Research
(PEER) Associates, Inc.
September 19, 2006
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Project CO-SEED’s primary purpose is to help schools and communities work together to simultaneously strengthen academic achievement, community vitality, and environmental quality. CO-SEED* is a project of Antioch New England Institute of Antioch University New England in Keene, NH, and has been implemented at twelve sites since 1998. The project works with a given site for three or more years, providing funding for a half time staff person from a local community organization and mini-grants, as well as facilitation of a community visioning event, a steering committee, and professional development for school staff.
The subject of this report is CO-SEED’s work at the Dennis C. Haley Elementary School in the city of Roslindale, MA, a part of Boston. CO-SEED’s official tenure there lasted from September of 2003 through July of 2006. Each year CO-SEED conducts extensive program evaluations, and all reports are made available on the web at http://www.peecworks.org/PEEC/PEEC_Reports/. As part of this year’s evaluation, I spoke with Haley staff, parents, and students about their work with CO-SEED over the last three years, and also sought to place that within the larger context of the ten years of leadership by the retiring
principal. The complete list of interview, survey, and document data reviewed for this report is summarized in Table H7 in the Appendix.
The format for presenting my evaluation findings is a narrative portrait. Portraiture** is a particular type of qualitative research method that intentionally blends the aesthetics of narrative artistry with the rigor of empirical research. It is an attempt to paint a picture with words that captures the essence of the subject, much like a painter tries to do when painting a person. This approach freely admits, even emphasizes, the subjective nature of the relationship between researcher and subject. This allowed me to usefully capitalize on the relationships I have developed during evaluation interviews at the Haley over the last three years.
This report on the Haley site will be folded into a larger report that summarizes quantitative and qualitative evaluation findings for four different CO-SEED sites (including Haley), all of which wrapped up their three years with CO-SEED in the 2005-06 school year.
This is a story about how an external program, a willing and ready school community, and a skillful school leader can amplify each other to achieve a shared vision under challenging conditions. The main themes of this narrative portrait are:
· The schoolyard and other local natural areas have become extremely popular places for teaching and learning, and have inspired increased parent involvement.
· Science has been enthusiastically embraced by most teachers and students, especially in connection with the annual “science spectacular” symposium.
· New outdoor and science teaching norms have combined with existing strengths around student discipline, innovative literacy education, and a strong partnership with the Boston Nature Center to create a very strong, coherent school culture.
· In sum, over the last decade the Haley school has transformed from an under-subscribed school in chaos and lacking focus into a vibrant, highly sought, model environmental school.
· The leadership of Jean Dorcus as principal was a critical factor in Haley’s success. Her style is characterized by listening, calmness, and action.
· The next few years will provide a critical test of the sustainability of the Haley’s place-based education culture. Most people are cautious but confidently hopeful that the good work will continue and even grow.
· Recommendations emphasize institutionalization of what has worked well, continuation of longitudinal evaluation, and suggestions for transferring lessons to other schools.
* The word “CO-SEED” stands for COmmunity-School Environmental EDucation.
** See Lawrence-Lightfoot, S., & Davis, J. H. (1997). The art and science of portraiture. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
| 