Core Practice Framework
91% of high school teachers believe their students are ready for college and careers.
Only 26% of postsecondary instructors agree.
Only 26% of postsecondary instructors agree.
— Source: ACT's 2009 National Curriculum Survey
College and Career Readiness for all: it takes a system.
As our work at NCEA and ACT, Inc. suggests, no single program or isolated reform can substitute for a coherent, long-term, system-wide approach to improving teaching and learning. We all want our students to be college and career ready when they graduate--prepared to take on future opportunities with success. So, what are our nation's consistently higher performing schools doing to get more students to college and career readiness?
The Core Practice Framework, built upon the study of over 550 schools across 20 states, identifies the core practices that distinguish a higher performing school from its average-performing counterparts. NCEA studies the practices of those schools and school systems that have more success in getting their students college and career ready than their peers that serve similar student populations. Our ongoing research supports the Framework and adds content and information to each of the core practices below.
Practices of Higher Performing Schools
The Core Practice Framework outlines the evidence-based educator practices at each level of a school system--district, school, and classroom--that will help all students master high standards. The Framework focuses on five themes:
District Practice:
Provide clear, prioritized learning objectives by grade and subject that all students are expected to master.
School Practice:
Set expectations and goals for teaching and learning based on the district's written curriculum.
Classroom Practice:
Study and use the district's written curriculum to plan all instruction.
District Practice:
Provide strong principals, a talented teacher pool, and layered professional development
School Practice:
Select and develop teachers to ensure high-quality instruction
Classroom Practice:
Collaborate as a primary means for improving instruction.
District Practice:
Provide evidence- and standards-based instructional tools that support academic rigor for all students
School Practice:
Promote strategies and build structures and schedules to support academic rigor.
Classroom Practice:
Use proven instructional tools to support rigorous learning for students
District Practice:
Develop and use student assessment and data management systems to monitor student learning.
School Practice:
Monitor teacher performance and student learning.
Classroom Practice:
Analyze and discuss student performance data.
District Practice:
Respond to data through targeted interventions or curricular/instructional adjustments.
School Practice:
Use targeted interventions to address learning needs of teachers and students.
Classroom Practice:
Use targeted interventions or adjustments to address learning needs of students.
Another layer behind the Framework, the Critical Actions, provides additional support for educators by outlining how to successfully implement the key components of each core practice.
Use the CPF for School Improvement Take a look at our Core Practice Research Studies
District-Level Practices and Critical Actions
Theme 1 Practice: Provide clear, prioritized learning objectives by grade and subject that all students are expected to master.
- Establish a written district curriculum with learning objectives specifying the knowledge and skills students must acquire by grade and subject.
- Vertically align the district curriculum PreK-12 by mapping backwards from the needs of successful graduates.
- Clarify the learning objectives of the district's written curriculum with supporting materials.
- Require that the district's written curriculum is the taught curriculum in every classroom.
Theme 2 Practice: Provide strong principals, a talented teacher pool, and layered professional development
- Recruit and select principal candidates with proven student performance outcomes.
- Identify and develop internal candidates for leadership positions.
- Develop a talented teacher pool from which principals have authority to select teachers.
- Focus new teacher professional development activities on the district's curriculum, instruction, and assessment system.
- Focus all professional development on understanding, teaching, and assessing the district's written curriculum.
- Ensure that proven instructional coaches are available to all schools.
- Create the infrastructure and build the capacity for collaboration at the district, school, and classroom levels.
Theme 3 Practice: Provide evidence-and standards-based instructional tools that support academic rigor for all students.
- Assess the effectiveness and alignment of each instructional program prior to full implementation.
- Provide essential support and resources to implement each adopted instructional program.
- Study and share the instructional practices in your district proving most effective.
Theme 4 Practice: Develop and use student assessment and data management systems to monitor student learning.
- Provide access to student data through an integrated data management system.
- Provide diagnostic and formative assessments that are aligned with the district's written curriculum.
- Monitor school and student performance data regularly with principals.
Theme 5 Practice: Respond to data through targeted interventions or curricular/instructional adjustments.
- Quickly identify and assist schools that are not reaching their school improvement goals.
- Supplement school and classroom interventions with targeted support for students who perform below grade level.
- Adjust district curriculum and instructional resources based on student performance.
School-Level Practices and Critical Actions
Theme 1 Practice: Set expectations and goals for teaching and learning based on the district's written curriculum.
- Study and use the district's written curriculum.
- Ensure that the district's written curriculum is the taught curriculum in every classroom.
- Set a limited number of ambitious school improvement goals stated in terms of student academic achievement.
Theme 2 Practice: Select and develop teachers to ensure high-quality instruction.
- Provide opportunities for teachers to develop leadership capacity.
- Establish rigorous teacher-selection processes tailored to academic needs.
- Provide new teachers with tailored support regarding curriculum, instruction, and assessment.
- Supplement district professional development to address school-specific needs.
- Use instructional coaches to strengthen teachers' instructional skills.
- Model and promote substantive collaboration to foster a learning community.
Theme 3 Practice: Promote strategies and build structures and schedules to support academic rigor.
- Build support structures to enable increasing numbers of students to engage successfully in rigorous coursework.
- Define high-yield instructional strategies and reinforce their use in all classrooms.
- Use the master schedule as a tool to maximize learning opportunities for all.
Theme 4 Practice: Monitor teacher performance and student learning.
- Analyze and equip teachers to analyze student performance data to inform decision-making.
- Support the development and use of more frequent common assessments than those provided by the district.
- Monitor instructional practice using student performance data and classroom observations.
Theme 5 Practice: Use targeted interventions to address learning needs of teachers and students.
- Quickly intervene when teachers are experiencing difficulty in their classrooms.
- Supplement classroom interventions with targeted support for students who perform below grade level or demonstrate early mastery of the curriculum.
Classroom-Level Practices and Critical Actions
Theme 1 Practice: Study and use the district's written curriculum to plan all instruction.
- Study exactly what is to be taught and learned—and to what level of mastery-at their grades and in their subjects.
- Study the specific role that their grade and subject content plays in students' cumulative educational experience.
- Align all instruction with the district's written curriculum and assessment schedules.
Theme 2 Practice: Collaborate as a primary means for improving instruction.
- Collaborate in teams focused on curriculum, instruction, and assessment.
- Participate in peer classroom visits in order to improve the instructional practices of the team.
Theme 3 Practice: Use proven instructional tools to support rigorous learning for all students.
- Use high-yield instructional strategies as tools to support rigorous learning.
- Use instructional programs and resources simply as tools to teach the district's written curriculum.
- Use allocated time as a tool to maximize learning opportunities.
Theme 4 Practice: Analyze and discuss student performance data.
- Analyze student performance data to inform team discussions and decisions.
- Continually monitor individual student learning in varied ways.
- Discuss student performance results early and often with the principal, parents, and students.
- Teach students to monitor their own progress.
Theme 5 Practice: Use targeted interventions or adjustments to address learning needs of students.
- Provide proven interventions within the classroom to assist each student in mastering grade-level learning objectives.
- Use interventions beyond the classroom for students who perform below grade level.
- Adjust to add depth to learning opportunities for students who demonstrate early mastery of learning objectives.