Innovation and collaboration.
House Bill 2799,
approved by the House on Monday afternoon, embraces those two elements to help
turn around a handful of struggling public schools. The bill creates a
five-year “Collaborative Schools for
Innovation and Success” (CSIS) pilot program that encourages colleges of
education to partner with underachieving elementary schools.
Up to six partnerships will be approved with half of those
receiving grant dollars from the state. The applications must use
research-based models of teaching that will close the opportunity gap and
improve student learning. The ultimate goal is to test new and creative
approaches to teaching in these schools where the traditional education model
has struggled.
CSIS also provides a great opportunity for teaching colleges
to see firsthand how the student population has changed. It will help them retool
their programs to meet the learning needs of today’s kids.
“CSIS builds upon the four pillars of education reform:
quality teaching, strong community partnerships, a focus on student
achievement, and measuring your results,” said Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos, chair of the House Education committee.
While this idea isn’t necessarily a new concept, this will
be the first program of its kind put in place by the state. The University of
Washington’s Ackerley Partner School Network
has seen success with its innovative approach to partnering with local schools.
It’s that type of success the legislature is hoping to replicate with the CSIS
pilot project and perhaps on a much larger scale down the road.
To read this post in Spanish, click here.
To read this post in Spanish, click here.
