LCFF Priority 2 Statement of Model Practices

Desired Results: Educators implement programs and services that enable all students to access the state academic content standards, including the preschool learning foundations and the English Language Development (ELD) standards for purposes of gaining academic content knowledge and English-language proficiency. Instructional programs are aligned with the State Board of Education adopted curriculum frameworks.

Students learn to think conceptually, solve problems, and communicate their ideas effectively when they participate in rigorous, standards aligned academic curricula that accommodates differences in individual learning needs. Standards based courses and curricula emphasize learning content in depth, connecting new learning across disciplines, connecting new learning to prior knowledge, constructing new knowledge, and applying new knowledge in real-world contexts.

Model Practices: Model practices for standards implementation and access to core instruction may include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Develop a Culture of Learning
   • Local educational agencies (LEAs) establish a culture of ongoing collaboration and professional growth to support educators as both learners and facilitators of student learning.
   • LEAs collaborate with educational intermediaries (institutions of higher education, County Offices of Education, California Subject Matter Projects, California Labor Management Initiative, local First 5 Commissions, the Early Math Project, and other external partners) to support teacher-driven professional learning models within a larger professional learning system.
   • School and LEA leaders, early learning administrators, and preschool through grade 12 teachers collaboratively participate in professional learning that occurs close to the classroom and within the school day when possible, such as project-based learning and action research.
   • School board members participate in professional learning to increase their knowledge and skills about governance, including for example, collective bargaining, standards implementation, preschool through grade 12 student achievement, and Local Control and Accountability Plans.
   • Professional communities of practice, relevant to the state academic content and ELD standards, are established to support mutually agreed-upon student learning goals and outcomes.
   • To effectively support communities of practice, administrators are knowledgeable of the curriculum and state standards. School leadership fosters a culture of learning in which teachers reflect on their practice (particularly how it connects to student learning) and receive meaningful feedback. Teachers work collaboratively with their peers (including early learning educators) through horizontal and vertical articulation while learning from each other.
   • Communities of practice or instructional leadership teams comprised of school administrators and teachers, adopt and develop standards aligned curriculum based on qualitative and quantitative data from formative, interim, and summative assessments.
   • Administrators and teachers engage in critical analysis of qualitative and quantitative data to determine the extent to which students have mastered the academic content standards and identify strengths, weaknesses, and areas in need of improvement.
   • Create ongoing opportunities for parents to learn about the state academic content standards and the curriculum used to teach their children.
2. Provide Equitable Access to Instructional Content
   • Educators use linguistically and culturally responsive instructional strategies and materials designed to address academic content standards and the cultural, social, physical, and emotional well-being of all students.
   • When adopting new instructional materials, educators specifically consider the needs of English learners, socioeconomically disadvantaged students, students with exceptional needs, homeless students, migrant students, and foster youth.
   • ELD and content area teachers collaborate regularly in order to plan for integrated ELD, which allows access to core curriculum, and designated ELD that builds into and from content instruction.
   • Educators are supported and encouraged to share lesson planning strategies and best practices with colleagues, in a collaborative learning environment, through calibrated peer observation, common planning, and experimentation with feedback.
   • To achieve steady and accelerated progress, families are engaged in programs and services, aligned to curriculum frameworks adopted by the State Board of Education, to successfully support their children to access academic content knowledge and English language proficiency.
   • Educators provide messages of high expectations and create opportunities for meaningful student participation, including but not limited to career academies, service learning projects, afterschool programs, and student–led decision making and leadership.
   • Teacher librarians provide critical support to engage students such as education technology teaching and learning techniques and selections of culturally inclusive books and other media.
   • LEAs and school sites reimagine their school day schedules and customize the use of time to meet content needs rather than adapting content to fit a fixed schedule.
   • Courses are designed around the new state academic content standards rather than fitting the new standards into older, pre-existing courses.
   • Course and curriculum design demonstrates a clear goal of college and career for all students.
   • Use a tiered intervention process to ensure that the academic needs of all students are being met.
   • Regularly assess technological capacity to meet the needs of a high fidelity implementation of state academic content standards and participation in the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress.

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