Schools to Watch Background and Information
|
Descriptions
of new Schools to Watch in our state program are now available! |
After
a year of collaboration, the
National Forum
identified
criteria to describe high-performing
schools that serve students
in the middle grades. Such schools are academically
excellent, responsive to the developmental challenges
of young adolescents, and
socially equitable, with high expectations for all students.
The Forum conducted a national search for four "Schools
to Watch" that meet its criteria. The John S. and
James L. Knight Foundation awarded each school a $15,000
grant to be used to share their experiences and practices
with other middle schools around the country.
The
Forum received almost 40 applications from schools around
the country. Among those that applied, we visited nine
and selected four as "Schools to Watch".
The
four schools that were recognized as Schools to Watch
are Barren
County Middle School in rural Kentucky, Jefferson
Middle School in Champaign, Illinois, Freeport
Intermediate School in Freeport, Texas, and Thurgood
Marshall Middle School in Chicago, Illinois.
Following
their selection, the four schools were inundated with
phone calls and visitors from the education community
interested in using the selection criteria for their
own staff training and school assessments. The National
Forum developed a web
site that features online tours of the schools,
as well as detailed information about the criteria.
In 2002, to further expand the reach and impact of the
Schools to Watch initiative, the Forum selected California,
Georgia, and North Carolina to pilot the implementation
of the
program at the state level.
The state program expands yearly. Currently 14 states participate. The request for
application to become a "School to Watch State" is available each fall.
| In-depth
case studies
about the four national Schools to Watch are available
in PDF:
NOTE:
If you experience trouble downloading the pdf version,
you may need to download the latest version of the
Adobe Acrobat Reader software .
If you still experience problems, contact us. |
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