University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Consortium for Policy Research in Education CPRE Research Reports (CPRE) 9-2008 A Formative Study of the Implementation of the Inquiry Team Process in New York City Public Schools: 2007‐08 Findings Marian A. Robinson Patricia Kannapel Joan Gujarati Hakim Williams Andrea Oettinger University of Pennsylvania Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/cpre_researchreports Part of the Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Educational Administration and Supervision Commons, Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, Educational Leadership Commons, Educational Methods Commons, Education Policy Commons, and the Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons Recommended Citation Robinson, Marian A.; Kannapel, Patricia; Gujarati, Joan; Williams, Hakim; and Oettinger, Andrea. (2008). A Formative Study of the Implementation of the Inquiry Team Process in New York City Public Schools: 2007‐08 Findings. CPRE Research Reports. Retrieved from https://repository.upenn.edu/cpre_researchreports/48 View on the CPRE website. This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/cpre_researchreports/48 For more information, please contact [email protected]. A Formative Study of the Implementation of the Inquiry Team Process in New York City Public Schools: 2007‐08 Findings Abstract During the 2007-08 school year, the New York City Department of Education launched the second phase of its ambitious and innovative initiative known as Children First. The reform is guided by three principles: leadership, empowerment, and accountability. Key components include restructuring central-office services, increasing principal authority, providing schools access to new forms and sources of support through affiliate school support organizations (SSOs), and developing new data-driven accountability tools that hold schools responsible for student performance while providing rich diagnostic information to support organizational and instructional improvement. Ultimately, this initiative aims to intensify the focus by all educators on student performance and in doing so to stimulate the development of evidence- based cultures at all levels of the system. This report provides formative feedback on the implementation of an important new component of Children First called the Inquiry Team process. The Inquiry Team initiative was rolled out in all 1,450 city schools in the summer of 2007 after being piloted in Empowerment Schools in 2006-07. Under this initiative, schools are expected to establish small “Inquiry Teams” of teachers and administrators charged with examining the performance problems of small, select target populations of students with the goal of identifying instructional “change strategies” that will improve their performance. Through this process, these small teams are expected to make use of performance data and other information to diagnose and monitor student learning and to make recommendations for changes in any aspect of their school to help close the achievement gap for these target populations of low-performing students. Teams are expected to become experts in the diagnostic use of the accountability tools and other data and the Inquiry Team process itself. The goal is for teams to share their new knowledge with the broader school community throughout the year to simulate instructional changes and improvements in the conditions of teaching and learning. Disciplines Curriculum and Instruction | Educational Administration and Supervision | Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research | Educational Leadership | Educational Methods | Education Policy | Teacher Education and Professional Development Comments View on the CPRE website. This report is available at ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn.edu/cpre_researchreports/48 A Formative Study of the Implementation of the Inquiry Team Process in New York City Public Schools: 2007‐08 Findings September 2008 Prepared by: Marian A. Robinson Patricia Kannapel Joan Gujarati Hakim Williams Consortium for Policy Research in Education Teachers College, Columbia University Andrea Oettinger About the Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE) Established in 1985, CPRE unites researchers from seven of the nation's leading research institutions in efforts to improve elementary and secondary education through practical research on policy, finance, school reform, and school governance. CPRE studies alternative approaches to education reform to determine how state and local policies can promote student learning. The Consortium’s member institutions are the University of Pennsylvania, Teachers College-Columbia University, Harvard University, Stanford University, the University of Michigan, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Northwestern University. In March 2006, CPRE launched the Center on Continuous Instructional Improvement (CCII), a center engaged in research and development on tools, processes, and policies intended to promote the continuous improvement of instructional practice. CCII also aspires to be a forum for sharing, discussing, and strengthening the work of leading researchers, developers and practitioners, both in the United States and across the globe. To learn more about CPRE and CCII, visit our web sites at www.cpre.org and www.ccii-cpre.org. A Formative Study of the Implementation of the Inquiry Team Process in New York City Public Schools: 2007-08 Findings September, 2008 Prepared by Marian A. Robinson Patricia Kannapel Joan Gujarati Hakim Williams Andrea Oettinger Consortium for Policy Research in Education Teachers College, Columbia University All data presented, statements made, and views expressed in this report are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Consortium for Policy Research in Education, its institutional partners, or the funders of this study—The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation and the Robertson Foundation. This report has been internally reviewed by members of CPRE research staff; however, it has not been externally reviewed. Table of Contents Table of Contents ............................................................................................................. i Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................ iii Executive Summary......................................................................................................... v I. Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 1 The Inquiry Team Process Sources of Support for Inquiry Teams II. Research Design and Methods....................................................................................... 9 Study Sample Data Collection Data Analysis Report Overview III. Key Features of School-Based Inquiry Teams ...........................................................15 Team Size, Composition, and Stability The Role of the Principal The Role of the Data Specialist Team Dynamics IV. How Teams Approached the Inquiry Process ............................................................31 The Pace and Completion of the Inquiry Team Work Identifying a Schoolwide Focus Identifying a Target Population Developing and Implementing Change Strategies Evaluating the Effectiveness of Change Strategies Sharing the Work of the Inquiry Team Stimulating Larger Improvements in the School Sustaining and Deepening the Work Within the School Summary V. External Support for the Inquiry Team Process .........................................................57 The Contributions of Senior Achievement Facilitators The Contributions of SSO Networks to the Inquiry Team Process The Network Contexts for Supporting Inquiry Teams Formative Study of the NYC Inquiry Team Process, 2007-08 VI. Accomplishments of the Inquiry Team Process in 2007-08.......................................73 Completing a Full Cycle of the Inquiry Team Process Developing Team Capacity to Implement the Inquiry Team Process Increasing Commitment to Data-Informed Inquiry Influencing Teacher Practice Stimulating School Improvements Summary VII. Areas of Strength and Need in 2007-08......................................................................91 Areas of Strength Areas of Need VIII. Recommendations ......................................................................................................97 Appendices A. Data Collection Protocols: School Level B. Data Collection Protocols: External Support Structure C. School Profile Data Summary Template D. Inquiry Team Composition E. Team Progress Towards Their June 2008 Learning Goals F. Department Plans to Strengthen the Inquiry Team Process for 2008-09 Figures and Tables Figure 1. The Inquiry Team Process ..................................................................................... 5 Figure 2. Organizational Structure Supporting School-Based Inquiry Teams ...................... 6 Figure 3. Team Member Descriptions of Different Levels of SAF Support .........................64 Figure 4. Full Implementation of the Inquiry Team Process by a Year One School.............77 Table 1. Characteristics of the Study’s General Education School Sample Compared With the New York City School System……………………………………………… 11 Table 2. Qualitative Data Supporting the Study by Level.....................................................12 Table 3. Variation in Team Composition by Member Role in