No Child Left BehindState Communication Strategies

KSA-Plus Communications

July 2002

Prepared with support from a grant from the U.S. Department of Education to the State Education Policy Network

Slide #2

Finding

Education Is National Priority

1. Jobs and Economy

2. Education3. Terrorism4. Healthcare5. Social Security

*Public Education Network/Education Week (April 24, 2002); Hart/Teeter (May 21, 2002)

Slide #3

Finding

Growing Support for Change

11% 13%6%

22%

All adults, 2001

Working pretty well Some changes needed,but basically keep as isMajor changes needed

Complete overhaul needed

All adults, 2002

53%

45% 45%52%

Major changes/overhaul

NortheastWest

Rural areasCities

High school or lessCollege graduates

Public school parentsNonparents

48%58%

43%58%

47%55%

39%53%

*Hart-Teeter, 2002

Slide #4

Message Implications

Communicate, communicate, communicate: the public is hungry for information about education

Use new report cards to discuss successes and challenges

Explain changes that are under way or planned Publicize changes that are producing results Discuss the hard work required to meet the new

expectations

Slide #5

Finding

No Awareness of NCLB

Only 12% of general publicOnly 63% of education policymakersOnly 36% of educators are aware of the

new law

*Hart/Teeter (May 21, 2002)

Slide #6

Message Implications

Start at zero; can’t assume knowledge Explain WHY change is needed and what’s possible Make the case in broad terms:

– Too many still unprepared for college or work (Public Agenda)– U.S. scores lag behind other nations (TIMSS)– The achievement gap between white and minority students

persists (NAEP) Change requires an informed and consenting public

Slide #7

Finding

Investment Priority

63% of adults – education is top budget priority

73% of parents – education is top budget priority

53% want to protect education from cuts Investment in teacher quality/conditions is

highest priority *Public Education Network/Education Week (April 24, 2002); Hart/Teeter (May 2002)

Slide #8

Message Implications

Recognize that reform requires resources Clarify expectations: “Here is what

taxpayers/citizens should expect for $” Stress that fiscal conditions require wise

spending Show how report cards and accountability in

the new law help target wise spending

Slide #9

Finding

Support for Accountability

People support more accountability, but only if it is part of a broader improvement package. 23% say accountability is best way to improve instruction, 26% say more funding, 50% say both.

Accountability information that counts most:– Literacy rates– Teacher quality– Safety– Budgets– Ratings compared to other schools– Less important: test scores and teacher salaries

*Hart/Teeter (May 2001); Hart/Teeter (May 2002);

Slide #10

Message Implications

Communicate on public’s terms: report cards should go beyond test scores

Emphasize role of accountability to provide useful information to: 1) target supports and 2) create incentives for improvement

Slide #11

Finding

Qualified Support for Tests

85% parents and 75% teachers say students work harder if graduation tests are in place

78% say tests are a good way to identify needs early

78% say pressure of one test is not fair*Public Agenda Reality Check 2002

Slide #12

Finding

Qualified Support for Tests

48% say there is too much emphasis on test scores

37% believe high-stakes tests encourage teaching to test

– “[The public is as] suspicious of efforts to ‘dumb down’ the curriculum as they are of politicians who dumb down democracy by talking a good education game but failing to deliver results.”

*Public Education Network/Education Week (April 24, 2002); Public Agenda (March 2002)

Slide #13

Message Implications

Testing is a valuable diagnostic and improvement tool, not an end in itself

The right tests bring focus to teaching important core subjects: reading, writing, math

– “If you test a child on basic math and reading skills, and you're teaching to the test, you're teaching math and reading. And that's the whole idea.” — Pres. George W. Bush

Discuss benefits for an individual child Provide examples of schools using data to make

positive changes

Slide #14

Finding

Support for Quality Teaching

Raising teacher quality leads priority list (30%); then funding equity (16%); early childhood (15%); smaller class sizes (12%)

30% of Americans are teachers or have close family members who are teachers

*Public Education Network/Education Week (April 2002)

Slide #15

Message Implications

Explain new information parents will get about teaching quality in their local schools – The new law defines quality and requires a quality

teacher in every classroom.

Explain what state is doing to improve teaching quality

Explain benefits for teaching profession, such as increased regard for teachers

Slide #16

Finding

Most credible voices

60% choose teachers as most credible voice on education issues

46% choose parents as most credible 38% choose college admissions officers as

most credible 30% choose business leaders as most credible

*The Business Roundtable, August 2000

Slide #17

Finding

Teachers’ main concerns

Teachers support standards and common- sense testing

Teachers want more information about test development and application

Teachers want more information about how tests can benefit students and educators

Teachers are key to forging support for tests

*Belden, Russonello, Stewart poll for Education Week (2001)

Slide #18

Message Implications

Address teachers’ legitimate concerns about curriculum alignment, classroom resources, targeted training

Enlist teachers and principals from successful schools as key communicators

Partner and/or coordinate with other third parties

Slide #19

What’s In/What’s Out

Commonsense tests to diagnose

Quality teaching

Using understandable data

Parental involvement

High-stakes tests to punish

Test-prep shortcuts to boost scores

More rhetoric

Schools as parents

Slide #20

What’s In/What’s Out

Schools can do better

Expectations

Giving every student a better

education

Teachers as messengers

The big picture

*Lessons from BRT focus groups, 2000-2001

Schools are failing

Standardization

Expecting all students to meet

high standards

Business leaders as messengers

The sound bite

Slide #21

What’s In/What’s Out

Extra support for teachers and extra help for students to ensure they can meet higher standards

Testing to identify ways to improve

Multiple opportunities to pass Tests, plus other measures of

achievement (grades, classroom work)

Improving instruction

*Lessons from BRT focus groups, 2000-2001

Standards, testing and accountability in a vacuum

Testing for accountability and high stakes

A single opportunity Tests only

Teaching to the test

Slide #22

Yes we can

Make Good on the Promise

1. Make goals visible and realistic

2. Celebrate successes: “this is doable”

3. Acknowledge that change is difficult, but worth it

4. Communicate, communicate, communicate: you have stakeholders’ attention