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The Education for Democracy

Professional Development Schools Network

Proposal

A Network of Pre-K to 12 Professional Development Schools

(Like Teaching Hospitals)

Dedicated to Education that Promotes the Growth of Democracy

Especially in the Poorest Neighborhoods and Cities

Draft: June 16, 2015

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Table of Contents

Overview .................................................................................................................................... 3

Education for Democracy Professional Development Schools: Mission and Pedagogy ............ 5

Education for Democracy Competencies................................................................................... 6

Education for Democracy School Design Elements .................................................................. 7

The Education for Democracy School Theory of Change .......................................................... 8

Education for Democracy Professional Development School Design Elements ........................ 9

Creating Twenty-First Century Common Schools for All Students .......................................... 10

The Education for Democracy Partner Schools Project ........................................................... 11

Charter Schools Dedicated to the Public Schools ................................................................... 12

Charter Schools Dedicated to Working With The Teacher Unions .......................................... 12

The Professional Development School Theory of Change ...................................................... 13

Education for Democracy Professional Development Schools: Potential Districts .................. 14

The Boston Education for Democracy School Proposal .......................................................... 15

Education for Democracy PDS Network .................................................................................. 16

Education for Democracy National Advisory Board ................................................................. 16

Education for Democracy Academic Advisory Board .............................................................. 16

Education for Democracy Charter Management Organization ................................................ 18

EFD Professional Development Schools Network Fundraising Framework ............................ 18

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OVERVIEW

We are proposing to establish a network of pre-K to 12 professional development schools

across the country that are dedicated to education that promotes the growth of democracy.

We seek to help students overcome the effects of poverty, discrimination, violence, low levels

of social trust, and other social obstacles in their lives.

The mission of these teaching academies will be to help students to overcome these

obstacles, to realize their full personal and academic potential, and to contribute to creating a

more just and democratic society. Education for democracy.

These schools will be based on a school design that integrates the teaching of core social and

democratic competencies into the best research-proven teaching practices in all subject areas

and throughout the school.

These schools will begin with early childhood education and extend through high school. Each

school will have approximately 900 students by the beginning of the fourth year.

As pre-service professional development schools, they will provide year long, full-time, paid

placements for over 100 teachers, social workers, counselors, nurses, and principals per year.

They will have partnership relationships with certification programs in major universities across

the country. Our first proposal is to establish the Boston Education for Democracy School

which will place students from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the University of

Massachusetts/Boston in these residency positions.

As in-service professional development schools, these schools will work with school districts

and teacher unions to provide ongoing professional development support to schools and

teachers who are interested in the Education for Democracy School Design and its

components.

As research and development sites, these schools will partner with school districts, colleges

and universities, non-profit organizations, and corporations to research, develop, and assess

best teaching practices that integrate the teaching of core social and democratic

competencies.

We are proposing to establish these professional development schools as charter schools so

that they have the autonomy needed to fully implement the EFD School Design and the EFD

Professional Development School Design.

As charter schools, they will be chartered by local founding groups that will then contract with

the Education for Democracy Charter Management Organization to manage and supervise

these schools.

We are seeking start-up funding to support establishing Education for Democracy professional

development schools in ten districts across the country.

We are seeking funds to support the development of these professional development school

proposals in each district, to get their charters approved, and to negotiate management

agreements with the Education for Democracy Charter Management Organization.

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We are looking for one or more national foundations that will provide a $100,000 matching

grant to local foundations in each of these ten districts. Altogether, this would require national

foundation funding of $1 million and local foundation funding of $1 million.

This proposed network of ten professional development schools would:

Directly educate 9,000 students per year in some of the poorest neighborhoods in our

country and indirectly support thousands more through in-service support across these

districts.

Train and help certify 1,000 resident principals, teachers and staff per year who can help

disseminate these practices to schools around the country.

Provide a set of institutions (ten charter schools) partnered with progressive educators

from across the country that will research, develop, and test best practices for integrating

the teaching of core social and democratic competencies into all subject areas and thereby

provide a strong foundation of support for the growth of democracy for generations to

come.

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EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

SCHOOLS: MISSION AND PEDAGOGY

Our Mission: Promoting the Growth of Democratic Character

The mission of Education for Democracy Professional Development Schools is to empower

students to overcome the social obstacles in their lives, to realize their full personal and

academic potential, and to contribute to creating a more just and democratic society.

Our Method: Transformative Education for Democracy Competencies

To support students in attaining their social, academic, and democratic goals, we propose to

integrate the teaching and modeling of core social and democratic competencies into all

subject areas and throughout the school. See next page.

By helping students to master core social competencies, we can help them overcome the

negative effects of the risk factors in their personal lives. By helping them to develop

democratic competencies, we can also provide them with the skills and values they need to be

able to work together to improve our society.

Overcoming Poverty and Discrimination

In order to help students to realize their full-potential and to contribute to the growth of our

democratic society, we need to empower students to overcome the social obstacles in their

lives such as poverty, discrimination, violence, low levels of literacy, and low levels of social

trust.

A Bottom Up Pedagogy

In order for students to overcome these social obstacles, they have to be the agents of their

own and their communities’ transformation. It can’t be done for them by others–no matter how

well intended. However, teachers can play a critical role in helping their students to master the

competencies they need to achieve these personal and social goals.

Begins with Voice

We begin by coaching students to use their voices to articulate

and to achieve important personal and social goals.

Builds Strengths

We then help students build on their strengths and to master the

new competencies that they will need to achieve these goals.

“Education then, beyond

all other devices of human

origin, is the great

equalizer of the conditions

of men, the balance-wheel

of the social machinery.”

--Horace Mann “Twelfth Annual Report (1848)

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EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY SOCIAL AND DEMOCRATIC

COMPETENCIES

Social Development Competencies

Attachment

Self-determination

Perspective taking

Love and freedom related values

Identity awareness

Health awareness

Emotional awareness

Social problem solving

Goal attainment

Democratic Competencies

Strategies and Skills Values Knowledge

Social awareness

Social advocacy (voice)

Deliberative discussion and debate

Democratic decision-making

Developing “Democracy Plans”

Working together cooperatively

Liberty

Justice

Equality

Respect

Compassion

Hope

Freedom

Declaration of Independence

The Constitution

The Bill of Rights

The Amendments

Checks and Balances

U.S. History

Local History

World History

Democratic role models

Civil rights and other social movements

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EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY: SCHOOL DESIGN ELEMENTS

To support students, families, teachers, and staff in mastering the Education for Democracy

Social and Democratic Competencies, we have developed the Education for Democracy

School Design which has eleven major design elements:

1. Comprehensive Health and Wellness Services. All students will receive nutritious meals

throughout the day along with comprehensive physical and mental health services.

2. Safe and Caring Classrooms and School. Integration of EFD competencies into classroom

management and school wide culture.

3. Humanities: Critical Language, Literacy, Social Studies, Arts, and Global Languages:

Students learn to master critical literacy, language, social studies, artistic, and global

language competencies that will help them to understand, analyze, and evaluate important

personal important issues and problems. Integration of EFD competencies into research-

proven best practices in humanities related subjects.

4. STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and Computer Science. Students

will use connected computation to develop voice in representing, expressing, and

manipulating ideas in the sciences, mathematics, and computation on engaging problems

of personal, social and democratic interest. Integration of EFD competencies into research-

proven best practices in all STEM related subjects.

5. Competency Mastery of Social, Democratic, and Academic Competencies. Students self-

pace through all subject areas based on their mastery of core competencies.

6. 21st Century Educational Technology and Blended Learning. All curriculum, instruction,

assessment, communication, and professional development will utilize state of the art

educational technology. All students will have personal computers for use in school and at

home. All instruction, assessment, and communication will be web based.

7. Personalized Learning: As a professional development school, with one master teacher

and two resident teachers in each classroom, we will provide a 6/1 student to teacher ratio

along with two year looping in all subject areas. In regular schools, the goal is to have an

18/1 student to teacher ratio.

8. Increased Instructional Time. We will provide a 200 day school year (required 20 day

summer school/camp) and a 7.5 hour school day (30% increase in instructional time in

most districts).

9. Comprehensive Support for English Language Learners. All students for whom English is

their second language will receive native language instruction and support in all grade

levels whenever feasible (based on the hiring of linguistically competent staff).

10. Universal Access for Students with Disabilities. All curriculum and instruction will comply

with Universal Design for Learning Guidelines, including multiple means of representation,

multiple means of action and expression, and multiple means of engagement.

11. Extensive Support for Family and Community Members. EFD teachers and staff will visit

with student families once a month both in school and on home visits, with an awareness of

the needs for parents who are culturally and linguistically diverse. The school will provide

support for family and community advocacy and students will participate in ongoing

community service projects through the school year which address important community

needs.

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THE EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY SCHOOL THEORY OF CHANGE

School Design Elements:

• Comprehensive health and wellness sevices

• Safe and caring classrooms and school

• Integrate social and democratic competencies into all subject areas

• Support for competency mastery

• 21st century educational techology and blended learning

• Personalized learning (6:1 teacher: student ratio)

• Increased instructional time (7.5 hours per day: 200 days per year)

• Universal access for students with diabilities

• Comprehensive support for English Language Learners

• Family and community support and advocacy

Student Mastery of Competencies:

• Social and Democratic Competencies: attachment, self-determination, perspective taking, love and freedom related values, identity awareness, emotional awareness, social problem solving, goal attainment, social awareness, and democratic advocacy

• Humanties Competencies: langauge, literacy, social studies, arts, and global langauges

• STEM Competencies: science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and computer science

Student Achievement of Goals:

• Personal Goals

• Academic Goals

• Social and Democratic Goals

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EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

SCHOOL DESIGN ELEMENTS

In addition to providing a transformative education for pre-K to 12 students, these schools will also be professional development schools (like a “teaching hospital”) that will train and support the certification of teachers, counselors, social workers, nurses, and administrators at early childhood, primary, and secondary levels. The professional development school major design elements include:

Pre-Service Training for Future Educational Leaders: When they reach their full capacity in the fourth year, these schools will provide pre-service training for over 100 resident principals, teachers and staff each year from participating schools of education. The basic organizational feature of this pre-service component is that all master teachers and staff, including the principal, will be partnered with two residents for the year, full-time. This means, for example, that each classroom of 18 students will have one master teacher and two resident teachers for a six to one teacher to student ratio. Each resident teacher will be assigned to six students for the year.

Collaborate with Partner Schools: The Education for Democracy Professional Development Schools will also partner with public, charter, pilot, autonomous, religious, and private schools that are interested in collaborating on ways to integrate the Education for Democracy School Design components into their schools. These will be long term agreements focused on collaborative approaches to addressing problems and providing solutions that integrate the EFD School Design and its components. See p. 10.

In-Service Professional Development Support: The Education for Democracy Professional Development Schools will also provide demonstration sites for teachers and staff from anywhere to come, observe, co-teach, and discuss best teaching practices, including ongoing support after they return to their own schools.

Collaborate on Research and Development: The Education for Democracy Professional Development Schools will also provide research and development sites for state, district, university, nonprofit, and corporate partners to work together to test best instructional practices (CCSS aligned), develop new curriculum, and to assess best teacher training and professional development practices, particularly with regard to practices that also integrate the teaching of democratic skills and values.

Professional Development School Partnerships: We are in the process of designing ways to place resident teachers and staff from local schools of education in the Boston Education for Democracy School, including certification programs sponsored by the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the UM/B Graduate College of Education and Human Development. We hope to develop similar relationships with other schools of education in the ten targeted districts.

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CREATING TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY COMMON SCHOOLS

FOR ALL STUDENTS

In 1852, Horace Mann, the secretary of the Massachusetts Board of Education, proposed and

the Massachusetts legislature enacted legislation to provide public funding to establish

“common schools” for all residents of Massachusetts. These were to be schools that embrace

children from all backgrounds; that provide a common curriculum for all students; that are

taught in the spirit, methods, and discipline of a free society; and that are provided by well-

trained, professional teachers.

One hundred and seventy-three years later, while much progress has been made in achieving

social equality and democratic rights, we still have an educational system that is still vastly

unequal—divided by economic class, race, and ethnicity.

We still do not have common schools for all students in

Massachusetts or across the United States.

There is no common high quality curriculum and instruction for

all students.

Schools and students are being expected to achieve high

standards with dramatically unequal resources.

The Education for Democracy Professional Development Schools Network is dedicated to

developing, providing, modeling, disseminating, and evaluating twenty-first century, state-of-

the-art curriculum and instruction that is taught in the spirit of a free society.

We hope to provide a model school and a model teacher training demonstration site (pre-

service and in-service) that can prepare and empower schools and teachers to provide a

twenty-first century common school education that enables all students to realize their full

potential and to contribute to creating a more just and democratic society.

“No matter what happens in

a child’s home, no matter

what other social and

economic factors may

impede a child, there’s no

question in my mind that a

first-rate school can

transform almost everything.”

--Jonathan Kozol

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THE EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY PARTNER SCHOOLS

PROJECT

--Working Together With Schools in the Poorest Neighborhoods--

As a way to assure that best teaching and professional development practices from the

Education for Democracy Professional Development Schools are shared with and accessible

to those schools in the poorest neighborhoods, we are proposing the “The Education for

Democracy Partner Schools Project”. The purpose of this project will be for the EFD PD

Schools to work together collaboratively with school and district staff in the partner schools to

identify problems and goals that they want assistance with and then to work together to

provide the technical assistance and professional development needed to achieve those goals.

In general, for example, an EFD PD School could work together with five partner schools over

several years: one high school, one middle school, two elementary schools, and one early

learning center. These partner schools would be located in the poorest neighborhoods in each

district.

Education for Democracy Professional

Development School

Partner High School

Partner Elementary

School

Partner Elementary

School

Partner Early

Childhood Center

Partner Middle School

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CHARTER SCHOOLS DEDICATED TO THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS

We propose to establish Education for Democracy Professional Development Schools as

charter schools which are dedicated to supporting public schools and teachers in the following

ways:

Provide a transformative education to over 900 students

Train and supports the certification of 100 new teachers and staff per year (pre-service)

Provide demonstration sites and professional development support for teachers throughout

their careers (in-service)

Provide support to schools and students in the poorest neighborhoods through Education

for Democracy Partner Schools Project

Promotes collaborative research and development projects on selected best instructional

practices that integrate support for the development of democratic skills and values,

particularly with ELL and students with disabilities

CHARTER SCHOOLS DEDICATED TO WORKING WITH THE

TEACHER UNIONS

As an integral part of supporting the training of teachers, Education for Democracy

Professional Development Schools are committed to working with the AFT and NEA national

and local teacher unions to recruit, train, support, and collaborate with teachers throughout

their teaching careers. This will include:

Union members. All EFD PD School teachers and staff will be members of the local union

and will paid according to the union pay scale and will receive an additional stipend for

extra hours.

Pre-service recruitment and training. The EFD PD Schools will work with local unions,

districts, and schools of education to recruit and train future teachers and staff.

In-service career support. The EFD PD Schools will work with local teacher unions:

o to provide in-service support for all resident teachers and staff who are hired by the

local districts,

o to support any interested schools and teachers in the district who want to observe or

co-teach selected teacher competencies;

o and to provide mid-career opportunities to provide professional development that is

supported by the EFD PD School, including being selected as master teachers and

staff.

o EFD PD Schools will make every effort to hire master teachers and staff within the

local districts.

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THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SCHOOL THEORY OF CHANGE

Professional Development School Design Elements

• Provides training and certfication placement for principals, teachers, counselors, social workers, and nurses

• Mentored by master teachers and staff (2 resident teachers/staff per master teacher/staff)

• Resident teachers responsible for supporting six students and their families throughout the year

• Portfolio assessment of mastery of teaching and educational competencies

• Ongoing suppport for resident teachers and staff throughout their careers

Teacher Mastery of Teaching Competencies

• Mastery of teaching social and democratic competencies

• Mastery of teaching humanities competencies

• Mastery of STEM teaching related competencies

• Mastery of classroom management related competencies

• Mastery of certificate specific competencies

Professional Development School Goals

• Improve student academic achievement, particularly in schools in the highest poverty neighborhoods

• Expand the supply of high quality teachers and staff throughout the school district

• Dissemination of research-tested best practices throughout the district

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EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

SCHOOLS: POTENTIAL DISTRICTS

We propose to establish EFD PD Schools in ten districts across the country. We have tentatively

identified six districts to approach in which we have worked with in the past (implementation of the

Voices curriculum). These sites have also been selected based on geography so that they can

provide demonstration sites that are accessible to schools across the country.

Proposed Districts Projected Cohort Start Date

1. Boston August 2016

2. NYC August 2017

3. District of Columbia

August 2017

4. Chicago

5. Memphis

6. San Francisco

7.

8.

9.

10.

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THE BOSTON EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY SCHOOL PROPOSAL

A School Dedicated to the Future of Democracy in Boston and Around the World

We are beginning the Education for Democracy Professional Development School Network by

submitting a Horace Mann charter school proposal to establish the Boston Education for Democracy

School as a pre-K to 12 professional development school.

Every generation must learn anew the lessons of the past and the needs of the future. By establishing

a pre-K to 12 professional development school that is dedicated to teacher and student

empowerment, we have the opportunity to create an institution that can keep alive and pass along the

lessons of democracy in Boston from the last four centuries and more broadly from around the world.

We are proud to announce that three of the most progressive former elected officials in Boston are

working with us to create this kind of institution for promoting the growth of democracy and

democratic character.

Melvin H. King Former State Representative Honorary Chairperson Boston Education for Democracy School Founding Group

Rosaria Salerno Former Boston City Counselor Former Boston City Clerk

Felix Arroyo Former Boston City Counselor Register of Suffolk County Probate and Family Court

Click here to view the “Boston Education for Democracy School Overview”.

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EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY PDS NETWORK

Our goal is to establish a network of professional development schools around the country that are

committed to collaborating on research, development, and assessment of instructional practices and

professional development that focus on how core social and democratic competencies can be

integrated into all the content areas and throughout the culture of the school.

The Voices curricula will only be one of the curriculum used in these schools. We will also adopt

and/or create other curriculum that promote the mission of these schools. For example, we look

forward to collaborating with Facing History and Ourselves on creative ways to integrate their work on

the Holocaust within a broader U.S. and world history curriculum.

Hopefully, these schools will provide research and demonstration sites for school staff and academic

researchers to work together to improve existing curriculum and to create new ways of fostering

academic and social development in an integrated fashion.

EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY NATIONAL ADVISORY BOARD

We are in the process of establishing an Education for Democracy National Advisory Board which will

help us choose sites, establish PD schools around the country, and more generally promote the

Education for Democracy Campaign.

EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY ACADEMIC ADVISORY BOARD

We are also in the process of establishing the Education for Democracy Academic Advisory Board

which will advise the Education for Democracy PD Network Schools and the Education for

Democracy curriculum projects. See the next page for the preliminary list of academic advisers. Our

hope is that we can build a very broad network of experts from around the country who will work with

us to develop transformative curriculum, create powerful school designs, and recruit and train

generations of motivated and talented teachers and staff who are committed to public education that

promotes the growth of democracy.

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The Education for Democracy Academic Advisory Board is in the process of

formation. Prof. Ernest Morrell, the Director of Urban and Minority Education, at

Teachers College, Columbia University, President of the National Council of

Teachers of English, and one of the Voices authors, is the chairperson of this

advisory board.

Social and Democratic Competencies

Prof. Robert Selman (HGSE) (perspective taking, conflict resolution) (Voices author)

Prof. William Cross (DU) (identity awareness, social awareness) (Voices author)

Prof. Marvin Berkowitz (U of M St. Louis) (character education)

Pat Walker, Ph.D., President, Education for Democracy Institute (Voices author and founder)

Language and Literacy

Prof. Ernest Morrell (Columbia U/Teachers College) (pedagogy, critical writing) (Voices author)

Prof. Catherine Snow (HGSE) (language and deep comprehension) (Voices author)

Prof. Cynthia Tyson (OSU) (children’s multicultural literature) (Voices author)

English Language Learners

Prof. Maria Carlo (U of T at Austin) (bilingual education) (Voices author)

Maria Campanario, BPS, Special Education and ELD Supervisor

Social Studies

Supt. Shelley Berman, Eugene Oregon

Neil Sullivan, President, Boston PIC

Prof. James Green, UM/B (labor history)

Kerry Dunne, Social Studies Director, BPS

Science, Mathematics, Computation, and Technology

David Cavallo, Visiting Professor, Southern Bahia, Brazil (Stem curriculum)

Special Education

Prof. David Rose, HGSE (UDL), President of CAST

Maria Campanario, BPS, Special Education and ELD Supervisor

Counselling

Prof. Richard Weissbourd, HGSE

Early Childhood/Elementary/Secondary

Prof. Ann Douglas, UM/B, (early childhood)

Prof. Pat Paugh (UM/B) (elementary teacher training)

Charter Schools

Dr. Beatriz McConnell-Zapater, Head of School, Boston Day and Evening Academy

Professional Development Schools

Prof. Lee Teitel (HGSE) (principal training)

Prof. Ernest Morrell, Teachers College, Director, Urban and Minority Education

Multicultural Education

Prof. Peter Kiang, UM/B (multicultural education, pedagogy)

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EDUCATION FOR DEMOCRACY CHARTER MANAGEMENT

ORGANIZATION

The Education for Democracy Charter Management Organization will enter into management

contracts with the founding groups in each of the ten districts to provide the following services:

Management

EFD School Design and EFD PD School Design Implementation Support

Operations

Educational Technology

Professional Development

Finances

State and Federal Regulations

Assessment

Fundraising

EFD PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SCHOOLS NETWORK

FUNDRAISING FRAMEWORK

The charter application process in most states takes a year from the time of submission to approval.

For example in Massachusetts, initial applications are due in July, full applications if requested are

due in November, approval by January, and start up either in August of the same year or the following

year.

Prior to this, the pulling together of the founding group and the development of the initial application

takes at least 6-12 months.

We are seeking funding to support our start-up costs prior to, during, and after the approval process

which requires approximately $200,000 per school.

We are proposing to develop a matching grant program to raise these funds.

We hope to gain the support of one or more national foundations that would commit $100,000 per

school as a grant to be matched by a similar amount of funds by one or more local foundations.

This will require national foundation funding of $1 million as well as the same amount in local

foundation grants.