The Next Gen Nine

Not Yet/Early Planning: Little/No evidence exists to indicate that a Portrait of a Graduate has been established by the school/district, although planning may be underway.

Emerging: Portrait of a Graduate is established, but is infrequently referenced and/or used in ways that are not meaningful to the student learning experience.

Operational: Portrait of a Graduate competencies are an integral part of the design of student learning experiences and academic program.

Exemplary: Portrait of a Graduate competencies are used to drive learning experiences, and progress toward articulated competencies is monitored in meaningful ways. School/District supports are aligned with Portrait of a Graduate competencies.

Not Yet/Early Planning: Little/No evidence exists that the school is consistently utilizing deeper learning pedagogical practices, although planning to do so may be underway.

Emerging: Few opportunities for inquiry are provided in core courses and the opportunities that are provided are mostly project-oriented where teachers largely pre-define the parameters of the tasks. Projects have low relevance or authenticity to student interests.

Operational: Inquiry or project based learning units are regularly implemented throughout core courses but constitute less than half of all instructional time. Deeper learning opportunities are structured into the student academic plan but occur sporadically.

Exemplary: Teachers largely utilize inquiry or project based learning design as the primary model of instruction in most courses. Students are regularly asked to evidence their higher order thinking skills to apply their learning.

Not Yet/Early Planning: Little/No evidence exists that the school is fostering student agency, empowerment and voice, although planning to do so may be underway.

Emerging: Students choose between options provided by teachers. Teachers use a limited repertoire of personalized learning strategies.Learning experiences reflect whole-group learning targets with little personalization.

Operational: Students take a proactive role in co-designing their own education and planning  by proposing or  learning pathways and demonstrations of mastery in group settings. Teachers are effectively using instructional practices proven to increase agency of learners.

Exemplary: Students are the primary drivers in  managing  their own educational experience and apply their knowledge, skills and available resources, including people. The school regularly fosters the conditions for student agency over learning.

Not Yet/Early Planning: Little/No evidence exists of performance tasks or a system to collect, display, defend, or exhibit such tasks. No evidence exists that grading and reporting practices are consistent with mastery of identified competencies.

Emerging: Some courses include performance tasks and minor opportunities for assessment may exist such as student presentations to other students or teachers, but no systemic model exists for the collection, display, defense, or exhibition of student work.  The school does not utilize common scoring criteria and teachers employ rubrics that are written in isolation, with variation in grading practices. Work behaviors(e.g. neatness, lateness, etc.)  are reported with students’ performance related to content 

Operational: Students are regularly expected to complete performance tasks that lead to some formal system, but not a comprehensive system of collection, display, defense, or exhibition of student work. Most teachers use common, task-neutral scoring criteria that provide detailed descriptions of knowledge and skills at each expected level of performance. The grading and reporting system distinguishes content knowledge and skills from habits of work.

Exemplary: A comprehensive system of performance assessment exists in which most courses have articulated performance tasks that lead to portfolio defenses as well as additional structures such as student led conferences and/or student exhibitions. All teachers use common, task-neutral scoring criteria that provide detailed descriptions of knowledge and skills at each expected level of performance. The grading and reporting system distinguishes content knowledge and skills from habits of work

Not Yet/Early Planning: Little/No evidence of a professional learning culture that is actively assisting teachers in implementing deeper learning practices. Teachers are expected to implement a standardized curriculum with little professional autonomy.

Emerging: Professional development opportunities for supporting teachers in deeper learning practice are provided in traditional settings, such as PLC meetings. Teachers are not provided leadership roles in mentoring or coaching others. Teachers are provided little professional autonomy in instructional decisions with some usage of standardized curriculum.

Operational: Specifically designed opportunities for teachers to improve their practice and support for teachers to attend external development opportunities. Implementation of inquiry learning supports, such as project tuning. Teachers leading design of projects. A functioning induction or mentoring model for emerging teachers.

Exemplary: The school hosts development opportunities for teachers that share expertise within the staff, in addition to other internal and external supports. Robust teacher induction, mentoring, and coaching model relying on internal expertise. Large amount of teacher autonomy in instructional design including teacher created curriculum.

Not Yet/Early Planning: Little/No evidence of locally authentic and culturally relevant curriculum, pedagogy, or assessments. Nearly all learning is standardized with heavy usage of external resources such as textbooks and standardized assessments.

Emerging: Some evidence of locally developed authentic and/or culturally relevant curriculum, pedagogy, or assessments. Examples of such student work are present but sparse. Most learning is standardized with heavy usage of external resources such as textbooks and standardized assessments.

Operational: Evidence of a mix of locally developed authentic and culturally relevant activities along with some continuing usage of standardized external resources. Examples of authentic, culturally relevant student work are readily available and most students have access to some authentic and culturally relevant work on a monthly basis.

Exemplary: A majority of student work is locally developed, authentic, and culturally relevant with plentiful examples of such work including an ability for each student to show multiple projects per year. Students have access to some authentic, culturally relevant work on a weekly or daily basis with limited usage of external resources such as textbooks or standardized assessments. 

Not Yet/Early Planning: Little/No evidence of attempts to limit tracking with wide disparities in access to advanced courses. No evidence of inclusion practices to consistently place students within the least restrictive environment. Language minority students are frequently removed from the regular education classroom and viewed in a deficit model.

Emerging: Initial attempts to limit tracking with some evidence of inclusive access to advanced courses. School has some evidence of employing a least restrictive environment model but some students are in self-contained classes. Language minority students are included occasionally, with supports, in high quality learning experiences. Little evidence of professional development on inclusive teaching practices.

Operational: School has policy and practices that provide access to advanced courses to diverse students with little or no low-track courses. School places most students with identified disabilities in the inclusive classroom with few students in self-contained classes. Students with disabilities and English language learners are included in the social-life of the school. Language minority students viewed as emerging bilingual students by some faculty and staff. Language minority students included within most classroom activities with supports. Evidence of some professional development on inclusive teaching practices.

Exemplary: School has a culture of inclusion with little tracking either to low or advanced courses with all students placed in rigorous, broad, and deeper learning based courses. Only the most severely disabled students are excluded from the inclusive classroom with appropriate modifications and supports provided within the classroom. Students with disabilities and English Language Learners are included in the social-life of the school. Language minority students viewed as emerging bilingual students and included within opportunities that permit their bilingual strengths to emerge. Evidence of ongoing professional development on inclusive teaching practices.

Not Yet/Early Planning: Existing evidence shows large disparities in application and high usage of suspensions and expulsions (more than 100 events per 100 students per year). No evidence of positive or restorative policies or practices. The school does not have an SBDM or board adopted adopted policy or practice.

Emerging: Existing evidence shows moderate disparities and/or usage of suspensions or expulsions. The school can articulate, but show limited evidence for, positive or restorative practices. The school does not have an SBDM or board adopted adopted policy or practice. The school has minimal support for students excluded from the classroom.

Operational: Existing evidence shows low disparities and low usage of suspensions or expulsions (less than 50 events per 100 children per year). The school can show evidence of implementation of positive or restorative practices, including some policy evidence of adopted practices. The school has multiple supports for students excluded from the classroom.

Exemplary: Existing evidence shows no disparities and low usage of suspensions or expulsions (less than 20 events per 100 children per year). The school can show evidence of a well-implemented positive or restorative practice that is in line with existing adopted policy. The school has many supports for excluded students including a strategy for socio-emotional supports and successful reintegration. 

Not Yet/Early Planning: Guidance Counselor to student ratio extremely high, over 400:1. Few staff dedicated to supporting non-academic needs of students. No evidence of existing advisory or mentoring program for all students. Little/no evidence of intentional linkages for students to community mental or physical health services. Unclear staffing leadership for dual credit implementation. No existing plan to support teachers obtaining dual credit certification.

Emerging: Guidance Counselor to student ratio high, less than 400:1. Evidence of some staff dedicated to supporting non-academic needs of students. Limited evidence of a functioning student advisory or mentoring model. Some evidence of intentional linkages for students to community mental or physical health services. Sporadic evidence of support for college access and transition, such as college visits or parent nights. Dual credit leader identified but not prioritized in time allocation or job description.

Operational: Guidance counselor to student ratio moderate, less than 300:1. Evidence of robust staff support, relative to school size, dedicated to supporting non-academic needs of students. Student advisory or mentoring model in place, including adopted into policy. Evidence of multiple intentional linkages for students to community mental or physical health services. Evidence of consistent and systematic support for college access and transition for both students and families. Intentional efforts to include all students. Clearly identified college access and dual credit leader known by students. Students provided college advisor and/or dual credit coach

Exemplary: Guidance counselor to student ratio within the recommended ratio of 200:1. Evidence of robust staff support, relative to school size, dedicated to supporting non-academic needs of students. Evidence of student advisory or mentoring model functioning well, including adopted into policy. Evidence of multiple intentional linkages for students to community mental or physical health services, including evidence of direct support for these services by the school such as transportation or providing the services onsite. Evidence of consistent and systematic support for college access and transition, including school supported college visits and family counseling. College options are provided to all students. College access or dual credit leadership position composing 50% or more of a staff position.