HISD Superintendent Terry Grier Thursday called on the community to rally around the district’s plan to staff every classroom with an effective teacher and every school with a great principal during his annual State of the Schools Address.
Although the Houston Independent School District is bracing for deep cuts in state funding, Grier said Houston students cannot afford to wait for HISD to give all of them great teachers.
“Some have criticized us for moving too quickly in our effort to transform Houston schools,” Grier said. “Our response is this: ‘Would you want us to wait if your child were sitting in a failing school? Would you want us to wait if your child were among the 30 percent of high school students who don’t graduate on time? Would you want us to wait if your child’s teacher hadn’t met expectations for three years in a row?’”
HISD is moving forward on a plan to overhaul its decades-old teacher appraisal system that relies too heavily on classroom observations, Grier said.
The school district is gathering feedback on a draft proposal of a new system that pays closer attention to student achievement. The Board of Education will be asked to consider a final proposal later this spring.
“It’s an appraisal system designed with input from more than 1,000 teachers and stakeholders,” Grier said. “We will treat our professional educators with the respect they deserve. We will arm them with the tools they need to excel. We will not make our children wait to have a great teacher.”
HISD is also working on a new performance evaluation model for principals that should be ready later this year, he said.
All of HISD’s initiatives are driven by a Strategic Direction, which was adopted by the Board of Education last year, after gathering input from the community, Board President Paula Harris said.
“The purpose of this strategic plan is not to list all of the district’s current activities or past accomplishments. Rather, it is to describe as clearly as possible the major areas of focus for HISD over the next several years,” Harris said. “The five core initiatives are straightforward yet paramount to transforming HISD. They are: to have an effective teacher in every classroom; to have an effective principal leading every school; to have rigorous instructional standards and supports; to have data-driven accountability; and to have a culture of trust through action.”
Grier also said that HISD is moving forward on developing a new, district wide, curriculum that will boost academic achievement for all students.
“Quality teachers need a quality curriculum to guide their work,” he said. “We must develop an engaging curriculum that’s aligned to state, national, and international standards. Replacing HISD’s patchwork of disjointed reading programs with a district wide literacy initiative is critical.”
Grier’s plan for preparing all students for college and the workforce includes an expanded portfolio of college-level Advanced Placement courses at every high school.
This added emphasis on AP courses is already paying off, Grier said. Last year, HISD students attempted a record 16,556 AP exams, 6,262 of which were scored high enough for students to earn college credit. Both of these numbers exceeded the previous year’s figures.
In 2011, HISD’s partnership with the College Board, which administers AP exams, will allow the school district to designate certain campuses as Pre-AP Middle Schools and AP High Schools. This spring, HISD will become the third school district in America to offer the SAT college entrance exam for free, during class time, to every junior in Houston high schools.
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