I really enjoyed this Palm Springs Desert Sun article. It describes the experiences of Andrew Jackson Elementary in Desert Sands Unified at changing their attitudes and strategies as a result of making the Program Improvement list.

"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results." This quote has been attributed to both Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein. Whoever said it, it is really true. Too often schools in Program Improvement just try to "more of the same" and can't understand why scores don't climb.

The school leadership made time for collaborative meeting times, institute regular assessments to monitor student progress and creating an environment of high expectations. I'm so happy to see a school that isn't trying to find excuses for low test scores, but looks to change practices to meet their student's needs. While their test scores aren't rocketing up, they are making a steady climb. If they keep at it, they'll be showing up on the top performing lists in a few more years.