Treffer: Round 4 of the Partnership Model: 2023-24 Implementation Report. Research Report

The Partnership Model for School and District Turnaround is Michigan's policy for improving student outcomes in its lowest-performing schools. In compliance with the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) identifies schools that rank in the bottom 5% of the Michigan School Index System as Partnership schools. Districts with at least one Partnership school (i.e., Partnership districts) enter into agreements with MDE and their Intermediate School Districts (ISDs). This report describes the school improvement efforts of Partnership districts and schools during the 2023-24 school year. Both quantitative and qualitative data are brought together to describe the implementation of improvement strategies, including the factors that enabled or constrained effective implementation. Changes over time are also reported for several intermediate indicators of school improvement, with a particular focus on three key areas of practice: (1) human capital; (2) curriculum and instruction; and (3) student attendance. The role of support the Office of Partnership Districts (OPD) and ISDs provided to Partnership districts and schools is also discussed. Overall, it was found that Partnership districts made progress in their school improvement efforts, from developing new instructional resources and supports to rolling out new attendance initiatives. At the same time, strong signs of progress across various intermediate indicators of success were not seen. Recommendations for Partnership districts and for OPD include continuing to support districts, providing focused instructional improvement coaching for partnership schools, providing guidance, support, and supplemental resources related to chronic absenteeism, and continuing to use school improvement planning to promote changes to school and district practices.

ERIC