State of Education in Tennessee Executive Summary – 2011-12 | Page 12
P ROMISING P RA C TI C E S
SECTION 1: Year-in-Revi ew
Mt. Juliet High / Beyond the classroom:
Collaborative instruction elevates Mt. Juliet curriculum
Illustrating the fine points of a cow eyeball isn’t part of the syllabus in most high school art classes. But Mt.
Juliet High School offers more than a typical curriculum.
for college or the workforce, regardless of the state in
which they live. During Summer 2011, the Department
held two series of trainings: one for K educators
–2
who began implementing the standards in Fall 2011
and an awareness training for other educators who will
implement the standards in later years.
Additionally, Tennessee began its work to turn around
the state’s lowest performing schools. In May 2011,
Tennessee Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman
appointed charter school network founder Chris Barbic
to lead the Achievement School District. In Fall 2011,
the ASD began co-managing five schools in Tennessee
and assisting with operations in eight others.
In addition, because of the state’s charter school
legislation mentioned earlier, the ASD began authorizing
new charter schools to open in 2012. The ASD will open
the Achievement Schools in the 2012 013 school year,
–2
the team’s own brand of charter schools that they will
run. (For more information on educator evaluations,
implementation of the Common Core standards, and
school turnaround, see the First to the Top progress
update later in this report).
To more accurately identify schools that need additional
support, Tennessee announced its intent to seek a
waiver from certain provisions of the federal No Child
Left Behind (NCLB) law in late Summer of 2011. In
2010 1, only 51 percent of Tennessee schools were in
–1
“Good Standing” under the Adequate Yearly Progress
measure, the accountability system established by NCLB.
Many education leaders in Tennessee and across the
country felt that the federal accountability system was
not an accurate or fair measure of the performance of
Tennessee’s schools, in part because Tennessee had
dramatically raised academic standards through the
Tennessee Diploma Project in 2009, an action which
initially lowered the average test scores of Tennessee’s
students.
In September 2011, President Barack Obama announced
a formal waiver process for states to seek regulatory relief
from NCLB. Under the waiver plan, states would be
freed from some parts of the law in order to pursue their
own plans for school improvement and accountability, if
they meet certain requirements of the U.S. Department
of Education. These requirements included raising
student-achievement standards to reflect what’s
needed to go on to college or a career, holding schools
accountable for student gains, and improving teacher
effectiveness.12
On November 15, Tennessee submitted a waiver request
to the Department of Education to replace many of the
requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind law
with an accountability framework that is aligned with
the state’s First to the Top plan. Tennessee’s request
was granted in February 2012. The state will replace the
Adequate Yearly Progress measurement with a goal of
raising overall achievement 3 to 5 percent every year,
while cutting the achievement gap for minority and lowincome students in half over the next eight years.
Tennessee Schools in “Good Standing” Under NCLB
Out of more than 1,700 schools
1400
The eyeball illustration project, for example, began when a group of Mt. Juliet teachers brainstormed skills
that students will need in future jobs — in this case, high level teamwork.
Fine arts teacher Derek Elwell followed up on this idea with biology instructor Cher Carlisle to devise a
lesson plan that incorporated medical illustration in the two classes. When it was time for dissections to take
place, the students from the two classes were placed in teams, and they were all graded, in part, on their
ability to work together.
“There’s a real collegial air here,” Elwell said. “You’re given the latitude to go outside your
department and your discipline.”
These partnerships extend beyond arts and sciences. English and world history are taught together in a World
Studies class. Authentic frescos are crafted in history classrooms. The science, technology, engineering,
and math (STEM) initiative has involved auto mechanics, biology, chemistry, and health science to help
students make connections between their classes and these areas. If the staff is working toward specific ACT
achievement test objectives, students can expect to field practice questions in every class, from physical
education to drama. In fact, physical education instructors conduct a daily writing assessment program,
which school officials say have contributed to their growth in this area.
This teaching culture is nurtured very deliberately by school administrators. Common planning periods are
built into the daily schedule to facilitate team teaching. School-wide benchmarks are honed in a monthly
process bringing together every teacher in the building. A Professional Learning Community (PLC) structure
facilitates cross-curricular focus groups, as well as subject area-specific planning to analyze benchmarks and
discuss students’ strengths and weaknesses on state standards.
All of this adds up to an environment in which much is expected of students and teachers alike. The
foundation of the team’s success, according to Principal Mel Brown, is a carefully hired staff of individuals
ready to be part of a dynamic school.
“As principal, I do have high expectations of everyone in the building, including myself”
Brown said. “If it is determined that someone cannot be a team player or is not willing to
be coached and encouraged to do better than their best, I try not to hire them.”
The holistic approach is paying off. Mt. Juliet students exceeded state averages in composite ACT scores,
and TVAAS performance exceeded expectations in all five End-of-Course exams. The school is proactive
and aggressive in interventions when students veer off track from graduation requirements. A new Academic
Referral System is in the works, in which teachers are asked to intervene every time a student receives a zero
or submits sub-par work.
When MJHS senior Mikka Maderal talks about her school, she doesn’t mention PLCs or composite ACT
scores. She talks about choir practice. Maderal said she appreciates that her choir teacher “constantly” tells
students about how anatomy produces music. Exact language is used at practice — students are told to lift
their sternums, for example, to produce the best sound. The interdisciplinary structure of choir and other
classes helps Maderal think beyond c lassroom walls.
1200
1000
800
“We’ll talk about math in choir. We actually talked about anatomy in history and language
arts,” said Maderal, who plans to study physical therapy at the University of Tennessee at
Knoxville in the fall. “They teach you things that you’re supposed to learn, and then they
teach you more things that you can use in real life.”
600
400
200
0
2007-2008
2008-2009
2009-2010
Source: Tennessee Department of Education
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At MJHS, a uniquely collaborative instructional culture helps students make connections between arts and
sciences, classrooms and careers. The staff works creatively together to support higher expectations and
advance common goals.
THE STATE OF EDUCATION IN TENNESSEE 2011–12
2010-2011
With a teaching force modeling the kind of high-level teamwork students will one day
use professionally, a relevant, “real life” education is exactly what MJHS offers.
Mt. Juliet High School, part of Wilson County Schools, is the 2011 SCORE
Prize winner in the high school category.
THE STATE OF EDUCATION IN TENNESSEE 2011–12
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