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WCER researchers are studying ways in which the many components of the Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) are working together to support student attainment of high academic standards. Researchers William Clune, Norman Webb and colleagues offer conclusions and recommendations from the analyses of policy, information systems, and alignment.

The main focus is on improved teaching and learning in schools and classrooms. Improved teaching and learning in turn requires successful educational improvement and problem solving at all levels—the state, the district, the school, and for the administrator, the teacher, and the student.

William Clune studied the MPS accountability system. Christopher Thorn and Robert Meyer studied the District's information system and analyzed assessment data to better inform decision-making processes. Norman Webb and Todd Bloom studied the alignment of standards, assessment, and instruction within MPS.

Policy: The existing accountability system of MPS has major strengths in focusing responsibility at the school level: judging performance mainly on the basis of student achievement and participation; responding to identified problems through flexible, data-based problem solving; and, creating a governance system that includes input from schools and other affected groups.

Weaknesses in the accountability system include: rapid changes in goals due to the emerging state role in accountability; missing or questionable data on performance; lack of consequences and incentives for adults in the system (principals, teachers, and district personnel); possible fragmentation of school inspection responsibilities across several agencies and programs; sub-optimal analytic capacity for data-driven problem-solving.

Information systems and data: The MPS information system has limitations as a tool for analyzing performance and solving problems. To rectify this problem, the information system must allow different parts of its databases to be merged and made useable for a variety of purposes. Researchers note several necessary or appropriate changes that need to be seriously considered:

• Many kinds of information must be added to the database to evaluate school performance, including longitudinal tracking of individual students' performance over time, characteristics of students and their families, and characteristics of schools and academic programs.
• Some evidence is required that classroom teachers are able to reliably score their students' work in mathematics, language arts, science, and research. Alternative means for meeting the same requirement, such as the WSAS Knowledge and Skills examination or the MPS performance assessment, need to be verified as equivalent. The standards and grade level expectations need to be verified as aligned with each other, with the assessments, and with state and national standards.
• Requiring students to pass proficiencies in order to continue from grade 8 to grade 9 places two significant requirements on curriculum and classroom instruction. One is the assurance that students have had the opportunity to learn what is required by the end of eighth grade. The other is the quality and sufficiency of the intervention for eighth graders who fail the requirements and need additional instruction. Instruction aligned with the proficiencies is one important prerequisite for meeting both of these requirements. Sufficient accountability structures and an information system that adequately reveals the nature of students' precise needs are other requirements.

For more information, contact William Clune whclune@facstaff.wisc.edu and Norman Webb nlwebb@facstaff.wisc.edu .