Our Approach

Classroom-based: We take a bottom-up approach, starting in the classrooms of schools that you want to serve better. We believe “nothing changes unless classroom instruction changes,” so we try to identify opportunities for the district to support powerful changes in instruction that will lead to measurable gains in student learning.

Data-focused: We observe classrooms, interview teachers, support staff, site administrators, and district leaders. We look carefully at available data sources and try to understand how those data are being used. We ask many questions about changes that have been implemented, strategies that have discarded, and the reasons for those decisions. We try to understand why instruction is as we find it in your classrooms.

Achievement-oriented: At the end of our visit, we make suggestions intended to help you achieve your goals for better teaching and learning at the selected schools. Our suggestions for each district will be unique, based upon on our on-site findings; however, our suggestions will be aligned to our logic model for improving achievement in urban schools. Our goal is to offer clear, logical, research-based suggestions that have a high likelihood of generating better achievement results.

How is Our Approach Different?

Research-based: Our approach may be different from others you have experienced in that ours is based upon the study of urban schools and districts that have achieved remarkable results for diverse populations of students.  Our observations and recommendations are based upon years of study of high-performing urban schools.

Systems-focused: Also, our approach may be different because we focus upon opportunities for systemic or structural change.  High-performing districts have found ways to reduce the amount of chance in improvement efforts by creating systems and structures to address critical functions.  For example, other entities may simply recommend professional development in response to an identified need; whereas, we know that typical professional development approaches rarely result in widespread changes in instruction.  Therefore, we encourage school districts to create, implement, and evaluate systems that are more likely to lead to effective changes in instruction.

Sustained Over Time: In many district evaluation approaches, a team enters, generates a report, and leaves.  In contrast, we design each contract to include at least one follow-up visit during which we return to help the district determine the extent to which their implementation decisions have resulted in changes in teaching and learning in classrooms.  We leave the district a variety of tools that may be used to continue monitoring the effectiveness of implementation efforts.

Emphasis on Strengths: Finally, our approach may be different because we strive to build upon your strengths.  Instead of suggesting totally new innovations, we try to identify the systems and structures that might help increase the effectiveness of the innovations the district has already put in place.  We do not bring an allegiance to any specific approach or program.  Our allegiance is to helping you generate better learning results for your students.

Who Conducts the School Auditing Services?

Educators, administrators, and researchers with experience working in and studying high-performing urban schools and district provide NCUST evaluation services.  Depending upon the number and size of the schools to be served, we will create a team of NCUST staff members and NCUST fellows tailored to support your district’s needs.

What are the Costs for the High Performing School Audit?

NCUST is not a for-profit organization; therefore, we work to keep costs minimal. The costs vary based upon the number of person days necessary to complete an evaluation and the related travel costs.  For example, evaluation services focused upon one 500-student school might be as low as $3,000 plus travel costs.

How to Get More Information?