Reports – NewSchools Venture Fund

Building Better Schools: A Proven Blueprint for Success

bmiller — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 13:49:29 +0000

This post has been updated with new information as of October 21, 2024.

Despite signs of academic recovery, new data reveals that public school students, especially younger ones, are significantly behind, with achievement gaps widening between low-income and affluent students. As school leaders urgently seek solutions, it’s worth asking: What if the answers have been right in front of us all along — in innovative public schools with exceptional results?

At NewSchools, our experience with 122 innovative public schools across the country demonstrates the power of breaking from traditional molds. Serving a diverse student body, including a higher percentage of students of color, low-income students, and English learners, these schools often outperform traditional models. They provide students with a strong academic foundation and cultivate essential mindsets, habits, and skills needed for success in school and life.

Before the pandemic, students in our schools were achieving impressive results, gaining the equivalent of an extra 91 days of learning each year. Like many, our schools faced challenges during the pandemic, with just 15% of students meeting their growth goals in math and reading in the 2020-21 school year. Now our schools are making a comeback. Over the past two school years, around 40% of our students have reached their pre-COVID growth goals, a statistically significant increase. This progress reflects the resilience and recovery of our students, driven by deliberate school designs, instructional practices, and approaches to educator development that can and should be adopted more broadly.

To better understand the success of our schools, we partnered with Bellwether, a leading education researcher. We went beyond test scores and student surveys to capture the full experiences of our students, teachers, and families. The Bellwether team conducted 29 school visits, 127 classroom observations, and 569 interviews. Through this process, we identified a common blueprint for success, built on four foundational strategies: visionary leadership, nurturing relationships, effective implementation, and learning and continuous improvement.

1. Visionary Leadership

Every successful school in our sample study is led by visionary leaders who understand that true educational excellence requires the involvement of all stakeholders — students, teachers, families, and community members — from the start. These leaders engage the community to co-create a shared vision of success that coherently aligns instruction, culture, and operations with the specific needs and aspirations of their community. They also ensure that this vision is clearly communicated and understood by everyone involved, fostering a culture of shared responsibility and commitment to the school’s success.

2. Nurturing Relationships

The foundation of any effective school is the strength of its relationships among students, among educators, and between teachers and students. In our schools, leaders prioritize building trust and creating caring environments that encourage both students and teachers to excel. By implementing practices such as student advisories, community circles, and regular feedback loops among staff, these schools create supportive and inclusive spaces that promote deeper learning and engagement. Positive relationships among staff and strong modeling are equally important as student-to-teacher relationships, as they shape the overall school culture and support interactions with students and families.

3. Effective Implementation

Visionary leadership and nurturing relationships are crucial, but without effective implementation, they remain just good ideas. The schools in our portfolio stand out for their ability to put ideas into action. At the most effective schools, systems tightly align to core instructional and cultural practices. This includes establishing clear, intentional routines, codifying practices and policies, investing in ongoing professional development for teachers, embracing distributed leadership – where responsibilities are shared among a network of leaders, and maintaining consistent standards for both students and staff. Effective implementation ensures that the school’s vision and commitment to strong instruction is realized in every classroom and every interaction.

4. Learning and Continuous Improvement

Our top-performing schools are marked by a relentless commitment to learning and improvement. These schools use data — not just test scores, but also feedback from students, parents, and teachers — to continually refine their practices. This culture of reflection and data-driven decision-making allows schools to respond to challenges swiftly and effectively, always with the goal of better serving their students. A key part of this strategy is hiring people who are eager to learn and grow, and helping them become experts at collecting, analyzing, and responding to data effectively.

*The findings and conclusions contained within are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect positions or policies of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The evidence is clear: when leaders embrace these four strategies, schools not only start strong but also sustain deep engagement and learning over time. Feedback from our schools speaks volumes: teachers praise the strong leadership and supportive environments, while students report a profound sense of belonging and engagement with more rigorous and relevant coursework. Parents and students alike commend the positive, inclusive climate and the preparation for college and careers.

In addition to capturing the four strategies that all school leaders are putting in place, Bellwether created a catalog of practices to surface a range of choices school leaders are making to achieve their goals. Teams are often weaving together complementary practices (e.g. small group instruction and data-driven decision-making) to achieve strong results. Bellwether’s research confirms what we have known all along: the best innovation combines new and proven practices, tailored to each school community’s needs. We hope schools can use these approaches to better organize their academic programs, build community, and support staff.

By investing in visionary leadership, nurturing relationships, effective implementation, and continuous improvement rooted in strong instruction, we do more than address learning recovery — we build stronger connections between schools and students, empowering them to reach new heights.

Read the full report: Building Better Schools: Insights from Innovative Public Schools, made possible with the support of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation*.

Mia Howard

Mia Howard is a Managing Partner leading the Innovative Schools investment team. She and her team support educators with bold visions for new schools that embrace equity, innovation, and an expanded definition of student success.

NewSchools/Gallup Poll on Distance Learning

Keisha Courtney — Wed, 26 Aug 2020 21:36:37 +0000

Summer 2020 poll from NewSchools and Gallup looks at parent, teacher, and student perspectives on education technology and distance learning

Schools, students and families will need to work together in new and creative ways this fall as millions of students go back to school virtually. In nearly every possible way, this pandemic is hitting low-income communities and people of color disproportionately hard — and that’s true in schooling as well, as gaps of access to educational resources threaten to widen. Perhaps more than ever, having teachers, parents and students well-connected and aligned is going to be crucial as families navigate distance learning as many use education technology in new or different ways. To support these efforts, NewSchools has partnered with Gallup to survey teachers, students and parents on their perspectives on how distance learning went in the spring, and what they expect and need to be successful this fall.

Read the Full Report

Digital Tools and Equity Amid the Pandemic: Teacher, Parent and Student Perspectives

Webinar Recording

Webinar Slides

Additional Resources

Promising Developments in Ed Tech for K-12 Science

Justin Wedell — Sun, 19 Apr 2020 00:16:27 +0000

https://www.slideshare.net/newschoolsignite/promising-developments-in-edtech-for-science

Based on knowledge developed through the Science Learning Ed Tech Challenge, “Promising Developments in Ed Tech for K-12 Science” is a summary report of findings and lessons learned from market research and our support of the challenge winners. The report compiles the key insights we’ve gleaned, and presents them in three sections: why science education matters, challenges facing K-12 science learning, and opportunities for ed tech to support science learning.

Exploring gaps in outcomes for students with disabilities

Justin Wedell — Sat, 18 Apr 2020 23:43:32 +0000

Brief Overview

The following is a synopsis on the current landscape of special education within U.S. public education. While realizing technology is the not the panacea for issues faced in special education, technology can enable more quality student-teacher interaction.

Enabling Positive Outcomes for Students with Disabilities Through Technology

NewSchools Venture Fund is committed in supporting special education tools. Our market research conversations – interviews with educators, thought leaders, and entrepreneurs across the country – have been enlightening, offering up hope to impact the quality of special education through the use of technology. Compared to the early years of assistive technology, prices on tools have significantly declined. These days, tools are far easier to implement within a classroom environment with use cases that address executive functioning, augment and create alternative communication, and enable reading and writing skills. Greater inclusiveness and applicability to both students with and without disabilities has prompted the adoption of frameworks like Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS). Technology can be the catalyst to address critical student needs. We aim to position the NewSchools Special Education Ed Tech Challenge as a way to accelerate focus in the towards these critical issues and create a spotlight for innovative companies developing solutions.

Demographics at a Glance

To fully grasp the challenges faced in special education, it is crucial to picture the magnitude of population of students with disabilities within the context of the overall student population – as well as the complexity of disabilities that fall under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The special education student population peaked during the 2004-2005 school year with an eventual decline that seemed to indicate a stabilization period. However, there has been an uptick in recent years. Once at a high of 6.72 million (comprising 13.8% of all students), students with disabilities now hover at 6.46 million (12.9%).

F1: Overall Population of Students with Disabilities

[infogram id=”f1_overall_population_of_students_with_disabilities” prefix=”Ui5″ format=”interactive” title=”F1: Overall Population of Students with Disabilities”]
Among the thirteen disability types designated under IDEA, a significant proportion is represented by the specific learning disability (35%) and speech or language impairment (21%) categories. Other health impairments (13%) and autism (8%) are designations that have grown the quickest, with hypotheses linked to greater access to medical diagnoses and overidentification of students within those categories.

F2: Percentage of Students with Disabilities by Type

[infogram id=”f2_percentage_of_students_with_disabilities_by_type” prefix=”HeX” format=”interactive” title=”F2: Percentage of Students with Disabilities by Type”]
Technology is capable of reducing hurdles by offering personalized supports and synthesizing student and classroom data outcomes for teachers and administrators.

F3: Percentage of Students with Disabilities by State

[infogram id=”f3_percentage_of_students_with_disabilities_by_state_13_14″ prefix=”NJZ” format=”interactive” title=”F3: Percentage of Students with Disabilities by State ('13-'14)”]

Challenges of Race and Equity within Special Education

An additional layer to the demographic shifts described above is the growing tension around social equity within special education. The quality of programs and services provided to students with disabilities vary wildly based on socioeconomic factors. While 51 percent of all school districts face difficulty recruiting highly qualified special education teachers, the figure increases to 90 percent for high-poverty schools. Race also plays a contributing factor in the diagnosis and identification of special education students. For example, there is an over-identification of Black students under the emotional disturbance category and over-index of Latino students under learning disabilities based on students’ statuses as English Language Learners. To further complicate this issue, cultural norms can impact how families deal with students with disabilities, and whether families feel stigma if their children are supported under IDEA. In order to mitigate these issues, emphases on teacher training, effective diagnosis, removing racial bias, and thoughtful communication to families are essential – all of which technology can contribute to.

F4: Percentage of Students with Disabilities by Race

[infogram id=”f4_percentage_of_students_with_disabilities_by_race_13_14″ prefix=”xdc” format=”interactive” title=”F4: Percentage of Students with Disabilities by Race ('13-'14)”]

Current State of the Special Education Teaching Profession

It is evident that schools and districts are facing hurdles staffing educators. This is especially the case for schools seeking special education teachers and specialized professionals. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 450,700 special education teacher jobs throughout the country. While they earn comparable salaries to other teachers (median pay of $56,800 per year), hiring shortages are the norm. An astounding 47 states reported shortages in filling roles for special education teachers or related service personnel. Furthermore, compared to mainstream teachers, there is high turnover, with movement of special education teachers transitioning into general classroom teachers. One hypothesis for this migration is the time commitment spent managing Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) rather than directly working with students. Another is the need to provide robust graduate training programs that effectively prepare and emphasize special education not just to those pursuing to special education certification, but as an integral component for all educators to undergo special education training, given that the majority of students with disabilities are in inclusive classrooms. Technology can remove particular barriers by reducing time and effort spent on IEP paperwork and data analysis and instead allow teachers to focus their attention on high quality instruction.

F5: Special Education Teacher Shortage

[infogram id=”f5_special_education_teacher_shortage” prefix=”yuZ” format=”interactive” title=”F5: Special Education Teacher Shortage”]

ESSA, IDEA and Legal Mandates to Support Students with Disabilities

The national Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) “demands that states improve student performance and prepare all students for college and careers.” It also requires “that all students have access to excellent teachers and positive, safe learning environments with necessary supports to prepare them for success in college, a career and life.” Another federal law, the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA) directly stipulates schools to provide students with disabilities with access to free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment. On top of this, a unanimous March 2017 Supreme Court ruling – Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District – placed greater scrutiny for schools to provide beyond the bare minimum in educational benefits for students with disabilities. Raising this bar for schools and districts comes with budgetary challenges. Depending on state and local policies, schools may have to undergo budget reallocation to meet these requirements. In its most recent ratings designated by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), there are a swath of states that fall under a “needs assistance” rating. Not surprisingly, the top ten states with special education lawsuits contribute to 62 percent of all court cases.

F6: Special Education Ratings by State

[infogram id=”f6_special_education_ratings_by_state_16″ prefix=”8Cc” format=”interactive” title=”F6: Special Education Ratings by State ('16)”]

Gaps in Outcomes faced by Students with Disabilities

With such multifaceted challenges facing students with disabilities, gaps are often seen in their academic outcomes. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), across most grade levels and content areas, students with disabilities consistently have the lowest in achievement scores compared to other demographic groups (race/ethnicity, gender, National School Lunch Program eligibility), second only to ELLs. This effect cascades further and creates longitudinal impacts, including having one of the lowest high school graduation rates (63.1 percent compared to 82.3 percent overall), which again is second to ELLs (62.6 percent). This translates to an an alarming unemployment rate that is roughly twice as high (10.7 percent) compared to people without disabilities (5.1 percent).

Competency Based Learning: State of the U.S. K-12 Market

Justin Wedell — Sat, 18 Apr 2020 22:37:18 +0000

http://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/key/zd3u9ydcUE1FQY
NewSchools Venture Fund commissioned research from Betsy Peters and Doug Roberts from Educational Solutions Consulting to (1) understand the key characteristics of the CBL framework, (2) identify how widespread adoption is in K-12 education in the United States, (3) identify the key players that make up and/or influence the CBL marketplace, and (4) identify and understand the technologies enabling the market.

Literature Review: Education Technology and Science

Justin Wedell — Fri, 17 Apr 2020 23:34:14 +0000

As part of our research partnership, WestEd conducts a literature review for each NewSchools Ed Tech challenge. The literature review is meant to provide readers with an overview of the current ed tech research landscape, as it relates to the challenge’s focus area. This literature review provides an overview of best practices for developers to consider when creating edtech products intended to support the teaching and learning of science. From the report:

Technology has had a profound impact on science teaching. Educational technology delivers fundamental innovative changes that can be integral to achieving significant improvements in teaching and student understanding. Technologies have caused a paradigm shift in education away from a one-way flow of information (the teacher as the sage on the stage) to a collaborative interactive traffic of information and teaching between students and the teacher. Supporting both teaching and learning, educational technology can infuse classrooms with digital learning tools, such as computers and hand held devices; expand experiences, and learning materials; build 21 century skills; increase student engagement and motivation; and accelerate student learning. It can also be used to increase course offerings, and support learning anywhere and anytime.

The literature review includes sections on Best Practices in Science Education, Applying Educational Technology to Science Learning, and Developing Educational Technology for Science Learning, as well as a list of more than 100 references to additional published research.

Literature Review: Education Technology and Mathematics

Justin Wedell — Fri, 17 Apr 2020 23:30:56 +0000

From using representations, visualizations, and graphics to quizzing and supporting sense-making and discourse, research findings provide a roadmap for technology developers to follow in addressing the needs of mathematics students and teachers. Key features of effective mathematics edtech that support activities that research suggests are highly likely to promote student learning include: formative assessment, productive mathematical discourse, connecting abstract and concrete representations, active participation, integrating visual and verbal information, and improved pedagogical content knowledge.

The literature review includes sections on Best Practices in Mathematics Education, Applying Educational Technology to Mathematics, and Developing Educational Technology for Mathematics, as well as a list of more than 100 references to additional published research.

Literature Review: Education Technology and English Language Learning

Justin Wedell — Fri, 17 Apr 2020 23:24:47 +0000

As part of our research partnership, WestEd conducts a literature review for each NewSchools Ed Tech challenge. The literature review is meant to provide readers with an overview of the current ed tech research landscape, as it relates to the challenge’s focus area. This literature review provides an overview of best practices for developers to consider when creating ed tech products intended to support the teaching and learning of English learners. From the report:

Educational technology developers have an unprecedented opportunity to promote learning and address specific needs of teachers and students in English Language Learning (ELL). Addressing these needs using technology requires a combined understanding of both the best practices for instruction and learning in ELL education, and how technology can best be used to promote those best practices for students and teachers in ELL.

Key features of effective ELL edtech that support activities that research suggests are highly likely to promote student learning include: supporting multiple modes and contexts, enhancing motivation and confidence, providing feedback and active evaluation, utilizing mobile learning, supporting collaboration, enhancing motivation and confidence, building on previous experiences, learning in a social setting, and teaching with technology.

The literature review includes sections on Best Practices in English Language Learning, Applying Educational Technology to English Language Learning, and Developing Educational Technology for English Language Learning, as well as a list of more than 100 references to additional published research.

Literature Review: Education Technology and Early Learning

Justin Wedell — Fri, 17 Apr 2020 23:22:16 +0000

As part of our research partnership, WestEd conducts a literature review for each NewSchools Ed Tech challenge. The literature review is meant to provide readers with an overview of the current ed tech research landscape, as it relates to the challenge’s focus area. This literature review provides an overview of best practices for developers to consider when creating ed tech products intended to support the teaching and learning of early learners (Pre-Kindergarten through 2nd grade). From the report:

Three best-practice themes are echoed throughout the literature. Technology and interactive media should be: 1) child focused, 2) conscious of enhancing present learning activities, and 3) mindful of support needed for adults who are guiding use of technology. In addition to best practices, research supported methods specific to content areas (e.g., STEM, social-emotional learning, literacy, special education) and identified areas for development opportunities should also be utilized. Thus, edtech and interactive media developers can directly support learning outcomes through a focus on research-based methods for technology use, child-focused developmentally appropriate practices, development of products that add to educational experiences instead of replacing current practices, and support needed to facilitate tech and media use.

The literature review includes sections on Best Practices for Technology Use in Early Childhood Settings, Content-Specific Findings Around Educational Technology and Early Childhood Learning, and Applying Educational Technology to Early Childhood Learning, as well as a list of references to additional published research.

Optimizing Ed Tech for an Expanded Definition of Student Success – A Research Review for Ed Tech Developers

Justin Wedell — Fri, 17 Apr 2020 23:01:22 +0000

The purpose of this report is to provide a research synthesis about the expanded definition of student success that can be leveraged by EdTech developers to support research-aligned product development. Although research on EdTech lags significantly behind current interests and needs of the market, there is much relevant research about social emotional development and school climate and culture that is applicable to the design of EdTech tools. Drawing on over 100 publications, this report introduces 6 levers for supporting student success, each with 2 critical research-based findings.