A Pilot Program
The Effective Practice Incentive Community is an exciting and promising opportunity that honors educators and spotlights the practices they are using to drive student achievement.  The initiative recognizes and learns from those eligible schools that have made the highest achievement gains in Memphis City Schools.

Funded primarily through a grant from the US Department of Education, the Effective Practice Incentive Community is a five-year initiative, with the first two years—the 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 academic years—serving as pilot years.  Based on the experience of the pilot this year and next, the Effective Practice Incentive Community will hone the methodology and approach used in future years, making refinements as necessary to strengthen the initiative.  The Effective Practice Incentive Community is a partnership of Memphis City Schools and New Leaders for New Schools.

The Promise of the Effective Practice Incentive Community
The power of the Effective Practice Incentive Community lies in the opportunity for educators to learn from one another about practices that have contributed to student achievement gains.   Based on the scarcity of time and the limited opportunities to visit colleagues’ schools and classrooms, teachers and school leaders often work in isolation, with few venues in which they can learn from one another.  Effective practices are often not shared resulting in expertise and skills developed and conducted in private pockets throughout schools.  In turn, colleagues do not benefit from the experience of individuals in schools throughout the district who have used a particular practice effectively in order to drive student achievement.

Through the EPIC online platform and face-to-face professional development opportunities, EPIC strives to make practice more public using a variety of media to bring to life what is working in classrooms and schools across Memphis.  Schools across Memphis - and in cities across the nation - share many similar challenges.  The Effective Practice Incentive Community will provide educators in Memphis a unique opportunity to learn from peers who are driving achievement gains with similar students from similar schools as their own. 

Spotlighting High Gains vs. High Achievement Schools
While other initiatives are aimed at showcasing “blue-ribbon” schools or “master teachers”, EPIC spotlights schools which may still be on the journey toward high achievement.  The Effective Practice Incentive Community honors schools that have made gains in student achievement.  This is because EPIC is interested in learning from schools that are demonstrating momentum on their way up the school improvement curve.  In this way, EPIC is different from other programs.  In fact, the Effective Practice Incentive Community may make awards to schools that have not been recognized for their success before.  This is because the way that schools are identified is based on annual student achievement gains, not on overall proficiency rates of students.

The rationale for this approach is to allow us all to learn and share what schools and educators do to drive the transformation to higher levels of performance.  With this focus, the Effective Practice Incentive Community addresses the commonly heard refrain “that classroom practice is great, but it really does not apply to my school,” spoken with regard to practices highlighted on videos or in written materials that are used by high performing schools.  The practices captured through EPIC’s Effective Practice identification and documentation process will be contextualized and address how these practices are implemented in schools with similar students in similar situations faced by many urban educators.  The cases and materials developed will be immediately relevant and useful to schools working to strengthen the performance of their students and teachers.  The materials produced will capture what educators are doing in schools which themselves may still be on the path toward excellence.

Documentation of Practices
EPIC has categorized schools based on the level of gains they have made, with some schools receiving Gold-Gain status and others receiving Silver-Gain status.  These two groups of schools will participate in unique documentation and sharing processes aimed at uncovering what they are doing to realize student achievement gains.

Gold-Gain schools are required to participate in an in-depth study by a trained group of experts.  The effective practices being used by Gold-Gain schools will be documented using a variety of video and written documentation approaches.  This work will lead to the development of rich, robust cases that will be produced and shared on an online platform made available to all MCS educators.  The documentation process will be overseen by an Effective Practice Team comprised of staff from MCS, New Leaders and national experts.

Silver-Gain schools engage in a process that begins with self-study and reflection and culminates with the sharing of practice through professional development with colleagues locally and through a description of practice shared via the online platform.  Silver-Gain schools may be asked to lead professional development events, host open houses or inter-school visitations, and/or participate in online webcasts to present a particular aspect of their practice.

In sum, the Effective Practice Incentive Community is a ground-breaking initiative that has the potential to transform how educators learn, develop and share their practice.  It is rooted in the belief that there is a wealth of expertise and experience in Memphis City Schools that can benefit educators and students not only in Memphis but also across the nation. The Effective Practice Incentive Community is an exciting opportunity for Memphis City Schools to spotlight, honor, and celebrate those educators who have made demonstrable improvements in student achievement.

Get more information from the MCS Insider.

Go to the EPIC Fact Sheet

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