The CDE identified Mosaica Education to provide support in the areas of academics, learning environment, leadership and planning. Following an extensive application process, the CDE only selected nine service providers to provide assistance in each of these four categories. An additional ten providers were approved for more limited service support.

Mosaica provides comprehensive school services in more than 75 school programs in the United States and internationally and has extensive experience in restructuring and turning around failing schools.

School improvement is required for chronically low-performing schools in Colorado under both federal guidance and state law. Federal guidance for Title I School Improvement Grants requires recipients to implement one of four school intervention models: (1) turnaround model (2) restart model, (3) school closure, or (4) transformation model.

Michael J. Connelly, CEO of Mosaica Education said, “Mosaica is proud to have been selected as an educational services provider in this critical area of work. We understand the challenge presented by these schools and we are well-prepared and very much looking forward to working with our colleagues in Colorado to identify, implement, and monitor viable solutions.”

According to Connelly, “Mosaica brings a strong track record of improving student academic performance in the schools in which it works. It does so by planning carefully, implementing aggressively, and holding everyone involved accountable for results. Mosaica’s experience working with low-performing schools has taught us that every school community is different – and we tailor our approaches to meet each community’s specific needs. The only workable, long-term and sustainable solutions are solutions customized to the unique set of circumstances in each school,”

Mosaica’s work with schools is driven by research-based interventions that become imbedded in the daily life of the schools. “We use innovative, effective instructional methods to include all students. Our hands-on approach supports the development of strong instructional leaders at the school level and includes the involvement of the community in the growth and development of the school”, said Mr. Connelly.

The providers identified in the department’s initial list will focus primarily on school turnaround and transformation efforts, but also may assist with more intensive interventions.

“We strongly encourage schools to avail themselves of the providers and the research-based, proven methods they offer,” said Commissioner of Education Dwight D. Jones. “The department is committed to partnering with schools and districts in the development of comprehensive turnaround plans and to assist in the effort to improve student achievement for all. This is urgent work.”

Consistent with federal guidance, the CDE has identified Colorado schools for intensive intervention based on data on student growth, achievement and graduation rates.

For more information
Contact:
Terry Gogerty
tgogerty@mosaicaeducation.com
720-838-4127

Last Updated: September 14. 2009 2:22PM UAE / September 14. 2009 10:22AM GMT

ABU DHABI // Private companies will have a hand in the management of every state high school in the emirate when the new term starts next week, as part of the Abu Dhabi Education Council’s effort to turn around failing schools.

The schools will become part of the public-private partnership programme, a pilot initiative now in its fourth year. A total of 147 schools – roughly half of all state schools, primary and high, in the emirate – will be participating in the programme this autumn. Last school year, 118 state schools participated.

The pilot programme pairs state schools with private education consultancies to introduce the education council’s reform agenda.

At primary schools, the partnerships were accompanied by the introduction of a new standards-based curriculum developed for the education council by the Department of Education in the Australian state of New South Wales, and by the introduction of maths and science taught in English.

Under the public-private partnerships, education management companies help to run existing state schools, which retain their own teachers and principals. At present, a handful of companies are involved in the programme. Among them are the American charter school company Mosaica; a wing of the UAE-based education giant Global Education Management Systems, commonly known as GEMS; and the British firm CfBT Education Trust. Taaleem, the UAE’s second largest private school operator, will join next year.

The expansion of the partnership programme to high schools will focus more on English instruction. Pupils in Abu Dhabi high schools will get an additional 90 minutes of English instruction per week.

On top of the new partnership with teachers working in Abu Dhabi high schools next year, the education council has recently hired 455 native speakers of English to teach at state schools.

The announcement that all state high schools will be part of the pilot programme was made on Thursday at a meeting of state school principals organised by the education council.

At the meeting, Dr Mugheer al Khaili, director general of the council, stressed that schools must co-operate with the ADEC to lift standards.

“The change in the education sector is necessary to achieve the goals of the economic vision of the emirate,” Dr al Khaili said.

He called on school principals to exercise the appropriate initiative and work with the education council to improve schools.

Moving all state high schools into the public-private partnership programme is not the only change planned for this autumn.

When the new year starts, the school day will be extended at state high schools, and students will take four additional periods of English instruction each week and two additional periods each of maths and Arabic-language instruction. School maintenance work has also been outsourced to a private company.klewis@thenational.ae