Stakeholder's Perceptions of the Nine Characteristics of High-Performing Schools at a Low-Performing School: A Case Study

The increasing academic demands of the current education accountability standards exemplified by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, has led to the development of state accountability standards that have labeled school districts high-performing, underperforming, and low-performing. In response to the accountability movement national reform efforts have targeted specific characteristics that are observed in high-performing schools. This case study explored stakeholder's perceptions of the nine characteristics of high-performing schools at a low-performing school in Massachusetts. The study was necessitated because of recent accreditation and state accountability reports of the low-performing school. It was important to establish if the nine characteristics of high-performing schools were present at this low-performing school. The nine characteristics include (a) a clear and shared focus, (b) high standards and expectations for all students, (c) effective school leadership, (d) high levels of collaboration and communication, (e) curriculum, instruction and assessment aligned with state standards, (f) frequent monitoring of learning and teaching, (g) focused professional development, (h) a supportive learning environment, (i) high levels of family and community involvement. The materials and instruments used were focused on the completion of a survey and focus group interviews by each of the stakeholder groups. A review of recent state and re-accreditation reports was also completed as part of the triangulation of the data. Stakeholder's included students in grades 7 thrul2, parents of students in grades 7 thru 12, and teachers employed at the school in grades 7 thru 12. Stakeholders who completed the survey and the focus group interviews concluded that all of the nine characteristics were present in at the low-performing school. However, four of the nine characteristics came to the forefront as needing more attention. The four characteristics were high levels of collaboration and communication, frequent monitoring of learning and teaching, focused professional development, and high levels of family and community involvement. The findings indicate that stakeholder's perceptions of the nine characteristics of high-performing schools are important in order to make changes that lead to improvements at a low-performing school.