The foundation of a small school’s success is its ability to make autonomous decisions on issues that affect its structure, culture, academic program and governance. Successful small schools have control over their budget, curriculum, scheduling, staffing, space and leadership. Gaining these autonomies is often a gradual process, requiring a broad base of support among school and district staff, parents and the community. Once they are established, these autonomies are part of the school’s formal written policies and practices.
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| According to researcher Mary Anne Raywid, "the greatest inhibitor to a small school’s ability to realize its potential is lack of autonomy." |
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Establishing autonomy provides small schools the best chance to build a unified learning community and use its resources to provide personalized, high quality teaching and learning to students. And, just as small businesses can adapt to changes in the marketplace more easily than large, bureaucratic companies, small schools with autonomy have the flexibility to alter their instructional program to meet the changing needs of individual students.
According to researcher Mary Anne Raywid, “the greatest inhibitor to a small school’s ability to realize its potential is lack of autonomy—constraints imposed by stringent regulations, bureaucratic regularities, and longstanding labor agreements and the need to mesh with policies and practices of the board of education and the school district—and the hesitation of some education personnel at all levels to make fundamental changes in the way they function.” The major challenge, she states, “is obtaining sufficient separateness to permit staff members to generate a distinctive environment and to carry out their own vision of schooling.”
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| The major challenge, she states, “is obtaining sufficient separateness to permit staff members to generate a distinctive environment and to carry out their own vision of schooling.” |
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Below are general descriptions, based on the work by the Bay Area Coalition for Equitable Small Schools, of the six key areas of autonomy essential for effective small schools. The process of establishing autonomy in these six areas varies depending whether a school is a new start or conversion school. For more specific information on these differences, see the Change Process.
- Budget. Small schools have total discretion to spend money in the manner that provides the best program and services to students and their families.
- Curriculum. Small schools have the freedom to design course content and select instructional materials that best meet students’ learning needs and state standards.
- Scheduling. Small schools have the freedom to set flexible class times, school days and/or school years for both students and faculty.
- Staffing. Small schools have the freedom to hire or reassign staff that is committed to implementing the vision and mission to best serve students.
- Leadership and Governance. Small schools have the freedom to create their own governance structure responsible for decisions over budgets, staff selection, programs, professional development, curriculum and policies.
- Space. Small schools should have the freedom to configure physical spaces that have a unique community identity and that allow students, teachers, and families to interact and build relationships.
Review this element on the Oregon Small Schools Initiative School Change Rubric Self-Assessment Tool.
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