The E-Squared Solution
Equity and Excellence for School Improvement
The E-Squared Solution can help any school, anywhere in the world, reach new heights of equity and excellence right now. Our core conviction is that it is practices, not programs, that lead to student success. E-Squared schools and systems focus on a set of research-based leadership and teaching practices that are sustainable over the long term. Even as leaders, budgets, and political environments change, the commitment to equity and excellence will be consistent. Because of our commitment to focused professional practices, we often help schools save money and time by discarding expensive and time-consuming programs that are not used and that have no impact on student results.
The Five Core Competencies of an E-Squared System
Get rid of the clutter before adopting our framework. Before we start, we need to know the calendar of initiatives and programs that compete for the time, attention, and resources of the system and schools.
Focus
The degree to which teachers, principals, and system-level leaders identify causes of student achievement as those they can control or influence compared to those they cannot control or influence.
Collective Efficacy
Effective assessment and immediate feedback for students, teachers, and leaders. The acid test is the degree to which teachers can say, at any moment throughout the year, which students are proficient, which are in need of intervention, and which are in need of extended learning. Leaders must similarly be able to identify the strengths and challenges of every teacher. District-level supervisors must also be able to know specific strengths and challenges for each school and district leader.
Feedback
Systematic, frequent, and consistent feedback to every teacher. This is independent of the teacher evaluation policies that may be externally mandated. Feedback, not evaluation, is what drives improvements in teaching practices.
Instructional Effectiveness
Leadership Effectiveness
Focus on the essentials of instructional leadership, data analysis, change leadership, and effective management.