Overcoming Instructional Hurdles: Improving instruction and Student Learning in a Connecticut Technical High School
A.I. Prince Technical High School, Hartford, Connecticut
A team from A.I. Prince Technical High School—representing one of the sixteen regional high schools in the Connecticut Technical High School System—will present its approach to school improvement that has resulted in a steady rise in standardized test scores. The story of A.I. Prince parallels the story of the Connecticut Technical High School System district, whose commitment to improving academic rigor and achievement has resulted in improved test scores. A.I. Prince not only embraced and adopted the district’s initiatives, but it also initiated several school-based approaches to instructional improvement, including research-based strategies, a school-wide focus on writing, instructional data teams, and student interventions such as labs in English language arts and math. A model for continuous improvement, A.I. Prince presents the journey of academic transformation that began in 2003 when the school was identified as being in need of improvement to today, where it now stands at the threshold of successfully achieving Adequate Yearly Progress.
William Chaffin (principal), Sal Randazzo (executive coach), Lisa Higgins (school counseling coordinator), Polly Innerarity (graphic communications department head), Deidre Shaw (science department head)
William Chaffin, william.chaffin@ct.gov