Framework for Determining Resource
Flexibility
The following chart, adapted
from New American Schools (1998, pp. D1-D10) and Solomon and Ferguson (1999,
pp. 12-13), provides a framework for schools to compare their use of resources
with a school-focused district's use of resources. This chart provides a comparison
of time, schedule, staff organization, hiring and training, professional development
spending, special program spending, technology, and other nonstaff spending.
| Resource | Traditional District | School-Focused District |
| Time | The teacher workday and calendar are tightly specified by contract and district. | Schools have the ability to restructure teacher time during the day, week, and year to support their instructional design. |
| Schedule | There is a standard student schedule for all schools in the district. | Schools have the ability to organize their school schedule to support their instructional design and to focus on academic needs. |
| Staff Organization | The district provides schools with different types of staff according to a districtwide formula. Schools use staff as assigned. | Schools can specify the roles and responsibilities for each staff position. Schools also can shift dollars from staff to other expenses such as professional development or materials (and vice versa). |
| Hiring and Training | Personnel decisions are made according to the union contract and the district. | Schools have substantial power to hire, organize, train, and release staff to support their instructional design. Union contracts and personnel practices support this arrangement. |
| Professional Development Spending | The district controls spending and provides most of the professional development. | The district requires a base level of spending on professional development. Schools control professional development funds and target these funds to support their instructional strategies and design needs. |
| Special Program Spending | Dollars from special programs and grants (such as Title I and Eisenhower) are allocated by district. Each subject and grant is subject to separate rules and regulations. | Dollars from special programs can be combined at the school level to support school redesign and transformation. The district encourages and supports schools in this endeavor. |
| Technology | The district has responsibility for developing both the technology infrastructure and each site's technology system. | The district creates a systemwide technology infrastructure, and each school site has the flexibility and resources to create a technology program that supports its instructional design. |
| Other Nonstaff Spending | Nonstaff dollars are allocated by function and specified by the district. | Schools may allocate these dollars across functions to best support their instructional design. |
Reprinted with permission of New American Schools and Educational Research Service.
