Description:
Researchers and Educators from several different institutions combined resources and integrated methodologies to develop this whole- school reform. It is based on the concept that communities and the individual schools within communities are distinct entities with specific characteristics and needs that must be considered in order to implement a reform that will result in continued student success (www.atlascommunities.org).

While other reforms make distinctions between program approaches to different levels, ATLAS looks at the school community as a seamless entity of elementary, middle and high school they call a "pathway." Families, teachers, administrators and students work together to create a single set of standards and goals that students will work toward from the moment they enter the pathway. Communication between grade levels and across subjects becomes a necessary part of developing successful pathways (www.atlascommunities.org).

Transparency across the grades such as described in ATLAS can be very difficult to accomplish. The resources needed to create and sustain these pathways go beyond the financial investment of $180,000 required by ATLAS. In addition to the tremendous organizational effort that must go into establishing cross-divisional communications, sustaining them beyond the induction phase requires an ongoing commitment. One of the key components to the ATLAS program is Professional Development in which teachers form and utilize Whole Faculty Study Groups (WFSGs). The WFSGs address student needs through the context of state standards. The idea of teachers collaborating to improve teaching and learning, as in the WFSGs, is not a new one. In 1992, Fullan and Hargreaves referred to the "professional Learning Community" as a common feature of successful schools in "What's worth fighting for?: Working together for your school". The central idea is that teachers who participate in professional learning communities feel a greater sense of certainty in and commitment to teaching and focus their efforts on shared goals which in turn enhances the learning environment in schools and teachers' Capacity for improving student performance. For further discussion about "professional learning communities" see Fullan, M. (2001). "The New Meaning of Educational change". New York: Teachers College Press.

Goal:
"Our goal is to enable all students to be lifelong learners, productive workers, and thoughtful members of our families and global community."

(ATLAS Goal Statement, retrieved January 4, 2003 from http://www.atlascommunities.org/frame.asp)

Approach:
Five elements are considered key to success of the ATLAS program:

1. Teaching and learning
2. assessment
3. Professional development
4. Family and community
5. Management and decision-making
   

"Teaching for Understanding" is considered the cornerstone of teaching and learning in Atlas schools. Students engage in individual as well as team Project-based Curriculum designed to develop thinking skills, knowledge and real-life application.

ATLAS promotes multiple student assessment measures: state assessments, standardized tests, diagnostic tests, and examination of student work through internal assessments such as portfolios and exhibitions.

Whole-faculty study groups (WFSGs) allow teachers the space to be learners and leaders. Groups no larger than six professionally certified faculty are established to address the question of what students are achieving and learning as a result of what teachers are teaching and learning. Study Group Action Plans are developed to address the issues that arise.

Family and community become involved through student-parent-teacher conferences, community-based projects, at-home student work, and by becoming mentors in and judges for student exhibition.

A Leadership Team made up of teachers, staff, and administrators along with parents and community members is responsible for developing the plan for improvement, assessing the program's progress, and making Policy decisions to ensure student success. ATLAS provides technical assistance to these teams throughout the Implementation cycle (www.atlascommunities.org).

research:
Independent qualitative evaluations concerning implementation have provided evidence that after five years some of the first Atlas Communities have institutionalized major elements of the model such as Authentic Assessment and project-based learning. Other studies have determined that ATLAS is one of the most difficult models to implement (www.nwrel.org).

Visit http://www.goodschools.gwu.edu/csrm/RDB/ATLASList.html for a thorough list of articles and studies pertaining to the implementation and impact of ATLAS. Information is provided by the National Clearinghouse on Comprehensive School Reform (NCCSR).

Under "Results" at the ATLAS website four examples of different pathways are described alongside statistical charts revealing improvements in standardized tests made between 1997 and 2002 (www.atlascommunities.org).

Costs:
The Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory estimates costs for a single elementary, middle or high school of less than 1000 students, costs begin at $80,000 dollars a year for three years depending on a range of factors including location. A three-school pathway was estimated at approximately $180,000 per year (www.nwrel.org).

Information concerning receiving funds from the US Department of Education and other sources for implementing ATLAS in your school (must be title I school to receive federal funding) can be found at http://www.atlascommunities.org/funding.asp.

Implementation Sites:
Arbor Hill Community Elementary School
1 Arbor Drive
Albany, NY 12210
518-462-7165
Contact: Roz Gaines

Aki Kurose Middle School
3928 South Graham Street
Seattle, WA 98118
Contact: BiHoa Caldwell

Norview High School
1070 Middleton Place
Norfolk, VA 23513
757-852-4500
Contact: Marjorie Stealey

Paul Robeson High School for Business & Technology
150 Albany Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11213
718-774-0300
Contact: Ira Weston

As listed in NWREL's catalogue of School Reform Models, February 6, 2004, NWREL catalogue 02/06/04