professional learning, and create the instructional and assessment supports necessary for successful
implementation.
Where does implementation begin? Knowing that implementation takes time and resources, what
do district and school leaders, teachers, and other staff do first? What are the critical elements of
implementation? Planning successful implementation depends first on assessing existing resources,
systems, and professional knowledge and skill. These include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Systemwide elements (school and district):
๐ Curriculum and instruction vision, goals, objectives, and plans
๐ Instructional materials
๐ Assessment systems and tools
๐ School calendars and schedules
๐ Intervention strategies and programs
๐ Staffing for leadership, specialized programs, and coaching, including specialists,
paraprofessionals, teacher librarians, coaches, and more
๐ Time, space, and technology for deep professional learning and ongoing collaboration
๐ Professional learning programs and collaborative structures
๐ Data systems for leaders and teachers to track student academic and linguistic progress over
time, for gathering demographic data (e.g., students’ primary languages), and more
๐ Fiscal and human resources - Professional knowledge and skills (teachers, leaders, other school staff):
๐ Content: knowledge of this ELA/ELD Framework, CA CCSS for ELA Literacy, and CA ELD
Standards; understanding of content (including literature), literacy, linguistics, second
language development, cultural and linguistic diversity, foundational skills, rhetoric,
disciplinary literacy, and more
๐ Pedagogy: equitable participation structures, collaborative conversations, culturally and
linguistically responsive approaches, comprehension strategies, writing, research, technology,
inquiry, direct instruction, collaborative learning, and more
๐ Dispositions: regarding change, professional learning, planning, higher expectations, equity,
and student capabilities
๐ Planning: selecting appropriate texts and other materials; using standards to differentiate
support; curriculum, assessments, interventions, schedules, units, lessons, and more
๐ Assessment: understandings of formative assessment as part of instructional practice,
analysis methods
๐ Leadership: communication, organization, facilitation, advocacy, and more
๐ Collaboration: planning units and lessons together, discussing how to refine instructional
practice, peer observation, peer coaching, and more
While it is fairly straightforward to identify existing resources and systems, it may be more
challenging to determine their current and, more importantly, projected effectiveness with new
standards and expectations. Assessing professional knowledge and skills is both difficult and sensitive.
School leaders and teachers should begin by identifying their individual and collective strengths and
then a limited number of areas for future learning and collaboration. The aim is not to overwhelm
individuals or systems but to focus on the next best steps for each person, group, and the school
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