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Small Learning Communities at High Schools

In order to provide students and teachers with a more personalized and caring learning environment, to provide a rigorous, standards-based curriculum in an identifiable context to all students, and to provide a portfolio of quality options for students, teachers, and parents, District policy requires the design of new secondary construction school configurations and the redesign of existing secondary school configurations into smaller learning communities of approximately 350- 500 students. Currently, large comprehensive secondary schools can serve more than 5,000 students and offer a wide range of courses in a departmentalized structure. This bulletin establishes guidelines and procedures for the implementation of Small Learning Communities in new and in existing secondary schools.

SLC Attributes

LAUSDs “Small Learning Communities” will have common characteristics or attributes guided by Board policy and the Superintendent’s priorities as referenced in Closing the Achievement Gap: Improving Educational Outcomes for Under-Achieving Students. All attributes and practices should result in increases in student performance of standards and decreases in the achievement gap. [more]

Useful Documents and Resources

SLC Tools for High Schools

• High School SLC Plans
• List of LAUSD Small Learning Communities (updated 4/08)
• Bulletin 1600
• LAUSD Attributes of Small Learning Communities
• SLC Plan Writing Rubric
• SLC Implementation Rubric
• How to Adapt WASC Self-Study to SLCs
• Comparison of Tool used in WASC, NCLB, APS, Williams and SLCs

Career Technical Education (CTE)

• California Career Technical Education Model Curriculum Standards Grades 7-12
• Career Technical Education Framework for California Public Schools Grades 7-12
• Regional Consortium Matrix - a web site for school counselors, students and their families in identifying CTE options at a number of community colleges in Los Angeles and Orange Counties.

Research says...

• Block Scheduling
  • Block Scheduling: An Introduction
  • Rethinking Time: The Next Frontier of Education Reform
  • Around the Block: The Benefits and Challenges of Block Scheduling