Join The Movement
Transform Education with Community-Driven Accountability & SCORE
With support from partner organizations, we aim to transform district and school improvement to be community-driven.
Transform Education with Community-Driven Accountability & SCORE
“I have learned that my community is willing to put in the work to see change and that I really love researching, then utilizing the research results to make change.”
SCORE Community
Research Team Member
“I believe the families in my community are exhausted! A community engaged research approach provides an opportunity for greater trust and respect to be built.”
SCORE Community
Research Team Member
“Working on community issues and collecting data for a desired outcome makes me feel great.”
SCORE Community
Research Team Member
"SCORE is creating a new model of accountability that centers the voices of parents and students in the pursuit of racial equity."
Schools and Communities Organizing for Racial Equity (SCORE) is a collaborative, action-oriented research project that brings together an intergenerational Community Research Team of youth and parent leaders.
With support from university- and/or community-based partner organizations, this team:
- Conducts community research;
- Identifies community priorities for educational and racial equity;
- Identifies indicators to measure progress on these priorities; and
- Develops a tool or “SCOREcard” that presents the community priority areas, identified indicators, and related data, and ultimately assesses a school district on measures of educational and racial equity that the community identifies as important.
Launched in Providence, Rhode Island in 2021, SCORE seeks not only to support but also to transform district and school improvement via community-driven accountability and parent and student leadership. The SCORE Toolkit has been developed to support communities in planning and conducting their own SCORE projects.
The Toolkit Includes:
- The core values, commitments, and partnerships that are the foundation of SCORE;
- Planning considerations for those taking on a SCORE process;
- Activity protocols and downloadable tools and resources for all phases of SCORE, including: 1) Relationship building, storytelling, and issue identification; 2) Research preparation and design; 3) Data collection; 4) Data analysis and indicator development; 5) Implementation ;
- Lessons learned throughout the SCORE process.
About the Authors
The Center for Youth & Community Leadership (CYCLE) at Roger Williams University partners with youth, families, educators, and other stakeholders to build collective power and fight for educational justice. More information can be found at
www.cycle-rwu.org.
The mission of the Social Policy Hub for Equity Research in Education (SPHERE) is to engage Rhode Island College students and faculty, in partnership with Rhode Island
community members, in conducting and disseminating research for equitable educational and social policies. SPHERE endeavors to help community members
understand, and become more involved in education policy decisions.
Toolkit contributors include:
SPHERE:
Adrienne Goss, Founding Director
Brenda Santos, Graduate Research Assistant
CYCLE:
Juan Pablo Blanco, Research Associate
Vianna Mercedes, Youth Leadership Program Manager
Tracie Potochnik, Associate Director for Research & Learning
Joanne Thompson, Research and Communications Associate
Full table of contents
Preparation Phase
SCORE Preparation Phase: Questions and Considerations
2
Phase I
Building Shared Understanding and Common Language
9
Introductory Key Terms
9
Project Overview
10
Developing Relationships
11
Relationship and Team Building Activities
11
Identity Mapping and Paseo
16
Ongoing Relationship-Building Activities
18
Power Dynamics and Intergenerational Group Work
21
Developing Community Agreements
21
Youth Can Activity
23
Levels of Youth Participation and Power
25
Power in Group Settings and Identifying Power Moves
27
Liberatory Design Mindsets
29
Storytelling and Issue Identification
31
River of Life
31
Phase II
Research Preparation & Initial Design
34
The River of Policy and Practice
35
Socio-Historical Influences in Education Policy: Redlining & Education
36
Developing Issue Briefs
38
Understanding Educational Equity Indicators
39
Introduction to Participatory Action Research
41
Research Ethics and Design
43
Overview of Ethical Research
43
Ethical Decision-Making Practice
46
Informed Consent Practice
49
Research Methods & Mapping Methods to Research Questions
51
Phase III
Data Collection
53
Survey Design
54
Drafting Demographic Questions
57
Conducting Research
61
Survey Distribution Planning
61
Qualitative Methods
64
One-on-One Interviews
64
Focus Group Interviews
67
Phase IV
Data Analysis
71
Conducting Research Analysis: Quantitative Data
71
Conducting Research Analysis: Qualitative Data
74
From Analysis to Indicator Development
77
Developing Goals from Qualitative Data
77
Outcomes and Measures Part I: Preparation
80
Outcomes and Measures Part II: CRT Working Sessions
83
Finalizing Indicators
85
Reflection and Preparing for Implementation
88
From Indicators to Implementation Brainstorm
88
Participant Reflection
90
Phase V
Implementation
92
Indicator Refinement and SCOREcard Development
93
Identifying Shared Experiences
97
SCOREcard Outlining and Design
99
Outreach, Engagement, and Advocacy
103
Defining Your Outreach Strategy: District and Community
103
Developing Outreach Messaging: Head, Heart, Feet
105
Outreach Mapping
107
Preparing Information Sessions
109
Appendix
Appendix A: Resources for Virtual SCOREs
111
Frequently Asked Questions
Learn more about the SCORE Toolkit, its purpose and values.
Who authored the SCORE Toolkit?
The SCORE Toolkit was developed by The Center for Youth and Community Leadership (CYCLE) at Roger Williams University, and the Social Policy Hub for Equity Research in Education (SPHERE) at Rhode Island College.
Who is the SCORE Toolkit for?
The SCORE Toolkit provides guidance and resources for individuals or organizations – including community-based organizations, university-based researchers, and school districts - who are interested in facilitating a SCORE process in their community, and supporting a Community Research Team of student and parent leaders whose ideas, wisdom, and visions will drive the project.
How do I use the SCORE Toolkit?
The SCORE Toolkit presents a menu of options that you can adapt for your own context. Tools are organized by project phase and broken down into roughly sequential sections within those phases. Recommended length for each activity is included so that you can build customized meeting agendas that are suitable for your needs and preferences.
How long does a SCORE process take?
While SCORE was conceived as a 10-month project including biweekly Community Research Team meetings, the tools are presented as a modifiable menu of options that you can modify to fit your own context and timeline.
Why does SCORE focus on indicator development?
The SCORE project is centered around the development and implementation of educational equity indicators -- data and statistics that describe key aspects of schooling, and which help to monitor and evaluate schools, programs, educators, and students. This core design characteristic is linked to the project’s goals, perspectives, and theory of action, which reframes accountability so that young people and families are positioned to hold schools and systems accountable. Community-developed indicators provide a foundation for sustainable community activism, advocacy, and organizing.