The Three-Year Change Process Within An Educational Setting

This paper is broken into three parts: Data Analysis, Three-Year Change Plan, and Staff Development Plan. The purpose of this paper is to outline the process designed for implementing change within an educational setting. This change initiative requires that the curriculum, assessment and instruction, advocated for by the instructional leader, benefit all learners based on data analysis. A staff development plan is also included to support the implementation and growth in teaching and learning. To complete the data analysis, data from Intermediate District 287’s Care & Treatment Day Program, Epsilon High School, will be analyzed. The data analyzed will be MAP scores (pre/post), SEI scores (pre/post) and PBIS data. A C/A/I strategy will be proposed with expected outcomes and criteria for success outlined. The fiscal impact, resources and timeline of the C/A/I strategy will also be included.

Data Analysis

According to NWEA, The MAP Reading Fluency assessment is an “online, adaptive assessment that efficiently measures oral reading fluency, comprehension, and foundational skills. It uses advanced technology to enable group testing, automatically record and score each student, and deliver instructionally useful data. ” The MAP Reading Data collected (2017-18 School Year) shows that the majority of students at Epsilon High School, an Intermediate District 287 Care and Treatment Day Program, are deficient in reading by at least 1 grade level. 55. 9% of students are 2 or more grade levels below, 14. 7% of students are 1 grade level below in reading, and 29. 4% of students are at or above grade level in reading.

The Student Engagement Instrument (SEI) is a “student self-report survey designed to measure cognitive and affective engagement. ” (Institute on Community Integration, University of Minnesota) The SEI is a research-based, normed survey that uses 35 survey questions to measure engagement in two categories: cognitive and affective. The scores are broken into six subgroups: Future Goals and Aspirations, Control and Relevance of Schoolwork, Extrinsic Motivation, Family Support for Learning, Peer Support for Learning, and Teacher Student Relationships. The subgroups are broken into two groups of three, the first three falling under Cognitive Engagement and the second three falling under Affective Engagement. Research has shown that SEI scores are associated with student attendance, behavior and achievement. In looking at SEI results, one would expect to see a normative curve. When looking at Epsilon High School’s SEI data, almost 40% of students are scoring low (in orange and red) overall on the Student Engagement Inventory. In looking at the aggregate data, the strand that stands out the most as being a concern is Peer Support for Learning.

The questions asked to gauge Peer Support for Learning are:

< li> Other students here like me the way I am.
< li>Other students at school care about me.
< li>Students at my school are there for me when I need them.
< li>Students here res liect what I have to say.
< li>I enjoy talking to the students here.
< li>I have some friends at school.

Almost 54% of students at Epsilon High School are between the 0 and 25 percentile rank in this strand. Epsilon High School uses Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBIS) as a model to support the academic, social and emotional, and behavioral competence of all students. Epsilon High School uses “positive logs” to acknowledge positive behavior that supports the PBIS model of STIR: Self-discipline, Tolerance, Integrity and Respect. Epsilon High School also uses “negative logs” to communicate to the residential staff behavior that occurred during school that does not support the positive behavior outlined in STIR. Research has shown that the ideal praise to criticism ratio is 6. The average praise to criticism ratio was approximately 5 to 1. This is below the recommended praise to criticism ratio. Underachievement in reading and problem behaviors often occur together. This has been well-established through multiple studies; however, the study that connects to MAP, SEI and PBIS data most immediately was conducted by Greenbaum et al. in 1996 which found a harrowing connection between reading levels and students identified as having emotional and behavioral disorders. The percentage of students identified as EBD and reading below grade-level increased by 30% over 7 years. The data from the MAP, SEI and PBIS at Epsilon High School shows that the average student is reading below grade-level, has low self-identified engagement in school, and is being recognized for negative behavior at a ratio of 1:5.

Three-Year Change Plan

The data in Data Analysis, shows the need for positive behavior supports and literacy education at Intermediate District 287’s Epsilon High School. The plan to support literacy and SEL skills at Epsilon includes the use of Collaborative and Proactive Solutions (CPS) and embedded writing, collaboration and reading strategies in all classes through AVID strategies. Staff will receive professional development in all areas to support the teaching and learning of literacy and SEL skills. The three-year change plan to implement these with fidelity school-wide is outlined below (Figure 6):Figure 6Year 1 will be an exploration and installation year. Staff will explore Collaborative and Proactive Solutions (CPS) and the AVID framework. This year will focus on understanding and deciding how these will best fit into their practice, and then planning and preparing and future, initial implementation. The District CPS Coordinator will support Epsilon staff and train a CPS Site Lead for Epsilon. The total cost for CPS Year 1 will be $32, 582. 39, as we will need 0. 4 of the District CPS Coordinator to support of our efforts of exploration and installation, and provide training for the CPS Site Lead at Epsilon. The AVID Site Coordinator, along with the school counselor and AVID elective teacher, will attend AVID Summer Institute (AVID SI) to prepare for Year 1 of AVID school-wide initial installation. These staff will be the AVID Site Team for Year 1 and prepare professional development around AVID for all staff members at Epsilon. They will also attend free AVID regional trainings throughout the year. The total cost for AVID Year 1 is $2, 397, which is the total cost for sending three licensed staff to AVID SI.

The success criteria for Year 1 will be based on entrance-to-exit scores on the SEI and the MAP Reading, as well as the positive-to-negative feedback ratios. These are set at 60% of students demonstrating positive change on the SEI or MAP Reading and 60% of students demonstrating a positive change on the positive-to-negative feedback ratios. The expected growth is based on supported staff completion of the Assessment of Lagging Skills and Unsolved Problems (ALSUPs) during Child Study meetings, Plan B conversations with students conducted by the District CPS Coordinator and CPS Site Lead, and AVID Reading strategies embedded into all content areas.

Year 2 is an initial implementation year. Epsilon staff will continue to test and refine practices in CPS and AVID school-wide. The District CPS Coordinator will continue supporting the CPS Site Lead and Epsilon staff in completing ALSUPs, and will train staff on how to use these ALSUPs to inform and conduct Plan B conversations. Epsilon will still require support from the District CPS Coordinator and the CPS Site Lead will need certification to continue supporting the work independently. The cost of staffing and training for Year 2 will be $34, 382. 40. The cost for AVID in Year 2 will be $3, 995. This is the result of sending five licensed staff to the AVID SI, including three instructional staff who have not attended AVID previously. The expectation for success is that 70% of students show positive change on the entrance-to-exit SEI, as both AVID strategies and CPS support this result. Additionally, it is expected that at least 65% of students show positive change on the entrance-to-exit MAP Reading, as supported by AVID Reading and Writing strategies, and in the positive-to-negative feedback ratio, as supported by AVID strategies and CPS.

Year 3 is a full implementation year that is focused on maintenance and growth. There will be continued use of AVID Reading and Writing strategies, along with new Collaboration strategies. The leadership of CPS is now the CPS Site Lead, who will support all staff in completing ALSUPs and having Plan B conversations with students as needs arise throughout the year. The cost for AVID in Year 3 is $3, 196, which is the cost for sending four licensed staff to AVID SI. The cost of CPS has decreased significantly, to $500, as the District CPS Coordinator is no longer needed for implementation, and a CPS Enhancement Skills course is the only outside PD needed to support the growth of the CPS Site Lead. The success criteria for Year 3 based on the implementation of AVID Reading, Writing, and Collaboration strategies school-wide, and the increased use of CPS by all staff to support student-teacher relationships, resolve conflict and support student development in SEL skills. It is expected that with these strategies, 75% of students will show positive change in the entrance-to-exit SEI, and 70% of students will show positive change in the entrance-to-exit MAP Reading, as well as, the positive-to-negative feedback ratio.

Staff Development Plan

Staff development to support the three-year change plan, will occur in traditional professional development environments, such as seminars, institutes and District professional development days, as well as during staff Team Meetings, Child Study meetings, and in a digital format. Blending traditional professional development with continued conversation during collaboration time, the change driven by the three-year change plan will sustain beyond three years, as AVID and CPS will become part of the school culture.

The professional development around AVID and CPS is more intense during Year 1, the exploration and installation phase. This is to ensure that CPS and AVID leadership are prepared for their roles and that all staff are educated in the process and results of CPS and AVID school-wide strategies. During Year 1, key members of the AVID site team, the AVID Site Coordinator, AVID Elective teacher, and the school counselor, will attend the AVID Summer Institute to lay the ground for the work being completed during the school year. The AVID Site Team will create a AVID Site Plan to support the implementation of AVID Reading strategies both in the AVID elective and school-wide. Additionally, the District CPS Coordinator will support the CPS Site Coordinator in the development of CPS leadership. This will include deep learning in the CPS process, including the completion of the ALSUP and how to facilitate Plan B conversations with students. The professional development in CPS for all staff will occur during four District professional development days, as well as during Child Study meetings. The professional development will focus on educating all staff about feedback ratios, CPS, the ALSUP, and Plan B conversations. During Child Study meetings, that occur two times per month, staff will learn to complete ALSUPs on students to identify lagging skills and unsolved problems. This will be supported by the District CPS Coordinator and the CPS Site Coordinator. In addition to being supported by the District CPS Coordinator, the CPS Site Coordinator will attend a digital Advanced CPS training. In addition to the AVID SI, AVID Site Team members will attend relevant AVID Regional Training to support their leadership in AVID. The AVID Site Team Members will create hour-long professional development for all staff, introducing AVID and Reading strategies during the four District professional development days. During Team Meetings throughout the year, the AVID Site Team members will support staff in sharing how they can use or are using AVID Reading strategies in their classrooms.

Year 2 is the initial implementation phase. Professional development during this year will support the integration of CPS and AVID school-wide strategies into the school culture. The professional development for CPS will be less intense during District professional development, as staff will have received the background knowledge necessary to begin the implementation of CPS at Epsilon. The District professional development will focus on broader effects of CPS in residential programs and how CPS can support the development of lagging skills through the identification of unsolved problems and Plan B conversations. Staff will continue to complete ALSUPs at Child Study meetings, and will begin to complete Plan B conversations will the support of the District CPS Coordinator and the CPS Site Coordinator. The CPS Site Coordinator will attend certification training to prepare for full leadership in CPS in Year 3. In addition to the CPS Site Coordinator, a CPS Site Team will be formed during Year 2. This team, facilitated by the CPS Site Coordinator, will support the implementation of CPS school-wide during Year 3.

During Year 2, the AVID professional development is very similar to Year 1. Staff will get an overview of the Reading strategies introduced and used school-wide during Year 1. Using the same model as Year 1, the AVID Site Team will introduce AVID Writing strategies, which will be reviewed during Team Meetings.

Year 3 is the full implementation year. During this year, professional development will focus on maintaining and growing around CPS and AVID school-wide. The professional development for CPS will occur during the first District professional development day and will focus on the implementation of CPS during Years 1 and 2. Staff will have received the necessary professional development to complete ALSUPs during Child Study meetings and complete Plan B conversations with students independently. The CPS Site Coordinator will receive CPS enhancement professional development to be the on-site leadership for CPS at Epsilon. The CPS Site Coordinator and Site Team will support CPS efforts at Epsilon and will determine additional professional development needed throughout the year to maintain a culture of CPS. These mini-professional developments will occur during Team Meetings.

By Year 3, all instructional staff at Epsilon will have attended AVID SI. The professional development model for AVID school-wide will continue to follow the same structure as Years 1 and 2, however, the first District professional development will review AVID Reading and Writing strategies that were used school-wide during Years 1 and 2. The additional District professional development days will focus on AVID Collaboration strategies. The professional development provided during the three-year change process will support a culture of AVID school-wide and Collaborative and Proactive Solutions at Epsilon. Staff may choose to build their PLC around both of these strategies, which would be supported by PBIS, SEI and MAP Reading data. If staff chose to build their PLC around these strategies, then successful implementation of AVID school-wide and CPS would be evaluated in formal teacher evaluations for non-tenured licensed staff, and those on an evaluation year. If AVID and CPS are built into the School Improvement Plan, then staff would be held accountable by the District for their work in these areas. If staff choose not to focus on AVID or CPS for their PLC or in their SIP, then they would not be formally evaluated on school-wide implementation. That being said, as with any new initiative or change, staff will continuously review relevant data to determine the impact of change. For CPS and AVID school-wide strategies, PBIS, SEI and MAP Reading data will be reviewed throughout the year, at least twice per quarter, starting at Quarter 2. This review would start at Quarter 2 as relevant and useful entrance-to-exit data for SEI and MAP Reading can only be gathered if a student is in school at least one quarter. The SEI and MAP Reading are not sensitive enough to determine growth for less time. h

Conclusion

The expectation of the school-wide implementation of Collaborative and Proactive Solutions and AVID Reading, Writing and Collaboration strategies is that there will be positive change in the Student Engagement Instrument and MAP Reading data from entrance-to-exit. In addition to positive change on these measures, it is expected that the positive-to-negative feedback ratio will have positive change for individual students, as well as school-wide. Research, such as Greenbaum et al. in 1996 or Morgan et al. in 2008, shows a connection between deficiencies in literacy and problem behavior. Integrating CPS into the school culture will support the development of lagging skills that often lead to unsolved problems, or problem behavior. By changing the school-wide mindset from “students are bad” to “kids do well if they can, ” all staff can support positive student behavior. By supporting positive school behavior, students will receive more instruction, thereby increasing access to school-wide literacy strategies in reading, writing and collaboration. In turn, by the end of the three-year change process, at least 75% of students will show positive change on the SEI, and at least 70% of students will show positive change on the MAP Reading and the positive-to-negative feedback ratio.