Continuous Improvement Implementation of Pdsa Education
In a previous post, we outlined the steps we took to begin building a culture of continuous improvement (CI) at Student Leadership Network, an initiative supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This process began by leveraging external partnerships to ground the work in historical data and provide training and coaching on the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle, a commonly used continuous improvement practice. With that foundation, during the 2020-21 school year, we assembled a group of ten directors of college counseling (DCCs) to engage in a continuous improvement pilot to keep students on track towards postsecondary success despite the challenges of virtual schooling during the pandemic. The pilot was conducted in 10 schools (six co-ed, four single gender), reaching nearly 200 students.
Utilizing the PDSA Cycle
Throughout the pilot, we utilized the PDSA cycle to test how explicit student supports met DCCs' aims for their students, adapting or adopting promising practices while discarding those that did not work as intended. Most DCCs identified seniors who had GPAs between 70-80, and supported them with targeted strategies including: personalized assistance and partnership with families to encourage FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) completion; early submission of applications to colleges that were a good match; engagement with peers who had recently graduated from high school and enrolled in college; and building networks within a school to encourage engagement and belonging in the college process.
As DCCs tested these strategies, they collected data related to students' engagement and progress in college application activities. They came together frequently in communities of practice to share what they were learning and make decisions about what to do next in their individual schools.
Lessons Learned
Collaboration supports changing mindsets
Throughout the process, it was clear that implementing the PDSA cycle worked best with a collaborative, diverse group that had time, experience, and expertise to plan for and test new strategies. DCCs collaborated in communities of practice and in pairs of "continuous improvement buddies," drawing on tools and resources provided by senior leaders and external consultants. In this way, all DCCs utilized the same process, but adapted it to meet the unique context and needs of their students. To truly create an environment where learning about what did not work was just as important as learning what did work, we reinforced that this process was in no way evaluative for participants. It was a new way of thinking used to develop new supports for students.
Shifting to this new way of thinking understandably took some time. For example, early on, some DCCs grappled with creating the "right" aim statement – a desired result that people envision, plan, and commit to achieve – and limiting themselves to two or three clear strategies to test. With reassurance and support from leaders, DCCs showed a shift in their ability to take risks, embrace uncertainty, and accept that learning what did not work was a valuable outcome. DCCs were deeply committed to serving all students well, so testing out different strategies for the pilot's focal students was at times an uncomfortable shift; however, acknowledging that typical strategies were ineffective with their focal students helped DCCs grow open to trying new approaches. The payoff was an intense focus on students at the margins of the college application process, and translated to success in terms of more FAFSA submissions and gaining momentum through early acceptances.
Student support strategies
Developing targeted strategies to support students in the 70-80 GPA range was an important change to how DCCs conducted their work. In reflection sessions, DCCs recommended that several strategies tested in the PDSA be adopted broadly to support students in this GPA range. Specifically, they recommended identifying students with GPAs below 80 much sooner (e.g., in 9th and 10th grade) and beginning individualized college preparation early on. They recommended using peer connections to build a sense of belonging, and frequently surveying students to monitor how much they saw themselves as connected to the college-going process. They also elevated specific activities, such as supporting students in "early wins" through instant decision days to four year colleges and completing the FAFSA in the fall to identify HEOP/EOP eligibility, which broadens options. While the student support strategies highlighted through the pilot are particularly promising for this focal group of students, the process used to identify the strategies could be replicated in seeking solutions for other student groups.
Maximizing partnerships
As an organization, we have concluded that this work requires meaningful partnerships. This type of organizational learning is done better when it's done together. From the beginning, we embedded communities of practice in our internal learning, and also benefited from communities of practice led by other organizations including DeliverEd and San Francisco Coalition of Essential Small Schools (SF-CESS). Because this work requires an investment of dedicated staff with time to prioritize learning and support culture shifts, it's important that an organization does not approach it alone, but rather leverages existing resources. For us, this included drawing on resources and expertise from organizations and independent consultants including Education First, Shift, and Dr. Erin Grogan.
Embedding Continuous Improvement in Our Work
As we look to the role of continuous improvement as part of our way of doing the work at Student Leadership Network, we are currently exploring future data strategies, such as interactive dashboards, to maintain an emphasis on targeting specific supports to key student subgroups. We have trained nearly all of our staff on the principles of continuous improvement and infused these principles in our planning and learning. This leaves us well-positioned to do all of our work through the continuous improvement lens, always looking at data to stay focused on which students are on the margins, and developing targeted strategies to support them. And, we remain committed to the idea that learning what does not work is just as important as learning what does. This learning orientation is critical to meeting the changing needs of students and empowering our team to be creative in working with all students to meet their unique needs.
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A Year of Continuous Improvement and 50 Minutes at NCAN 2021
SL Network took its lessons on continuous improvement on the virtual road to the 2021 NCAN Conference and shared lessons for building postsecondary equity.
Source: https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/continuous-improvement-pdsa-shifting-how-we-do-our-work/
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