Improving Performance: The Five Step Process

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Improving Performance The Five Step Process

• Mimi Lufkin Chief Executive Officer
• National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity
• CTEEC Conference
• Tulsa, Oklahoma September 17, 2009

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The Five Step Process
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Perkins Act Accountability

• Core Indicators on Nontraditional CTE
• Participation in CTE programs preparing students
  for nontraditional fields
• Completion of CTE programs preparing students for
  nontraditional fields

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Nontraditional Fields

• Occupations or fields of work, including careers
  in computer science, technology, and other
  current and emerging high skill occupations, for
  which individuals from one gender comprise less
  than 25 percent of the individuals employed in
  each such occupation or field of work.

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Document Performance Results

• GOAL Understand the problem completely before
  you seek solutions

How do you analyze performance data? What
questions should be addressed? What tools and
methods can be used to present and analyze
data? How should data quality problems be
considered in analyzing data?
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Perkins Accountability Measure

• Participation Rate
• underrepresented students participating in NT
  CTE
• all students participating in NT CTE
• OR
• of females enrolled in pre-engineering
• All students (males and females)
• enrolled in pre-engineering

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Perkins Accountability Measure

• Completion Rate
• underrepresented students completing NT CTE
• all students completing NT CTE
• OR
• of females completing pre-engineering
• All students (males and females)
• completing pre-engineering

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Data CollectionDisaggregation required in
Perkins IV

• Gender
• Male
• Female

• Special Population
• Underrepresented gender students in a
  nontraditional CTE program
• Single Parent
• Displaced Homemaker
• Limited English Proficiency
• Individuals with a Disability
• Economically Disadvantaged

• Race/Ethnicity
• American Indian or Alaskan Native
• Asian or Pacific Islander
• Black, non-Hispanic
• Hispanic
• White- non-Hispanic

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Recommended Analyses

• Trends
• At least 2 years
• Prefer 3-5 years

• Site specific
• Statewide
• District
• School/College
• Programs

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Benchmarking

• State performance level
• Best performer in state
• National program benchmark
• Selected peer benchmark
• Set your own benchmark

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Perkins Accountability Resources

• Peer Collaborative Resource Network
• www.edcountability.net
• National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity
• Growing Pains
• Nontraditional SOC/CIP Crosswalk for Males and
  Females
• www.napequity.org
• Your State Agency Website

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National Program Evaluations

• Project Lead the Way
• Annual Assessment Report for 2006-07
• Report 17 female enrollment nationally
• Cisco Networking Academy Gender Initiative
• Set a benchmark for programs at 30 female
  enrollment
• National Center for Women in Information
  Technology
• Report on the Status of Women in IT

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Other Data Sources

• National Center for Educational Achievement
  Just 4 the Kids
• National Center for Educational Statistics
• Southern Regional Education Board Data Library
• NCLB State and Local Report Cards
• State and Local Participation and Achievement
  Data

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Perkins Consolidated Annual Report Data

• State, School, and Program
• Level Analysis

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State Level Perkins Nontraditional Data Analysis
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Schools Included in Statewide Analysis

• Caddo Kiowa Tech Center Fort Cobb
• Canadian Valley Tech Center El Reno
• Gordon Cooper Tech Shawnee
• Great Plains Tech Center Lawton
• Meridian Tech Center Stillwater
• Metro Tech Oklahoma City
• Moore Norman Tech Center Norman
• Red River Tech Center Duncan
• So. OK Tech Center Ardmore
• Tulsa Tech - Tulsa

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Statewide Secondary Participation Data
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Statewide Secondary Participation Data
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Statewide Secondary Participation
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Statewide Adult Participation Data
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Statewide Adult Participation Data
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Statewide Adult Participation
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Statewide Secondary Nontraditional Program
Participation
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Statewide Secondary Nontraditional Program
Participation
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Statewide Adult Nontraditional Program
Participation
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Statewide Adult Nontraditional Program
Participation
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Statewide Secondary and Adult Data

• What does the data say or suggest?
• How has state performed on the measure?
• What happened to the results over time?
• What questions arise from this data?

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School Level Analysis
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School Secondary Participation
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School Secondary Participation
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School and State Secondary Participation
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School Adult Participation
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School Adult Participation
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School and State Adult Participation
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School Level Data

• How has the school performed on the participation
  measure?
• How has the college performed as compared to the
  state average on the measure?
• What happened to the results over time?
• What questions arise from this data?

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Case Study
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Program Level Perkins III Analysis
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School Secondary Nontraditional Program
Participation
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School Secondary Nontraditional Program
Participation
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State and School Secondary Nontraditional Program
Participation
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School Adult Nontraditional Program Participation
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School Adult Nontraditional Program Participation
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State and School Adult Nontraditional Program
Participation
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Program Level Data

• What does the data say or suggest?
• How has the state performed in each measure?
• What happened to the results over time?
• What questions arise from this data?

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Program Level Perkins Data Analysis Activity
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The Five Step Process
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STEP TWO

• Identify
• Root
• Causes

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Why Search for Root Causes?

• Keep from fixating on the silver bullet
  strategy
• Identify the conditions or factors that cause or
  permit a performance gap to occur
• Two types of causes
• Direct cause (i.e. instructional practice)
• Indirect cause (i.e. teacher training)

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How to Identify Root Causes

• Search for most direct highest impact causes
• Employ a systematic evidence-based process
• Draw on current research and evaluation
• Formulate and test theories or hypotheses
• Use multiple methods and data sources
• Note, youre likely to find multiple causes

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Phase 1 Identify Potential Causes

• Review Research Literature
• Review Program/Institutional Evaluations and
  Effectiveness Reviews
• Conduct Focus Groups
• Peer Benchmarking
• Interviews Surveys
• Brainstorm

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Resources online

• Survey Instruments
• Destination Success
• How to Conduct Interviews
• How to Conduct Focus Groups

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Other Resources

• The New Look
• Self-Study
• Illinois Center for Specialized Professional
  Support

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Phase 2 Analyze and Evaluate Potential Causes

• Group Causes Into Two Categories
• Group 1 Causes Within Your Control
• School scheduling
• Classroom climate
• Faculty awareness and capacity
• Group 2 Causes Outside Your Control
• Media representation
• Family demographics

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Phase 3 Test and Evaluate Potential Causes
Within Your Control

• Select root causes that
• Have the strongest theory and evidence to support
  them
• Focus on direct causes of performance gaps
• Address the most critical needs
• Provide the best opportunity to have high impact
  on performance
• Are supported by stakeholders who will help
  develop and implement solutions
• (See page 17 of the OVAE Guidebook)

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Review Research Summary

• Root Causes
• Nontraditional Career Preparation Root Causes
  and Strategies
• Available at www.stemequitypipeline.org

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Root Causes

• Education
• Academic Proficiency
• Access and participation in Math and Science
• Curriculum
• Instructional Strategies
• School/Classroom Climate
• Support Services

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Root Causes

• Career Information
• Materials and practices
• Early intervention
• Occupational characteristics
• Family
• Family characteristics
• Parental influence

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Root Causes

• Internal/Individual
• Self-efficacy
• Attribution
• Stereotype threat

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Root Causes

• Societal Issues
• Media
• Peers
• Role models/mentors
• Collaboration

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Group Root Causes Activity

• In groups of 5
• Review the root causes cards
• Arrange the root causes by your groups sense of
  their impact and relationship to students in
  programs nontraditional by gender
• Post the cards on the wall in whatever
  arrangement best fits your groups thinking

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Individual Root Causes Activity

• Place stickers on the posters for the four root
  causes that most significantly impact students
  who are in, or considering entering,
  nontraditional programs for their gender
• On the other root causes poster
• Write any additional root causes that have not
  been identified

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Case Study
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The Five Step Process
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STEP THREE

• Choose
• Best
• Solutions

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Choose Best Solutions

• Dont be too quick to adopt best practices before
  getting the facts straight
• How do you identify possible strategies and model
  practices?
• How do you evaluate strategies and models?
• How do you compare and assess alternative
  solutions and make a decision?

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Assessing and Comparing Alternative Strategies

• Sound Theory
• Strong Evidence
• Costs/Time of Further Testing
• Resources
• Stakeholder Support
• Failure is Expensive
• Select a Full Range of Choices

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Identify Potential Strategies and Models

• Review What Others Propose
• NSF- New Formulas for Americas Workforce
• Benchmark Peers and Leading Performers
• Programs and Practices That Work
• Best Practices in STEM Education
• EEES Best Practices
• Develop Your Own Solutions

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Review Research Summary

• Root Causes
• Nontraditional Career Preparation Root Causes
  and Strategies
• Available at www.stemequitypipeline.org

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Strategies for Recruitment
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Strategies for Recruitment

• Review career guidance materials and practices
  for gender bias and nontraditional exposure and
  support
• Guidelines for Identifying Bias in Curriculum and
  Materials
• Safe Schools Coalition
• EEES-NAPE-PLTW Guidance Counselor Presentation
• Am I a Fair Counselor
• Destination Success, MAVCC
• Could This Be Your Life?
• Illinois Center for Specialized Professional
  Support

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Strategies for Recruitment

• Invite, involve and educate parents
• Talented Girls Bright Futures
• Publication by Project Lead the Way
• American Careers Magazine
• Expanding Career Options Issue
• Career Communications, Inc.

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Strategies for Recruitment

• Conduct middle school programs
• Minot Public Schools
• Minot, North Dakota
• Programs and Practices That Work
• 2005 Award Winner

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Strategies for Recruitment

• Provide role models and mentors
• Girls E-Mentoring in Science, Engineering and
  Technology GEM-SET
• USDOL, Womens Bureau
• Engineer Girl
• National Academy of Engineering

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Strategies for Recruitment

• Conduct targeted recruitment activities
• Summer Camps
• Cisco Gender Initiative Strategies
• I am an Engineer
• Cisco Systems, Inc.

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Strategies for Recruitment

• Conduct pre-technical training programs
• Rosies Girls
• Northern New England Tradeswomen
• TechBridge
• Chabot Space and Science Center

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Strategies for Recruitment

• Collaborate with community-based organizations
• Operation SMART, Girls, Inc.
• Expanding Your Horizons
• Girl Scouts
• National Girls Collaborative Project

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Strategies for Recruitment

• Conduct professional development with teachers at
  all levels
• Generating Expectations for Student Achievement,
  Graymill
• STEM Equity Pipeline
• Career Technical Education Equity Council

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Strategies for Recruitment

• Implement and model gender-fair institutional
  strategies
• Checking Your School for Sexism
• Destination Success, MAVCC
• Gender Equity Item Bank
• Midwest Equity Assistance Center

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Strategies for Retention
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Strategies for Retention

• Evaluate all school and curriculum materials for
  gender bias and positive nontraditional images
• Gender Equity Tip Sheets
• Bias Evaluation Instrument
• Nova Scotia Department of Education
• Curricular Bias, David Sadker

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Strategies for Retention

• Increase teacher and administrator quality and
  equity-capacity through professional development
• The Equity Principal
• Graymill
• NAPE Professional Development Institute
• Washington, DC

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Strategies for Retention

• Increase competence in diversity and sexual
  harassment prevention
• Gender Equity Tip Sheets
• Tolerance.org
• Southern Poverty Law Center
• Project Implicit, Harvard University

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Strategies for Retention

• Conduct nontraditional student support groups and
  peer counseling
• Computer Clubhouse
• Bostons Museum of Science
• NASA Harriett G. Jenkins Pre-Doctoral Fellowship
  Program
• (Facebook Group)

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Strategies for Retention

• Provide nontraditional role models, mentors, and
  job shadowing
• IGNITE, Seattle Public School System
• MentorNet
• How to Plan and Facilitate a Job Shadowing
  Experience
• Destination Success, MAVCC

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Strategies for Retention

• Invite, involve and educate parents
• Trailblazers
• VA Department of Education
• Ways for Parents to Support Expanded Occupational
  Options
• Destination Success, MAVCC

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Strategies for Retention

• Provide a continuum of support services
• Tutoring
• Child care
• Transportation
• Financial Aid
• Books, Equipment, Tools, Clothing
• Tuition
• Modification of Curriculum, Equipment
• Student/Teacher Aides
• More

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Strategies for Retention

• Invite, involve, and educate business
• Cisco Systems, Inc. Gender Initiative
• Cisco Systems, Inc.
• Society of Women Engineers

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Resources online
Dont Forget These Additional Teacher Focused
Resources!

• Gender Equity Tip Sheets
• Teacher Resources Folder

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Case Study
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The Five Step Process
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The Five Step Process
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Questions?
National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity

• Mimi Lufkin
• Executive Director
• P.O. Box 369
• Cochranville, PA 19330
• 610-593-8038 phone
• 610-593-7283 fax
• mimilufkin_at_napequity.org