Systems Thinking and Breakthrough Performance

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Systems Thinking and Breakthrough Performance

• Council of Chief State School Officers
• Tom Houlihan/ Scott Montgomery
• August, 2006

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Vision and Mission

• Council Vision.
• As Americas chief state school officers
• We envision a system of schooling in each state
  that ensures high standards of performance for
  every one of our children and prepares each child
  to succeed as a productive member of a democratic
  society.
• Council Mission .
• The Council of Chief State School Officers,
  through leadership, advocacy, and service,
  assists chief state school officers and their
  organizations in achieving the vision of an
  American education system that enables all
  children to succeed in school, work, and life.

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Aim 1 - Define the parameters for teaching and
learning in the 21st Century

• Establish CCSSO as a visionary leader in the
  discipline of thinking and planning for education
  in the 21st Century that,
• Increases the knowledge of chiefs around the
  critical issues of the 21st century and
• Builds SEA capacity for 21st Century teaching and
  learning.
• Generate and disseminate tools, techniques, and
  new knowledge to support future approaches to
  teaching and learning, while strengthening the
  commitment to all students learning at higher
  levels.
• Support state efforts to increase the rigor of
  academic standards so that they meet or exceed
  accepted international benchmarks.
• Assist states in implementing 21st Century
  content into existing state academic standards
• Support state efforts to redefine the
  expectations for the preparation, recruitment,
  and retention of educators

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Aim 2 - Establish strategic partnerships and
advocacy efforts on behalf of public education

• Create strong bipartisan relationships with
  Congress, the U.S. Department of Education, the
  Administration, and other federal agencies to
  advocate for excellence and equity in education.
• Provide strong leadership for Council members
  regarding pertinent legislative issues.
• Expand specific partnership programs with the
  business community and appropriate organizations
  that promote excellence and equity in education
  and support Council activities.
• Improve the visibility and status of CCSSO
  through effective public relations and
  communication.
• Develop and implement an effective membership
  advocacy plan that addresses Council
  advocacy/legislative priorities.
• Develop and implement an effective membership
  communications plan.

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Aim 3 - Develop leadership and capacity for state
education leaders

• Provide high-quality leadership development
  opportunities for Chiefs and deputies to build
  and sustain effective learning organizations.
• Create and implement specific technical
  assistance initiatives to support Chiefs and
  deputies in building state capacity.
• Provide informal opportunities to build
  relationships among chiefs and deputies.
• Create specific learning opportunities for chiefs
  on issues related to governance, media, public
  relations issues, etc.
• Provide high quality products and services to
  Council members.

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Aim 4 - Lead and advise the development of data,
information, and technology systems that support
innovation

• Conduct and provide high-quality research and
  analysis, including best practices, and
  disseminate to key constituency groups in an
  effective and timely manner.
• Improve the access to quality data and
  information within the Council.
• Assist states in improving their data management
  and reporting capabilities.
• Create and implement specific technical
  assistance in support of the SEA.
• Model the use of technology in the support of
  operational efficiency and program effectiveness.

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Aim 5 - Ensure organizational effectiveness and
efficiency

• Determine external customer needs, establish
  baselines, and identify appropriate programming
  for members.
• Meet or exceed current baseline targets for
  member/customer service.
• Meet or exceed established baseline data
  regarding organizational and financial structure
  of CCSSO.
• Determine internal customer needs, establish
  baseline data, and identify appropriate
  organizational improvements.
• Provide ongoing, high quality professional
  development to strengthen the effectiveness and
  efficiency of CCSSO staff.
• Create organizational structure using innovative
  management practices that increase the
  effectiveness and efficiency of CCSSO staff.
• Increase the long term financial stability and
  viability of CCSSO.

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Applying Systems Thinking to Breakthrough
Performance Using the Council Assessment on Fly
Flipping Ability

• CAFFA Exams

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Definition of a System

• A system is defined as a group of
  interdependent people, items, processes,
  products, and services that have a common purpose
  or aim.
• - Deming

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Applying a Systems Philosophy

• Optimize the whole system rather than individual
  components
• Management is responsible for providing employees
  tools to improve quality (Note management is
  found at all levels CCSSO Core Value)
• The key to quality is focusing on the process

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Understanding Run Charts

• Run Chart - a line graph of data plotted over
  time. By collecting and charting data over time
  we find trends or patterns in the process, or
  process performance over time
• Run charts cannot tell you if a process is
  stable. However, they can tell you if the
  process is running.

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Lesson Learned from Applying a Systems Philosophy

• All processes have inherent random variability
  common cause variability
• Unexpected events can result in special cause
  variation
• A process is in control if it exhibits only
  common cause variation Stable Process
• A process is out of control if it exhibits
  special cause variation Unstable Process

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Elements of a Control Chart

• Upper Control Limit
• Lower Control Limit
• Average
• Performance over time

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Remember a Control Chart

• Is a type of chart with statistically determined
  upper and lower controls limits
• Is used to monitor and control processes by
  showing variation over a period of time
• Allows you to analyze the data to determine if
  variation is due to common cause or to a special
  cause

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Special Note

• Control limits should not be interpreted as
  desired goals or standards
• Control limits are merely arbitrary calculations
  based on the data from the process

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So Lets Have Some Fun
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Council Assessment on Fly Flipping Ability (CAFFA
Exam)

• The 2003 CAFFA Exam is our first data point on
  how well you can master the Frog SYSTEM of Fly
  Flipping
• The CAFFA will be administered for four (4) years
  and all results recorded and reported to the
  public
• Your team will need
• 4 fly flippers
• 1 fly leader/recorder
• Fly catchers and monitors

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Frog SYSTEM of Fly Flipping Instructions

• Choose a fly flipping leader/recorder for each
  table
• Begin only when the senior fly flipping leader
  says to begin in case youre wondering Dr.
  Houlihan is your senior FFL

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Fly Flipping Team Standard

• Turn on frogs with mouth open and closing and
  with flippers attached
• Each fly flipper flips only his/her 10 flies per
  assessment
• Take the assessment and when all 4 fly flippers
  have completed their flipping, count the number
  of flies in the frogs mouth
• Recorder lists total number of flies by each fly
  flippers name on the worksheet, then place a
  yellow dot on the graph to indicate the TOTAL
  number of flies
• Leader/recorder re-distributes the test
  materials (i.e., flies). Make sure each person
  has 10
• Then begin the 2004 CAFFA and repeat the
  recording process. This should continue for the
  2005 and 2006 CAFFA as well
• STOP and WAIT after the 2006 Assessment

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You have 60 seconds to practice and become the
best fly flipper you can be!
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Testing Policies

• You may not start the 2003 CAFFA until the Senior
  FFL says to Begin
• Frog must be turned on (mouth opening and
  closing)
• You must use only the flippers to get flies into
  the mouth (there are no special accommodations
  for this assessment)
• Each fly flipper has 10 flies and may only flip
  his/her flies this is not a timed test
• FFL and monitors are responsible for a positive
  testing environment
• Please remember the all test policies have been
  reviewed and approved by the board of directors
  and cannot be changed
• Begin. And remember to STOP AFTER the 2006
  Assessment

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Steps for Creating Your Team Control Chart

• Find the average of the four CAFFA totals. This
  will be referred to as the AS (Average Score)
• Total
• Total Average Score Centerline
• Total
• Total

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Use the BLUE marker and draw your
centerline/average on your control chart
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Steps for Creating your Team Control Chart,
continued

• Calculate the range between each pair of scores.
  There will be one less range than there are
  number of data points. Dont worry about negative
  numbers.
• Score
• Range
• Score
• Range
• Score
• Range
• Score

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Steps for Creating your Team Control Chart,
continued

• Find the average of the ranges. This will be
  known as the Mean Moving Range (MMR)
• Range Range Range X ? 3 MMR

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Steps for Creating your Team Control Chart,
continued

• Multiply the MMR by 3.14. This determines the
  distance of the control limits from the center
  line. This will be known as R (result)
• MMR x 3.14 R

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Steps for Creating your Team Control Chart,
continued

• Calculate the Upper Control Limit (UCL)
• Add R (result) to AS (Average Score) you
  calculated in Step 1 to get the UCL
• R AS UCL
• Use the GREEN marker to draw the UCL

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Steps for Creating your Team Control Chart,
continued

• Calculate the Lower Control Limit (LCL)
• Subtract R (result) from AS (Average Score) to
  get the LCL
• AS - R LCL
• Use the RED marker to draw the LCL

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Applying What Weve Learned
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Traditional Improvement

• - Higher performance at a later time period than
  at an earlier time period

Frog Lessons Data points that fall randomly
within the control range indicate that most
variation is coming from a common cause. The
only way to make improvements in a system that
only has common cause variation is to
fundamentally change some aspect of the system
(e.g., processes, materials, procedures, etc.)
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Continual Improvement

• A positive trend in performance

Frog Lessons Data points that fall randomly
within the control range indicate that most
variation is coming from a common cause. The
only way to make improvements in a system that
only has common cause variation is to
fundamentally change some aspect of the system
(e.g., processes, materials, procedures, etc.)
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Traditional and Continual Improvement are

• RANDOM

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Breakthrough Improvement

• A significant performance improvement of a
  systems indicator value over time.

Frog Lessons breakthrough improvement means
significantly better performance over time. This
pattern of variation indicates the presence of a
special cause that deserves further investigation.
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Statistical Process Control for Analyzing Data
If non-stable in a beneficial way, how do we stay
that way? If non-stable in a detrimental way,
what can we do better?
Was the process in control?
Build Control Charts
Collect data
No
Yes
Is the process acceptable?
Set up monitoring Control Charts
Identify and improve process
Yes
No
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• Profound Knowledge
• Dr. W. Edwards Deming

Systems Thinking (Independence Interdependence)
Profound Knowledge
Theory of Psychology (How People Think/Behave)
Theory of Knowledge (How People Learn)
Theory of Variation (Common Special Causes)
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The Challenge SYSTEMS THINKING
Any system is designed to produce exactly what it
produces!
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To change performance we must change the SYSTEM,
and this requires new approaches and a new way of
THINKING and DOING
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DATA DRIVEN ACHIEVEMENT

• The key use of data- make appropriate
  instructional decisions to inform parents,
  teachers, students and others of progress being
  made.
• If data is not used wisely, the adverse effect on
  children is enormous.

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CHAPTER 5 - DATA DRIVEN ACHIEVEMENT

• Key Issues in the Use of Data
• 1- Data rich, analysis poor
• 2- Balancing data
• 3- The Systems factor
• 4- How we see things
• 5- Doing your best isnt good enough

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Higher performance at a later time period
NCLB IS NOT BASED ON Traditional Improvement
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A positive trend in performance from year to year
NCLB IS BASED ON Continuous Improvement
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Significant performance improvement of a
systems indicator value over time
THE KEY TO NCLB Breakthrough Improvement
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Improving Processes for Breakthrough Improvement

• Brainstorm ways to increase productivity (raise
  the bar) and reduce variation. Without breaking
  any of the test policies (e.g., using only the
  flipper, only flipping your 10 flies, etc.) is
  there a way to improve the flipping process so
  that your team significantly improves?

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Just for fun! Try out your new idea.