EDD9953: Signature Assignment

Guide last revised September 15, 2021

Action Plan Guide Overall Instructions Follow the instructions contained within this Action Plan Guide to develop your Action Plan. Develop your Action Plan on the Action Plan Signature Assignment template.

Introduction

In this section, refer to your approved EDD9951 Signature Assignment to provide a brief introduction to your EDD9953 Signature Assignment: Action Plan. Use the Preliminary Site Information, the Statement of the Problem, and your Approach to the Problem of Practice from your EDD9951 Signature Assignment to craft the introduction. (Maximum of 250 words)

NOTE: The problem and project you describe must be the same one that was approved in your approved Signature Assignment in EDD9951.

Action Plan Provide a paragraph (3–5 sentences) that introduces the sections of the Action Plan. The action plan comprises the following sections:

• Purpose of the Project

• Stakeholders and Participants

• Description of the Applied Project

• Implementation Plan

• Guiding Questions

• Data Collection Plan

• Data Analysis Plan

Purpose of the Project

In this section, provide a statement of purpose. You may use the following formulation and add

a few sentences of clarification if desired.

The purpose of the project is to implement [insert your intervention] to improve [insert area to be improved—be sure it aligns with your problem statement and guiding questions]. Example: The purpose of the project is to implement a professional development program to improve the instructional leadership skills of district principals. (The problem the professional development program addresses is that teachers do not receive feedback and coaching that lead to improvement of instruction. The root-cause analysis identified one of the problem’s causes: inadequacy of district principals’ classroom observation and coaching skills.)

EDD9953: Signature Assignment

Guide last revised September 15, 2021

A program evaluation project might be formulated slightly differently: Example: The purpose of the project is to implement an evaluation of ABC school’s science curriculum to inform a comprehensive revision of the science program. (The problem the evaluation will be used to addresses is poor student achievement in science. One of the problem’s causes identified in the root-cause analysis was an outdated curriculum.)

Stakeholders and Participants

In this section, briefly describe the project’s stakeholders and their roles. Use two subheadings—one for stakeholders and one for participants.

1. Identify and describe the key stakeholders of your project, including their role(s) in the organization and why they would be impacted by your project.

2. Identify and describe the roles of the people you anticipate will participate in your applied improvement project and include their approximate number. These participants will include people who will participate in your project’s activities and from whom you will collect data to evaluate the intervention or solution.

3. Provide a rationale for the size and makeup of your participant group.

Local conditions will dictate, in part, who and how many participants you will have. You will need at least a minimum of five participants for your Applied Improvement Project (AIP). The number of participants will vary from AIP to AIP but you will need a sufficient number of participants to support the analysis you intend to use, particularly for quantitative analyses:

• For parametric statistics, sample must be > 30

• Nonparametric statistics are used for samples of 11 to 29.

• For a qualitative analysis the sample should include 5 to 10 participants. Notes

Stakeholders and participants are not necessarily the same people, but they could be the same. Stakeholders have a stake in solving or improving a problem and are involved in providing necessary input to define a problem and consider ways to address it. This input happens during the planning phase before beginning the implementation of the intervention. Collaborating and communicating with stakeholders are essential in of change management, which is what an AIP will involve. A project participant is someone directly engaged in implementing and evaluating the intervention. Data should be collected about the implementation from participants, including their perceptions of the implementation as well as their perceptions of the evaluation of the intervention.

It is possible for stakeholders to be participants in the improvement project. It is also possible that some stakeholders may not be project participants. For example, a school principal may be a stakeholder in a process to define a problem with student achievement or teacher performance but would not be a participant in a project that provides instructional coaching for teachers. Both teachers and a school principal, however, could be stakeholders with whom you collaborate in the planning stages of the study.

EDD9953: Signature Assignment

Guide last revised September 15, 2021

Description of the Applied Project

In this section, you will give a detailed (step-by-step) description of your applied project. In

EDD9951, you shared a general description of the approach you propose to take to address the problem of practice. In this course, your goal is to design an action plan that you will follow to implement your project.

Whether your project is to conduct an evaluation, an action research study, or other type of

applied improvement project, you should provide a clear narrative about the project that addresses each component of the project. Do not simply name or identify the activities or tasks. Describe them, incorporating the following into your narrative:

• A description of the actions, activities, and tasks that will be implemented.

• The order in which the activities will be implemented.

• The resources needed to implement the project. Examples of resources include human resources, funding, and materials.

• The approximate duration of the project implementation from start to finish. Finally, referring to your “then” statement(s) in your EDD9951 Signature Assignment, describe the expected outcomes of the applied project. How will your project help mitigate or remedy the problem of practice at your site? (You will need to measure outcomes, so be specific. State the outcomes in ways that will allow you to use data and evidence to show whether your desired outcomes occurred and to what degree.) Notes

Pay attention to and be consistent in your use of language in this assignment. Use the same words to name your intervention (or solution or evaluation) everywhere you refer to it. For example, if you describe the intervention as a professional development initiative in one section, do not refer to it as a training program or workshop series in another section. For a program evaluation you will need additional sections and details. You will need to identify the program’s goals and objectives, the type of evaluation (formative or summative), the evaluation model applied (e.g., CIPP model), guiding evaluation questions, and a complete evaluation plan. There will need to be clear alignment among the program’s goals and objectives, the guiding evaluation questions, and the data to be collected and analyzed.

Important: Your detailed description of the project must match the project proposed and

approved in (EDD9951). If you believe you need to adjust or modify the approach to the problem that was approved in EDD9951 or have any questions about alignment, contact your instructor immediately.

Implementation Plan

In this section, you will build on your description of the project by developing a detailed implementation plan using the template below. Your completed plan, once approved, can be used to guide the project implementation at your site.

EDD9953: Signature Assignment

Guide last revised September 15, 2021

In addition to the detailed implementation plan, include the following below your completed

template:

• A description of anticipated collaboration with participants and stakeholders as part of the implementation of the project.

• A description of strategies for keeping participants and stakeholders informed of progress, as well as unanticipated challenges during the implementation of the project.

ACTIVITY/ INTERVENTION

TASKS WHO TIMELINE DEADLINE EVIDENCE of COMPLETION (Outputs)

Notes: Use the APA formatted table located within the Action Plan template. Add rows as needed. Delete any unused rows.

Example The following example is an implementation plan for a professional development program for instructional coaches in several schools in a P-12 school district. The problem of practice was that instruction was not improving in classrooms despite the presence of the coaches. Poor instructional practices negatively impact student achievement.

One root cause of the problem was ineffective coaching practices that did not lead to increased understanding on the part of teachers about how to alter their practice. Coaches gave inconsistent, unfocused and, at times, conflicting feedback to teachers. Feedback was not always aligned with district student achievement goals, and their coaching conversations were not based on any particular protocol or coaching strategy. This often led to confusion about what was expected on the part of teachers. Follow-up support was also often missing. A cause of these ineffective coaching practices was found to be inadequate preparation of the instructional coaches.

District leaders, in coordination with principals and instructional coaches, worked to develop a feasible way to address the problem. The implementation plan for the improvement project they proposed is described below:

ACTIVITY/ INTERVENTION

TASKS WHO TIMELINE DEADLINE EVIDENCE of COMPLETION (Outputs)

Professional development on district instructional goals. (Internal)

(For both instructional

Prepare materials with clear goals and expectations for instruction aligned to curricular standards.

Curriculum director

Spring, summer, 20xx

August 1, 20xx

All materials completed.

EDD9953: Signature Assignment

Guide last revised September 15, 2021

ACTIVITY/ INTERVENTION

TASKS WHO TIMELINE DEADLINE EVIDENCE of COMPLETION (Outputs)

coaches and school principals)

Prioritize instructional strategies to identify the most impactful.

Curriculum director in coordination with research department

Spring, summer, 20xx

August 1, 20xx

Instructional strategies are prioritized across the district.

Prepare timetable for delivery, follow-up strategies.

Spring, summer, 20xx

July 20xx Timetable is completed.

Deliver sessions and provide follow-up communications.

Curriculum director, assistants

Mid-August to mid- September

Must be completed by end of September

Professional development was delivered.

Follow-up communications are provided September through December.

Training by external coaching consultants: Two hands-on half- day sessions.

(For both instructional coaches and school principals)

Prework: Engage trainers and determine timeline/dates for workshops by consulting school calendar for next year.

Assistant Director

Spring 20xx August 1, 20xx

Contract agreements completed; dates are set for.

Determine and prepare necessary materials/location for consultants and workshop participants.

Admin Assistant

Upon contract completion until deadline

Three days prior to sessions

All preparations completed.

Deliver training sessions and evaluate training (satisfaction, knowledge assessment).

External trainers

Between mid- September and end of October 20xx

Must be completed prior to end of October

Training was delivered and evaluation of training was completed.

Classroom observations

Conduct and videotape classroom observations. (Specify number of observations expected per coach).

Instructional coaches

End of September to mid- December

End of December

Expected number of observations were conducted.

Follow-up meeting to review classroom video and instructional coach’s proposed feedback focus and coaching strategy.

Principals, instructional coaches

End of September to mid- December

End of December

Follow-up meetings were conducted.

Coaching conversation review

Conduct and videotape coaching

Instructional coaches,

End of September to

End of December

Expected number of

EDD9953: Signature Assignment

Guide last revised September 15, 2021

ACTIVITY/ INTERVENTION

TASKS WHO TIMELINE DEADLINE EVIDENCE of COMPLETION (Outputs)

conversations, (Specify number of conversations expected per coach).

teachers mid- December

conversations were conducted.

Follow-up meeting to review classroom video and instructional coach’s proposed feedback focus and coaching strategy.

Principals, instructional coaches

Follow-up meetings were conducted.

Coach and school leadership meetings

All coaches observe one videotaped lesson and provide feedback and coaching strategies to build interrater reliability, coaching consistency.

Principals (or designee), instructional coaches

Twice per month, September through December

End of December

Meetings were held with appropriate format to support consistency of feedback and coaching strategies.

Notes: Use the APA formatted table located within the Action Plan template. Add rows as needed. Delete any unused rows.

Guiding Questions

Planning Questions

Process Questions

Outcome Questions

In this section, you need to think about three different types of guiding questions: planning, process, and outcome questions. Planning questions include any unanswered planning questions you still have regarding the process of developing your intervention or solution. These planning questions are not questions for which you will collect data but rather are questions you still need answered in order to ensure your intervention is on track for implementation in EDD9954. The planning questions could include logistical questions that you need to work out with your site in order to implement the intervention. The planning questions could be questions for your course instructor that will lead to a planning discussion. The typical intervention for an Applied Improvement Project (AIP) is professional development training. Keep in mind that the curriculum content for your AIP intervention must be reviewed and approved by your course instructor before you implement the intervention in EDD9954. Typically, you will be the facilitator of the intervention although it is possible that you might use a stakeholder team to deliver the intervention. Regardless, you will need to follow a guide for delivering your intervention. The expectation is that guide will be a Facilitator’s Guide that will

EDD9953: Signature Assignment

Guide last revised September 15, 2021

include items such as: instructions, sequence, and timeline to be followed during the intervention, Power Point slide presentations, lectures, exercises, handouts, etc.). The Facilitator’s Guide should be developed simultaneously with this course and needs to be ready to submit a draft to instructor by the end of EDD9953. It is okay if you have no unanswered planning questions. If you have planning questions that are answered or resolved during EDD9953, indicate in an assignment submission in this section that the questions were answered, addressed, or resolved. Process Questions are used to collect process data that will be used to tell the story of how your AIP was implemented and evaluated. Outcome questions clarify how to evaluate the outcomes of your project. These questions require that you identify what data will show that the project was or was not successful. For a typical AIP that will uses a first cycle Action Research approach or a cycle of inquiry approach in implementing an intervention, begin with the two standard action research questions listed below. The “To what extent” question is the outcome question. The “How” question is the process question. Depending on the complexity of your AIP, you can add additional process and outcomes questions. See the Additional Information section below. If you use only the two standard action research questions, change your question headings from plural to singular to reflect just one question (i.e., Process Question, Outcome Question) Standard Action Research Questions For an action research or cycle of inquiry approach use the following formula: To what extent will the implementation of X improve Y in Z? How will the implementation of X improve Y in Z? (X = the intervention, Y = the process to be improved, Z = the organization.) The “to what extent” research question is typically a measurement question that will drive the quantitative component but for an action research study (when quantitative data are also collected) but keep in mind that action research is based on the qualitative paradigm. For an action research study in which only qualitative data will be collected the “to what extent” research question can be answered by participants’ perceptions and descriptions of the extent to which they are using or incorporating the intervention training or new process provided. In other words, when only qualitative data are collected, the “to what extent” research question will be answered descriptively with qualitative data. The “how” question is a process research question that will drive the qualitative component to tell the story of how the intervention led to change. The how research question refers to two things: (a) The process by which the intervention does its work (known as process tracking or monitoring) and is answered by telling the story of how the intervention works and (b) the ways in which the problem is changed or improved (known as the assessment of outcomes) when using qualitative descriptive interview and or focus group data. Keep in mind that action research studies overall are qualitative in nature (see Stringer, 2014 p. 36, or Stringer & Aragon, 2020, p. 43) but can include both quantitative and qualitative data, although with very small

EDD9953: Signature Assignment

Guide last revised September 15, 2021

samples (e.g., fewer than 20 participants), only qualitative research might be used. Keep in mind that your questions will guide your project and will ultimately determine the types of data you collect. The data you collect and analyze will determine what you can infer or conclude from the data. All conclusions and claims you make about the results of your applied project must be supported by your data. If you do not ask the right questions, you will likely not collect the data that will allow you to conclude whether or not your project effectively addressed the problem. Before you begin, read the following, reprinted from the Applied Improvement Process: Using

a Cycle of Inquiry to Plan, Implement, and Evaluate Improvement at: http://media.capella.edu/CourseMedia/edd8522element20223/wrapper.asp

Keep in mind that in collecting qualitative data about the implementation process to enable you to explain how the intervention produced the change as evidence and data to support your claim. For example, checking in with participants during the intervention can be rich source of process data and can also lead to adjustments in the intervention. Also, a journal in which you record the intervention steps as they occur, your reflections, casual conversations, “aha” moments, and observations can be a rich source of information to help explain how the intervention or solution was implemented and or why the intervention or solution did or did not prove effective. A journal can also be helpful when conducting either action research, cycle of inquiry or program evaluation as a record of the entire process, which can form the basis of an audit trail.

Additional information regarding Process and Outcomes Guiding Questions. For some AIPs the two standard Action Research questions might not be sufficient. In considering process questions keep in mind that implementation activities involve organizing the ways the proposed intervention or approach will be used, developing training activities for participants who will apply or use the intervention or approach, providing ongoing communication and follow-up information to all participants and stakeholders. Each of these processes can be guided by process questions that require specific data collection procedures to determine that the implementation is appropriate and sufficient. To develop separate process questions, you need to identify specific components in the implementation process that lend themselves the collection of evidence that the components were implemented properly. Additional outcome questions are appropriate when there is an expectation for more than one outcome. If that is case for your AIP, develop an outcome question for each expected outcome. Outcome questions can also speci