Annual School Planning Process Annual School Plan …

New JerseyDEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

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Annual School Planning process

Annual School Plan Development

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Welcome! This is the third in a series of modules presenting the components of the Annual School Planning process. In this module, we will explore Annual School Plan Development, in which annual school planning teams create the Annual School Plan, including three to four SMART goals to be the focus for the entire school year.


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Overview of the Annual School Planning process

• Annual School Planning Process composed of four steps: – Comprehensive Needs

Assessment – Root Cause Analysis– Annual School Plan

Development– Implementation and

Progress Monitoring

Presenter

Presentation Notes

The Annual School Planning process has four phases-Comprehensive Needs Assessment, Root Cause Analysis, Annual School Plan Development and Implementation and Progress Monitoring. In previous modules, you have learned about the data-informed Comprehensive Needs Assessment and Root Cause Analysis phases. In this module, we will transform our analysis into a concrete set of goals and actions that will guide our work moving forward. The development of the Annual School Plan involves creating SMART goals, interim goals and action steps to work toward the goals that are set. This is the step in the process where we will synthesize everything that we have learned about the challenges facing our school and decide what we will do over the next year to improve outcomes for students.


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Review the Previous Step

Data provides the story of “where a school is now and where it is

expected to be.” Data analysis will help

identify the school’s areas of need.

Once the needs are isolated, a root cause

analysis explains why the needs exist. Now we can begin to address them.

Interventions and strategies are approaches we think will best address

the school’s identified areas of need. SMART goals and

SMART action steps are how we will implement and evaluate the interventions.

Root Cause Analysis

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Before diving into the planning phase, let’s review the previous step discussed in the second module of our series, root cause analysis. As highlighted here in our flow chart, root cause analysis follows the data analysis phase. Root cause analysis allows us to move from data to action by examining the quantitative and qualitative data that we collected in the data analysis and needs assessment and identify the underlying areas of need that we will address through our intervention strategies. Essentially, the root cause analysis answers a series of questions: What is happening? What do the data tell us about the performance of our students? What are the key areas of need? Why is it happening? Why are the data for specific indicators, subgroups, grade levels and/or content areas not where we expect? What is the most immediate area of need? And if the answer to the first “why” is too broad, keep asking “why is that happening” until you reach an actionable cause. Once we have identified the areas of need that we will try to solve, we can begin to plan strategies and interventions, developing action steps that fit with those strategies and SMART goals that we will try to achieve.


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Annual School Plan Overview

• What has happened

• Evidence

Data

• Strategies• Action

Steps

Interventions

• Desired outcome

• SMART

Goal

Present

Presenter

Presentation Notes

An annual school plan, consistent with the principles of continuous improvement, is the document that captures our impact goals and planned interventions developed as a result of our analysis of data and root causes. Let’s begin in the present, denoted by the vertical dashed green line. This is where we are now. All of the factors that contributed to our current data (what has happened and what evidence we have to support it) – both quantitative and qualitative – occurred in the past. Displayed by the box placed in front of the vertical dashed green line. We will use data that tell the story of what has happened, to set SMART goals that are ambitious but achievable –these goals are the desired outcomes of our work this year. Our graphic shows this by connecting the “data” box to the “goal” box with an arrow. Once we establish our goals, we can then backwards map the process that will allow us to achieve those goals, denoted by the arrow in the upper right of the slide connecting our “goal” box to our “interventions” box. We should plan our interventions with our end goals in mind to ensure that our interventions match our strategies and that our action steps will capture the work that must be done in order to implement the strategies and interventions and achieve the goals.


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Importance of Developing an Annual School Plan

Data provides the story of “where a school is now and where it is

expected to be.” Data analysis will help

identify the school’s areas of need.

Once the needs are isolated, a root cause

analysis explains why the needs exist. Now we can begin to address them.

Interventions and strategies are approaches we think

will best address the school’s identified areas of

need. SMART goals and SMART action steps are

how we will implement and evaluate the interventions.

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Data collection and analysis are meaningless unless we turn that knowledge into action. In recent years, schools have been inundated with data of all sorts. We no longer have to wonder how our students stack up against their similarly situated peers, which teacher practice strands need the most improvement in our school, or what aspects of our school climate parents would like to change. We now have all of that data and much more. But unless we plan strategically, with impact goals guiding concrete action steps, the data-rich environment we have worked so hard to create will be wasted. In this module, we will focus on how to create a meaningful annual plan. As shown by our flow chart, in this third module of our series, we will discuss how to develop well-crafted SMART goals that align with strategies and interventions which are supported by SMART action steps. Interventions and strategies are approaches we think will best address the school’s identified areas of need. SMART goals and SMART action steps are how we will implement and evaluate the interventions. A well-conceived plan, to which adults in the school adhere, is the best way to meaningfully change student experiences and outcomes.


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Developing an Annual School PlanA plan for continuous improvement includes:• “SMART” impact goals

‒ Specific‒ Measurable‒ Ambitious but achievable‒ Relevant‒ Time-bound

• Clear, “SMART” action steps• Meaningful interim goals that will keep us on track

Presenter

Presentation Notes

There are several steps in developing an effective plan for continuous improvement, and we will examine them each in turn. Remember that we will be using a backwards design process, starting with our goal in mind. Therefore, the first step is to set a “SMART” impact goal based on the data that we compiled and analyzed in previous modules. We know from our Root Cause Analysis what areas of need we are trying to solve for and our Data Analysis will tell us where we are now relative to where we expect to be. Using this information, we are ready to set goals for this year that will represent meaningful progress. Good impact goals are “SMART” – specific, measurable, ambitious but achievable, relevant, and time-bound. Once we have developed a goal that is “SMART”, we will determine the clear, SMART action steps that we will need to take to achieve that goal and the meaningful interim goals that will let us know if we are on track to achieve our goal as the year progresses.


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Developing SMART Goals• Goal Setting

‒ SMART Goals should be an expression of the desired student performance outcome. o The SMART goal should not be merely the successful

implementation of a program

‒ Strategies represent the means to the end: what will the school do to accomplish the goal?o Identify strategies and interventions that get at the root cause for

each area of need

‒ What is a good measure of success?o Clearly identify the (quantitative) measureo Ensure the measure is directly connected to the intervention

Presenter

Presentation Notes

We have defined the acronym, but when goal setting, why do we want our impact goals to be “SMART”? First, we want our goals to be a specific expression of the desired student performance outcome. Our goal should be crafted so clearly and narrowly that we can be confident that if we achieve the goal, we will improve student performance. We also want our goals to be ambitious, but achievable. Meaningful goals should be difficult to accomplish. At the same time, unrealistic targets are not productive. Goals should also be relevant to particular areas of need identified in the needs assessment. Sometimes it might be appropriate to use an intervention program as a strategy to help us achieve a goal, but the goal itself should not merely be the successful implementation of a packaged program. For example, if we are addressing deficiencies in student writing ability, implementing writers’ workshop may be a strategy we would use, but is not a goal in and of itself. The goal should be a measurable improvement in students’ writing ability. The action steps would reflect what needs to be done. Such as: Identify and purchase materials, Conduct professional development, Establish coaching of teachers, Establish a data team to review data periodically, Other actions necessary to implement the strategy with fidelity. Second, strategies should outline what the school will do to accomplish the goal. These strategies represent the means to the desired end or outcome. Each identified strategy and intervention should address each area of need identified in the root cause. Finally, what is a good measure? The goal should include a quantitative measure that is easy to communicate to all stakeholders. It should also be as closely connected to the intervention as possible. The measure should be specific and time-bound; we all want state assessment scores to improve, but using state assessments as a measure for a SMART goal is neither specific to the knowledge and skills covered in a particular intervention, nor does it provide information about goal attainment in a timely manner. For example, if we are hoping to improve some aspect of student achievement in math, using a comparison of growth shown through regular formative assessment is a better measure than state test scores, which may or may not represent a true reflection of an improvement in that aspect of student achievement in math.


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Developing Action Steps• Meaningful Action Steps

‒ Not merely purchase orders or salaries‒ All steps should incorporate an action that will directly

address the school’s areas of focus‒ Designate a point person who will be accountable for

ensuring that the step is completed

• SMART Steps‒ Example: “The instructional coach will lead five

Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) sessions by November 1 to introduce School X’s data analysis and Response to Intervention (RTI) protocols.”

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Once we have developed our SMART goals, we then need to develop a plan of action steps detailing how we will accomplish those goals. We have already identified our general strategies during the Root Cause Analysis process, and those strategies appear at the top of each SMART Goal page. The action steps lay out the detailed actions that will occur over the course of the year to bring those strategies to fruition. These action steps should not simply describe purchase orders or salaries. For example, “Buy leveled readers” is not an action step that will improve student reading by itself. However, an additional action step might state that newly purchased leveled readers will be used in reading recovery classes for at least 30 minutes per day. All action steps should incorporate an action that clearly addresses each of the school’s areas of focus and a point person should be selected who will be responsible for monitoring and ensuring that each step is completed. A good practice for developing action steps is to again consider the “SMART” structure. The example SMART action shown reads: “The instructional coach will lead five Professional Learning Community (PLC)” sessions by November 1 to introduce School X’s data analysis and Response to Intervention (RTI) protocols.” In this example, a SMART action step detailing specifically what the instructional coach will do, by when, is far more precise and useful than if the action step merely said “Establish data PLCs” or “Instructional Coach will provide support to School X”.


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Developing Interim Goals• Interim Goals as a Feedback Loop

‒ Interim goals provide useful feedback and serve as a “check-in” to ensure schools are on track to achieve goals.

‒ Interim goals do not have to be quantitative; they can be process-oriented.

SMART Goal: By June 2018, School X will increase parent involvement and engagement by implementing a family outreach campaign which will result in a 10% improvement year over year in parents responding that they agree or strongly agree that they “are involved in their child’s school” on the annual school culture survey.

What interim goals might we develop to track this SMART goal?

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Once you have set your strategies, goals and action steps, there is one final piece of the planning process to complete—developing interim goals. Given the length of the school year and the complexity of SMART goals, it is useful to build in a feedback loop to ensure that schools are on track to accomplish and achieve each goal. Most schools operate on a quarter schedule to provide students an update on their progress at designated intervals. This check-in is useful in school goal-setting as well. It is important to note that interim goals do not need to be quantitative nor a direct reflection of the SMART Goal and can be process-oriented. If the end goal is an improvement of a quantitative measure captured only once a year (for example, in an end of the year parent survey), we will need to find other ways to determine if we are on track to meet our goal. Therefore, interim goals may be process-related or may use other data that will be available at different times of the year that may indicate whether we are on track to achieve our goal. Let’s look at an example. What interim goals might we develop to track this SMART Goal? “By June 2018, School X will increase parent involvement and engagement by implementing a family outreach campaign which will result in a 10% improvement year over year in parents responding that they agree or strongly agree that they “are involved in their child’s school” on the annual school culture survey.” (For an in-person presentation, suggest a turn and talk or pair/small-group share. For a webinar presentation, pause to allow participants to think through possible responses, then offer some possible suggestions.) Responses will vary, but should incorporate actions that would synthesize the action steps that had occurred in a quarter and reflect overall progress towards the goal. Some examples might be: “By the end of Q1, School X will double the year over year number of “open house” events focused on content areas (such as “Math Night” or “Literacy Night”)”. “By the end of Q1, the Family Outreach Campaign will make personal contact with at least 30% of parents who have not previously volunteered at the school.”


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Example of an Annual School Plan• Results of Root Cause Analysis

Schoolwide White Hispanic Black Asian FRL SWD LEPSep 9% 10% 10% 8% 16% 9% 14% 21%Oct 8% 10% 7% 6% 14% 8% 12% 16%Nov 11% 11% 9% 7% 13% 10% 13% 15%Dec 14% 11% 16% 8% 14% 12% 14% 22%Jan 15% 11% 16% 8% 14% 15% 14% 21%Feb 10% 11% 8% 6% 13% 11% 13% 14%Mar 8% 10% 9% 6% 13% 9% 12% 12%Apr 8% 10% 8% 7% 13% 8% 12% 11%May 9% 10% 9% 7% 13% 9% 13% 14%Jun 12% 11% 14% 8% 15% 11% 14% 18%

Total 10% 11% 11% 7% 14% 10% 13% 16%

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Using the sample school data that we have used in previous modules, let’s now develop the outline of a plan that this school might adopt. The table shown displays subgroup performance in chronic absenteeism, with the column heading displaying all of the subgroups and the row headings displaying the months, with a total at the bottom of each column. In the Data Analysis module, we gathered a wide array of relevant data about the school. In our example, we decided to try to improve our rate of chronic absenteeism, and in particular, the data suggested we could make the biggest impact by reducing the chronic absenteeism of ELs. In the Root Cause Analysis module, we identified seasonal factors that were driving the high rate of chronic absenteeism for ELs by looking at chronic absenteeism rates by month. As the red highlighted cells in the table remind us, we noticed a high rate of absenteeism in September, December, January and June, and proposed strategies to combat this increase. Now we are ready to set our SMART Goals, action steps, and interim goals.


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Example of an Annual School Plan• Developing SMART Goals

‒What is our desired performance outcome?oReduced rate of Chronic Absenteeism, especially for EL

students

‒How can we phrase that as a SMART Goal?o School X will conduct outreach to families of EL

students during the 2017-18 school year that will result in a 15% decrease in the number of students chronically absent for the year.

Presenter

Presentation Notes

When developing SMART Goals, the first and most important question is to ask: “what is our desired performance outcome?” In our example, it is to reduce the rate of chronic absenteeism, especially for EL students. The next step is to phrase this as a SMART goal. A SMART Goal expresses that goal in precise terms. As a result of a specific intervention, a measurable change will occur that we believe is ambitious but achievable. Our measure is relevant to our intervention and the time period in which this improvement will occur is specified. For this example, a SMART Goal might read: “School X will conduct outreach to families of EL students during the 2017-18 school year that will result in a 15% decrease in the number of students chronically absent for the year.” (In person, if time permits, the facilitator may ask participants to develop another SMART goal using this same problem. In a webinar format, the presenter may simply ask: “Can you think of another SMART goal that might be relevant for this performance challenge?”)


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Example of an Annual School Plan• Developing Action Steps

‒Two main categories of action steps:o Steps that support a particular strategyo Steps related to achieving the goal itself

‒Exampleo The School Leadership team will review all aspects of

the new student enrollment process at its October meeting to identify potential barriers for EL families.

Presenter

Presentation Notes

When developing action steps, there are two main categories: those that support a particular strategy for addressing an issue, and those that are related to achieving the goal itself. Let’s consider an example. As part of the root cause analysis process, we identified several strategies that will address our areas of focus. In our example, improving the enrollment system experience for EL families was one strategy. All action steps should correspond to one or more of these strategies, such as the example action step: “The school leadership team will review all aspects of the new student enrollment process at its October meeting to identify potential barriers for EL families. You will note that this action step has many of the “SMART” elements. It is specific about what should occur, relevant to the goal, and sets a particular time when this action should occur. Some action steps may even include a measurable outcome, though it is not necessary for all action steps to follow the “SMART” formula.


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Example of an Annual School Plan• Developing Interim Goals

‒ Feedback Loopo Interim Goals may be quantitative or procedural.

SMART Goal: School X will conduct outreach to families of EL students during the 2017-18 school year that will result in a 15% decrease in the number of students chronically absent for the year.

Interim 1: Chronic absenteeism rates for EL students will decrease by at least 3% year over year in September and October.

Interim 2: School X will conduct multi-faceted outreach that will contact at least 50% of newly enrolled EL families to explain the school calendar and the importance of attendance.

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Recall that interim goals are an essential feedback loop in the annual school planning process. They help us know if we are on track to achieving our goal. Some interim goals may be quantitative (if a measure exists that would tell us if we are on pace to achieve the goal), while others may be procedural (describing actions that are mileposts on the road to improvement). Given the sample SMART Goal shown in the box: School X will conduct multi-faceted outreach that will contact at least 50% of newly enrolled EL families to explain the school calendar and the importance of attendance. Two interim goals may be: Chronic absenteeism rates for EL students will decrease by at least 3% year over year in September and October. School X will conduct multi-faceted outreach that will contact at least 50% of newly enrolled EL families to explain the school calendar and the importance of attendance. How are they similar and how do they differ? (In person, ask for answers from participants. In a webinar, pause briefly, then note that the first is a strict quantitative measure of the metric that we are trying to improve. We might know that if we are to realize a 15% decrease for the year, that we must see reductions in September and October. Then note that the second is a procedural goal. While it also has a measure, the overall goal is not merely to contact and engage EL parents, it is for EL students to be in school. However, it may be useful to set a quantitative target for EL family outreach as a key indicator of progress toward the overall goal.)


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Next Step in the Process

Data provides the story of “where a school is now and where it is expected to be.”

Data analysis will help identify the school’s areas of need.

Once the needs are isolated, a root cause analysis explains why the needs exist. Now we can begin to address them.

Intervention strategies are approaches we think will best address the school’s identified areas of focus. SMART goals and SMART action steps are how we will implement and evaluate the interventions.

Progress Monitoring

Continuous Improvement

Presenter

Presentation Notes

Now that we have developed a detailed plan that is rooted in data and includes measurable and time-bound actions and goals, the final step, as highlighted here in our flowchart, is to ensure that the plan is delivered as intended. Although there may be collaborative progress monitoring with NJDOE representatives, continuous school improvement requires constant reflection and examination of what works, what doesn’t, and what can be done to positively impact student outcomes. In the final module, we will explore the various aspects of progress monitoring and how that relates to continuous improvement.

Annual School Planning Process Annual School Plan …

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