Accountability and Data-Driven Decision Making The Transformed School Counselor Chapter 8 ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Accountability: Success, Not Survival Everyone in a school setting is accountable for student success. A challenge of school counseling is to show how the school counseling program influences the critical data elements, or the school’s report card. Sharing accountability for student success with stakeholders is a driving force for transforming and reframing the work of school counselors. A data-driven approach to building your program will help support and secure the school counselor’s position as a valued player in school improvement. ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

ASCA Standards and the National Model for Accountability The development of national standards for school counseling programs was the first step in engaging school counselors and stakeholders in a national conversation about program effectiveness and accountability. The American School Counseling Association (ASCA) National Model was written to guide the design and implementation of school counseling program models aligned with the mission of schools and to demonstrate the alignment through accountability. ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

ASCA Standards and the National Model for Accountability The ASCA National Model reinforces the importance of delivering a comprehensive, developmental, and results-based program. The model states the importance of having an accountability system and an organizational framework that answers “How are students different as a result of the school counseling program?” Accountability, as presented in the ASCA model, links the work of school counselors to student success. ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Accountability Defined Accountability requires schools to pursue the goals established by the people and their representatives through democratic processes, and to achieve these goals to the extent possible by using the most effective strategies available. Until recently, school counselors were not viewed in the accountability role. School counseling was seen as a personal relationship in which counselor effectiveness or services could not be measured or evaluated. ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Surveys, Time-on-Tasks, and Results Based Time-on-task data effectively contributes to an understanding of how school counselors spend their time.   How many classroom guidance lessons were conducted?   How many students were seen individually?   How many small groups took place? Time-on-task data is incomplete when used as the only method of accountability. ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Surveys, Time-on-Tasks, and Results Based continued… Results-Based Data For example: 60% of students can identify financial resources based on 20% of the time that counselors spent in career and academic advising. The school counseling program is built on the great work that has been done in the past with time-on-task and results-based data and moves in the direction of impact data. ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Keep a careful balance between statistics, outcome criteria, and common sense!

Accountability Supports Equity School counselors can affect two contributors to the achievement gap: School counselors can affect two contributors to the achievement gap:  1. low expectations, specifically the pervasive belief that socioeconomic status and color determine young people’s abilities to learn  2. the sorting and selecting process that acts as a filter ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Building a Data-Driven School Counseling Program Critical data elements are important to legislators, school board members, superintendents, administrators, and parents. The transformed school counselor uses data to support students, remove barriers, and develop a program around critical data elements. Data depict:   Achievement patterns   Successes and failures in teaching   Equity issues   Effectiveness of the school to support learners ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Critical Data Elements Examining critical data elements that identify the needs of your students is the first step to inform and guide the development of an accountable school counseling program. By using data on the entire school population, no students are overlooked. ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Direct Measures of Achievement Test results Number of credits taken per year Retention rates Postsecondary enrollment Grade point average Rank in class Indirect Measures of Achievement Enrollment in honors, AP, IB, or college level courses Enrollment in general, remedial courses Exceptional Student screening and placement Gifted screening and placement Alternative school enrollment Critical Data Elements or Report Card Data Critical data elements include: ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Other Informative Critical Data Elements Demographics of the internal and external community Entry and withdrawal information Ethnicity Gender Number and type of discipline referrals Attendance rate Critical Data Elements or Report Card Data ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Disaggregated Data –Data separated out by ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, or teacher assignment makes it possible to determine how policy and practices affect issues of equity as counselors work toward closing the gap in student opportunities and achievement. Steps for analyzing data:   Start with simple statistics, e.g., averages or percentages   Disaggregate that piece of data into different units   Look for data as it relates to time   Cross-tabulate the data by comparing two sets of disaggregated data ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Choose criteria carefully!

MEASURE: A Six-Step Accountability Process MEASURE Mission, Elements, Analyze, Stakeholders-Unite, Reanalyze, Educate. MEASURE stands for Mission, Elements, Analyze, Stakeholders-Unite, Reanalyze, Educate. MEASURE MEASURE is a six-step accountability process that helps school counselors demonstrate how their programs impact critical data. MEASURE MEASURE is a way of using information to target critical data elements and to develop strategies to connect school counseling to the accountability agenda of today’s schools. ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

MEASURE: A Six-Step Accountability Process 1. Mission Connect the design, implementation, and management of the school counseling program to the mission of the school and to the objectives of the annual school improvement plan. The Six Steps of Measure ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

MEASURE: A Six-Step Accountability Process 2. Elements Identify and examine the critical elements of the available data that are important to your school’s mission. The Six Steps of Measure ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

MEASURE: A Six-Step Accountability Process 3. Analyze Analyze the critical data elements to see what they reveal, to identify problem areas, to establish your baselines, and to set your goals. The Six Steps of Measure ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

MEASURE: A Six-Step Accountability Process 4. Stakeholders-Unite Identify stakeholders to become part of a team involved in addressing the movement of the critical data elements. Unite and collaborate with stakeholders and develop and implement strategies to move critical data elements in a positive direction. The Six Steps of Measure ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

MEASURE: A Six-Step Accountability Process 5. Results Reanalyze and refocus to determine whether you met your targeted results. The Six Steps of Measure ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

MEASURE: A Six-Step Accountability Process 6. Educate Inform the internal and external stakeholders of the changes in the targeted data elements that show the positive impact the school counseling program is having on student success. The Six Steps of Measure ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

Systemic Changes and Other Interim Data In delivering a data-driven school counseling program, you become a systemic change agent impacting policies and procedures that widen opportunities and empower more students to be successful learners. Impacting systems means:   Replicating successful programs and interventions   Identifying barriers that adversely stratify students’ opportunities to be successful learners   Maximizing the instructional program, enhance the school climate, raise aspirations, etc. ©2012 Cengage Learning. These materials are designed for classroom use and can be used for educational purposes only. Reproduction for commercial use is in violation of copyright laws.

When you are out of soap, It’s time to stop taking a bath!