1. Social Studies Action Research Kennedy High School

2. PDSA Cycle Plan – Do – Study – Act (PDSA) Cycle guides the continuous improvement process for the action research team

3. Goal #1Social Studies Increase student competency in analytical skills

4. Define the SystemGoal #1 An analysis of the social studies segment on ITEDs shows that a majority of questions relate to analysis of social studies materials, especially charts and graphs Recent research shows that most adults do not possess analytical skills necessary for interpreting news sources

5. Assess Current SituationGoal #1 More work on interpreting charts and graphs needs to be woven into the daily social studies curriculum

6. Analyze CausesGoal #1 Students need more work with analytical skills on a regular, consistent basis Real-world charts and graphs, from sources such as newspapers, needed

7. Try Out Improvement Theory Goal #1 Each social studies teacher will utilize at least one new chart or graph into each unit of study, beginning fall 2005. Charts and graphs will be collected and organized into subject-specific booklets at the end of the school year

8. Try Out Improvement Theory Goal #1 The department will utilize October 2005 social studies ITED scores as a baseline to measure analytical skill improvement

9. Study – Study the ResultsGoal #1 2006 ITED scores, when received, will be compared against 2005 scores, to see if the year- long analytical skill effort has been successful

10. Act – Standardize Improvement Not to this point in the cycle yet.

11. Act – Plan Continuous Improvement Not to this point in the cycle yet.