Title Brainstorming

So I contacted ASQ (the American Society for Quality) yesterday. They are at the forefront of using quality tools in education and had a lot of input on this study. There are thousands of schools all over the nation that are using these tools. The research options are endless... I could study how these tools impact Alaskan students (what a travel opportunity!). I could identify which tools seem to be most popular and which ones teachers are finding most difficult...

So I want to think about a title to help me focus a little. I know my heart is focused on seeing the "underdog" or students who underachieve in our systems find hope.

So here is a potential title...

How Quality Tools Impact Urban Learning Organizations and the Students They Serve

This report allows me to write about the following:
Quality (Baldrige, CCI, TQM)
Tools (Data Folders, Classroom Dashboards, Plus Delta's)
Urban (The Achievement Gap, Motivation)
Learning Organizations (My conceptual framework of schools, the mental model web)
Students (How these tools impact their thinking)

The floor is open for all feedback...

Senge Provides the Foundation

In his book, the Fifth Discipline, Peter Senge writes about 5 elements that make an organization work well. 2 of these are powerful "levers" we can use to lift our students... personal mastery and mental models.

Personal Mastery: "It is the discipline of continually clarifying and deepening our own personal vision... people with a high level of personal mastery are able to consistently realize the results that matter most deeply to them."

Mental Models: "They are deeply ingrained assumptions, generalizations, or even pictures and images that influence how we see the world and how we take action."

Senge's work leads this discussion down a road that leads to further capacity building and independence for our students.

I hope I can include this in my first chapter...

A Ripple of Hope

Can data folders send a ripple of hope that inspires children and their families? What does this tool potentially communicate?

1. It brings awareness to children- of what is essential to know in a grade level
2. It brings awareness to children- of their educational health
3. It shares with children that our school believes they have what it takes to achieve.

This all ties into the work of Peter Senge around mental models and personal mastery.

IF these folders are designed well. Many I have seen are thrown together without much thought. I think there are some components to make sure you include in a design:
1. Missioning (being aware of why we are here.
2. Data (showing our performance compared to the average)
3. A rubric of proficiency (so students can become aware of expectations)
4. A resource page (so students can plan a way to build the necessary skills)
5. A reflection section (where students think about their own strengths and opportunities to grow) and
6. An action planning section (this teaches leadership)

I can't tell you how much this motivates me- to even think these tools could possibly bring hope.

Case Study or Survey?

It is time to brainstorm all the different kinds of angles I could take.

I could study the effect of sata folders on the mental models of teachers, students, A.A. boys, principals, etc...

I could study the past 5 years of survey data from a school system that used baldrige and won an award.

I could collect folders from all over the nation and report on what they tell us on what is valued.

I also have to create a criteria for what literature is included in the study and what is not.

It is challenging to actually find the scope of the literature because some of the terms used are not universal. In addition- what should be the limits of my focus? Should I look at student engagement? That is a huge topic. I could focus it on African American Boys but then I have to become an expert on boys and on African Americans. I could focus on SES too- all of this is huge...

I also have to decide if I want to do a case study, survey, phenomenology etc...

A Flow Map

I tried to map out the path of my thinking around this dissertation today. I know I still need to immerse myself in the literature, however this map will guide my literature search, so I found it a worthwhile activity.

It also raised questions for me- places to stop and possibly apply research.

1. The Achievement Gap (I wish I could use my sketching here)
2. The Mental Models
3. The Use of Goal Setting & Data Folders
4. The Impact on Mental Models and on the Achievement Gap

1. So for the first point I wondered how to focus-
Academically: Math
By Gender: Male
By Grade Level: (3-5)
By Ethnicity: African American
By SES: low SES

2. I wondered if we have studies that show the mental models A.A. boys in 3rd grade have of school, themselves as students, and their teachers.
I also wondered if there is a tool in use that can measure a school's "warmth" towards the students above.

3. I wondered if there were aspects of a data folder design that motivated students more than others. Is it important to have a reflection piece? (We could create two prototypes and test them against each other) I also wondered if these tools shift student's mental models. Then I wondered if it shifted the teacher's mental models (or the families from the student-led conferences).

4. This could be answered earlier in point 2 or 3.

So this step seems important to me because the dissertation can develop out of several places here. I want the focus to beon these data tools at the student level because I think they hold a key to closing the achievement gap. Does it make sense to focus then on these tools? Am I adding too much by including the focus on A.A. boys achievement in math?

I do believe that this phenomenon (the achievement gap) is a form of injustice. This now moves beyond academics for me. I feel just like the chemist researching cures for cancer. I want to work on potential solutions to this problem and if they work- GREAT! if they don't then we can study the next theory.

As a 3rd grader I experienced a system that turned my educational journey around. It was based on goal setting and putting data in my hands. I want to see if this practice helps others like it did me and then begin to get this practice into our schools.

Beginning the Journey

Last week I met a president of a historically black university who told me that the best thing he does for students is make them aware of where they are in the educational race. Once students are aware- they can take action that moves them forward at a faster rate.

This awareness raises questions: what kind of awareness levels exist in elementary school boys? Are there tools that can impact that awareness and then is there a corresponding improvement on performance?

I want to make a web of potential studies and then think about the types of findings each one can bring.

For example- could a case study provide more useful knowledge than a phenomenology?

I then have lots of questions: Who are the experts out there? Which types of key words do I need to search for in the literature? (student ownership, goal setting, achievement gap, African-American males, cultural proficiency) I could create a data folder system and compare ones that include goal setting and one that doesn't.

This would preclude that a data folder is a solid tool- it is the design of this folder that needs some sophistication.