The role of school improvement planning in the implementation of MTSS in secondary schools

Abstract

As a result of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), schools and districts are encouraged to implement school-wide initiatives to improve outcomes for all students. In accordance with the ESSA, this research study investigated the relationship between school improvement planning and the implementation of school-wide interventions. The study examined survey and extant data from five high schools in a Midwestern state to analyze academic and behavior-related school-wide efforts and their relationship to school improvement. The data showed a statistically significant relationship between school improvement planning and the state’s school improvement report card of student performance (Kendall Rank-Order Coefficient, p = .025). These findings suggest that schools might consider integrating their school-wide efforts into school improvement planning.

Keywords:

• Implementation
• multi-tiered systems of supports
• school improvement
• secondary schools
• systems

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Pattie Noonan at the Center for Research on Learning at the University of Kansas for her feedback on this manuscript.

Declaration of interest

The authors do not have any financial interests or benefits that result from the publication of this article.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported, in part, by an internal research grant from Loyola University of Chicago.

Notes on contributors

Hank S. Bohanon

Hank Bohanon is a professor at Loyola University of Chicago. His current research interests include secondary schools, multi-tiered system of support, school improvement, and professional development

Meng-Jia Wu

Meng-Jia Wu is an associate professor in the Research Methodology program at Loyola University of Chicago. Her research interests include developing methods for meta-analysis and applying quantitative methods to answer questions in social science.

Ali Kushki

Ali Kushki is an Ed.D. student in the School of Education at Loyola University

Chicago, the U.S. His research interests include Sociocultural Theory, Dynamic

Assessment, and their relevance to educational settings. Twitter: @AliKushki, Facebook: @Ali Kushki, Linked In: Ali Kushki

Cheyne LeVesseur

Cheyne LeVesseur is the Research and Evaluation Specialist for Michigan's MTSS Technical Assistance Center. His current research interests include multi-tiered system of supports and data-based decision making. Linked In: cheyneallenlevesseur

Anna Harms

Anna Harms is the Evaluation and Research Administrator for Michigan's MTSS Technical Assistance Center. Her research interests include multi-tiered system of supports, program evaluation and data-based decision making, universal screening, and assessment construction.

Elizabeth Vera

Elizabeth Vera is a professor at Loyola University of Chicago. Her research interests include social justice and mental health, systems interventions to support well-being in ethnic minority youth, and the social-emotional experiences of English learners.

Jenna Carlson-Sanei

Jenna Carlson-Sanei is an assistant professor of science education at Concordia University Chicago. Her research interests include university partnerships and science education.

David Shriberg

David Shriberg is a professor at Indiana University. His research interests center on the application of social justice to educational and psychological practice. Twitter: @DrDaveShriberg.