VUCA in Federal Policy

Tuesday, August 3 - 9:00 am

Mike Smith - Presentation Slide Link

Three main points:

1. Cycles of continuous improvement 
2. Issues of implementation
3. What role we play in this

There are some Game Breakers we need to consider right up front:

• technology
• continuous improvement process
• common standards, curriculum, and assessment
• aggressive early language development

A good example of a cycle of improvement -- the Singapore teacher evaluation system:

• leader circulates around the school
• intervenes immediately when there is a problem
• provides immediate feedback
• formative assessment all the time with engaged participation

Might need to think about different examples of methodologies with rapid feedback loops and different derivations of the Continuous Process Improvement. We need to think about the way we refine our theories and then the implementation.

Implementation

What can be said about implementation? Remember that implementation is 90% of the game -- we deal with adaptive problems all the time in education and less with the technical.

How does one go about implementing a reasonable legislative plan for education in a place like Pakistan?

Look at the context, at who is involved with this implementation, and use a scorecard for accountability and to monitor implementation.

What's on the scorecard?

• Standards
• Monitoring
• Empowerment
• Teaching
• Public-private partnerships
• Capacity
• Facilities

Looks very familiar across the world. Scoring system actually just measures how well, if at all, each item is implemented.

What about the US?

There are nearly 40 states with plans for systems reform-linked to Race to the Top. How might the RD&D system inform these efforts? How does this move us to the next phase?