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The most pronounced use of the climate results is in terms of school improvement planning. The results from the climate survey provide a starting point for improvement activities. The survey responses provide a description of the state of affairs within a school. In many ways, the data allows decision-makers to state the "problem," if one exists. However, additional steps must be taken to effect change relative to a given problem.

The root causes of each problem must be investigated and agreed upon. Knowing that children lack a sense of belonging at their school does not tell us why that is so. In addition, once a clearer understanding is gained about why conditions exist, agreement must be reached on the most appropriate intervention for getting at the root cause. Once implemented, those interventions can be assessed in terms of effectiveness by once again collecting data on those same issues (e.g., administering the climate survey a second time).

Some suggestions on a methodology for completing the change process are listed below:

• Identifying Root Causes: Have the SIP team complete an exercise such as a structured brainstorm or a cause and effect diagram that maps the causes of the problem. Collect additional data or use a group decision making process (e.g., nominal group) to gain agreement on the key cause(s).
• Identify Solutions/Interventions: All SIP teams are asked to provide improvement activities to deal with a specific target. By using one of several possible processes (e.g., brainstorming, force field analysis, etc.) the team should gain agreement on the most effective strategy to address the root cause.
• Monitoring Progress: Before implementing solutions or interventions, the team should examine what additional data they will need to measure progress, who will collect it, and how it will be collected and analyzed. In many cases, simply administering the climate battery in the subsequent year will be sufficient, but there may be more specific data needs a school may feel are necessary for them to determine what worked.

Following these steps will complete the problem solving process for climate issues at any level in the organization, either district or school. Most importantly, the process should involve those persons closest to the "problem." People who are in daily contact with the "problem" not only have the greatest understanding of the issue, but are critical to implementing changes that will be meaningful and long-lasting.

Updated: September 12, 2005
Author: Joshua Roy jroy@madison.k12.wi.us
Webmaster: Webmaster webmaster@madison.k12.wi.us
 
 
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