TAIS: Root Cause Analysis Keela McGraw, Billy Schewee ESC Region 11

Goals of the Session Become familiar with the TAIS Continuous Improvement Process and Plan Understand the purposes and protocols involved with Root Cause Analysis Introduce the Critical Success Factors

TAIS Continuous Improvement Process and Plan TAIS – Texas Accountability Intervention System Developed and supported by the Texas Education Agency and the Texas Center for District and School Support Process was started as an initiative for low-performing districts across the state; many districts are now using it as a way to simply improve For the school year, 52 campuses were deemed IR in Region 11. After undergoing the TAIS process, 39 were no longer IR in (62% success rate). Process involves four main steps:  Data Analysis  Needs Assessment  Improvement Plan  Implement and Monitor

Data Analysis Objective findings based on patterns and trends in the data Develop problem statements and prioritize

Needs Assessment Root Cause Analysis Additional data sources reviewed Identify root causes

Improvement Plan Set annual goals Identify a strategy Set quarterly goals o Outcome based o Focused on achieving the annual goal o Measure the level of implementation and impact Determine interventions o Specific actions to implement your strategy o A system to collect data to monitor the intervention by quarter

Implement and Monitor Review data by quarter Determine level of implementation Determine level of impact End of quarter reporting Adjustments to the plan to ensure success

Critical Success Factors Seven key focus areas in school improvement planning o Academic Performance o Use of Quality Data to Drive Instruction o Leadership Effectiveness o Increase Learning Time o Family and Community Engagement o School Climate o Teacher Quality Grounded in evidence-based research Effective implementation is crucial in school efforts to meet stated goals and objectives

CSF Jigsaw Activity Number one to seven Read the description that corresponds to your assigned Critical Success Factor Highlight key ideas for a brief presentation to the whole group

CSFs – Additional Information Possible data sources to help examine CSFs CSF Planning Resource - content/uploads/2014/10/Academic-Performance- Guide.pdf content/uploads/2014/10/Academic-Performance- Guide.pdf

Root Cause Analysis Purpose – The potential root causes are identified by the campus/district based upon the information gathered through the needs assessment. Areas of need, as it relates to gaps in the data, are determined by conducting a root cause analysis of the problem stated in the “problem statement.” This analysis reveals the hypothesis of WHY the problem is occurring. Using the proposed 3 protocols in the following sequence is a suggested process to examining root cause. However, each of these protocols can be utilized as stand-alone activities. Target Audience – Campus/District Leadership Teams, All Staff Time – Dependent upon group size and nature of the problem (minimum time – 1 hour)

10, 5, 5 The purpose of this protocol is to perform an initial brainstorm of the possible reasons why a problem might be occurring. When a team is stretched to think beyond the initial 5-10 reasons, a greater depth tends to emerge. Once the team has brainstormed a list of 20 reasons, there is a need to pare down these responses (Ex: look for duplicated or very similar responses).

2 Circles The circle of control and the circle of influence is an adaptation of Stephen Covey’s Circle of Influence and Circle of Concern. The purpose of this protocol is to decide which of the reasons generated from the 10, 5, 5 can be directly controlled by a campus’ action(s) or influenced. It is in the best interest of the group to direct energy on reasons that can be directly controlled that will allow for greater impact of desired results.

5 Whys The purpose of the 5 Whys is to take the root cause even further. Once the team has come to a consensus around the reason from the 2 circles that should be looked at more closely, then a 5 Why analysis can be done. Asking Why 5 times is not a magic number. This leads only to a hypothesis which can be determined true or false only after a research question is developed and a plan is implemented.

Protocol Process Step 1: Locate the problem statement Step 2: Identify a scribe to record responses on chart paper Step 3: Locate the 10,5,5 handout for team members to take notes Step 4: Begin 10,5,5 protocol and record responses on first piece of chart paper Step 5: Remove 10,5,5 chart paper and set aside to be used in Step 6 Step 6: On second piece of chart paper, have scribe create two circles, one labeled “Control” and the other labeled “Influence.” Step 7: Using the list from the “Control” circle, vote on which reason the team would like to further examine. Step 8: Begin 5 Whys protocol using the agreed upon reason from Step 7. Record 5 Whys on third piece of chart paper. Step 9: Write last response from 5 Whys as “Potential Root Cause” on handout.

Example 1 Problem Statement: Discipline referrals are increasing. Why 1: Why do we have so many discipline referrals? o Because a lot of students act inappropriately. Why 2: Why do they act inappropriately? o Because they don’t know the rules. Why 3: Why don’t they know the rules? o Because we haven’t explained and enforced the rules consistently. Why 4: Why haven’t we explained and enforced the rules consistently? o Because we haven’t agreed on a common set of expectations. Why 5: Why haven’t we agreed on common expectations? o Because we haven’t spent time together defining our philosophy. (Source: The Handbook for SMART School Teams: Conzemius and O’Neill, 2002)

Example 2 Problem Statement: Teacher turnover rates are consistently high. Why 1: Why is teacher turnover so high? o Because many teachers feel this job is too hard. Why 2: Why do they feel this job is too hard? o Because they don’t feel supported in the classroom. Why 3: Why don’t they feel supported in the classroom? o Because they don’t have a mentor teacher to turn to for support. Why 4: Why don’t they have a mentor teacher to turn to for support? o Because the campus has not implemented a mentoring program to assist struggling teachers. Why 5: Why hasn’t the campus implemented a mentoring program to assist struggling teachers? o Because we had concerns about time and resources.

Process Considerations The last response to the 5 Whys will set up how the research question is developed. When conducting these protocols with a team, it is critical to gain team consensus. The team may consider setting up predetermined time limits for each protocol to pace the group or conduct activities on separate days if time does not permit.

Root Cause Analysis Tips Avoid treating the symptom rather than the problem. Keep problem statements factual. Remember that schools are complex systems. Continue to ask, “Why?” Avoid passing judgment and focus on how to address the root causes. Develop collective ownership of the identified gaps and problems. Five is not the magic number for 5 Whys analysis; there may be a need to dig further and ask questions.

Next Steps After a needs assessment is conducted and the root causes have been identified, the next step is to develop an improvement plan. If in interventions due to accountability, improvement plan should be targeted and address the reasons for low performance [TEC §39.106(a) and 19 Texas Administrative Code(TAC) § ]. Many resources can be found at and

Questions?

Thank You! Keela McGraw Billy Schewee