Welcome to the 33^rd issue of the SIGnetwork Newsletter, published monthly for SPDG projects and their partners to learn about upcoming events, the latest relevant research, TA resources and training, and, most importantly, SPDG impact. We’re glad you're here!

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Fidelity & Feedback: A Necessary Pair

I kicked off last month’s fidelity conversations describing Project Runway, the unscripted show where aspiring and professional clothing designers vie for the judges’ approval. The winner receives money to support their business, a deluxe sewing machine, and a mentorship from the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA). I shared Project Runway as a concrete (and interesting!) example of fidelity.

For those who are not aficionadosof the show, here’s a little background. Each week the designers are given an assignment, such as, “You have 15 minutes to shop this grocery store for materials for your look. Remember, the look should be stylish, polished, and something we haven’t seen before.” In this unconventional materials challenge, the judges look for fidelity to these key features. They use observation to determine whether the clothing is: (a) stylish, (b) polished, and (c) innovative. In addition, the judges observe whether the clothing fits well, is easy to walk in, and makes the model feel good about themselves. So, for anyone counting there are 6 essential features that should be observable.

In addition to this tall order, contestants are under time and financial constraints. Remind you of anything? The teachers, administrators, and other personnel you work with are always under time and financial constraints. They often don’t have all the materials they need and must make do with what they can find, borrow, or pay for with their own money.

Project Runway contestants sometimes work with a model who is a different shape or height than expected; this is often challenging for themThey are especially thrown off by the “real customer challenge,” when they are required to make clothing for people who are not models. Teachers are also thrown off by the different flavors their students come in. They may not have the preparation or practical experience to teach a wide variety of students, which leads to the question… Considering the contextual challenges teachers face and the wide variety of student needs, how can they reach intervention fidelity?

For an answer we return to Project Runway, where each contestant has a mentor AND the grand prize is a mentorship from the CFDA. Christian Siriano is the show’s mentor (previously it was Tim Gunn). Christian was the winner of Season 2 and now has a very successful fashion line, so he knows from whence he speaks.

As the mentor, Christian helps contestants with every challenge. His first opportunity to provide feedback is in the planning stage, as contestants are sketching their garments. His feedback focuses on the feasibility of the design and what the judges may think of the style and innovation. The next mentoring opportunity is the model fitting, which provides an opportunity to determine how flattering the design is on the model, as well as the precision of the sewing. Each of these meetings is an opportunity for Christian to ask questions, give direct feedback, and provide reflection on the unique style of the designer and what this means for their look. He sometimes adds a dose of humor as he gets a designer back on track. He also responds to their hopes, fears, and tears. The level of empathy he displays results in designers’ willingness to hear and use his feedback.

In SIGnetwork we have mentors for many levels of our work. We have peer mentors for SPDG project personnel and evaluators. The projects themselves support mentors and coaches for regional, district, and school-level personnel. These mentors and coaches and the thoughtfulness that goes into choosing and supporting them makes SIGnetwork and the SPDGs unique.

There is much to be said about how mentoring works on Project Runway. Tailoring feedback to the level of skill and unique needs of the mentee; being a credible source of information; building a relationship so that feedback is more welcome; and considering the unique needs of those the mentee works with. Promising evidence links feedback and the empathy with which it is delivered as key to

supporting implementation fidelity. Our SPDG National Meeting speaker on October 18th, Jennifer Pierce (NCSI), will help us delve into the supports that make effective coaching and mentoring possible, helping us bring out the inner Christian Siriano in each mentor.

It's going to be fierce!

-Jennifer

Check out the latest open OSEP funding opportunities.

The primary focus for the California SPDG (CALI) in Year 5 is scale-up of literacy training within participating schools and districts. Schools were asked to select at least one strategy to roll-out school-wide and either conduct in-person training on the strategy, or have teachers complete the asynchronous module on the project website (see https://calireads.org/literacy-modules/). CALI can confirm that a total of 344 additional teachers at CALI sites have accessed CALI-supported resources in the past year, exceeding the goal of 60 teachers. The true number is likely higher, as CALI does not always know about additional training that is conducted outside of project requirements. 

During the reporting period, at least nine schools have trained all teachers on a chosen literacy strategy. Additionally, several schools have focused on training specific groups of teachers, such as training all SPED and intervention teachers to use the WordBuilder Intervention tool in small group instruction (https://calireads.org/wordbuilder/), or all social studies and science teachers on the Get the Gist strategy. Each CALI literacy strategy was selected by at least one school or district for scale-up. Several districts chose to expand training to other schools and grades, such as to high school or 5th grade, and one district has established professional learning communities (PLCs) for each strategy they are scaling up.

Implementation Support in Education

Join Sophia Farmer, Co-Director of the SISEP Center, as she discusses the role of an implementation specialist and the importance of implementation support in K-12 education. Guest presenters include:

Melissa Kahn, Implementation Consultant with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction

Scott Brown, Implementation Specialist with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction

Kelcey Schmitz, Director of Training and Technical Assistance at the University of Washington SMART Center.

Date: Wednesday, September 6, 2023
Time: 3:00 PM - 4:15 PM ET

Audience: District, Regional, and State Agency leaders and administrators; system & MTSS coaches, implementation team members; staff serving students who access special education services; implementation specialist or support practitioners

Register here

*This webinar is open to a universal audience, so please share widely with those interested.

That Implementation Science Podcast

Jun 11, 2023

Fidelity Measurement: Fast, Cheap, and Good (Pick Two)

The hosts discuss the paper "Improving the feasibility of fidelity measurement for community-based quality assurance” and discuss whether sampling is effective for measuring fidelity. Can measuring fidelity be cheap, fast, and good?

Chapman, J. E., Alley, Z. M., & Schoenwald, S. K. (2022). Improving the feasibility of fidelity measurement for community-based quality assurance: Partial- versus full-session observations of supervisor adherence and competence. Implementation Research and Practice, 3. https://doi.org/10.1177/26334895221135263

The Education Gadfly Show: Defending Mississippi’s literacy gains, with Rachel Canter

Rachel Canter, the executive director of Mississippi First, debunks the allegations that her state fudged its notable gains in reading achievement.

If you have a minute…

Principal Attrition and Mobility Results From the 2021–22 Principal Follow-up Survey to the National Teacher and Principal Survey

Summary Report

IES, US Department of Education

July, 2023

Lessons Learned? Reading Wars, Reading First, and a Way Forward

Goldberg – 2022

The Reading Teacher - Wiley Online Library