COS Training to Promote Data Quality: What’s Working, What’s Needed

1. COS Training to Promote Data Quality: What’s Working, What’s Needed OSEP Leadership Conference Arlington, VA July 23, 2019

2. Presenters • Shannon Dunstan • Idaho (Part B/619) • sdunstan@sde.idaho.gov • Naomi Younggren • Department of Defense (Part C) • naomi.younggren@gmail.com • Chelsea Guillen • Illinois (Part C) • cguillen@illinois.edu • Kellen Reid • DaSy and ECTA Centers • sdunstan@sde.idaho.gov

3. Intended Outcomes • Increase knowledge about what is working and what is not working related to the following child outcomes topics: • Capturing examples of functioning across outcome areas (aligning skills to outcomes) • Anchoring ages (age anchoring) • Using the decision tree • Gain insight about available resources related to these child outcomes topics. • Collaborate with others to identify what else is needed. • Identify at least one resource you will explore further.

4. Activity Instructions: Let Your Ideas Fly • During the topical discussions consider the questions listed on the handout at your table. • Write down your ideas about, “what else is needed?” for each of the three topic areas. • When directed, fashion the handout into a paper airplane and let your ideas fly. • Collect an airplane that lands near you, review it, add to it, and share an idea with the large group. • In the end, we’ll collect the planes to share with the ECTA/DaSy and COS LC for review/action. Animation accessed from and made available for community use at GIPHY

5. 1. Capturing Examples of Functioning Across Outcome Areas What’s Working? What’s Not Working? • Unpacking functional skills can be challenging – sometimes it is too tied to domain • Assessments continue to be organized by domain • Evaluation/assessment tools tend to focus on discrete vs. functional skills • Continued perceptions or unintended practice to align domains with outcomes (e.g., motor is O3) • Understanding breadth and depth of outcomes and their personalized nature • Some skills can be doubly classified, others are not – the line between the two can be fine • Rich discussions take time • Increased emphasis and understanding of authentic assessment • Lots more videos available to practice AA • Data systems with prompts for accurate data entry • Document, reference, or “cheat sheet” that highlights keys skills within each of the outcomes • Discussion prompts used as a resource • Age anchoring resources that are organized by outcome area

6. Capturing Examples of Functioning Across Outcome Areas: Resources • Child outcomes jeopardy • Jeopardy Slide • Activity Sheet with answers andwithout answers • Discussion prompts for each of the outcomes ECTA Discussion Prompts • Crosswalks aligning skills to the outcomes ECTA Crosswalks • Functional skill charts organized by the outcomes • Scripts for team discussion of outcomes rating ECTA Scripts for Discussion • Documentation prompts (e.g., on IEPs and IFSPs) • Guidance and Documentation Key for ratings (as on COSF) • Prompts for Documenting Present Levels of Development What else is needed?

7. 2. Age Anchoring What’s Not Working? What’s Working? • Time constraints to gather sufficient information – having more than one visit is needed • Teaming to analyze and synthesize information takes time • Age anchoring tools are typically organized by domains not global outcomes • Hand off of information presents challenges in systems that do not have all staff under one roof • Age anchoring functional skills unique to child/family situation can he hard • Understanding cultural variations around age expectations can be challenging • Increased emphasis on collection of routines-based functioning yields functional information • Embedding COS into IFSP/IEP ties information collected, through those processes, to COS • Commenting on AE-IF-F skills from the beginning can help pave the way for families’ participation • Increasing understanding of AE-IF-F skills and increasing resources/videos on age-expected development (e.g., CDC, MN Help me grow, Pathways, Simply Parenting…) • Engaging families in COS discussion helps achievement of family and children outcomes • Age anchoring informs developmentally appropriate intervention

8. Age Anchoring Resources • Age Anchoring Guidance for Determining Child Outcomes Summary (COS) Ratings ECTA Age Anchoring Guidance • Topical COS PD Activities ECTA Training Activities • One-pager activities ECTA AE-IF-F Activity and Answer Key • Child Development Resources ECTA Child Development What else is needed?

9. Decision Tree What’s Not Working? What’s Working? • Perceived ambiguity with some words • Intermittent/inconsistent use • Quantifying the number of skills at AE, IF, F that justify a certain rating • Ratings based on feeling vs. authentically going through the steps in the tree. • Engaging families in the process/parent friendly language. • The decision tree! • Multiple forms with supporting visuals, multiple languages, culminating statements, with/-out numbers, etc. • Using it helps – increased emphasis is evident • Parents get it • Affords consistency in ratings

10. Decision Tree: Resources • Decision Tree ECTA Decision Tree • Team Decision for Preschool Special Education Services Guiding Question What else is needed?

11. Let your ideas fly! Wrap up your ideas Let your ideas fly Fashion the idea handouts into paper airplanes and let your ideas fly. Collect an airplane that lands near you, review it, add to it, and share an idea with the large group. We’ll collect the idea planes to share with ECTA/DaSy and the COS LC for review and action. What is needed to: • help teams capture good examples of functioning aligned with the outcomes? • increase knowledge of age-expected development and age anchoring? • improve the decision tree and/or its use?

12. What is one resource that you will explore further?

13. Thank you! • Naomi Younggren • Department of Defense (Part C) • naomi.younggren@gmail.com • Chelsea Guillen • Illinois (Part C) • cguillen@illinois.edu • Shannon Dunstan • Idaho (Part B/619) • sdunstan@sde.idaho.gov • Kellen Reid • ECTA and DaSy TA Centers • kellen.reid@unc.edu

14. OSEP Disclaimer 2019 OSEP Leadership Conference DISCLAIMER: The contents of this presentation were developed by the presenters for the 2019 OSEP Leadership Conference. However, these contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1221e-3 and 3474)