Implement “Connect” Interventions

Module objectives

■ During training, participants will demonstrate how to implement both

basic and intensive interventions with students.

■ Based on school procedures, participants will establish policies,

strategies, and expectations for family engagement.

The Check & Connect Model

Preparation Steps 1–4

Implementation Steps 5–6

Implementation Steps 7–8

Step 7

What is “Connect?”

“Connect” is a weekly formal meeting between the mentor and student to review data and implement personalized interventions.

“Connect” Procedures

Mentors have a formal, one-on-one connection at least weekly, and possibly more often if there is a major concern in the student’s life. Weekly meetings take approximately 10-30 minutes, depending on the needs of the student and level of intervention required. Meeting time should take into account student and teacher preferences, as well as academic needs.

Mentors use the “check” data to analyze patterns and consider a student’s level of risk; consider student needs, perspectives, family influences and circumstances; determine resources available in the school and community; and, design

personalized, data-based interventions for the student. (see Implementing with Fidelity, pp. 47-54)

Level of Connect Interventions

There are two levels of Check & Connect interventions, basic and intensive.

■ Basic interventions occur every week for all Check & Connect students. ■ Instensive interventions are added to the basic intervention when a

student is at high rishk in one or more area.

Basic Intervention

The basic level of intervention occurs every week with every student. The mentor has a deliberate, intentional conversation with the student and includes the following:

■ Sharing “check” data ■ Providing feedback

■ Discussing the importance of staying in school ■ Problem solving about indicators of risk, as needed

Formal, weekly meetings help students internalize important messages about school and thus change behaviors over time. Regular meetings also help students cope with the everyday demands they face at school, at home, and in the

community. (see Implementing with Fidelity, pp. 50-51)

Basic Intervention: Problem Solving

Mentors facilitate problem solving about indicators of risk with students

(attendance, behavior, and course performance). Mentors solve problems with students by using a five-step problem solving process:

1. Stop. Think about the problem. 2. What are some choices?

3. Choose one. 4. Do it.

5. How did it work?

Problem Solving Conversation

Instructions: Turn to pages 56-61 of Implementing with Fidelity

to follow along as two volunteers read through a problem solving scenario. Think about the following questions while listening to the demonstration.

■ How did the mentor provide any of the components of the basic

intervention?

» Share “check” data

» Provide feedback

» Discuss staying in school

■ What are some examples of the mentor’s use of reflective

listening?

■ How did the mentor guide the student in developing choices?

Intensive Interventions

Intensive interventions are implemented when students are determined to be high risk in one or more areas. Not all high risk areas need to be addressed at once; rather, the C&C mentor will choose an area of focus, as appropriate, and continue to track all areas in which a student is high risk.

Mentors consider “check” data, student perspective, family circumstances, and available school and community resources to develop customized intensive interventions in collaboration with the student, teacher, and/or family.

Intensive interventions aim to achieve a person-environment fit for a student, which refers to supporting the student to make a behavior change and

encouraging the environment (parents, teachers, and schools) to engage in different policies or practices that support engagement at school and with learning.

Mentors may provide intensive interventions directly or may refer the student to services/resources provided by others in the school or community.

(see Implementing with Fidelity, pp. 51-54)

Intensive Interventions by Subtypes

Mentors also consider engagement subtype when selecting intensive

interventions. Many examples are provided in Appendix 8: Potential interventions: Risk indicator by engagement subtype, on pages 105-117 in Implementing with Fidelity.

Intervention: Capacity Building

Teaching Expected Behavior

Students are often expected to know appropriate behavior; however, mentors may need to give explicit instruction on the expected behavior for a given setting (e.g., classroom, hallways, lunchroom, school assemblies, etc.). Mentors also keep in mind that some behaviors may be appropriate depending on the environment (e.g., hanging out with friends, home, community, etc.).

Mentors may use the “I do,” “We do,” “You do” model to teach expected behavior:

■ I do: mentor models behavior

■ We do: mentor and student practice or role-play the behavior together ■ You do: student attempts the behavior independently and afterwards

reflects with the mentor

Goal Setting

Goal setting is another way mentors work to build capacity within students. Like appropriate behavior, goal setting may also need to be explicitly taught. Mentors show students how school relates to their long-term goals; teach students how to set specific, realistic, measurable short and long-term goals; and, celebrate the completion of every goal. Writing formal goals and monitoring progress with their mentors encourages students to think beyond the present moment. (seeImplementing with Fidelity, pp. 118-119)

My Goals for this Grading Period

Name: _______________________________________ Date: _______________

Long-Term Academic Goal for this Grading Period

What is one long-term academic goal you’d like to reach by the end of this grading period?

_______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________

Is it a SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, timely) goal? Yes No

Why is this goal important to you?

Supporting Short-Term Goals for this Month

These are goals to help you achieve your long-term academic goal identified above. Write two short-term goals that you can accomplish this month and that will help you reach your long-term goal below.

Short-term goal #1:

Is it a SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, timely) goal? Yes No

How important is it for you to meet this goal (on a scale from 1 to 10)?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Not At All Important Very Important

List the most important reason(s) for meeting this goal:

How confident are you that you will meet this goal (on a scale from 1 to 10)?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Not At All Confident Very Confident

List some reasons that you’re confident you’ll meet this goal (or explain what would need to happen for you to become more confident):

_______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________

When do you want to achieve this goal by? _______________________________________

What steps will you take to reach this goal? ______________________________________

Who can help you reach this goal? ________________________________________________

Short-term goal #2:

Is it a SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, timely) goal? Yes No

How important is it for you to meet this goal (on a scale from 1 to 10)?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Not At All Important Very Important

List the most important reason(s) for meeting this goal:

How confident are you that you will meet this goal (on a scale from 1 to 10)?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Not At All Confident Very Confident

List some reasons that you’re confident you’ll meet this goal (or explain what would need to happen for you to become more confident):

When do you want to achieve this goal by? _______________________________________

What steps will you take to reach this goal? ______________________________________

Attend-Engage-Invest Continuum

Beyond Dropout Prevention

Check & Connect goes beyond preventing dropout and promotes school completion, defined as graduation from high school with sufficient academic and social skills to partake in postsecondary options and/or the world

of work. We offer a conceptual framework for moving students toward successful school completion along the continuum of Attend, Engage, and Invest.

Disengaged students are at very different places along the continuum. C&C implementers must set different goals for intervention based on where the student is along the continuum. The goals of each intervention are included on the following pages.

Invest

Goal: Readiness for achieving college, career, and life goals

Engage

Goal: School completion with academic, social, and emotional competence Goal: Dropout Prevention

Intervention Examples

Attend Pick up student for school, provide an alarm clock, problem solve about how to get to school, problem solve with student and parents about attendance, establish a between-classes routine for getting to class on time, etc.

Engage Set goals, self-monitor progress, self-reflect on progress, students select rewards and consequences for achieving/not achieving their goals, help students get involved in extracurricular activities, teach self-regulated learning strategies and persistence strategies, discuss attributions for success and failure, etc.

Invest Set long-term goals, create a plan for reaching long-term goals, discuss the connection between schoolwork and meeting long-term goals, foster lifelong learning by helping students enjoy learning, discuss habits, knowledge, and skills needed for college, engage in career planning, etc.

Attend Intervention Example

Goal: Student will understand the consequences of missing school/class and will improve attendance.

Intervention

1. Brainstorm

a. Mentor divides a piece of paper into three columns and labels the columns “reasons/excuses”, “consequences for self” and “consequences for others”.

b. Mentor and student brainstorm together reasons/excuses for missing school, then possible consequences for the person missing school, and then possible consequences for others (how does a student missing school affect other people?).

2. Share

a. Inform the student of the consequences at your school and in your city and state of not attending school.

3. Discuss

a. Which excuses are acceptable for missing school? How do you know if the reason is acceptable?

b. How do the consequences differ based on reason/excuse?

c. What should you do if you need to miss school for an “acceptable” reason?

d. How can you prevent negative consequences from occurring? e. What are the positive consequences of attending school? For you?

For others? 4. Problem Solve

a. What is keeping you from attending school on a regular basis? b. What are some ideas you have that will help you get to school

regularly? 5. Plan

a. Develop a plan with the student for improving his/her attendance. b. List the valid reasons he/she may have to miss school.

c. List the negative consequences he/she will face if missing school for invalid reasons.

d. Set a goal for attendance together.

e. Establish an incentive/positive consequence for meeting the attendance goal.

f. Discuss progress monitoring: i. Student Self-Monitoring

1. Give the student the calendar page/monitoring sheet. 2. Instruct the student to keep the sheet somewhere

where it won’t be lost and is readily accessible (e.g., front of notebook or folder, hanging in locker, certain pocket of book bag, or in assignment book/agenda). 3. Direct the student to place a star or check on days he/

she attends school. ii. Mentor Monitoring

1. Check student attendance at least weekly. a. Check student’s monitoring sheet/calendar. b. Check online attendance/student information

Engage Intervention Example

Goal: Student will improve academic achievement by a specific amount during short-term intervals, based on goals they set with their mentor.

Intervention

The mentor will work with the student to graph their own progress toward meeting an achievement goal. The student and mentor work together to decide on a long-term goal based on grade-level benchmarks. They then determine the level of progress that should be made at a given short-term interval (e.g., weekly) in order to meet the long-term goal.

Short-term goals will be stated in specific, measurable terms: for example, “(Student) will increase oral reading fluency by 3 words per minute each week until the end of the school year.” At each session, the mentor will provide the student with the data (e.g., oral reading fluency score) and the student will graph it. The mentor will then discuss the results with the student, including progress relative to the last session and whether the student is on track to meeting the long-term goal.

Student should be trained how to use a graph; either paper-and-pencil or computerized graphing can be used, depending on mentor or student preference and availability of technology. Bar graphs or line graphs may be used with either method.

Mentor and student reflect on progress and evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies employed to achieve the short-term goals. Problem solve to choose new strategies if needed.

Invest Intervention Example

Goal: Student will plot a timeline of their past, present, and future and define their dreams.

Intervention

The mentor and student work together to create a timeline for the student’s past, present, and future.

Draw a line vertically down a piece of paper and label the line with ages from 0-100. Instruct the student to begin with the past events on the left side of the timeline and fill in important events or events that impacted their life somehow. Then the student moves on to the present events and adds these to the left side of the timeline as well.

If the student struggles, the mentor should prompt the student by thinking through questions or through providing personal examples of what they would write.

When the student completes the past and present events, they should write future events, or things they want to happen in the future, on the right side of the timeline. The student may get stuck, so provide personal examples or prompt thinking using questions such as:

■ What do you enjoy doing? What don’t you enjoy doing? ■ What are your talents and skills?

■ What do you daydream about most often?

■ Describe three people you admire. What do they do that you think is

great? What makes them special?

■ What matters to you more than anything else? ■ If you could be anything, what would it be? Why?

After the “Future Events” are completed, instruct students to circle three future events that are most important to them now and then set long-term goals for those dreams.

Preparing for a Weekly Meeting

Instructions: Read the additional case study information for your assigned student and refer to the completed monitoring form. How would you prepare to meet with this student this week? What information would you want to cover? How would you conduct the basic intervention? Would you need to implement an intensive intervention? If so, how might this look? Take notes and plan a meeting with your student.

Jason and his Check & Connect mentor, Mr. Lancer, are in their second semester of working together. Jason was initially hesitant to work with Mr. Lancer, thinking he was in trouble; therefore, Jason did not share much about himself. When Mr. Lancer offered to help with troubling situations, Jason would not accept the assistance offered. After getting to know Jason and discussing his class schedule, Mr. Lancer was able to make changes, allowing Jason to have a self- directed credit recovery class for first period, as well as taking an Art class. Mr. Lancer was also able to connect with Jason’s mother and helped her gain access to the parent portal so that she could help monitor Jason’s grades. He also assisted her in finding a low-cost internet program so that she could access grades regularly, and Jason could work on his credit recovery classes at home. Mr. Lancer also worked with Jason’s assistant principal on alternatives to suspension for the tardies Jason was receiving when he was late, due to the bus schedule. Jason finished the school year on-track for graduation, as he recovered credits lost his 9th grade year; however, he earned Ds in most of his classes. Over the summer, Mr. Lancer sent post cards to Jason in July and August expressing excitement for the upcoming school year and being able to work with Jason again.

Upon returning to school, Jason was much more willing to work with Mr. Lancer, and they began the year by putting a plan in place to try out for the basketball team. Mr. Lancer and Jason’s mother also worked together to find a community center program for Jason’s little brother, so that Jason would be able to stay after school for basketball practice, if he makes the team and is eligible to play. Mr. Lancer also met with Jason’s school counselor to arrange his schedule so that social studies, Jason’s easiest subject, would be first period, in case his tardiness continued. They also put him in Physical Education 5th period, so that if he makes the basketball team, his schedule can

easily be switched. Mr. Lancer connected with each of Jason’s teachers to let them know he would be working with Jason throughout the year.

So far, teachers still report that Jason is polite, quiet, and does not turn in homework assignments, with the exception of his art class.

Aria and her mentor, Ms. Fitz, have been working together for just a few months and have had a good relationship from the get-go. Aria and Ms. Fitz usually meet on Wednesday mornings, right at the beginning of the day. Ms. Fitz has worked with Aria’s teachers and other school staff to connect her to an older student for peer tutoring during lunch. Aria sits with her peer tutor two days a week, and they practice math facts while they eat. The tutor has also introduced Aria to other students, and Aria is frequently seen engaging with these new friends during lunch, recess, and in the classroom.

Aria’s teacher reports that while Aria does not voluntarily participate in whole class activities, she will work and even be a leader in small group activities. She is currently not meeting academic standards on benchmark exams but has increasingly come closer to meeting proficiency. She is still frequently tardy to school, and her teacher reports that she seems frustrated when she comes to class and does not know what is going on. Ms. Fitz, Aria, and her teacher have worked on a system of non-verbal cues so that Aria can get on track more easily without being called out in front of her peers.

Ms. Fitz has met with Aria’s parents twice but cannot easily reach them during her planning period, which is from 10:45 to 11:35 each day. Ms. Fitz believes that Aria’s parents are very caring and encouraging of their children’s education.

Role-Play Weekly Meeting

Instructions: In your assigned triads, role-play a weekly meeting using your planning notes. Each participant will have an opportunity in each of the following three roles:

■ Mentor: Consider your planning notes throughout the

conversation with the student, allowing for flexibility and responsiveness to student needs.

■ Student: Read background information and play the part of the

In document C-n-C Comp Imp Participant Guide FINAL [May 2018].pdf (Page 57-75)