Abstract
This improvement science dissertation examined how school teams used improvement science routines to strengthen planning and implementation in school improvement. The study focused on two California schools designated for Additional Targeted Support and Improvement (ATSI) or Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) for multiple years. Although both teams developed School Plans for Student Achievement (SPSAs), they demonstrated minimal sustained improvement, suggesting limitations to their underlying improvement processes. Using an improvement science methodology, informed by design-Based research, this study investigated how structured improvement practices, such as root cause analysis, driver diagrams, and Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles, supported schools in developing more inquiry-driven improvement plans. The study used a two-phase PDSA inquiry approach. Phase 1 examined existing improvement strategies and decision-making processes to identify gaps in the capacity for improvement science. Phase 2 piloted a job-embedded professional learning intervention designed to support school teams in applying improvement science routines to their SPSA planning and implementation. Through monthly sessions, teams received an overview of improvement science. They learned to use data, fishbone diagrams, and empathy interviews to support root cause analysis and to develop aims, driver diagrams, and ongoing progress-monitoring routines to support a cohesive theory of improvement. Using primarily qualitative data, supplemented by descriptive quantitative measures, the study sought to generate practical insight into how strengthening school teams’ capacity in improvement science may shift the SPSA planning and implementation from a compliance-oriented process toward a more inquiry-driven process characterized by deeper root cause analysis, a more cohesive theory of change, and more frequent monitoring of improvement efforts. Findings indicated that job-embedded professional learning strengthened team capacity to apply improvement science practices, improved the coherence of the SPSA planning process, and highlighted the importance of organizational routines and structures in sustaining continuous improvement efforts.
Date of publication
2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Language
english
Persistent identifier
http://hdl.handle.net/10950/5131
Recommended Citation
Garcia, Jennifer E., "Building Improvement Capacity in School Improvement Planning" (2026). Education Theses and Dissertations. Paper 48.
http://hdl.handle.net/10950/5131