Exploring the Impact of the California College Guidance Initiative

• In Event: Expanding Educational Opportunity for All Students

Abstract

The California College Guidance Initiative (CCGI) was designed to provide resources to help counselors and other educators who support college and career planning to improve their efficacy. Their approach is threefold: first, the CCGI focuses on using technological tools to improve students and counselors ability to support students in knowledge development about postsecondary options and develop plans, of which, the college application is one of those components; second, they focus on the adoption and improvement of entire systems where they can provide training, technological and other services to increase college access opportunities; and third, they focus on working with districts and higher educational institutions to improve their communication and data sharing and to calibrate and articulate where students should be placed.

The CCGI is based on evidence-based strategies, but the early implementation period of the initiative warranted an evaluation aimed at understanding how initiative activities were instantiated in the field. The CCGI has been implemented in a number of districts under a number of unique conditions, so the authors used a case study approach to better understand the perceptions of those using the CCGI tools and resources. The case studies of partner districts allowed the authors to conduct a primarily qualitative examination focused on observation and interviews to compare and contrast findings across sites. Given evaluation objectives that focused on understanding student and counselor knowledge and usage of the CCGI resources, site visits consisted of interviews with counseling staff, students, and at least one administrator. Two high schools within each district were targeted for data collection based upon their college-going rate (one the highest, one the lowest). District-level interviews were conducted with the superintendent, the district liaison to CCGI, an information technology officer, and the director of counseling.

Before analysis could begin, approximately 60 hours of focus group and interview audio tape were transcribed. Word Stat, a content analysis, and text mining software was used to perform content analysis by mining and extracting topics. After completing a review and analysis of the interview and focus group data, incorporating text mining with traditional hand coding, the authors identified the themes and findings from the case studies. Findings centered on awareness of the CCGI at the school and district levels, what college advising practices were happening as a result of implementing the CCGI, barriers, and facilitators to the usage of the CCGI resources, and finally insight into the values, priorities, expectations, and accompanying behaviors in which the CCGI stakeholders engaged.

The CCGI will continue to encounter systems issues as they expose inconsistent advising practices, seek to improve college knowledge of counselors and educators, arm students and parents with most up to date and accurate college and career information and exploration tools, enhance culturally sensitive practices in the schools, address a myriad of data entry issues at the district, school and state level, expose equity and access issues, work with community partners to change the status quo and push for strategic improvements to improve college advising and postsecondary planning for students throughout the state.

Author

• Laura Owen, American University