Exploring Continuous Quality Improvement and After-School STEAM Programming in California After-School Sites

• In Event: Advancing Continuous Improvement in Theory and Practice

Abstract

The California Department of Education’s Expanded Learning Division (EXLD) engaged in a multiyear effort to bring Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) mindsets and practices to the 4,500 afterschool sites supported by state funding. Through this effort, EXLD intended to support afterschool sites in becoming learning organizations that engaged in routine self-assessment and improvement work. However, to date there has been no systematic review of how afterschool sites are understanding and engaging with CQI work. Our study provides the first systematic investigation of over 100 afterschool sites to explore how afterschool staff at different organizational levels understand CQI, enact CQI, and use CQI to improve STEAM programming in particular.

Authors

• Jared Boyce, SRI International
  Presenting Author

• Andrea D. Beesley, SRI International
  Non-Presenting Author

• Patrik Lundh, SRI International
  Non-Presenting Author