Participation in a Professional Development Program on Culturally Responsive Practices in Wisconsin

• In Event: Poster Session 13
  In Poster Session: PS 13 Topic - Education, Schooling

Abstract

Introduction: There are disparities in educational achievement between Black and White students across the country. These disparities are apparent as early as preschool and persist throughout K–12 education. In Wisconsin, the achievement gap between Black and White students is larger than in all other states. Recognizing the stark achievement disparities between Black students and their White peers in Wisconsin, improving educational outcomes among Black students has become one of the state’s highest educational priorities. To do so, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) encourages schools to implement culturally responsive practices. To provide training on culturally responsive practices, the Wisconsin Response to Intervention Center began offering the Building Culturally Responsive Systems professional development program in 2013/14 with funding from DPI. This program trains teachers and administrators in culturally responsive practices. This study examines the uptake and implementation of the program for culturally responsive practices in Wisconsin and will provide information to education leaders and the program developers about participation in the program to inform further research and development of the program. Specifically, this study examined the characteristics of schools that participated in the program and examined the relationship between program participation and school outcomes.
Methods: Using data from the 2012/13–2018/19 school years, the study team calculated the number and percentage of schools that participated in the program, as well as the number and percentage of schools that reported implementing culturally responsive practices. The study team compared key demographic characteristics of schools that participated in the program and nonparticipating schools. Additionally, the study team examined the relationship between participation in the program and the school-level outcomes (e.g., attendance and suspensions/expulsions) by conducting a series of regression analyses. The regression analyses examined whether program participation predicted school outcomes one year, two years, and three years after the program, after accounting for school characteristics.
Results: The results of this study are embargoed until the study is released in late fall 2020.
Implications: The results of this study will provide state and school district leaders with more in-depth knowledge about the characteristics of the schools that sent teachers and administrators to participate in the program so they can determine whether the schools that might benefit the most from the program are participating. The results of this study will be used to better understand how participation in the program may be related to school-level academic and behavioral outcomes. Additionally, the results will be used to guide follow-up studies of the program.

Authors

• Jameela Conway-Turner, American Institutes for Research
  Presenting Author

• Kyle Fagan, American Institutes for Research
  Non-Presenting Author

• Alex Mendoza
  Non-Presenting Author

• Daniyal Rahim, American Institutes for Research
  Non-Presenting Author