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INDIVIDUAL LEARNING PLANS Massachusetts Secondary School

Administrators’ Association Summer Institute

July 31, 2014 Lisa Harney College and Career Readiness

Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education

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Individual Learning Plans AGENDA

Setting the stage What is an ILP? Who is involved? ILP Components ILP Best Practices District and School Policies

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MA Adopts Common Definition of

College and Career Readiness

The Boards of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) and the Higher Education (BHE) voted to adopt a common definition of “college and career readiness” in February and March 2013.

This common definition supports a more seamless transition for students from elementary through the secondary level and on to post-secondary education, with educators at each stage sharing an aligned vision of what the end goals are for all students.

These end goals are based on students acquiring knowledge, skills and experiences in three domains: Learning (academic), Workplace Readiness, and Qualities and Strategies (personal/social) with the ultimate goal in each domain being competency attainment.

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Career readiness means an individual has the requisite knowledge, skills and experiences in the academic, workplace readiness and

personal/social domains to successfully navigate to completion an economically viable career pathway in a 21st century economy.

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Planning for Success

How does a student know what careers are possible and appropriate for him/her?

How does a student know what it takes to make that possibility a reality?

What role does the school play in guiding and supporting students in achieving the goals?

How can parents/families influence and support their children in achieving their goals?

What physical, social, and emotional supports are available to students who have risk factors that may hinder their academic and professional success?

How/Where do we capture the planning? 5


What is an Individual Learning Plan? (ILP)

The ILP is: a student-directed, multi-year, dynamic tool that

maps academic plans, personal/social/emotional skill development, and career development education while taking into account each student’s unique interests, needs and goals for post-secondary success.

a process and an instrument

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Presenter

Presentation Notes

Enter the ILP. When we talk about the ILP we are talking about a two prong tool – it is both a process and an instrument I am going to discuss both of these prongs as well as background information and why the Department is now in the process of creating guidance for implementing Individual Learning Plans. Please keep in mind that this not a mandate . . . It is up to a school and/or district to decide on ILP implementation. So . .


The ILP Instrument The ILP instrument: o Is often an online planning tool selected by district/school

leadership. Your Plan for the Future, Naviance, Career Cruising and MassCIS are some examples of, but not the only, online tools currently used by schools.

o Maps the student’s skill attainment across the three domains - academic, personal/social, and workplace readiness

o captures the student’s interests, strengths, barriers, and short- and long-term goals

o includes action steps for moving towards goals

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Presenter

Presentation Notes

While our guidance document will include a template for the ILP, most schools will use an online tool/instrument to document the student’s journey Maps the students journey to post-secondary success: so for academic domain: recording course selections, grades, supports and interventions, assessment results, capstone projects and/or portfolios Personal/Social: might include an out-of-school activity such as completing driver’s education and obtaining a driver’s license which might also be a skill for workplace readiness – to be able to access a job Capturing the student’s interests, goals, and potential barriers – for instance documenting interest surveys and participation in career awareness, exploration and immersion activities Action steps: so if a student identifies a goal as, say, make the varsity hockey team, the student will also identify steps such as work out in the weight room after school, increase number of skating hours, participate in stick handling camp whatever steps will be necessary to achieve the goal.


The ILP Process The ILP process: Engages students in the development of academic,

personal/social and workplace readiness skills Encourages students to set realistic goals and identify the

actions necessary to achieve those goals Encourages students to give voice to barriers and needs

both inside and out of school Is a collaborative effort involving the student,

parent/guardian or other concerned adult indentified by the student, and staff (not limited to school mentor) and can improve communication among all parties

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Presenter

Presentation Notes

The school mentor is a key component of the process. As a partner in the development of the ILP, the mentor has responsibility to support, inform, direct and even challenge the student to make appropriate choices, set realistic goals and always see the connections to life nd his/her future. There should be a trust level between mentor and student that would encourage the sharing of barriers especially those outside of school. For example, a homeless student may not be able to concentrate on studies when he/she is worried about where to go after school and where to sleep at night. The school mentor, if he/she knows about the situation, may help mitigate these barriers by connecting the student with appropriate school and community resources The ILP can be a “safe” way of discussing the student and his/her school issues.


The ILP Process (. . .continued) is ongoing and requires multiple meetings during the year

between the student and his/her school mentor supports a school and district’s improvement efforts to be

responsive to students interests and needs Increases the likelihood that students will accept

responsibility for their future success

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Individual Learning Plan

Who is Involved?

Student: creates a realistic plan for success after high school taking into account personal interests, strengths, challenges, and barriers. Establishing short- and long-term goals assists in generating action steps. Self-reflection provides continual improvement and refined goal setting.

Families: The ILP process can be an opportunity for conversations between a child and identified adult supporters about the student’s dreams, choices, learning needs, and goals.

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Individual Learning Plan Who is Involved?

School Staff: 1. Leadership: Sets the vision and ensures adequate time and resources

are available to implement ILP’s with fidelity 2. School Mentor (e.g., teacher, administrator, counselor): provides

guidance and support in aligning learning with unique interests and goals, accessing career development opportunities and identifying appropriate postsecondary pathways.

3. Teachers and other school staff can use data from students’ ILPs to identify additional experiences to support a students’ learning. (e.g. course selections or differentiated in-class projects)

District: Develops policies for ILP implementation and monitoring and provides adequate resources such as professional development, access to technology, and time for appropriate planning and implementation.

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ILP Components

Personal Information: Basic student information such as name, address, date of

birth, grade, parent/guardian information, etc. Student self-identified strengths and areas of interest Recognition of in- and out-of-school barriers to success Identification of short- and long-term goals Reflections from the student, parent/guardian, and school

should happen at the beginning and at the end of the school year.

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ILP Components

Academic Domain: student identifies the course taking plans needed to enter postsecondary degree/certificate programs that are essential to pursue their career goals.

Course selections aligned with interests and skills and

geared to an identified career pathway Grades Assessments Learning opportunities (dual enrollment, AP, project-based,

contextual learning, etc.) Interventions and accommodations

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ILP Components

Personal/Social Domain: documentation of activities in and out-of-school that support, encourage and assist students in acquiring and effectively applying the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary for success in the workplace and in society. Often called “soft skills” they include: Communication Team work Problem-solving Decision-making Professionalism

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ILP Components

Workplace Readiness Domain: documentation of the career development education, which will include varied and flexible opportunities to access the three stages of career development as outlined in the CDE Guide:

Awareness: Interest inventories, exploring the job market information through websites and publications, career speakers, participating in career days or fair

Exploration: Workshops or classes, “job shadow”, informational interview with local professionals, career-related research projects

Immersion: Career-related clubs and after-school activities, internships, capstone projects, entrepreneurial projects, community-based volunteer work, work-based learning, after-school/summer job

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Implementation Best Practices

Begin the ILP process for ALL students no later than 6th grade Implement ILP development in a structured environment such as

advisory, homeroom, college and career planning time, etc. Consider a college and career readiness framework such as the

Massachusetts Model for School Counseling to foster high quality ILP development

Encourage active participation in the process by student, staff, and families

Identify and document key adults who will share responsibility for action items to support implementation of student plans.

Establish procedures for regular communication between school and parent/guardian including student-led parent/teacher conferences.

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Implementation Best Practices Use an online tool designed to allow students to search, explore, build

skills, and plan for success in all domains. Common tools include, but are not limited to, Your Plan for the Future, Naviance, Mass CIS, and Career Cruising.

Include written reflections by students on strengths, challenges, and areas for improvement across the three domains.

Include written reflections by school personnel and parents to express their goals and aspirations for the student and identify progress being made.

Connect ILP implementation with other student plans, such as the Education Proficiency Plan (EPP) and Special Education transition plan.

Reflect on students’ goals, challenges, strengths, and activities that are identified through the ILP process and/or documented in the ILP when planning for school and district improvements.

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District and School Policies Communicate clear rationale for ILP implementation and connectivity

to the varied school-level innovation and improvement efforts. Establish district and school level leadership teams with key

stakeholders Create Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) to support teachers

and other key adults in understanding the value of the ILP, their role in the ILP process, and the design and implementation of action plan strategies.

Provide professional development to address roles and responsibilities, as well as strategies for engaging families and community partners.

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District and School Policies

Create a systematic process and time in student, staff and school schedules for every student and school mentor to develop, review, and update the ILP on a regular basis.

Establish protocols for how the school and district will follow-through on implementing the student plans and activities established through the ILP process.

Create methods for monitoring the effectiveness of the ILP process by using student data

Ensure that district support systems for students with limited English proficiency (LEP) are in place to ensure clear communication and access in ILP implementation

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Questions and Comments

The Massachusetts Guide for Implementing Individual Learning Plans will be available later this summer. In addition to the implementation guidance, the document will include an ILP Template as well as three self-assessment tools that may be helpful resources to plan for and reflect on ILP implementation in your school or district.

************************ Feel free to contact me if you have additional questions or comments:

Lisa Harney [email protected]

781-338-3903 20

mailto:[email protected]

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