The Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) is usually coordinated through the State Migrant Education Program (MEP) at the state education agency (SEA) and includes a wide variety of participation from stakeholders, including administrators, data specialists, researchers, educators, parents, and others with various areas of expertise. Time spent at the outset of the CNA process to develop a Management Plan for coordinating this process will help you organize the many stakeholders, tasks, and resources necessary to complete the CNA process.

As the first step in planning, especially if this is your first time conducting a CNA, we recommend that you review the entire Comprehensive Needs Assessment Toolkit to get a clear picture of the process it depicts and to consider how to customize it for your state’s current needs.

Whether you are conducting a thorough CNA after several years or conducting an update to a recently completed CNA, the following questions may be useful in guiding your planning process:

• What are the basic steps outlined for the process, and how might these be tailored to your state’s context and current needs?
• What are the requirements for developing the CNA? (Review Statutes, Regulations, and Non-Regulatory Guidance Related to the Comprehensive Needs Assessment.)
• What resources and expertise will be needed to carry out the task?
• What resources and expertise can you draw on in your program? From the community? In the SEA? From national sources?
• What is your MEP’s capacity to develop the CNA? (Consider staff, time, and available funding.)
• What lessons did you learn from developing the previous CNA for the State?
• Whom should you inform about and seek approval from regarding the CNA?

Following are suggested steps and resources to further support your planning in the CNA process.

1.A.1. Establishing a Management Team

• Establishing a Management Team: Overview
• Sample Agenda for First Management Team Meeting
• One-Page Description of the CNA Process (Sample Handout)

1.A.2. Identifying Planning Resources

• Planning for Teams and Work Groups: Overview
• Recommendations for Work Groups

A Management Team is a core group of advisors that helps develop the Management Plan and oversees the CNA process. A Management Team can be of valuable assistance to State Directors throughout the CNA process. Critical roles Management Team members can play include the following:

• Helping to develop the CNA Management Plan
• Identifying and recruiting stakeholders for the Needs Assessment Committee (NAC)
• Planning and leading NAC meetings
• Developing a profile for your state’s migratory children
• Managing coordination logistics and maintaining archives
• Troubleshooting challenges that arise along the way
• Providing guidance on implementing outcomes from the CNA process
• Writing CNA findings
• Helping to transition from the CNA to the Service Delivery Plan (SDP) process once the CNA has been conducted.

Management Team members may include the following:

• MEP staff
• CNA Project Manager (if someone other than the State Director is overseeing the process)
• Experienced local or regional MEP coordinator
• Data expert who works with your State MEP database or someone from the SEA who oversees or has access to State MEP data
• Evaluation specialist (e.g., MEP Program Evaluator, other SEA evaluation staff, researcher or evaluator from a local university, or external evaluation consultant)

We encourage you to convene the Management Team early in the CNA planning process so that the purpose and requirements of the CNA are understood and roles and expectations are set. Frequent communication is key to the effective functioning of the Management Team.

When bringing a diverse group of people together to work as a team, it is important to spend some time enabling them to get to know one another and identifying the expertise and experience represented on the team. Moreover, they should all agree on the purpose and priorities of the MEP. You may want to consult the materials in Step 2.A.1 Convening the NAC , for suggestions and resources for fostering effective teamwork among the Management Team.

A fundamental element of a needs assessment is having interested and knowledgeable partners to help you in the process. Think about how you can deploy various teams, stakeholders, and experts to help you conduct the CNA.

The number of teams you need and the amount of work you choose to assign to each team depends on the resources available to your SEA. In addition to the Management Team, we recommend forming a NAC to assure input from relevant stakeholders. A NAC is a broad-based committee of partners (stakeholders) that provides input and direction throughout the CNA process. Also, we recommend forming a Data Work Group and various Expert Work Groups to provide advice to the Management Team and the NAC. You may have a number of the same members serving on multiple groups or committees.

Under your direction, the NAC will drive the core work of the CNA process. You should decide how large or small you would like the NAC to be, considering such factors as the size of your program, resources available to support team member participation, and critical representation needed from both within the SEA and externally.

Before establishing the NAC, critical questions to consider are as follows:

• What programs, agencies, roles, and expertise are essential to the CNA process?
• What resources are available to support team member participation?
• What role will the Management Team play in organizing and facilitating the work of the NAC?
• Will you conduct face-to-face meetings? Conference calls? Online meetings?
• Will NAC team members be expected to provide input at the meetings only, or will they be expected to carry out follow-up tasks?
• What management strategies will be needed to oversee a large team?
• What is the best way to maximize the input from a small team?

Thinking through these questions will assist you in recruiting NAC members and establishing the team. Information on identifying key role groups and recruiting NAC members is in Step 1.B.2: Identifying and Recruiting NAC Members.

Work groups should be small and topic-focused. You may want to convene three or four small groups at the same time to concentrate on concern areas. For example, a literacy team can focus on reading issues while a mathematics team addresses math issues.

Expert Work Groups can include technical experts who provide input on research and evidence-based solutions and strategies that will contribute to closing the gaps identified during the needs assessment. These groups can provide information on research and best practices to inform the NAC on solutions and strategies that will increase migratory children’s performance, especially in the Common Areas of Concern identified by the NAC. It is recommended that Expert Work Groups include both NAC members who have expertise and interest in particular areas, as well as individuals who have external perspectives.

Expert Work Groups can be established as the need for additional information, support, or expertise is identified during the CNA process. Work groups should include both those who are participating in the needs assessment process (to ensure continuity) and those from other programs and agencies (to provide external perspectives or to fill the gaps where additional expertise is warranted). Key roles that Expert Work Groups can play include

• reflecting on the needs identified by the NAC;
• discussing the current research and evidence of effectiveness for strategies; and
• proposing solutions and other evidence-based strategies that would work in the MEP context.

Recommended members may include

• experts from academia in relevant areas of concern
• program administrators;
• service providers; and
• members of the NAC (to ensure continuity).

As an example, an Expert Work Group formed to discuss issues of school readiness might include a

• professor of early childhood education;
• administrator from the early childhood division of your SEA;
• local Head Start director;
• local migrant coordinator; and
• NAC member.

It is recommended that at least one of the members listed above be a “full member” of the NAC.

A Data Work Group is a specific type of work group that is often instrumental in assisting the NAC with the variety of data-related aspects of the CNA. Key roles a Data Work Group can play include

• developing Need Indicators and identifying data sources for the Concern Statements generated;
• helping to design the data collection plan;
  
• suggesting sampling and comparison groups;
• assisting with designing the survey and other data collection instruments;
• assisting with data collection and preliminary indicators; and
• assisting with drafting Need Statements.

Recommended members may include (but not limited to)

• program evaluation staff;
• SEA data managers;
• MEP data personnel;
• college or university researchers; and
• members of the NAC.

While budget and travel restrictions may govern the number of face-to-face meetings that may be scheduled for the Needs Assessment Committee (NAC), we encourage you to convene a face-to-face meeting of the NAC to initiate the CNA planning process. The purpose of the meeting is for team members to identify the challenges that migratory children face due to their mobility and to propose reasons for gaps in their academic performance, which subsequently may be developed into Concern Statements.

1.B.1. Identifying Categories and Roles of Participants

• Identifying Categories and Role Groups of Participants: Overview

1.B.2. Identifying and Recruiting NAC Members

• Soliciting Nominations and Recruiting NAC Members: Overview
• NAC Nominations Chart (Template)
• NAC Roles and Responsibilities (Handout)
• Talking Points for Recruiting NAC Members (Reference)

Having a range of perspectives on your committee fosters a more comprehensive process. Consider the following:

• Who will bring clarity to the process?
• How will their perspective or expertise assist with identifying critical needs of migratory children in the state?
• What can they contribute to generating strategies to meet the needs of migratory children in the state?

Consider the following categories:

• Within the MEP
  • State MEP representatives from across staffing levels
  • Regional or local coordinators representing key geographic areas in the state
  • State Migrant Parent Advisory Committee members
  • Parents who are migratory agricultural workers or migratory fishers
  • Migratory (or formerly migratory) children
  • Teacher(s) and counselors of migratory children
  • MEP recruiters
  • Parental involvement coordinators
  • MEP evaluators
  • MEP data specialists
• Within the SEA
  • Federal program administrators (e.g., Title I, Part A; Homeless Education; Title III)
  • Coordinators of state-level initiatives in school readiness, college transition, and other areas
  • Administrators of after-school or summer programs
  • Technical staff knowledgeable on data collection and analysis
• Outside the MEP, various service providers who work with migratory children and their families, such as
  • Health service providers
  • Employers of agricultural migratory workers and/or migratory fishers
  • Staff from housing agencies
  • Head Start staff
  • Staff from partner states of your MEP
• Experts in the areas of concern identified in the CNA process
  • Student attendance
  • Academic counselors knowledgeable in education continuity issues
  • Parent education and support for student learning
  • Access to health services (e.g., nutrition, dentistry, pediatric medicine)
  • School engagement
  • English language development

Consult with the Management Team to Plan the NAC

Use the Management Team for collective thinking regarding the size of the NAC, the types of perspectives that provide focus and clarity, and specific individuals who would make strong NAC members. Check with trusted colleagues for recommendations about who should serve on the NAC. The NAC Nominations Chart provides a template for brainstorming the nomination process.

Recruiting Team Members

A consistent approach to inviting participants to serve on the NAC is recommended. You may want to relay the following information to prospective members:

• Purpose of the CNA
  • Provide prospective team members with the summary of the purpose and process you developed as you conceptualized the project – see One-Page Description of the CNA Process.
• Why they have been nominated
  • Explain the viewpoint, expertise, and experience they will add to the process.
• Overall time they will need to commit
  • Provide a timeline and task plan.
• Roles and responsibilities
  • See NAC Roles and Responsibilities.
• Support for participation (e.g., travel or lodging) that they can expect

For more detailed notes on what to discuss with prospective NAC members, see Talking Points for Recruiting NAC Members.

It is suggested that you follow up the contact with a formal letter, signed—if feasible—by an SEA administrator. If you follow up with a letter, make sure the letter clearly describes the level of commitment needed for participation, which may include the following activities:

• Attending all meetings, including face-to-face meetings, virtual meetings, and conference calls
• Reviewing all materials provided prior to the meetings
• Sharing expertise and perspectives
• Participating in Expert Work Groups or other ad hoc committees as needed
• Analyzing data and developing Need Statements
• Helping to identify gaps in academic outcomes for migratory children (including migratory children identified to receive PFS)
• Selecting and prioritizing solutions that will close those gaps
• Communicating the CNA process and sharing input from other stakeholders and colleagues
• Possibly continuing to participate in the development of the SDP

Some states have found it helpful to develop a profile for its population of migratory children. A profile for migratory children in your state that features data reflecting their characteristics, including those identified to receive Priority for Services (PFS), is a good starting point for the CNA. We recommend that you begin the creation of a profile of migratory children in your state by reviewing the different types of data you may want to include.

1.C.1. Profile of a Migratory Child

• Creating a Profile: Overview
• Representing and Archiving Data

1.C.2. Informative Indicators

• Migrant Education Program Profile Indicator Data: Overview
• Types of Data for MEP Needs Assessment (Reference)

A profile of the migratory children in your state, including migratory children identified to receive PFS, that features data reflecting their characteristics is a good starting point for the CNA. We recommend that you begin the creation of a profile of your state’s migratory children by reviewing the different types of data you may want to include in your profile.

The following lists are provided as a reference point to launch the design of the profile; they are not a required set of data. The size of the profile or the amount of data to include will depend on a number of factors, such as

• what data on migratory children in your state are currently available (e.g., information from State migrant databases, data submitted for the Consolidated State Performance Reports, migrant program evaluation reports, demographic and poverty data, or student performance data from State assessments);
• capacity and time the State MEP Director and Management Team have to devote to compiling the profile;
• what amount of data is needed to create a comprehensive picture of migratory children; and
• what data are available to confirm the emerging picture of migratory children.

You will want to review the State program goals and Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) indicators for the MEP (see Statutes, Regulations, and Non-Regulatory Guidance Related to the Comprehensive Needs Assessment ) as a starting point for the type of data to include. Demographic data and assessment data are key data sources that you should use to construct a statewide profile of migratory children as compared to non-migratory children and/or other appropriate comparison groups. These data are particularly useful if they are disaggregated by: (1) PFS status; (2) grade level; and (3) project area (where the number of students served is sufficiently large for the data to be reliable). ^[6]

Use a Strategic Approach

A strategic approach to developing the profile will keep the task manageable. There is often a tendency to include every bit of data that can possibly be obtained, but you may want to keep in mind a mantra that data collectors and program evaluators use: Collect all the data you need, but only the data you need. We suggest that you identify key categories of data and collect only the data needed for the profile.

Types of data to consider are listed in the Migrant Education Program Profile Indicator Data: Overview.

Data from Other Agencies

Some data may be available from other state agencies in addition to what is available from the SEA. For example, state agencies related to public health may have data that may be useful to your CNA.

Policies on confidentiality frequently prevent the sharing of data across agencies. Depending on the complexity of the data needed, you should discuss the possibility of developing a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with agencies from whom you would like to obtain data with terms for ensuring data confidentiality or for masking the individual identities of program participants. Quite likely, other agencies would welcome the opportunity to obtain more data on migratory children and youth from the MEP as well, so you may want to highlight the opportunity for an exchange to be mutually beneficial.

⁶ From Chapter IV, Section A.15 of U.S. Department of Education, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. (Selected Chapters Revised 2017, March). Non-Regulatory Guidance: Education of Migrant Children under Title I, Part C of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Washington, DC: Author. Please note that while the introduction and Chapter II were revised to reflect considerations of changes to the program enacted in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015, which authorized the ESEA, all other chapters, including Chapter IV, remain unchanged from the non-regulatory guidance document published by U.S. Department of Education on October 23, 2003. Any future chapter revisions will be identified in the chapter title by the date of revision. Therefore, guidance outside of Chapter II may be superseded by changes in the reauthorized ESEA although much of the guidance remains applicable under the ESSA. ↑

It is highly recommended to develop a written profile of migratory children in your state, making the data as visual as possible by using charts and graphs. While the profile is likely to undergo revision during the CNA process, this first draft will form the basis for further work on the CNA.

Note the areas where additional data are needed so that these may be addressed by the data collection efforts in the CNA process.

You may want to develop some snapshots from the profile that may be reviewed easily by the CNA team during its discussions of data. These could be one- to two-page summaries that focus on particular categories of data.

You might also want to consider developing a migratory child fact sheet that includes key findings that you could distribute widely and update regularly. It is a good idea to archive and frequently update this profile, as new data become available.

Following are some examples of data categories, along with specific indicators from each category, that can be used to build your state’s profile of migratory children.

Demographics on Children and Families

Describe the general nature of the migratory child population:

• Qualifying work in the state
• Distribution by age and grade
• Ethnicity
• Language(s) spoken in the home
• English language proficiency
• School enrollment (e.g., enrolled, dropout, or here-to-work)
• School attendance
• Youth employment patterns in any type of work (for secondary-aged youth)
• Geographic location of migratory children throughout the state (e.g., the number of migratory children in local operating agencies (project versus non-project)
• Economically disadvantaged status (e.g., income, housing assistance, or other)
• Number of migratory children served by the MEP
• Criteria for receiving PFS, and numbers and characteristics of children identified to receive PFS
• Participation rates in other school programs, such as Advanced Placement, gifted and talented programs, special education, Title III, homeless education, or child nutrition
• Participation rates in early childhood, summer school, and regular term programming
• Number of identified migratory youth who have dropped out of school
• Number of identified preschool migratory children

Academic Outcomes

Describe the extent to which migratory children succeed in school:

• State performance assessments:
  • Rates of participation
  • Proficiency in reading and English/language arts, mathematics, and science
  • Academic growth as measured by scaled scores
  • School readiness
• Core course completion patterns in mathematics, sciences, and English/language arts, especially Algebra I or the equivalent
• Graduation and drop out rates for migratory children
• Progress of migratory children on previous goals in the most recent CNA or MEP evaluation

Mobility

Describe the mobility patterns of your migratory child population:

• Number (or percentage) of children who made qualifying moves in the past 12 months, 12–24 months, and 36 months
• Number (or percentage) of the population that made qualifying moves on an inter- and intra-state basis
• Overall patterns of mobility within a typical school year (from where children come or go, months in which children usually move)

• Sample Agenda for First Management Team Meeting
• One-Page Description of the CNA Process (Sample Handout)
• NAC Nominations Chart (Template)
• NAC Roles and Responsibilities (Handout)
• Talking Points for Recruiting NAC Members (Reference)
• Types of Data for MEP Needs Assessment (Reference)

Download Sample Agenda for First Management Team Meeting

DISCUSSION TOPICS

• Introductions of Management Team members
  • Overview of the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) Process
  • Roles and responsibilities of the Management Team, Needs Assessment Committee (NAC), and others
  • NAC nominations
  • Brainstorm the categories of stakeholders to be represented on the committee (Specific recommendations of individuals should be noted. After thinking through possibilities, prioritize the list for recruiting members. Determine the appropriate size for your committee.)
• Migratory Education Program (MEP) Profile
  • Review the Comprehensive Needs Assessment Toolkit section on the MEP Profile, including the list of recommended profile elements
• Proposed meetings and activities calendar
  • Review the tasks in the CNA planning process, and modify based on your state’s context
  • Set meeting dates to ensure a realistic timeline for the CNA process (keeping in mind periods of the year when MEP administrative and State data collection burdens are heaviest)
• Follow-up assignments
  • Identify team assignments for recruiting NAC members
  • Assign tasks for preparing the MEP Profile for the first meeting of the NAC

Download One-Page Description of the CNA Process (Sample Handout)

COMPREHENSIVE NEEDS ASSESSMENT FOR THE [ STATE NAME ] MIGRANT EDUCATION PROGRAM

As part of its statutory requirement under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA), the State department of education will conduct a state-wide Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) of its Migrant Education Program (MEP) (Title I, Part C). The CNA will identify the unique educational needs of migratory children and youth to inform State MEP planning to ensure that these children are provided “an opportunity to meet the same challenging State academic standards that all children are expected to meet.” (ESEA, Title I, Part C, Sec. 1306). The CNA is part of a continuous program improvement cycle. In this cycle, each step in program development builds on the previous activity and informs the subsequent one. The steps include assessing needs, identifying strategies, implementing identified strategies, and evaluating implementation results. The CNA process provides an opportunity to review data on migratory children, review their progress toward program goals, identify needs, and propose solutions. The CNA will inform the migrant-specific Service Delivery Plan that will target strategies for needs identified.

The CNA process entails five broad steps:

• Step 1: Preliminary Work
• Step 2: Explore What Is
• Step 3: Gather and Analyze Data
• Step 4: Make Decisions
• Step 5: Transition to a Service Delivery Plan

The CNA will be guided by a Needs Assessment Committee (NAC), a group of stakeholders who have various perspectives, experiences, and expertise in serving migratory children and youth and can provide advice on ways to meet their needs. Data experts will also assist with ensuring that appropriate Need Indicators are identified and effective data are collected.

Members of [ State Name ]’s NAC will include [ fill in categories from your nominations matrix, e.g., MEP coordinators and staff, parents, reading specialists ]. The NAC will meet face-to-face [ X ] times during the process. The work of the NAC will be informed by Expert Work Groups in [ topic areas ].

The MEP State Director, [ Name ], will facilitate the process, enlisting the support of a Management Team that includes [ Names and titles of committee members ].

For more information, please contact [ Name and contact information ]

Download NAC Nominations Chart (Template)

Note: The categories listed are for consideration as you brainstorm nominees.

Suggested Categories:

• State MEP personnel
• Federal programs administrators (e.g., Title I, Title III, homeless education)
• Regional migrant coordinators
• Local migrant staff – recruiters
• Local migrant staff – advocates and counselors
• Local migrant staff – teachers, tutors, paraprofessionals
• Local migrant staff – MEP data entry specialists or clerks
• District and school administrators
• Parents of migratory children
• State or local Parent Advisory Committee representatives
• Migratory children or former migratory children
• State or local coordinating agency staff (e.g., county health department staff)
• Subject matter experts (e.g., reading, mathematics, school readiness, graduation/school completion, summer learning)
• Research and evaluation specialists
• Data collection and analysis experts

Download NAC Roles and Responsibilities (Handout)

Members of the Needs Assessment Committee (NAC) should be able to commit to the following:

• Attending all scheduled meetings. This commitment is important as this Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) process builds on the insights and decisions that the group makes in previous meetings.
• Participating at a high level. Members speak for the interests of migratory children and families that they serve as well as for their colleagues who do similar work.
• Serving as a representative of others who hold a similar position in the state. Members should be asked to poll their colleagues for their opinions concerning various aspects of the CNA and to report back regularly to update them on progress. This feedback loop enriches the NAC’s conversation and informs others as the CNA advances.
• Analyzing data and making decisions. Members are selected based on their experience and job responsibilities. The NAC will need broad representation to help the group understand the information gathered and make decisions when solutions are offered.
• Recommending solutions. Members will identify evidence-based and effective strategies that will address the needs identified in the CNA process.

Download Talking Points for Recruiting NAC Members (Reference)

You may want to use these talking points to help engage potential members in considering membership in the NAC. (Replace bracketed text with relevant details for your state.)

• PURPOSE: The [ State name ] Department of Education is conducting a statewide Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) of its Migrant Education Program (MEP) (Title I, Part C). The CNA will identify the unique educational needs of migratory children and youth to inform State MEP planning to ensure that these children are provided “an opportunity to meet the same challenging State academic standards that all children are expected to meet.” (ESEA, Title I, Part C, Sec. 1306).
• NEEDS ASSESSMENT COMMITTEE (NAC): The CNA process will be guided by a NAC, a group of stakeholders who serve migratory children and youth and can provide advice on ways to meet their needs. Members of [ State name ]’s NAC will include [ fill in categories from your nominations matrix, e.g., MEP coordinators and staff, parents, reading specialists ].
• PERSONAL INVITATION: You have been nominated to serve as a NAC member and [ Name of MEP Director ] is calling/emailing to confirm your willingness and availability to serve on this committee.

(Note: If appropriate, mention the contact who recommended the nominee and why he/she was recommended, e.g., the experience, perspective, or expertise the nominee will bring to the NAC).

The final selection will be made by the [ State name ] Department of Education, confirmed with a formal letter of invitation.

• COMMITMENT: The NAC will meet [ indicate frequency of meetings, include meeting purpose, dates, and locations, if possible ].
  • Specify expectations for tasks to be accomplished between meetings or participation on work groups.
  • Ask the nominee to commit to attending all meetings (to ensure continuity).
  • Explain whether NAC members will receive compensation and what level of travel support they will receive to attend meetings.
• CLOSURE: Reinforce how much the nominee’s participation will be valued and what an important role he/she will play in improving educational outcomes for the state’s migratory children. You might note that NAC members will also gain by learning from colleagues in other agencies who have an interest in serving migratory children.

Download Types of Data for MEP Needs Assessment (Reference)

Below is a sample list of possible types of data and data sources to consider in the CNA. Some of these may already be collected statewide, but where not, a representative sample may be needed. Remember that, if possible, data should be disaggregated by whether migratory children have been identified to receive PFS. You may also want to compare data for migratory children with data for children in other subgroups.

Now that the Needs Assessment Committee (NAC) has been identified (Step 1), we recommend that the NAC meets to review existing data, and discuss and identify concerns as the first part of Step 2, Explore What Is. We recommend the following approach: 1) the NAC begins by reviewing concerns previously identified by the State (or the Common Areas of Concern historically identified by State MEPs) and any goal areas for migratory children; 2) the NAC reviews the compiled profile about the state’s migratory children and any available program evaluation data; and 3) focusing primarily on student need, the NAC identifies new areas of need and establishes criteria and rationales for prioritizing them.

The varied expertise and roles represented on the NAC will be instrumental in analyzing the data provided in the profile to identify concerns and needs that underlie gaps in the performance of migratory children. We suggest that you carefully plan NAC meetings to generate a detailed and accurate picture of the needs of migratory children, including those identified to receive Priority for Services (PFS), so that strategies can be concrete and targeted in effective ways.

Resources (including tools, models, and templates) and additional guidance are available on the following topics:

2.A.1. Convening the NAC

• General Recommendations for Initial NAC Convening
• List of Recommended NAC Orientation Materials
• Sample Agenda for Initial NAC Meeting
• Suggestions for Conducting Group Activities (Reference)

2.A.2. Review of Previous Concerns and Existing Data

• Review of Previous Concerns and Relevant Data: Overview
• Common Areas of Concern (Handout)

2.A.3. Generating Concern Statements

• Generating Concern Statements: Overview
• Developing Effective Concern Statements (Worksheet)

2.A.4. Prioritizing Concerns

• Prioritizing Concerns: Overview

While budget and travel restrictions may govern the number of face-to-face meetings that may be scheduled for the NAC, we encourage you to convene a face-to-face meeting of the NAC to initiate the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) planning process. The purpose of the meeting is to have team members identify the challenges that migratory children face and propose reasons for gaps in the children’s academic performance that will be developed into Concern Statements.

Getting on the Same Page. When bringing a diverse group of people together to work as a team, it is important to spend some time getting to know one another and identifying the expertise and experience represented on the team. Moreover, they should all agree on the purpose and priorities of the Migrant Education Program (MEP).

Questions to consider in this initial discussion might include the following:

• What is the range of experience and expertise on the team?
• What do team members believe, value, and hold important in educating migratory children in the state?
• How do these values align with federal and State goals for migratory children and youth?

Group Processes. For a planning team that meets periodically, in addition to informal and unstructured discussions, we encourage you to use group process activities that foster discussion and generate valuable information that can be included in the CNA. See Suggestions for Conducting Group Activities for a list of, and instructions for, group processes that can be used at various times throughout the planning process. Not only will valuable information be captured in a structured way, group processes ensure that team members who may not be comfortable with speaking up in the whole group will have their perspectives represented.

Initial NAC Meeting. The first meeting of the NAC launches the CNA collaborative planning process. We encourage you to allow sufficient time for reviewing the orientation, purpose, and goals of the CNA, and for generating concerns that get to the root causes of gaps in migratory children’s performance.

The orientation materials that you provide prior to the meeting and during the first meeting will be essential to get everyone on the same page. Orientation materials may include the following:

• Description of the CNA Process (see One-Page Description of the CNA Process)
• Contact information of NAC members, Management Team, and State Director
• Agenda, purpose, and desired outcomes for the first meeting
• Information on Common Areas of Concern related to the educational needs of migratory children (see the sample handout, Common Areas of Concern)
• How do students who are migratory children compare with all other students as well as to a variety of sub-groups

In the first meeting, we suggest focusing the discussion on the unique experiences of migratory children and why they are challenged in succeeding academically compared with their non-migratory peers. While studying student achievement data is an important part of this process, the data should not drive the discussion. It is important to look beyond the data as you identify the unique educational concerns regarding migratory children.

For example, mobility is the most prominent challenge faced by migratory children. Although migratory children share many of the challenges faced by other children living in poverty, the unique challenge of mobility

• causes migratory children to constantly adapt to different curricula and academic standards, homework policies, classroom routines, and course placements, resulting in a lack of educational continuity;
• leads to poor attendance patterns and decreased amount of time in a classroom;
• forces migratory children to make constant adjustments in school settings, friendships, and meeting the academic and behavioral expectations of different schools and districts;
• decreases English language acquisition and development of literacy skills due to a lifestyle that may not expose children to English speakers and English literature; and
• limits access to educational support services, health services, and other social services more readily available to other at-risk children with more stable families and homes.

We recommend leading a discussion on the unique experiences of migratory children and the effect of mobility on their academic achievement. In addition to discussing the unique challenge of family mobility and how it affects student achievement, your NAC will want to review the profile and discuss the following factors:

• Demographic trends in your state over the past few years
  • What are the significant shifts in populations, such as an increase in numbers of out-of-school youth and/or a decrease in numbers of elementary school-aged children?
  • Which families and children appear to be those with the greatest needs?
  • What percentage of migratory children are English learners (ELs)?
  • Of preschool migratory children and migratory children who have dropped out of school, how many have been identified and where are they located?
  • How do students who are migratory children compare with all other students as well as to a variety of sub-groups, such as EL students, on the State assessments? (If your state data seem out of sync with your MEP numbers, you may want to discuss how to improve the identification and reporting of migratory children in your State’s database for the general student population.)
    
• Migratory children identified to receive PFS
  • What is the distribution across the state of migratory children identified to receive PFS? Why might there be more migratory children identified to receive PFS in one part of the state than in another?
  • What are the State’s criteria for identifying migratory children to receive PFS? Are the State’s PFS criteria broad enough to capture all potentially qualifying migratory children?
  • What is the proportion of migratory children who are being served in regular term versus summer term? (If your State dedicates most of its MEP funding to regular term rather than summer, this could be a key factor in your brainstorming of concerns depending on peak population times.)

We recommend that your NAC focus the conversation on the Common Areas of Concern for migratory children identified by OME. See the Sample Agenda for Initial NAC Meeting for some suggestions on how to incorporate the discussion of the Common Areas of Concern in the first meeting of the NAC.

After studying the state’s profile, the NAC can discuss what it has learned. Key questions might include the following:

• What surprised you in the data presented?
• What concerned you most?
• What additional data do you think are needed to make the state’s profile more comprehensive?

A discussion of the state’s profile, the Common Areas of Concern, and other issues related to what we know about migratory children is a starting point for identifying educational challenges for migratory children. Based on these data, NAC members should express their concerns about the migratory children and families and identify the basis for these concerns.

We recommend that you guide this discussion into the development of Concern Statements.

Concern Statements. Concern Statements are clear and consistent interpretations of the NAC discussion points that should be used to guide the CNA development. Concern Statements identify areas that require additional attention for migratory children.

After an initial review of the state’s profile and Common Areas of Concern, you should provide a version of the following prompts to lead into more specific discussion of the challenges your state’s migratory children face: “We are concerned that migratory children …” or “We are concerned that migratory families …”

Criteria for Strong Concern Statements. The utility of the CNA depends on the quality, relevance, and specificity of the Concern Statements developed early in the process. Therefore, it is important for you to take the time to instruct the team on developing strong ones. The following criteria will assist the committee in developing Concern Statements.

A Concern Statement should

• be a complete, concise sentence;
• reflect one of the Common Areas of Concern identified by OME or an area of concern identified by the State;
• be based on the reason that migratory children, as a result of their migratory background and lifestyle, are not doing well in school;
• be stated in terms of concerns about migratory children and families;
• directly reflect the data provided in the profile for your state’s migratory children or additional information that was generated in a NAC discussion on what we know about migratory children in the state;
• be supported with data;
• be specific and concrete in a way that can lead to targeted services and interventions; and
• be a concern that is appropriate for the MEP to address.

Getting to Root Causes. One of the key purposes of the NAC is to determine why migratory children are underperforming in school. Concern Statements are just the beginning. The first set of Concern Statements can serve as the starting point to examining why the concerns exist. We suggest that the NAC spend some time on each of the identified Concern Statements to dig deeper into root causes. As new information is generated to understand the concern more fully, the team should revise the Concern Statements as needed.

A group process that is particularly effective in identifying root causes for educational challenges is the “Five Whys Root Cause Analysis.” For a description and instructions on conducting the activity, see Suggestions for Conducting Group Activities.

The NAC will likely develop a number of Concern Statements that will need to be organized and prioritized into a manageable few.

The NAC could group Concern Statements into categories of related statements. One approach to reducing the number of statements without losing substance is to combine redundant statements. Another approach may be to identify Concern Statements specific to a single area of concern (e.g., school engagement) as crucial for further exploration.

The NAC should develop prioritization criteria, and these criteria should be considered when developing Concern Statements in the CNA. Sample criteria might include the following:

• Clearly relates to the Common Areas of Concern.
• Is agreed upon by a majority of the team members that this is a serious or widespread area of concern.
• Addresses the needs of the most vulnerable migratory children and youth, including migratory children identified to receive PFS.
• Can be confirmed through additional data collection, if needed.
• Is a concern that could realistically be addressed by the MEP.

After the NAC has developed Concern Statements, it is recommended that Need Indicators be developed for each Concern Statement. For the sake of this discussion, a “need” is described as the gap between “what is” and “what should be.”

A Need Indicator is a measure that can be used to verify that a particular gap or discrepancy exists for migratory children and sets a parameter to specify the severity of that gap.

Completing the Linking Concerns, Needs, and Data Table template as you work through the information in this section can help you make clear connections between the Concern Statements, Need Indicators, and suggested sources of data. The completed table can serve as a foundation of the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) Data Collection Plan, covered in Step 3, Gather and Analyze Data .

2.B.1. Identifying Need Indicators

• Developing Need Indicators Through a Participatory Process: Overview
• Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting to Review Concerns and Identify Needs
• Recommendations for Developing Need Indicators
• Identifying Data Sources for Need Indicators (Activity)

2.B.2. Recommending Data Sources

• Recommending Data Sources: Overview
• Linking Concerns, Needs, and Data Table (Handout)
• Linking Concerns, Needs, and Data Table (Template)

2.B.3. Prioritizing Need Indicators

• Prioritizing Need Indicators: Overview

Developing Need Indicators may be accomplished in a variety of ways, depending on your time and resources. In all cases, we recommend that this be an activity that includes input from stakeholders, such as the NAC, Data Work Group, or key stakeholders who may be interviewed on an individual basis. Developing Need Indicators and recommending data sources could be accomplished in a face-to-face meeting or by delegating to a work group that completes the task electronically.

The Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting to Review Concerns and Identify Needs is a suggested format for a NAC meeting that will guide the development of Need Indicators. This agenda can be customized for use by your NAC or for a smaller work group.

A good question to ask the NAC in order to transition from a discussion of Concern Statements to developing Need Indicators is:

How can we measure whether the perceived need around a particular concern actually exists?

Then, ask the committee the following question, as an example:

If we are concerned that migratory kindergarteners are entering school lacking literacy skills, what sources of information will we accept to determine whether this is a real need?

Responses might include the following:

• State kindergarten screening assessment scores
• Parent survey feedback
• Teacher observations
• Data from a standardized literacy screening tool for kindergarten students

This discussion will reinforce the importance of data to support the existence of the concerns listed in the Concern Statements and will lead to defining indicators that will demonstrate that the need exists. You may wish to use the activity worksheet Identifying Data Sources for Need Indicators.

Once the evidence base has been discussed, the next step is to write Need Indicators. You may want to begin the discussion of Need Indicators with an overview of their characteristics.

Need Indicators are as follows:

• Gap-based: Need Indicators are designed to reveal the gap between where migratory children are now and where we would like them to be.
• Evidence-based: Need Indicators are based on evidence that demonstrates there is a means of verifying that a concern exists.
• Valid: Need Indicators reveal a logical relationship and connection to the Concern Statements.
• Useful: Need Indicators are useful in identifying needs.
• Assessable/measurable: Need Indicators are statements that describe needs that can be assessed or measured.
• Clear: Need Indicators provide clear intent and definitions.
• Specific: Need Indicators designate time, type, tool category, who, and so forth.

Expect to write several iterations of the Need Indicators, with increasing specificity for the time, type, and details required. For example, note the development of a Need Indicator for the following Concern Statement:

Concern Statement: We are concerned that migratory high school students are not accruing credits in the core content areas in order for them to graduate on time.

The need implied in the Concern Statement is the gap between the goal to graduate on time and when migratory children graduate. The Need Indicator is a way to measure the gap. Each Concern Statement is likely to have more than one Need Indicator, although this example features only one.

The development of this Need Indicator may go as follows:

• First iteration: Percentage of migratory high school students who have sufficient credits in the core content areas (English/language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies).
• Second iteration: Percentage of migratory children who have completed two years of high school and have two graduation-required credits in each of the core content areas (English/language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies).
• Third iteration: Percentage of migratory children who enrolled in 9th grade in fall 2017 (if current year is 2019) and have two graduation-required credits in each of the four core content areas (English/language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies).

The following criteria will assist with evaluating the quality of a Need Indicator.

A strong Need Indicator

• is linked to a specific Concern Statement;
• provides a measurement for the need, that is, the gap between what is and what is required;
• defines a specific group for which the need exists;
• identifies a time frame in which the measurement of the indicator (data collection) will take place;
• indicates a type of data that would be appropriate (number, percentage); and
• includes details for what will be measured.

Note that, inevitably, some of the Concern Statements cannot be validated with data. The discussion of Need Indicators should be able to identify these concerns, and they may be either altered into a statement for which a Need Indicator may be developed or eliminated from the process. It is recommended that you document why any concerns were eliminated to inform future CNA updates as these concerns may persist and come up as Concern Statements again.

Considering Potential Data Sources

Once a Need Indicator has been developed, the next task is to recommend data sources. It is important to consider what data already exist. Using existing data to their fullest potential will save time and resources for actually collecting data. We recommend that you work with the Data Manager in your SEA or the State migrant-specific database to determine what data exist and how they may be provided to you in a way to address your specific Need Indicators.

To identify data sources, you could ask the NAC or other data experts with whom you work the following:

• Where could you get the data needed to create this indicator?
  • Do the data already exist?
  • If not, what data source should we consider collecting?

When discussing these questions, we suggest that you or the NAC set aside for the moment any inclinations to assume that the data cannot be collected. Focus on where or how you could obtain the information.

Comparison Groups for Need Indicators

When comparing migratory children with other groups of children, carefully selected comparison groups are critical. Comparison groups may vary depending on the data used and the questions asked. The issues in determining comparison groups are often difficult, and expert advice is frequently needed.

In addition to comparing data for migratory children with data for all children in the state, the NAC will need to consider such alternatives as

• all non-migratory children;
• non-migratory children who have achieved proficiency against State standards;
• non-migratory children who have characteristics similar to migratory children;
• migratory children identified to receive PFS; and
• non-migratory children from various socio-economic status groups.

The NAC may also want to plan comparisons between migratory children who demonstrate proficiency against State standards and those who do not. Examining differences between migratory children meeting academic standards and those who are struggling academically may be a useful comparison.

Questions to consider when identifying comparison groups include “What are the differences between these groups?” and “Do these differences offer potential insights to assist all migratory children in achieving academic success?” These questions can help the NAC ensure the appropriate selection of comparison groups.

Gathering as many recommendations for Need Indicators and data sources as possible will help ensure the NAC identifies useful measures. However, you will not likely collect data on all the Need Indicators. Therefore, it is useful to narrow the list and prioritize the data to be collected for the CNA. This may be a task for which you solicit recommendations from the NAC, or you may wish to appoint a work group to do this.

One suggestion is to appoint a Data Work Group at this point in the process that will prioritize the Need Indicators and then continue with developing the CNA Data Collection Plan. We recommend that you include the SEA Data Manager, MEP Evaluator, and other data experts in this work group.

One way to prioritize the Need Indicators is to view them as a part of the larger picture. Note the example in Figure 2.B.1 that is a graphic illustration of viewing areas of concern, Concern Statements, and Need Indicators. You will always want to make sure that Need Indicators ultimately relate to areas of concern. Any Need Indicators that do not relate to an overall goal can be eliminated.

Figure 2.B.1. Connecting Goals and Need Indicators

You will likely want to review the Need Indicators from a standpoint of what is practical to accomplish for the CNA data collection process. Consider the following questions to help you winnow down the Need Indicators to a manageable set on which to collect data:

• Which Need Indicators are the most critical for providing the information needed for the CNA? (Can you prioritize them by the categories of Essential, Important, Good but Not Critical, Not Critical?)
• Are there Need Indicators that can be combined into one data collection effort (e.g., a survey of migratory parents might include several of the Need Indicators)?
• What resources (funds, experts, support staff, consultants, NAC committee members, Data Work Group members, or others) are available for the data collection?
• What access do you have to data (SEA, external agencies)?
• What is your time frame for collecting data?
• From what populations are data needed? What is the feasibility of collecting these data?

• Sample Agenda for Initial NAC Meeting
• Suggestions for Conducting Group Activities (Reference)
• Common Areas of Concern (Handout)
• Developing Effective Concern Statements (Worksheet)
• Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting to Review Concerns and Identify Needs
• Identifying Data Sources for Need Indicators (Activity)
• Linking Concerns, Needs, and Data Table (Handout)
• Linking Concerns, Needs, and Data Table (Template)

Download Sample Agenda for Initial NAC Meeting

Meeting Purpose: To orient team members to the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) process, review the state’s profile for our migratory children, and identify concerns related to migratory children performance in our state

9:00

Introduction of Committee Members, Management Team, and State MEP Director

Group Activity: Team members introduce themselves and provide one statement on what they know and believe about migratory children

9:30

Overview of the CNA Process

9:40

Overview of Goals of the Migrant Education Program

9:50

Overview of the Common Areas of Concern

Group Discussion: Does your experience and expertise in migrant education align with the Common Areas of Concern identified by the Office of Migrant Education?

10:15

Break

10:30

Review the state’s profile for its migratory children

State MEP Director provides an overview (PowerPoint presentation)

Group Activity: Groups of three will address the following questions and present to the whole team – What surprised you in the data presented? What concerned you most? What additional data do you think is needed to make the profile more comprehensive?

12:00

Lunch

1:00

Develop Concern Statements

Instruction and Practice Developing Concern Statements

Group Activity: Pairs will take one of the areas of concern and develop Concern Statements; use worksheet.

2:30

Break

2:45

Review Concern Statements as a whole group using the “Asking Why-Digging Deeper” activity

3:45

Refine Concern Statements

Group Activity: Pairs that developed Concern Statements will refine their statements based on additional information on “root causes” generated in the “Asking Why-Digging Deeper” activity. They will write final Concern Statements on chart paper.

4:15

Prioritize Concern Statements

Group Activity: Team members will be provided 10 sticky dots to note Concern Statements they feel are of highest priority.

4:30

Summarize Prioritized Concern Statements

4:45

Debrief the Meeting (what went well, what could be improved), Next Steps

5:00

Adjourn

Meeting Outcome: List of Prioritized Concern Statements

Download Suggestions for Conducting Group Activities (Reference)

The following group activity formats and exercises are offered as examples of ways to engage the NAC to find common ground, identify and prioritize concerns among the group, and bring forth assumptions. You would likely not use all of these exercises at once, but you may find different exercises useful when conducting a complete CNA with a newly formed NAC versus conducting an update with returning members from a previous NAC.

Affinity Process

An Affinity Process may help a team with diverse members to discover the values that they hold in common and build consensus to facilitate planning and decision-making. The facilitator should provide a series of prompts written on a piece of chart paper. Questions may include the following:

• What is the purpose of the MEP?
• What are the most important things we want for our migratory children and youth?
• What is the goal of the CNA?

Step 1. Provide each team member with a pad of Post-It Notes and ask all team members to respond to the prompts, with each idea expressed in a complete sentence on separate Post-It Notes. They should work independently on this task.

Step 2. Organize team members into small groups, either by role group or in mixed groups.

• Provide each group with several sheets of chart paper.
• Provide the following instructions for the small group activity:
  • One person will introduce an idea that he/she wrote and stick it on a piece of chart paper.
  • Others will post similar or related ideas on the chart paper.
  • The next person at the table will introduce an idea and follow the same process.
  • The process will continue until all ideas are placed on the sheets of paper.
  • The groups will be instructed to create three- to five-word headings for each of the sheets of paper.

Step 3. Reconvene the whole group.

• Ask one group to place one of its chart sheets on the wall.
• Invite other groups to place any sheets that are similar next to the first one.
• Then invite the next group to place one of its chart sheets on the wall.
• Invite other groups to post ones on similar topics.
• Continue this process until all sheets are posted. This part of the process works best if the team members can walk around and read all the posted ideas.

Step 4. As the final step, reconvene the small groups to discuss which concepts they feel are most important and craft a rough statement that uses the short headings from the chart sheets to convey their perspectives. These statements will be shared with the whole group and later provided to the team as guiding principles for crafting the Service Delivery Plan (SDP).

This process will take one to two hours.

Brainstorming

Brainstorming around the question of “Where are we now?” is a quick way to generate a list of concerns or problems that the team feels should be addressed. This technique can be done at various times during the planning process when the group seems “stuck” or the energy is low. The activity can be done easily in five to seven minutes.

The facilitator should explain that team members should state their ideas briefly without explanation, and no idea is to be judged as it is presented. The facilitator should provide a prompt, such as “The greatest challenges for migratory children in our state are …” When the activity begins, the facilitator, and perhaps another person to assist, should capture every idea on chart paper.

After the generation phase, one way to determine which ideas resonate with the group or to prioritize the ideas is to provide each team member with three to five colored sticky dots to place on the ideas that they feel are the most important. The ideas on the chart paper that have the most dots are the ones that should form the basis for further discussion.

Cause Effect Diagram (Fishbone)

This activity will help teams identify causes and contributing factors that must be considered in developing an effective plan. The facilitator should provide a problem statement or elicit one from the group. The problem statement should be written in a box on the right side of a sheet of chart paper positioned horizontally. A line should be drawn across the center of the paper with diagonal lines branching out. The diagram resembles a fish with bones branching out from the spine. On each of the branches, the group can identify causes they feel are related to the problem. (See Figure 2.C.1.) After many ideas are written on the diagram, the facilitator may want to have the team members identify the ones that they feel are most important. Providing each team member three to five colored sticky dots will enable them to note which causes they feel are the most significant and can lead to further discussion for how these will be addressed in the SDP. This activity can be conducted in 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the complexity of the diagram.

Figure 2.C.1. Sample Cause Effect Diagram

Five Whys Root Cause Analysis

This activity is often used for conducting a root cause analysis because it provides a layered approach to understanding a problem. The facilitator should provide a problem statement (or ask the group to provide such a statement) that is written on chart paper. Then, the facilitator will ask simply, “Why?” The facilitator will write “because” on the chart paper and summarize the group’s comments into a new statement. The facilitator will repeat this process three to five times until the group reaches consensus on the underlying cause or causes of the problem. There may be some diverse responses to the “Why?” questions. However, for each analysis, the group needs to focus on one response in order to dig deeper into the root cause of one statement. The facilitator can revisit alternative responses to conduct other analyses later, if he/she determines this is necessary.

Example of Five Whys Analysis

Problem Statement: Migratory children in our state are performing significantly lower in reading and math than other children even though they are provided supplemental services.

Why?
Because migratory children have high rates of absenteeism.
Why?
Because migratory children miss school due to illnesses.
Why?
Because migratory children don’t have easy access to medical care.
Why?
Because there are no medical services near where the families are living.
Why?
Because the area is too rural and population base too small to support a medical clinic.

Note how the process can lead to a very different view of why migratory children may not be performing well in school. The value of this process is to enable team members to consider other strategies beyond instructional solutions for poor academic performance and focuses attention on other issues that might have been overlooked.

SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) Analysis

A SWOT analysis is helpful in identifying a range of considerations that will facilitate or impede the attainment of outcomes as the team develops the plan. The facilitator should have four sheets of chart paper with the following headings: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. After explaining the purpose of the activity to the team, the facilitator should provide a prompt to focus the discussion. An appropriate prompt could be “What are the most important considerations for our state plan to serve migratory children and youth?”

Then the facilitator will invite input from the group and capture ideas on the chart paper, beginning with Strengths.

The following questions will help elicit responses for each of the headings:Strengths

• What are the best features of our migrant program that we can build on?
• What strengths exist among our migratory children and youth and their families?

Weaknesses

• What are the greatest areas of needed improvement in our MEP?
• Who or what agencies and programs need guidance and support to help achieve good educational outcomes for migratory children and youth?

Opportunities

• What untapped resources exist for migratory children, youth, and families in our state?
• Who are the leaders and champions of the MEP that we need to involve?

Threats

• What are the barriers to migratory children and youth succeeding in school?
• What will be the challenges to creating a plan that will achieve the Measurable Program Outcomes we desire for migratory children and youth?

Similar to brainstorming, the facilitator will want to keep the group energized and record all ideas quickly. Then, the group can prioritize the ideas by placing colored dots by the ideas that they feel are the most important. The facilitator should spend a few minutes debriefing and summarizing what was learned from the activity.

Think, Pair, Share

Think, Pair, Share is a technique that fosters individual reflection and group discussion on a topic.

Step 1. Provide a prompt, such as a statement, set of data, or article.

Step 2. Ask each individual to reflect on the statement and note ideas in writing. The facilitator should provide team members with a sheet of paper with questions to consider.

Step 3. Ask individuals to pair up and discuss their ideas. Pairs may represent similar roles or very different roles.

Step 4. After pairs have shared their ideas, ask for voluntary comments on what they have learned from each other. This sharing may generate further discussion on the topic that will provide insight into the MEP.

Download Common Areas of Concern (Handout)

The Office of Migrant Education (OME) has identified Common Areas of Concern that address most migratory children. Review this list and think about the degree to which these areas apply to children in your state. Then consider, are there other areas of concern beyond these?

Common Areas of Concern Identified by OME

Educational Continuity

Because migratory children often are forced to move during the regular school year, children tend to experience a lack of educational continuity. Migratory children experience differences in curriculum, academic standards, homework policies, and classroom routines. Their course placements reflect inconsistencies. The cumulative impact of educational discontinuity is daunting. Efforts to overcome this pattern are needed to strengthen educational continuity.

Instructional Time

Mobility also impacts the amount of time children spend in class and their attendance patterns. Such decreases in the time children spend engaged in learning leads to lower levels of achievement. Ways to ameliorate the impact of family mobility and delays in enrollment procedures are essential.

School Engagement

Migratory children are frequently faced with adjustments to new school settings, making new friends, and social acceptance challenges, which are generally grouped as behavioral, emotional, and cognitive.

Behavioral engagement focuses on the opportunities for participation, including academic, social, or extracurricular activities. It is considered a crucial factor in positive academic outcomes and preventing school dropout.

Emotional engagement involves the positive and negative reactions to teachers, classmates, academic materials, and school in general. Such responses influence identification with the school and a sense of belonging and feeling valued.

Cognitive engagement hinges on investment in learning and may be a response to expectations, relevance, and cultural connections.

Without engagement, children may be at risk for school failure. Migratory children need avenues that ensure they are valued and have the opportunities that more stable children have.

English Language Acquisition

English language acquisition (ELA) is critical for academic success. In the school setting, ELA focuses on the literacy skills applicable to content area learning. Since many migratory children have a home language other than English, migrant programs must find avenues to supplement the difficulties faced by migratory children in ELA due to their unique lifestyle, while not supplanting Title III program activities.

Educational Support in the Home

Home environment is often associated with children’s success in school, reflecting exposure to reading materials, a broad vocabulary, and educational games and puzzles. Such resources reflect parent educational background and socio-economic status. While many migratory parents value education for their children, they may not always know how to support their children in a manner consistent with school expectations nor have the means to offer an educationally rich home environment. Efforts to inform families are crucial.

Health

Good health is a basic need that migratory children often do not attain. The compromised dental and nutritional status of migratory children is well documented. They have higher proportions of acute and chronic health problems and higher childhood and infant mortality rates than those experienced by their non-migratory peers. They are at greater risk than other children due to pesticide poisoning, farm injuries, heat-related illness, and poverty.

They are more likely to be uninsured and have difficulties with healthcare access. Families often need assistance in addressing health problems that interfere with their children’s ability to learn.

Access to Services

Newcomer status and home languages other than English among migratory families can make it difficult for them to access educational and educationally related services to which migratory children and their families are entitled. Since they are not perceived as permanent residents, services become more difficult to obtain.

Download Developing Effective Concern Statements (Worksheet)

Analysis of Concern Statements

Once you have generated a set of Concern Statements, evaluate them to ensure that they meet the criteria for effective statements outlined in Generating Concern Statements: Overview. Below are examples of Concern Statements with evaluations of what makes them effective or not.

• We are concerned about educational continuity.

  Analysis: This statement merely introduces a general topic. It does not convey information about what specific issues are related to educational continuity for migratory high school students.

• We are concerned that migratory children in high school perform 28 percentage points lower in math than all other high school students in our state.

  Analysis: This is not a Concern Statement; it is a restatement of the data and does not indicate a specific challenge or reason for poor performance that would lead to a discussion of an appropriate intervention.

• We are concerned that high school students who move from one school to another may have to enroll in courses that are not strong matches from one location to the next.

  Analysis: This is a Concern Statement that proposes a reason for poor academic performance. On the basis of the statement, we cannot tell if it reflects the data in the profile; however, the statement indicates that there is familiarity with the specific challenges migratory high school students face in the state. Moreover, should additional data be needed to confirm this concern, the statement is specific enough to lead to a question for which data can be obtained,

• We are concerned that budget cuts prevent the MEP from providing adequate services to migratory children.

  Analysis: While this is a concern for most programs, this is an issue over which the MEP has no control and it is not specific to student needs.

• We are concerned that migratory high school students cannot afford yearbooks, class rings, and appropriate clothes for proms.

  Analysis: Although it is important to ensure that migratory high school students are able to engage in non-academic activities to enrich their high school experience, the MEP is targeted toward improving the academic success of migratory children. Community collaborations should be established to support migratory children’s participation in non-academic activities.

Examples of Strong Concern Statements

Goal: High School Graduation

Area of Concern: Educational Continuity

Concern Statements

• Our concern is that migratory children who change schools frequently fall behind in grade level skills and understanding.
• Our concern is that migratory children may not develop the strong academic self-esteem needed to carry them through challenging academic high school courses.
• We are concerned that migratory high school students who move at least twice each year may have to retake courses that are not strong matches from one location to the next.
• Our concern is that motivation for learning may be an issue for migratory children.
  

Goal: High School Graduation

Area of Concern: Educational Support in the Home

Concern Statements

• We are concerned that migratory parents experience difficulties communicating with the school.
• Our concern is that migratory parents lack information about strategies to help children with reading and homework.
• We are concerned that involvement by migratory parents in school activities is limited.
• Our concern is that migratory parents may not understand the degree to which their involvement with school influences their children’s academic success and involvement.

Download Developing Effective Concern Statements (Worksheet)

Meeting Purpose: To review Concern Statements, develop Need Indicators, and identify data sources.

9:00

Overview of meeting purpose and agenda; introduction of any team members who were not at the last meeting

9:15

Review of prioritized list of Concern Statements developed in Meeting I

Group Discussion: Ask committee members the following questions:Does the list of prioritized Concern Statements capture the most significant concerns related to the education of migratory children and youth?Are there any additional concerns we need to keep in mind or incorporate as we move forward?

9:30

Introduction to Need Indicators

Group Discussion: Have the group discuss the following question:How can we measure whether the perceived need around a particular concern actually exists?

Group Activity: Have pairs work together to complete the worksheet provided in Appendix G.4; discuss various responses according to criteria for strong Need Indicators.

10:15

Break

10:30

Develop Need Indicators for Concern Statements

Group Activity: Divide into pairs or triads; provide each small group with a template with several Concern Statements listed; ask each group to complete the table by developing Need Indicators and completing the Sources of Data column (see Linking Concerns, Needs, and Data Table [Handout] and Linking Concerns, Needs and Data Table [Template]).

(An efficient way to conduct this activity is to ask NAC members to bring laptops to the meeting and share the template with Concern Statements as an electronic file for the group activity.)

11:30

Debrief the work of the small groups

Group Discussion: Project each of the completed tables on a screen for group review and record comments, suggestions for additional sources of data, recommendations for prioritizing the Need Indicators, and other ideas.

12:30

Debrief the work of the day (what went well, what could have gone better); review next steps; adjourn

Meeting Outcome: Tables from small group work that depicts Concern Statements, Need Indicators, and sources of data (existing or to be developed)

Download Identifying Data Sources for Need Indicators (Activity)

This activity can be used to support you and the NAC in creating strong Need Indicators and, in turn, identifying potential data sources for Step 3, Gather and Analyze Data. The activity uses the sample table, Linking Concerns, Needs, and Data Table (Handout), where you will see examples of Concern Statements, gaps that define the need, Need Indicators, and suggested data sources. Review this information and use the criteria for strong Need Indicators and consideration for data sources to complete the information for the last Concern Statement provided.

Criteria for a Strong Need Indicator

• Provides evidence specific to the Concern Statement.
• Provides a measurement for the need (the gap between what is and what is required).
• Defines a specific group for which the need exists.
• Identifies a time frame in which the measurement of the indicator (data collection) will take place.
• Indicates a type of data that would be appropriate (number, percentage).
• Includes details for what will be measured.

Considerations for Data Sources

• Where could you get the data needed to create this indicator?
  • Do the data already exist?
  • If not, what data source should we consider?

Download Linking Concerns, Needs, and Data Table (Handout)

Download Linking Concerns, Needs, and Data Table (Template)

Once Need Indicators have been identified, you can begin planning for and conducting data collection, starting with a review of the list of prioritized Need Indicators and recommended sources of data the Needs Assessment Committee (NAC) developed in Step 2, Explore What Is. Each data collection plan will be unique to its State Migrant Education Program (MEP).

A concrete plan for collecting data for the Need Indicators, developed with input from the Management Team, the NAC, and the data experts, can ensure that data collection is efficient, cost-effective, and systematic. An effective plan will specify what type of data is to be collected, from what sources, by whom, and within what time frame, in accordance with the program’s capacity and resources available to carry out the data collection.

The recommended tasks are referenced below, along with examples and templates to support effective planning and collection.

3.A.1. Planning Data Collection

• Identifying Support and Resources
• Role of the Data Collection Manager
• Data Collection Plan (Sample) 
• Data Collection Plan (Template)
• Need Indicator Data Collection Plan (Example – High School Graduation) 
• Need Indicator Data Collection Plan (Template)

3.A.2. Collecting the Data

• Using Existing Data
• Collecting Primary Data
• Data Collection Tips and Considerations
• Guide to Participant Rights (Reference)

Effective data collection requires a wealth of expertise and resources. We encourage you to identify staff in your MEP, state education agency (SEA), or community who can provide advice and guidance to you, along with information on resources and strategies that can be used to streamline the process. Consider the following steps to facilitate ease of data collection:

• Identify the State and migrant-specific information system personnel who should be involved in data collection planning and gathering.
• Determine any additional MEP or state personnel who should be involved.
• If possible, acquire additional expertise in survey/instrument development.
• Explore existing instruments, especially ones previously tested for reliability, that you may customize for your needs.
• If local data are part of the sampling plan, identify school district or local operating agency contacts to assist with local data collection.
• Arrange priority processing of requests for data through your State superintendent or assistant superintendent to ensure timely delivery of data. A one-page description of the CNA process (see One-Page Description of the CNA Process ) or information on the statutory authority for the CNA (see Statutes, Regulations, and Non-Regulatory Guidance Related to the Comprehensive Needs Assessment ) can help justify your request.
• Establish relationships with representatives of your State student information systems to create efficient data collection processes. Often these representatives can access information directly.
• Prioritize use of the State migrant-specific data system for more immediate and direct access to data. Consider telling managers of all data systems involved about the CNA process so that they may suggest ways to facilitate data collection and plan for additional or changed fields in the database that may occur as an outcome of the CNA process.

Once you are ready to collect your data, we suggest you appoint a person or team to lead this process. Because CNA data collection is a complex process that is targeted, timely, and systematic, identifying dedicated persons with clear roles and responsibilities to carry out the various data collection activities will ensure that the Data Collection Plan is followed and ensure timely follow-up when challenges or delays occur.

The Data Collection Manager can be either an external consultant or a member of your Management Team or NAC who is experienced in data collection, data analysis, research methods, or evaluation methodology. We suggest that this person participate in the NAC discussions from the very first meeting to understand the context and purpose of the data collection. Moreover, this person will be instrumental in the development of the Data Collection Plan.

In order for you to stay involved with the process, you might want to clarify the following questions with the Data Collection Manager:

• What permissions and consents must be obtained before collecting certain data?
  • Ensure that the permissions and consents are provided to you and kept on file.

• How often should the Data Collection Manager report on his/her progress?
  • Consider a set schedule for email updates or phone calls.

• Who will have final approval of the data collection instruments, such as surveys or interview protocols?
  • We suggest that you have additional people with data collection expertise to offer feedback on the data collection instruments developed.
  • The NAC or Data Collection Work Group should offer feedback.
  • Ultimately, you, as the State MEP Director, have final approval.

• Within what budget limits must the data collection take place?
  • Clarify priorities at the outset to ensure the scope of the data collection is appropriate and that you can adjust the scope, if needed, without sacrificing data quality.

• In what format will the data be provided to you?
  • Maintaining access to raw data files will allow you flexibility throughout the CNA process and beyond to review and compare information according to various parameters.
  • However, for the NAC to review the data, summaries, graphs, and charts that enable the group to absorb a lot of data in a short amount of time are best for determining the extent of need among migratory children.

Once the parameters and expectations are set, your team should be prepared to begin the data collection process.

If you have access to existing data, consider using them to the fullest capacity because collecting primary data, such as from surveys and focus groups, is time consuming and costly. Much of the necessary data to determine needs already exist in the databases of various programs and agencies.

Following are suggested tips and resources for reviewing existing data:

• Every SEA submits data to the U.S. Department of Education (ED) in the Consolidated State Performance Report (CSPR). The CSPR includes information such as academic progress of all students, program participation (Title I, Title III, special education), and data elements specific to migratory children.
• Additional data may be obtained from the SEA student data system. Most states assign each student a unique identifier; data on each student are submitted at least annually. These data are useful for identifying academic progress, special education status, dropout status, enrollment in gifted and talented programs, and other items.
• Each State has a different structure for collecting data on migratory children. Frequently, some information is on the migrant-specific database, while other information is on a statewide student database.
• Programming and/or specific coding may be required in order to merge data and match students across databases or to identify certain groups, such as migratory children identified to receive Priority for Services (PFS).
• Special data requests take time. If your team believes access to these data is important, we recommend that you build in this time as part of your Data Collection Plan.

Through the process of developing the Need Indicators, the NAC determined the data sources required to assess the needs of migratory children. If your team determines that new data are critical, then establishing steps to collect these data and develop other data sources should be included in your process.

A first step to collecting Need Indicators beyond what is available through State and local data sources is identifying from whom you will collect the data and by what method. Quantitative and qualitative data both serve different purposes and often a mix of both creates the most complete picture of an issue or need. Therefore, we recommend that your team identifies what type of data you want to collect and why in order to serve your needs.

Sampling vs. Statewide Data

Whether data from the entire state should be collected from a representative sampling of districts with high migratory child populations is one of the main decisions to be made in order to examine achievement trends of migratory children. The NAC and Management Team may consider the following when grappling with this issue:

• Will the same samples be used when focusing on the academic achievement of migratory children as when focusing on school engagement?
• How broad will the sampling be?
  • Who will be involved? Local school staff (teachers, counselors, registrars), local MEP staff, parents, decision-makers, or MEP managers?
  • What geographical areas will be represented?
  • How large will the sample be?
  • To what extent will the samples represent migratory children from specific grades or sub-groups, such as migratory children identified to receive PFS, preschool migratory children, and migratory children who have dropped out of school?
• What consideration are you giving to language translation needs so that all selected individuals within a group can fully participate?

Another consideration is deciding when surveys should be distributed, or data collected. This will often depend upon migration cycles and whether your state is a receiving or a sending state. Some data may be most appropriately collected when children enroll in the MEP. This will allow programs to see changes upon entry to the program and after a year or two of participation. State assessment administration and reporting dates may be another crucial decision factor.

Identifying Comparison Groups

Comparison groups are needed in order to determine the impact of the MEP. Therefore, the groups used for this purpose should be reviewed and finalized before collecting data. Consider the following when making decisions about comparison groups:

• One way to identify comparison groups is by determining which comparisons will most effectively show the needs of migratory children. You can do this by looking closely at the way comparison groups were described in your Need Indicators and reviewing the rationale behind the discussion regarding comparison groups.
• Conducting sampling or small pilot studies may be helpful in making final decisions.
• Consider how best to include migratory children identified to receive PFS, preschool migratory children, and migratory children who have dropped out of school, that is, as a comparison group, as part of the migratory child group, or as a separate group entirely.

With limited time and resources, it may not be feasible to collect data on non-migratory child populations. In those cases, the NAC can develop a standard to be used to establish and measure a gap. (Recall we defined a “need” in Step 2.A, Identifying Concerns , as the gap between “what is” and “what should be.”) For example, note the following example of a migratory parent survey question:

Do you know about school requirements (rules) related to attendance (such as the number of days that your child can be absent without penalty)?

In this instance, you will not have a comparison group to determine the level of knowledge that migratory parents should have related to school requirements on attendance. Suppose the survey results indicated that only 30% of migratory parents responded “Yes” to the question. Setting targets will help you establish a gap between their response and what is desired. Targets can be ambitious, modest, or somewhere in between; this will depend on guidance from the NAC. The NAC might decide that the target for this item is that at least 50% of migratory parents should respond “Yes” to this question; therefore, the gap is 20% between “what is” and “what should be.”

In addition, State goals for the achievement of academic content standards can be used to define the gap between “what is” and “what should be” in the performance of migratory children. For example, if the graduation rate for migratory children is currently 60% while the state graduation rate for all students is 75%, the gap is 15% between “what is” and “what should be.”

Selecting Collection Methods

States can use a number of different ways to collect primary data. Examples are

• conducting phone or face-to-face interviews;
• conducting focus groups;
• administering surveys in person or online;
• creating data forms to be completed by either district- or school-level staff at certain times of the school year or when they enroll migratory children; and
• conducting classroom observations.

Conducting Surveys

One of the most frequently used methods of data collection is surveys. Surveys are generally excellent at getting information from a large group of people in a relatively short period. Whether administered in person or online, surveys are useful for gathering data from particular groups of people serving similar roles, such as parents, children, teachers, or service providers.

The following are strategies for obtaining resources for surveys:

• Search for published survey instruments that have already been validated and have established internal consistency and reliability. A number of sources on the Internet can provide examples of relevant surveys. Good sources are the U.S. Department of Education, the Institute of Education Sciences, and the National Center for Educational Statistics. These agencies have extensive examples of student, parent, and staff surveys.
• Contact MEP Directors in other states to see what they use to collect data on migratory children.
• Seek services from commercial publishing organizations or research consultants who can develop a survey on a fee-for-service basis.

When using a survey from another source, keep in mind the purpose and population for which the survey was developed. You will likely need to customize the instrument for the population and context you have in mind. Whether you decide to adapt existing surveys or develop your own, working closely with someone with expertise in this area will ensure that your survey effectively measures the critical indicators.

If you plan to conduct an online survey, keep in mind the extent to which participants, such as migratory parents, will have access to a computer, smartphone, or the Internet. If migratory parents or children are being surveyed and are not likely to have access, school or MEP staff can support on-site administration. Participants can use a school computer or tablet to complete an online survey when they visit school or program sites.

To ensure respondents are motivated and able to answer survey questions, it is important to make sure the questions are clear and concise, especially if items are to be presented in more than one language. This can take a significant amount of time but will pay off later through high response rates and minimal missing data.

Making key decisions about the details of the data collection and how you will oversee the process increases the likelihood that you will have the data you and the NAC need to make decisions. The following are some operational details and suggestions to consider:

• How will you design survey instruments?
  • A Data Work Group can be a helpful resource and can brainstorm survey items.
  • Consultants on a fee-for-service basis can support this process.
  • Adapting survey items from existing public studies and documents can be an effective strategy.
• How will you administer surveys?
  • Online
  • Paper and pencil format (to be entered into electronic format for tabulation)
  • MEP recruiter or advocate interview
• How will you sample the population?
  • Random—everyone has an equal chance of being picked to respond
  • Systematic—picked by a certain number (e.g., every fifth name)
  • Convenient—people you have access to (e.g., migratory parents at a Parent Advisory Council meeting)
  • Stratified—proper representation of groups of people (e.g., children represented across all grade levels, or geographic representation across the state)
  • Purposive—specific people have specific information (e.g., why teenagers drop out of school)
• What comparison groups are appropriate for target setting?
  • All children
  • Non-migratory children
  • Migratory children identified to receive PFS
  • Other mobile populations (e.g., homeless children)
  • Migratory English learners (ELs) compared with migratory non-ELs
• When will you collect data?
  • Schedule according to migration patterns.
  • Avoid times when data burdens are at a peak (e.g., State assessment testing under way).
  • Plan early for data collection when migratory children are in the state for short periods (e.g., predominantly summer programming).

Once the data collection for the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) is completed, it is recommended that the NAC review the data to understand the specific set of needs that were identified as concerns early in the planning process and are now confirmed by the data.

Note in Figure 3.B.1 how the parts of the CNA planning process are related.

Figure 3.B.1. CNA Process Alignment

3.B.1. Analyze Data and Articulate Gaps

• Preparing Data for Analysis: Overview
• Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting to Review and Analyze Data

3.B.2. Linking Need Statements to Goal Areas

• Writing Need Statements: Overview
• Developing a Need Statement (Template)

3.B.3. Prioritizing Need Statements

• Prioritizing Need Statements: Overview

An effective data review and analysis process is one that calls for expert judgment, a range of perspectives, and healthy debate. The NAC can be the right setting for this type of discussion. To make this an effective discussion, we suggest that the Data Collection Manager play an instrumental role by presenting an overview of the data, answering questions, and leading the analysis.

After the NAC has become familiar with the data, the following questions can prompt an effective discussion:

• Do the data make sense?
• Are there sufficient data to validate the needs of migratory children? Of migratory children identified to receive PFS?
• Do the data relate to the Need Indicators?

Group processes, such as those included in Step 2.A.1, Suggestions for Conducting Group Activities will keep NAC members engaged and ensure that all perspectives are voiced.

See Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting to Review and Analyze Data for suggestions for a meeting to guide the NAC through the process of reviewing and analyzing the data.

A recommended framework for analyzing the data is to develop Need Statements, which provide a means of summarizing the outcomes of the data collection and relating them to the concerns expressed early in the process. When written accurately, Need Statements are intended to specify actual, data-supported gaps that have been found between “what is” and “what should be.”

To assist in writing the Need Statements, the following steps may be helpful:

• Describe the need, so that there is clarity and the interpretation is easily understood.
  • Use the data to state concretely the gap between “what is” and” what should be.”
• Specify the comparison standard.
  • With what groups are migratory children (or a sub-group of migratory children) compared?
• Specify the current migratory child status, particularly that of migratory children identified to receive PFS.
  • What do the data show?

Explicitly state the gap between the status of the comparison group and migratory children, specifically migratory children identified to receive PFS, preschool migratory children, and migratory children who have dropped out of school.

Example One. The following example will illustrate moving from the Concern Statements and Need Indicators to Need Statements, based on the data analysis.

Note how the Need Statement in the table below defines the need in a measurable way.

Example Two. Note that not all needs have to be expressed in terms of academic achievement or results on other types of assessments. The Concern Statement written in Example Two may be one of several that address concerns over school readiness. Other Concern Statements might lead to examining data on the gap between how well migratory children perform on a pre-literacy test in comparison with other children. However, the Concern Statement below appears to be the result of a discussion of possible root causes of preschool migratory children not being ready for school. This concern might be one of several factors discussed by the NAC to get to the root of why migratory children are not prepared to enroll in school.

The NAC can write the Need Statements for all the Need Indicators using the Developing a Need Statement template. We suggest that the whole group review each Need Statement by addressing the following two questions:

• Does the Need Statement capture the need represented in the data and provide a clear statement of improvements sought based on data?
• Will the Need Statement demonstrate to outside parties the critical nature of the need (“what is”)?

Once the Need Statements have been written, it will be helpful to prioritize them in order to determine areas of focus. Need Statements can be prioritized based on the following factors:

• Magnitude in the gaps between “what is” and “what should be”
• Critical nature of the need
• Unique needs of migratory children identified to receive PFS, migratory preschool children, and migratory children who have dropped out of school
• Degree of difficulty in addressing the need
• Risks/consequences of ignoring the need
• External factors such as State and district priorities and goals

We suggest that you develop a written summary that lists needs organized by priority along with the rationale for their ranking.

• Data Collection Plan (Sample) 
• Data Collection Plan (Template)
• Need Indicator Data Collection Plan (Example – High School Graduation) 
• Need Indicator Data Collection Plan (Template)
• Guide to Participants Rights (Reference)
• Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting to Review and Analyze Data
• Developing a Need Statement (Template)

Download Data Collection Plan (Sample)

Below is an example list of possible areas of concern, Concern Statements, and Need Indicators. The examples are not meant to be prescriptive, and deadline dates for data collection are included only as examples. Your state’s concerns, needs, indicators, sources, and timeline may vary.

Download Data Collection Plan (Template)

Download Need Indicator Data Collection Plan (Example – High School Graduation)

Goal: High School Graduation

Area of Concern: Continuity of Instruction

Concern Statement: We are concerned that secondary school migratory children who have had their school year interrupted are not accruing the credits needed to graduate on time.

Need Indicator: Percentage of migratory children completing four credits by the end of 9th grade, eight credits by the end of 10th grade, and 12 credits by the end of 11th grade. Credits must be applicable toward graduation (core courses–English, mathematics, science, and social studies).

Source of Data: School records, statewide education database, and migrant-specific databases

Download Need Indicator Data Collection Plan (Template)

Goal:

Area of Concern:

Concern Statement:

Need Indicator:

Source of Data:

Download Guide to Participant Rights (Reference)

Regardless of the format of the data collection (survey, interview, or focus group), participants should be given some basic explanations before providing information. It is recommended that the following points are explained to participants:

• The purpose of the survey is to gather more information that will help State and school programs improve services for migratory children and families.
• Their participation is voluntary.
• They may skip any question they do not want to answer.
• Their responses will be confidential.
• Their responses will be anonymous.
• They are being asked for a certain amount of time (give an estimate) to provide information and their time is greatly appreciated.

It is best practice to obtain consent forms from all participants prior to data collection and keep these on file. Be sure to consult your SEA policies for conducting surveys.

Download Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting to Review and Analyze Data

Meeting Purpose: To analyze data collected for the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) and develop and prioritize Need Statements.

9:00

Overview and Purpose of the Meeting

• Explanation of how Need Statements fit into the overall CNA process

9:15

Presentation of Data Collected

• Data Collection Manager will present a summary of the data organized by Need Indicators
• Facilitator will conduct a whole-group discussion of the following questions:
  • Do the data make sense?
  • Are there sufficient data to validate the needs of migratory children? Of migratory children identified for PFS?
  • Do the data relate to the Need Indicators?

10:30

Break

10:45

Instruction and Practice Developing Need Indicators

• Group Activity: Provide instruction and examples from the Comprehensive Needs Assessment Toolkit (Writing Need Statements : Overview). Have small groups work together to practice developing Need Indicators; process with the whole group, discuss challenges, and clarify the task.

11:15

Convene Small Groups to Develop Need Statements

Provide members of each work group summary sheets for each Need Indicator pertaining to a Goal Area or topic, completed through the Summary of Data Findings. Chart paper will be provided to complete the “what is,” “what should be,” and Need Statement for each Need Indicator. Each small group will discuss the data summary and develop a Need Statement for each Concern Statement and Need Indicator, if it is determined that the data are sufficient to validate the Concern Statement.

12:15

Lunch

1:15

Review of Need Statements

• Each small group presents Need Statements and identifies any concerns it felt was not validated by data; NAC members comment.

2:30

Break

2:45

Prioritize Need Statements

• Facilitator provides criteria for prioritizing Need and asks if these feel “right” or if there are other criteria to consider. Group agrees on criteria.
• Need Statements on chart paper are posted around the room; NAC members are provided with 10 sticky dots to place by Need Statements they rate as highest priorities.

3:15

Review of Prioritized Need Statements

• Facilitator conducts discussion of rankings of Need Statements by noting the top 10 and asking the following:
  • Are there any concerns that should be saved for a future CNA?
  • Are there any low-ranking concerns that can be grouped with those on a similar topic?
  • Are there any Need Statements that should be revised or made clearer?
  • Do the highest ranked Need Statements provide a good foundation for exploring solutions?

4:00

Next Steps and Adjourn

Download Developing a Need Statement (Template)

Goal Area:

Concern Statement:

Need Indicator:

Comparison Group (or Target):

Data Source:

Summary of Data Findings:

Once the most critical needs of migratory children are identified and articulated in a concrete and measurable way, the focus shifts to identifying solutions to meet those needs. The Needs Assessment Committee (NAC) can continue to work on this step of the process, or you may want to establish Expert Work Groups, as described in Step 1.A, Developing a Management Plan for the Comprehensive Needs Assessment Process . Expert Work Groups need not be large, and they can meet simultaneously as breakout groups in one in-person meeting or by virtual electronic means.

The activities described below can help you prepare for convening the NAC and Expert Work Groups to first identify and propose solutions:

4.A.1. Reconvening the NAC

• Preparing for and Convening the NAC: Overview
• Convening the NAC (Reference)
• Recommendations for Expert Work Groups
• Statement of Purpose for Expert Work Groups (Handout)
• Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting as Expert Work Groups

4.A.2. Identifying Potential Solutions

• Identifying and Reviewing Proposed Solutions: Overview
• Proposing Solutions (Process for Work Groups)
• Summary of Proposed Solutions (Template)

The purpose of convening the NAC after the list of prioritized needs is developed is to determine what kinds of strategies will best address the needs.

Identifying Experts

To enlist the support of experts to provide input on evidence-based strategies, consider seeking contacts at national technical assistance centers and other national agencies, colleges and universities, state education agencies (SEAs), and educational consultancies. When establishing Expert Work Groups, consider the following composition:

• NAC members, including representation from a Parent Advisory Council, a migratory parent, and/or a parental involvement specialist (Need Statements focus on parental involvement)
• Faculty and/or researchers from colleges and universities
• Staff from national organizations or technical assistance centers
• Educational program administrators
• Educators of migratory children
• Service providers with experience and expertise in the needs identified by the NAC

Preparing Experts to Convene

Information you may want to provide to members of Expert Work Groups includes

• an overview of the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) process;
• a summary of the data collected;
• the list of prioritized needs, along with copies of the completed worksheets used to develop the Need Statements;
• a statement of the purpose of their participation (see Statement of Purpose for Expert Work Groups ); and
• a meeting agenda (see Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting as Expert Work Groups ).

You may want to ask the experts to do some preliminary thinking about strategies to meet the needs of migratory children, especially if they would have knowledge of strategies with a strong or moderate evidence base for having a beneficial impact, and to bring any articles or research studies related to their areas of expertise and migratory children.

Discussing Need Statements

When the Expert Work Groups break out to address their areas of need, the following tasks are recommended:

• Reviewing the Need Statements relevant to the group’s content or issue area. (We recommend providing copies of the worksheets developed by the NAC related to each Need Statement. Each group will likely have more than one Need Statement related to its focus area.)
• Identifying cross-cutting themes among the Need Statements. Are there strategies that would address several of the needs?
• Discussing any possible root causes for the need that have not previously surfaced. (You may refresh the group on the Five Whys activity that was suggested for the NAC when identifying concerns in Step 2, Explore What Is.

Identifying Potential Solutions

As the Expert Work Groups review research and potential practices to address migratory children’s needs, they will want to be mindful of the target population from any studies or evidence of the program’s effectiveness. While it is recommended to prioritize solutions and approaches with a strong evidence base of their effectiveness, some needs may not be addressed with strategies in which the research demonstrates a clear connection to the specific needs of migratory children. Many of the studies and programs that you will review will be aimed at English learners, Hispanic or Latino students, low-performing students, or non-migratory populations of students.

To support identifying appropriate interventions, the NAC or Expert Work Group should discuss the following:

How does intervention X show promise in helping migratory children be successful in school?

The information generated in such a discussion could inform the identification of promising solutions for migratory children. It is recommended to document the rationale for proposing solutions that emerge from the discussion.

Reviewing the Full List of Solutions

Once a list of potential solutions emerges from the various Expert Work Groups, consider having the NAC meet as a whole group to determine if the full range of the proposed solutions is comprehensive and cohesive. Additionally, a whole-group discussion will allow each Expert Work Group to benefit from the experience and expertise of the larger group. The summary sheets can be amended with the additional input.

Possible discussion questions include the following:

• Is the research and evidence of effectiveness sufficient to justify the solutions?
• What additional input is needed to improve the appropriateness or feasibility of any of the proposed solutions?
• What solutions could be grouped together to form a broader strategy or approach?

Summarizing the Proposed Solutions

We recommend that you or the Management Team compile the proposed solutions into a summary report given to the NAC for prioritization. The completed Expert Work Group template, Summary of Proposed Solutions , can provide a good foundation for this report.

Once a broad range of solutions and related solution strategies have been identified to address the needs of migratory children in your state, the NAC can review and then prioritize the proposed solutions. Possible criteria for determining the most promising solutions may include assessment of potential impact, replicability, and cost.

The information and resources below can help you and the NAC establish criteria for prioritizing solutions and implement processes for reaching consensus. Solutions can be prioritized at the same convening where they were identified or later; however, we recommend that you establish a time-bounded opportunity for the NAC and other stakeholders to provide comments and questions. The NAC can accomplish this in an on-site meeting by generating discussion and reaching consensus on priorities and top-rated solutions.

4.B.1. Establishing Criteria for Proposed Solutions

• Developing Criteria for Proposed Solutions: Overview
• Examples of Criteria for Prioritizing Solutions (Reference)
• Cause and Consequence Analysis (Worksheet)

4.B.2. Prioritizing Proposed Solutions

• Prioritizing Strategies: Overview

Prioritizing the solutions that were generated by Expert Work Groups or other stakeholders will assist in making decisions on which solutions should be recommended for implementation. This task will also assist in instances where NAC members, with their various perspectives and experiences, have some predispositions toward a favorite program or intervention to meet migratory children’s needs. Using criteria to review the proposed solutions will minimize the impact of personal views so that the range of solutions may be prioritized as objectively as possible.

Generate Criteria

The criteria for prioritizing the proposed solutions will vary from state to state. We suggest that the State Director request input from other stakeholders in developing the criteria.

Following are some suggestions for how to approach this task:

• Develop a list of criteria and solicit input from NAC committee members, state-level Program Managers, MEP staff from the State and local level, migratory parents, or other stakeholders. This input may be solicited in a face-to-face meeting of all stakeholders or through phone calls or focus groups. Once you receive input, you and the Management Team can make the final selection of criteria.
• In a face-to-face meeting, have the NAC generate a list of criteria, and then discuss which criteria are most essential for inclusion.
• Have NAC members complete a Cause and Consequence Analysis to rate needs according to their severity (see Cause and Consequence Analysis ).
• Engage in a group process activity that allows the team to visually engage in prioritizing; a process that can work well for any task that requires input on identifying priorities involves providing team members with sticky dots to place next to the items (posted on chart paper) that they feel are the most important to include. Then the group can discuss items with the most dots—why they were selected, which of the most frequently indicated items should be placed in the final list, and if the ones with fewer dots should be included or incorporated with others that are similar but were dotted more frequently.

Suggested Criteria: Some of the most commonly selected criteria for prioritizing solutions in the CNA include the following:

• The extent to which the solution addresses a critical need, evidenced as a large gap between “what is” and “what should be,” the impact on a large number of migratory children, or the impact on sub-groups of migratory children (such as migratory children identified to receive Priority for Services [PFS], preschool migratory children, and migratory children who have dropped out of school)
• Likelihood the proposed solution will reduce the gap between “what is” and “what should be”
• Likelihood that the proposed solution will be appropriate for migratory children in your state
• Feasibility of implementing the solution (cost, training, and resources)
• Whether the proposed solution will address a need that will increase in severity if not addressed early
• Addresses a root cause of poor academic performance of migratory children
• Can supplement existing programs
• Can be enhanced through cross-program or cross-agency collaboration
• Can be supported with available resources

Prioritizing the proposed strategies is the culmination of all the work of the needs assessment process. Having given NAC members all the relevant information and factors to consider, you will want them to recommend which solutions should be included in an action plan, or specifically, the MEP Service Delivery Plan (SDP).

To initiate the prioritization process, we suggest that you provide the NAC a summary report of all solutions generated by the Expert Work Groups, according to the Need Statements.

In prioritizing the proposed solutions, we recommend you implement a process that allows each NAC member to rate the solutions according to the agreed upon criteria. Potentially, this can be done

• individually, by survey or checklist;
• in pairs or small groups to ensure that all stakeholder viewpoints are considered; and
• by a process called “weighted voting,” in which each NAC member is given a set of votes that he/she can cast for one need or distribute over several needs. (Using a visual display of voting “dots” on chart paper illustrates what the collective majority feels are the top priorities on which the State MEP should focus.)

After NAC input is provided, we encourage you to work for consensus on the prioritized list. Consensus decision-making is a process by which groups seek consent, not necessarily agreement, on an issue. Ensuring that the group reaches consensus on the list of prioritized solutions will enable each team member to feel that the list is one that he or she can live with (unlike straight voting where “losers’” preferences are eliminated).

State MEPs with little experience in conducting CNAs and SDPs, may want to limit the number of Needs Statements, keeping those that would form the basis for SEA action to a relatively low number. The greater the number of needs and solutions proposed, the greater the complexity of the implementation plan, due to the number of steps that must be taken at the State and local levels to implement the solutions.

• Convening the NAC (Reference)
• Statement of Purpose for Expert Work Groups (Handout)
• Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting as Expert Work Groups
• Proposing Solutions (Process for Work Groups)
• Summary of Proposed Solutions (Template)
• Examples of Criteria for Prioritizing Solutions (Reference)
• Cause and Consequence Analysis (Worksheet)

Download Convening the NAC (Reference)

When the experts’ participation is arranged, you will likely want to arrange for the NAC to convene face-to-face, if possible. We suggest that the NAC meeting be divided into Expert Work Groups to analyze the needs more fully, determine if any root causes have been overlooked, and identify strategies that have proven effective in addressing the unique needs of migratory children in your state.

Figure 4.A.1 depicts a model for how Expert Work Groups can work in conjunction with the NAC, with discussions among the whole group and activities for each Expert Work Group targeted to the Need Statements most relevant to its area of expertise. It may work well to organize into breakout sessions in a “mini-conference” format.

Figure 4.A.1. Expert Work Groups Model

When you convene the NAC and experts, we recommend you clarify that the purpose of the meeting is to identify evidence-based and effective strategies to meet the priority needs. While some discussion of whether the strategies can be adapted to your state’s context is in order, you can clarify that planning the implementation of the strategies is the work of the Service Delivery Plan (SDP) team. The SDP team will take the work of the NAC and craft the strategies into an implementation plan.

Since convening the Expert Work Groups means likely introducing new members of the NAC team, think about making time for introducing them and ensuring they feel ready to engage with the established group by reviewing the work of the NAC to date and how it relates to the larger CNA process.

Download Statement of Purpose for Expert Work Groups (Handout)

As part of its statutory requirement under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), [ State name ] is conducting a Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) of its Migrant Education Program (MEP). The CNA will identify the unique educational needs of migratory children and youth to inform State planning to ensure that these children can succeed academically and meet State performance goals.

The work of the CNA is guided by a Needs Assessment Committee (NAC) whose first tasks included reviewing data, identifying areas of concern, collecting data to validate concerns, and identifying evidence-based solutions and strategies to propose for a migrant education Service Delivery Plan (SDP). Expert Work Groups play a critical role in informing the work of the NAC.

Expert Work Groups include technical experts who provide input on research and evidence- based strategies that support solutions which contribute to closing achievement gaps between migratory children and other students. The experts are those who have particular knowledge and experience in a MEP Goal Area or area of concern in which needs of migratory children and youth have been identified.

The purpose of Expert Work Groups is to examine the data surrounding a particular need and propose solutions and discuss implementation challenges and recommendations that will guide the development of the SDP.

Download Sample Agenda for NAC Meeting as Expert Work Groups

Meeting Purpose: To identify evidence-based and promising solutions and strategies to address identified needs.

9:00

Introduction of Needs Assessment Committee (NAC) and experts joining for Expert Work Groups

9:10

Overview of the Purpose of the Meeting

9:20

Overview of the Progress of the NAC and Description of the Comprehensive Needs Assessment Process (for New NAC Members)

• PowerPoint Presentation by NAC member

9:35

Revisiting the Prioritized List of Need Statements

• Whole-Group Discussion:
  • Does the list of prioritized Need Statements represent a comprehensive picture of what we feel to be the needs of migratory children and youth in our state?
  • What common themes and issues stand out?

10:00

Break

11:00

Expert Work Groups

• Divide the NAC into Expert Work Groups and provide them with instructions
  • Review Need Statements related to the issue or content area the group is addressing
  • Identify common themes that cut across some of the Need Statements that might require similar solutions and strategies
  • Discuss whether any root causes need to be further explored Discuss possible solutions
  • Select solutions and develop strategies to make them concrete
  • Identify implementation challenges
  • Discuss how solution strategies should be customized for your state
  • Document and summarize proposed solutions and strategies (see the template Summary of Proposed Solutions )

12:00

Lunch

1:00

Continue with Expert Work Group Activities

3:00

Break

3:15

Review of Proposed Solutions

• Each Expert Work Group presents proposed solutions either in a PowerPoint presentation or on chart paper
• Whole group discusses the following:
  • Do the proposed solutions comprise a comprehensive approach to addressing the needs of migratory children and youth?
  • What additional input is needed as to the appropriateness of any of the proposed solutions?
  • Is the research and evidence of effectiveness for migratory children sufficient to justify the solutions?
  • What solutions could be grouped together to form a broader strategy or approach?
  • In what ways could some of the solutions be improved?

4:30

Expert Work Groups Reconvene

• Use input from the whole group to make any revisions to their solutions and strategies

5:00

Next Steps and Adjourn

Download Proposing Solutions (Process for Work Groups)

The key purpose of the Expert Work Groups is to identify solutions for each of the prioritized needs that are best grounded in evidence of effectiveness, validated by implementation experience, and customized for the specific needs of migratory children and youth in your state.

The following is an example of a solution and related solution strategies:

Solution: Migratory children who have dropped out of school will have greater access to enrollment in High School Equivalency Diploma (HSED) programs.

Solution Strategies:

• Conduct pre-HSED or HSED programs on-site at migrant camps in the evening.
• Assign a mentor to help each migratory child who has dropped out of school with enrollment in a HSED program and ensure he/she has books and supplies.
• Provide laptops and arrange Internet access for migratory children who have dropped out of school to participate in online HSED programs.

We recommend the following process to generate a comprehensive set of proposed solutions:

• What solutions, in the form of strategies, programs, or interventions are recommended in the research and areas of effective practice?
  • Break broad solutions into strategies and characteristics so that they are concrete and specific (see below for an example of a solution and a subset of solution strategies based on migratory children who have dropped out of school).
  • Include documentation for where the strategy, program, or intervention has been implemented.
• What are possible implementation challenges?
  • Consider cost, training needed, size of the MEP, replicability of the program (many strategies and programs are so specific to their context that there is no assurance that they would have the same effectiveness if implemented in another state or locality).
• How can these strategies, programs, or interventions be customized for your state?
  • Consider whether the population in which each option has demonstrated success is similar enough to migratory children in your state to suggest a reasonable chance of success within your programs and schools.

When developing solution strategies, consider the following:

• How can the strategy be carried out in the existing organizational context, given the existing resources?
• Are there stakeholders outside the SEA who should be involved, such as educators, local education agencies, or community organizations?
• How can we leverage resources with various approaches such as in combining two strategies to meet multiple needs? Or, conversely, if one solution or strategy seems too large and complex, could it be divided so it can be implemented more easily?

To allow the results from the various Expert Work Groups to be reviewed by the larger committee, consider an appropriate process for allowing the group to review all the proposals comprehensively. For example, you may have the solutions posted on chart paper around the room for NAC members to “walk about” and discuss or write additional comments.

Summary of Proposed Solutions (Template)

Expert Work Group Goal or Content Area:

Members of Expert Work Group:

Need Statements Addressed:

Download Examples of Criteria for Prioritizing Solutions (Reference)

1. Importance and Feasibility—these criteria assist with thinking about the importance of resolving a need and the nature and strength of the organizational orientation and willingness to commit to the endeavor.
   • Importance
     • Size of gap
     • Number affected
     • Need for immediate attention
   • Feasibility
     • Educational efficacy
     • Resources
2. Risk Factors—these criteria assist with dividing the risks associated with the needs into internal and external categories. These are criteria to consider prior to allocating resources.
   • Short- and long-term economic risk
   • Political risks
   • Internal disruption
3. Distributing Resources—these criteria assist with focusing the discussion of resources and how distribution of resources deals with a form of political risk. You should also discuss alternatives for how resources can be distributed and the consequences of each strategy.
   • Should resources be distributed toward one group with the greatest need?
   • Or, should resources be distributed across groups in regard to political concerns?

Adapted from: Altschuld, J. W. & White, J. L. (2010). Needs assessment by analysis and prioritization. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. (p. 11)

Download Cause and Consequence Analysis (Worksheet)

Purpose

• To determine the priority of each need and examine both the difficulty of meeting it and the degree to which it is critical to meeting the goal
• To review the ratings in light of the magnitude of the discrepancy between the present and desired states
• To provide data for consideration in setting priorities and moving to solution strategies

Column 1: List needs that were previously identified in the needs assessment.

Column 2: List all possible “treatable” causes of each need; itemize causes separately for each need. A given need may have more than one cause.

Column 3: Enter a rating (low, medium, high) of the difficulty in meeting the need once it has occurred.

Column 4: List consequences if the cause is not removed and the need is not met; also itemize consequences separately for each need. There may be more than one consequence for each need.

Column 5: Enter a rating, on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 indicating the most critical need

The Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) serves a critical role in informing the development of the Service Delivery Plan (SDP) by the Migrant Education Program (MEP). Once the Needs Assessment Committee (NAC) has prioritized solutions and solution strategies for addressing migratory child needs, creating Measurable Program Outcomes (MPOs) will help frame the SDP in terms of how success will be measured.

To provide further background for SDP development, you should document and summarize the CNA findings. While there is no requirement to have a stand-alone CNA report, the NAC will have generated a great deal of material from each phase of the process, and it will be important to have clear summaries of the information needed to inform the SDP. In fact, the CNA results are an important and required component of the SDP.

5.A.1. Writing the Findings from the CNA

• Reporting on the CNA: Overview
• Developing Measurable Program Outcomes for Prioritized Solutions

5.A.2. Archiving the CNA

• Recommendations for a CNA Archive (Reference)

There is no requirement to generate a stand-alone report on the CNA findings. It is more important that the CNA results are documented and available to ensure that there is a clear link between these results and how the MEP plans to address these needs in the State’s SDP.

You will likely have generated a great deal of information and documentation over the course of the CNA. It will be important to organize and distill this information as you move through the steps of the CNA and ultimately summarize the key information so that it can be effectively shared with the SDP Planning Team and other stakeholders who should be aware of the current needs of migratory children in the state and the proposed solutions for addressing them. Work from the notes, worksheets, and other materials that you have created throughout the CNA process to summarize information on the following:

Migratory Child Profile: Describe the major patterns and data findings that served as a reference point for the CNA. You may highlight data that illustrate general trends in demographics, mobility, and academic outcomes for the population. You may want to include a narrative description of a “typical migratory child” in the state, supported by graphs, tables, or charts. Include information on migratory children who have been identified under the Priority for Services (PFS) provision and other sub-groups, such as migratory preschool children and migratory children who have dropped out of school.

Documentation of the Methods Used to Conduct the CNA: Having an accurate description of the process used to conduct the CNA will support stakeholders’ confidence in the results and plans that stem from the CNA. Consider creating a summary of the following:

• How were initial Concern Statements generated?
• How were Need Indicators prioritized?
• What data did you collect and from what sources?
• From what year(s) did the team examine data?
• What kind of sampling did you use?
• If you used surveys, how were they administered (sampling, languages, paper/electronic interviews, or other methods)?
• What limitations or challenges did you encounter during data collection?
• How were solutions developed and by whom?
• What criteria did the NAC use in prioritizing solutions and strategies?
• What difficulties did you encounter while collecting and analyzing data?

Summary of Results and Implication from Each of the Five Steps: We recommend that you document in summary form the data findings for the Concern Statements and Need Indicators along with a brief explanation of how the data confirm or dismiss the initial concerns. We also recommend writing a description of the Need Statements developed as a result of the data. A table can be useful in showing the progress from initial Concern Statements and Need Indicators to information collected and Need Statements developed. Include prioritized proposed solutions and strategies with an explanation of the prioritization criteria.

Document the Appropriate Next Steps That Follow from the CNA: Summarizing the major findings from the CNA in terms of what was learned about the unique needs of the migratory child population will help build a clear bridge between identifying needs and planning services. Describe any lessons learned about data systems, communication across stakeholder groups, and other areas, that can help the SDP Planning Team understand contextual challenges and supports. Articulating how the CNA results might be used to inform the SDP and evaluation of program services will support an effective continuous improvement cycle.

An additional step that will ease the transition from the CNA to the SDP is to develop MPOs for the prioritized solutions and solution strategies.

MPOs are the desired outcomes of solutions and strategies. They are focused, detailed, quantifiable, and clearly define what would be considered a “success” in meeting a particular need of migratory children.

Key components of an MPO define

• which children will participate;
• what will happen in the program;
• what is expected to happen as a result of participation in the MEP; and
• in what time frame this will occur.

See the table below for an example of an MPO and its related solution strategy.

Solution Strategy and Measurable Program Outcome

MPOs make solutions and strategies concrete and ensure that everyone can easily understand the successful outcome of a strategy. MPOs are the foundation of the evaluation plan within the SDP.

The SDP committee will review all prioritized solutions and strategies in the CNA and select the ones to include in the SDP. Each solution strategy should have an MPO. Therefore, one of the first tasks of the SDP process is to develop MPOs. We recommend that the process of developing MPOs begin in the CNA. Developing MPOs for the solution strategies will enable the NAC to “test” the degree to which MPOs are concrete and measurable.

As mentioned in the Introduction and Overview , the CNA is the first step in a larger continuous improvement cycle. In order to ensure that the SDP stems directly from the findings of the CNA and that those charged with delivery of services understand the connections between the services identified and how those services can meet children’s needs, it is important to engage with the SDP Planning Team and other stakeholders to share the results of the CNA.

It is important to remember the dynamic nature of the relationship between needs and service delivery; the CNA is not meant to become a static report that, once completed, is rarely considered or consulted. Instead, it is meant to be consulted and updated as conditions change for migratory children, especially in response to the programs and services selected to address the gap between “what is” and “what should be.”

The following information may be useful in ensuring that the results of the CNA are well documented and archived and can effectively support the next phase of service planning:

5.B.1. Communicating the CNA

• Sharing the CNA with the SDP Planning Team
• Communicating the CNA to Other Stakeholder Groups
• CNA Dissemination Plan (Template)
• Possible Discussion Questions for Stakeholders (Reference)

5.B.2. Using and Updating the CNA

• Using the CNA in the MEP
• Updating the CNA

As part of the Continuous Improvement Planning Process (see Introduction and Overview ), the completed CNA will be the starting point for the development of the State MEP SDP. When the SDP Planning Team begins its work, we suggest that you provide the CNA results to the team in writing or as part of a presentation and facilitate a process that involves a thorough review and discussion of the CNA.

There are a number of reasons for sharing the findings of the CNA, including program planning, accountability, collaboration, and advocacy.

We recommend that you develop briefs and presentations that are customized for specific stakeholder groups. Most groups will need to be familiar with only the portion of the CNA that relates to their interests and are not likely to read a whole report. Briefs can target information to their interests; bulleted findings, charts, and graphs are an effective way to convey key points in a quickly readable format.

You might consider posting links to the CNA results in an online format and, as information becomes available, notify local program coordinators, recruiters, migrant service providers, Parent Advisory Committees, local education agency (LEA) superintendents, local Title I coordinators, and anyone else who provides services to migratory children and youth.

You might also want to develop presentations so that you can provide a summary of the CNA at state education conferences (e.g., Title I, superintendents, student achievement, school social workers, school counselors, or local homeless liaisons), state education agency (SEA) meetings (e.g., Committee of Practitioners), and conferences of state or local agencies (e.g., Head Start and Early Head Start). Being proactive in disseminating the information in the CNA will result in increased awareness of the needs of migratory children and youth, which will form the basis of new and strengthened partnerships and more informed services.

The resource, CNA Dissemination Plan, provides a planning template for sharing the CNA. We encourage you to complete this template and initiate discussions with various stakeholders on the needs of migratory children and youth. The reference table, Possible Discussion Questions for Stakeholders, may prove useful in helping you determine with whom to engage about the CNA findings and what questions to discuss with them.

Code of Federal Regulations § 200.83(a) states that SEAs are required to develop and update a written comprehensive State plan (based on a current statewide needs assessment). Therefore, all State and local activities should be directly related to the findings and recommendations in the CNA.

In addition, we recommend the following uses of the CNA:

• Use your CNA in the development of your application package for local operating agencies (LOAs).
  • Make the CNA results available to LOAs in hard copy or online. Conduct outreach to make sure they understand the CNA results.
• When the Office of Migrant Education (OME) monitors your state, provide OME staff with the most recent copy of the SDP and provide documentation that illustrates how you have used the CNA and coordinated with LOAs in implementing your CNA. Demonstrate how the CNA was used to develop the SDP.
  • If you are cited by OME due to not using your CNA properly, be prepared to reconvene your Management Team and NAC, revisit the CNA process, make any suggested adjustments by OME staff, and update your CNA and SDP.

To be useful, the CNA must reflect the most current needs and data on migratory children and youth in your state. SEAs and LOAs are required to design and operate their programs based on a current CNA. Because a needs assessment is an extensive undertaking and many of the needs and solutions do not change significantly from one year to the next, it is not practical to conduct a complete needs assessment every year. The Guidance recommends conducting a complete needs assessment every three years or more frequently if there is evidence of a change in the needs of the migratory children in your state. There are some exceptions to this general rule. Key sections of the CNA can be updated annually to ensure that the results of the needs assessment remain current. Information that is updated on an annual basis may includes the data required for the SEA’s sub-grant process and the LOA’s project application. The SEA should make sure LOAs have access to and are familiar with the CNA when developing their local project applications.

• Recommendations for a CNA Archive (Reference)
• CNA Dissemination Plan (Template)
• Possible Discussion Questions for Stakeholders (Reference)

Download Recommendations for a CNA Archive (Reference)

As you move through the steps of the CNA process, thoughtfully archiving the information generated and summarizing the work of the NAC after each convening will pay off substantially when it is time to sum up the findings as you move toward the SDP planning process. The reports, summaries, meeting proceedings or minutes of meetings will likely serve as critical resources during the writing process and will save tremendous amounts of time in generating information for the CNA report. The more efficient the recordkeeping and archiving functions of the team are, the easier it will be to summarize and report the results of the writing of the CNA.

With each NAC convening, consider the following:

• Have someone serve as a scribe or note-taker. Minutes should be prepared and disseminated after each meeting so that CNA team members are reminded of discussions and decision points.
• Write a one-page summary to serve the same purpose as minutes. The summary can also be shared with colleagues not involved in the CNA to 1) raise their awareness about the process and 2) invite their feedback on decision points along the way that might help inform NAC discussions.
• Archive the following information:
  • List of team members (Management Team, NAC, or Expert Work Group) in attendance
  • Minutes and agenda from Management Team meeting
  • CNA timeline
  • Notes from each NAC meeting
  • Worksheets and other information generated through group activities
  • Sub-group summaries
  • Phone records and emails related to the work of the CNA

We recommend archiving the following materials from each step of the process:

• Step 1
  • Process used to recruit and prepare the Management Team and the NAC
  • MEP Profile Indicator Data
• Step 2
  • List of all Concern Statements generated (those that do not make the final priority list can be revisited in subsequent CNAs)
  • Criteria for prioritizing Concern Statements
  • Prioritized list of Concern Statements
  • Documentation of the links between the Concern Statements, Need Indicators, and the Proposed Data
  • List of prioritized Need Indicators
  • Justification for why some areas of concern or Need Indicators were eliminated
• Step 3
  • Data Collection Plan (with updates as the process proceeds)
  • Data Collection Plan by Concern Area
  • Data collection permissions and consents
  • Participant consent forms
  • Data collection instruments or protocols
  • Files with raw data
  • Final data report
  • Data summaries
  • Worksheets for developing each Need Statement
  • List of prioritized needs
  • Written recommendations on the prioritizing of needs, with criteria and explanation for prioritization
• Step 4
  • List of Expert Work Groups and their members
  • Resumes of experts, including contact information
  • Bibliography of research or articles referenced
  • Summary of work of each Expert Work Group, including a list of proposed solutions categorized by Need Statements
  • Notes on additional input on each of the solutions and whole-group NAC discussion
  • Summary report of all proposed solutions
  • Criteria for prioritization of proposed solutions
  • Prioritized list of criteria categorized by need
• Step 5
  • MPOs for each solution strategy
  • Documentation of how and where the CNA results were disseminated
  • Any written feedback on the CNA results from reviewers and stakeholders and notes on verbal feedback

Download CNA Dissemination Plan (Template)

Download Possible Discussion Questions for Stakeholders (Reference)