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engage2learn ESSA Level 2 Evidence Study

Exploration of the Kentucky Department of Education Equity Playbook Initiative 

Report Sections:

Study Description

engage2learn partnered with the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) to provide an in-person and virtual coaching system that builds capacity and engagement in public schools. Learning Experience Design (LXD) Research, a third-party independent evaluator, was hired to analyze Kentucky School Report Card data from the 21-22 and 22-23 school years and conduct semi-structured interviews with initiative participants. The goal was to measure how engage2learn’s coaching and the Equity Playbook contributed to the faculty's shared and growing use of instructional best practices, and if those best practices impacted participating schools.

Based on statistically significant math and science student outcome findings, LXD validated that this study meets ESSA Level 2 criteria for "moderate evidence" as defined by the Institute for Education Science (WWC). This study will be submitted for review to the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) which is an investment of the Institute for Education Science (IES), the research arm of the US Department of Education. WWC is “a central and trusted source of scientific evidence on education programs, products, practices, and policies” (WWC).  

Learn more about the e2L’s multi-year partnership with the Kentucky Department of Education here.

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Kentucky Department of Education logo

Change in Percent of Students on Grade Level

Schools with High Percentage of Economically Disadvantaged Students

2021-22 vs 2022-23

LXD Study - KDE Equity Playbook Animation

Schools with a high percentage of economically disadvantaged students, we more likely to test on grade level than their comparison peers.

Jump to Key Findings

Sample Group

Sample Size

LXD-Teacher 313

Teachers

LXD-School 55

Schools

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Districts

From 18 participating districts, 55 Equity Playbook Schools received e2L coaching for school staff & classroom teachers during the first year of the Equity Playbook Initiative (2022-2023) as the Equity Playbook Group. Using Propensity Score Matching, 240 similar schools were selected to form the Comparison Group, using 2022 baseline data. A total of 313 Kentucky educators were coached in e2L best practices from Fall 2022 - Spring 2023.

Student Demographics

9%

Hispanic

11%

African American

73%

White

60%

Eco. Disadvantaged

Additional Demographics

Location:

Kentucky, USA

Grade Levels:

K-12

Assessment:

Kentucky Summative Assessment

KDE Student Surveys

KDE Educator Surveys

Program Overview

e2L worked with the KDE’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) Team and participating school districts to lead Kentucky’s equity playbook initiative. The equity playbook is an initiative for educators to address equity through personalized e2L coaching on evidence/research-based practices, content, and resources to address opportunity gaps using the five Equity Pillars:

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Student achievement
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Utilization of funding and resources
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Highly effective staff and high-quality instructional resources
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Disproportionality relative to student discipline
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Culture and climate

As part of the initiative, e2L partnered with KDE to create a set of professional learning competencies to teachers integrate core DEIB and instructional best practices. e2L coaching focused on helping teachers develop proficiency in implementing these competencies in their classrooms.

Key Findings/Results

Change in Percent of Students on Grade Level in Math & Science

e2L-coached Equity Playbook schools became more likely to test on grade level in science than their peers at comparison schools. Among schools with a higher percentage of economically disadvantaged students, students attending e2L-coached Equity Playbook schools became more likely to test on grade level in math and science than their comparison school peers.

ESSA-KDE-Bar-Chart-percent-on-grade-level-math-science

Percent of Students on Grade Level

Among schools with a high percentage of economic disadvantage, students attending e2L-coached Equity Playbook schools (Grades K-12) became more likely to test on grade level in Science and Math than their comparison group peers. Notably, comparison schools declined slightly in Science while the e2L-coached Equity Playbook group increased by 7%

Percentage of Students on Grade Level in Science

Student at Highly Economically Disadvantage Schools

Percentage-Change-Students-on-Grade-Level-Science
Percentage of Students on Grade Level in Math

Student at Highly Economically Disadvantage Schools

Percentage-Change-Students-on-Grade-Level-Math

Disproportionality of Discipline Among Black Students

Black / African American students in e2L-coached Equity Playbook Districts showed a 3X greater drop in disproportionality (-22%) compared to students in Comparison Districts from 2022-2023.
In 2023, Black students in e2L-coached Equity Playbook Districts were 1.6x times as likely to be involved in disciplinary action. Black students in Comparison Districts had much higher disproportionality in disciplinary action (2.18x).

Note: Proportionality is calculated by dividing the percentage of disciplinary action received by subgroup over the percentage of the subgroup in the total population. In 2023, Black/ African American students in e2L-coached Equity Playbook districts received 16% of all disciplinary actions and constituted to 10% of the total student population. Similarly, Black/ African American students in comparison districts received 8.7% of all disciplinary actions and constituted to 4% of the total student population.

Discipline Proportionality of African American/Black Students
Proportionality-of-Black-Students

Educator Feedback from Interviews

LXD Research conducted seven semi-structured interviews with district and school leaders, instructional coaches, and school counselors to discuss Equity Playbook goals, coaching, effects, & suggestions. Interviewees indicated that they found the program goals to be of critical importance for student success, and indicated a strong level of satisfaction with their e2L coaches.

"Students are not afraid to be wrong and get a wrong answer… There’s a lot more students raising their hands, more students being willing to talk about things, even if they are not sure if they’re right or wrong."
Equity Playbook Teacher
"The coaches were fabulous, very personable and kind…"
Equity Playbook Teacher
"I want to create a culture as a principal where my employees really want to be here, work here… I feel like, if I can do that for my employees, then in turn, we’re gonna get that for my students."
Equity Playbook Principal

Conclusions

While additional data analysis and interviews are needed to better measure the impact, it is apparent from the available data that e2L-coached Equity Playbook schools experienced an overall positive effect on school climate and student achievement.

A variety of state, regional, district, and school-level educators and staff who were interviewed across the state of Kentucky indicated that e2L & KDE’s Equity Playbook Initiative was associated with positive effects, especially in schools and districts where it was implemented with fidelity in the first year of the program. The same interviewees indicated that e2L effectively promoted growth by supporting educators, school leaders, and district leaders across the state.

Quantitative evidence reviewed to date has shown promising results in which participating schools and districts showed improvement in a variety of indicators of student academic achievement and school climate. Of particular interest was a series of findings indicating reductions in the achievement gap and disproportionality in discipline among e2L-coached Equity Playbook schools.

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Download Research Summary

To access the research summary and explore more key findings from the ESSA Level 2 Exploration of the Kentucky Equity Playbook Initiative, please fill out the form below.

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