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December 2015 PATHWAYS RESOURCE CENTER

Individualized Learning Plans: Implementation in Joliet Township High School District 204

Joel R. Malin, Asia Fuller Hamilton, and Donald G. Hackmann

adoption of certain reforms, often related to the effort to improve students’ college and career readiness. Special fo-cus is aimed toward those whose backgrounds suggest they may need more resources or individualized opportunities in order to achieve desired outcomes. Federal programs are—since the 1993 enactment of the Government Per-formance Results Act—subject to increased reporting and performance accountability requirements, some of which relate to transition planning and post-school attainment. The America Competes Act (P.L. 110-69), enacted in 2007, further expands reporting expectations and charges states with the responsibility of developing comprehensive, easi-ly accessible P-16 data systems. As noted by Phelps et al., “The creation of data systems with the capacity to monitor the progress of individual learners is a major transforma-tion in the education and workforce development commu-nities” (p. 7).

Other defining features of ILPs include their considerable breadth and complexity. Fox (2014), for instance, identified 25 key components to a high quality ILP, which fit within five areas. It should be noted that different ILP models may emphasize different components; nevertheless, Bloom and Kissane (2011) identified numerous common characteris-tics of state ILPs. Among the most common characteris-tics are “an academic planner; identification of academic, career, and personal goals; a validated career exploration tool; a resume builder; and the ability to update annually” (p. 6). Fox (2014) also suggested that there can be three phases of the ILP process (exploring, planning, and tran-sitioning) for students at different grade levels, and four phases to the implementation process for schools/districts that wish to adopt them. The implementation of ILPs is challenging because it inevitably requires the collabora-tion and contributions of many individuals. Although ILPs should fit within a school’s comprehensive counseling pro-gram and be amenable to counselor leadership, it is recom-mended that a whole-school approach be taken to support their use (American School Counselor Association, 2006). To be most successful, students could use the support and

In today’s highly competitive labor market, fostering effec-tive transitions for students from high school into college and careers is imperative (Symonds, Schwartz, & Fergu-son, 2011). Accordingly, numerous policies and practices are aimed to improve students’ college and career prepara-tion. Against this backdrop, individualized learning plans (ILPs; also referred to as personal (PLPs), individual ca-reer (ICPs), or student learning plans (SLPs)) are increas-ingly viewed as a “lynchpin tool for linking the twin goals of college readiness and career readiness” (Solberg, Wills, Redmon, & Skaff, 2014, p. 1). ILPs are “a document and a process that students use–with support from school coun-selors, teachers, and parents–to define their career goals and postsecondary plans in order to inform the student’s decisions about their courses and activities throughout high school” (National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth, n.p., 2015). Many districts have im-plemented ILPs as a way to support students as they make decisions regarding their career and postsecondary futures. Thirty-eight states to date are utilizing ILPs as a resource to support college and career readiness; 21 of these states require all students, beginning in the early middle school, to utilize ILP processes (Solberg et al., 2014). However, limited research exists to support their effectiveness in practice or to describe the conditions and processes under-lying successful ILP rollout and implementation. There-fore, this research brief provides a description of the im-plementation of an ILP process in Joliet Township High School District 204.

ILPs: Policy Context, Defining Features, and Implementation Complexities

Several acts and federal financial investments have served to stimulate reforms and/or orient state-level policymak-ers’ thinking toward approaches such as ILPs (Phelps, Durham, & Wills, 2011). For instance, investments in ed-ucation as part of the American Recovery and Reinvest-ment Act (ARRA) of 2009 were made contingent upon the

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guidance of various individuals, including an advisor and family members (Fox). ILP-focused activities and curricula also should be provided so that students acquire relevant goal-setting skills (Solberg et al., 2014). Implementation strategies should include coordination and collaboration with business and industry (Fox; Solberg et al., 2014); ca-reer exploration and domain-specific learning ideally will be afforded through such real-life experiences as site visits, work-based learning opportunities, and internships.

Given these complexities, one can expect implementation to be challenging and at least partially reliant upon strong and sustained leadership practices. State- and federal-lev-el leadership and supports are also likely to be influential, because these new innovations may require technological or professional development infrastructure (Solberg et al., 2014).

Implementation of ILPs: Review of Research

Although the approach appears promising based on research support for several of its common components, very little empirical research currently exists to support the efficacy of ILPs as a comprehensive system. Much of what is available, and which tends to be perceptual in nature, derives from a set of studies commissioned by the U.S. Department of La-bor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and summarized in a report by Solberg et al. (2014). We rely primarily upon this report and individual studies described therein. First, we describe a theory of change for the imple-mentation of ILPs, also presented by these authors.

Solberg et al. (2014, p. 8) developed and presented the following theory of change: Students “who access quality ILP implementation will establish a career readiness iden-tity,” which will lead to several positive short- and long-term outcomes. In the short-term, they will experience school as more meaningful and relevant in helping them to achieve individual goals, which will stimulate them to pursue more rigorous learning opportunities. As a result, they will “demonstrate better college and career readiness outcomes” including improved academic performance, higher postsecondary enrollment and persistence rates, and better earnings (p. 8). Perhaps of fundamental importance, students must “identify a number of desirable career and life goals by being provided access to quality self and ca-reer exploration activities” (p. 17). Prior research (Brown & Ryan Krane, 2000; Solberg et al., 2014) supports the value of several components related to career interventions (e.g., written exercises, individualized feedback, career-related information, networking, modeling/vicarious experiences), and the favorability of implementing multiple components. ILPs have the potential to integrate all components. Thus,

the theoretical base supporting ILP implementation, and the empirical base supporting several ILP components, appears to be fairly robust.

Few scholars have empirically studied the implementation and efficacy of ILPs or their closely related comprehen-sive processes as a package. Bullock and Wikeley (1999) evaluated 10th grade students’ perceptions of their partici-pation in a Personal Learning Planning (PLP) initiative in the United Kingdom. The process entailed one-on-one dis-cussions between students and their tutors, focused upon identifying goals and targets for improvement. Following the discussions, the student would write a personal learning plan, which then was used to monitor growth and inform 10th grade activities. Student survey results suggested that PLPs were regarded as beneficial, especially in terms of the improved student-staff relationships and student commu-nication skills. These researchers also found that students tended to link PLPs with career exploration rather than with present learning and that the process was primarily seen as teacher-led rather than student-led in spite of contrary inten-tions. These authors also reported some gender differences regarding perceived benefits.

The most extensive and sustained studies of ILP implemen-tation have occurred since 2007 with funding by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP). Initially, the researchers reviewed the 21 states that were, at the time, mandating ILP implementation. They identified four states (Louisiana, New Mexico, South Carolina, and Washington) for in-depth analysis and sought out school districts within these states to be part of a lon-gitudinal implementation study (Solberg, Wills, & Larson, 2013; Phelps et al., 2011). State officials nominated school districts that were perceived to be effectively implementing ILPs, and educators in these districts were invited to par-ticipate. Twelve schools participated in the entirety of the study. The first two years of study were focused on identify-ing how schools were engaged with ILPs, how their efforts aligned to state reforms, and emerging promising practices. Year three efforts increasingly focused on student experi-ences and resulted in the creation of an ILP How-to Guide (Solberg, Wills, & Osman, 2012). They were particularly at-tuned to the use of ILPs for students with disabilities. In the second phase, research shifted toward better understanding the characteristics of quality ILP implementation.

Budge, Solberg, Phelps, Haakenson, and Durham (2010) evaluated stakeholders’ (students, parents, and teachers) per-ceptions of the importance of ILPs, based on focus group in-terviewing in 15 schools and four states. Results indicated that all three groups saw ILPs as valuable and contributing to several favorable outcomes, including more rigorous course-work selection, improved relationships, enhanced access to

career exploration and clarity of options, increased motiva-tion, and goal-setting behavior. This study also illuminat-ed some challenges associated with ILP implementation. It was often difficult to attain commitment and school-wide implementation by teachers, and more comprehensive ILP curricula were commonly desired. Focus group participants stated that ILP implementation quality was predicated upon the teacher’s excitement and interest in ILPs. Related, ded-icating regular time to ILP implementation, although chal-lenging, was considered by many stakeholders to be an im-portant strategy.

Solberg, Phelps, Haakenson, Durham, & Timmons (2012), reflecting on these and other findings, highlighted the im-portance of establishing a common understanding about the importance of ILPs and providing teachers with access to professional development regarding ILP implementation, including the use of career systems. School counselors could be positioned to provide direct and consultative sup-ports, but teachers should be engaged so that ILPs will be maximally beneficial. Applying Knoster’s (1995) outline of five areas of resistance to change, Solberg et al. suggested that incentives should be provided to support ILP implemen-tation, sufficient resources (including time) should be allo-cated, and an implementation and evaluation plan should be established that “identifies roles, responsibilities, and time-lines” (p. 7). Other ILP implementation strategies identified by Solberg et al. (2014), which they described as having po-tential of increasing the quality of ILP implementation, in-cluded the following: providing access to online career in-formation systems, developing strategies for including youth

with disabilities, promoting family engagement, and assess-ing ILP outcomes. Overall, Solberg et al. (2014) shared sev-eral conclusions about characteristics of high-quality ILPs. They found that ILPs should be student driven and updat-ed regularly. As well, they found that quality ILPs should document career goals, course-taking plans, postsecondary goals, and skills and work-based learning experiences that he or she needs” (p. 23).

While scholars have interpreted the available findings as showing promise regarding the use of ILPs (Solberg et al., 2012; Solberg et al., 2014), the existing research is limited by a lack of outcome data and by the lack of experimental or quasi-experimental and long-term studies. Also, research is needed that will identify effective strategies for gaining teacher buy-in and implementing comprehensive ILPs. As articulated by Solberg et al. (2014, p. 9), “What is missing is clear empirical data indicating what constitutes quality ILP implementation.” Therefore, the remainder of this brief pro-vides an overview of the Individualized Career Plan process in Joliet Township 204.

Joliet Township 204 Individualized Career Plans

The Pathways Resource Center recently collaborated with Joliet Township High School District 204 (JTHS), located in Joliet, Illinois, to examine their Individualized Career Plan (ICP) implementation processes. The Joliet district was selected due to the unique approach in which Joliet

Joliet Township High School District 204 Demographics/Facts

Joliet Township High School has 2 High Schools – Central High School and Joliet West High School

Racial/ethnic composition of the 6,427 students: 44.5% Hispanic, 26.9% White, 24.3% Black, 3.1% Multi-Racial, 1% Asian

65.4% of the students enrolled are classified as low-income.

80% of the students enrolled graduate within a 5-year period.

Joliet Township High School District has implemented a Career Academy structure with a Freshman Academy that focuses on assisting students in learning their career and college interests. Once students enter their sophomore year, they may select one of the following academies of which to become a part based on their career interest: Health and Medicine; Human Services, Arts & Communication; Business Management and Information Systems(BMIS); or Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM).

The district has built relationships with over with over 300 Business/Industry Partners to assist students as they move through their programs of study.

Source: Illinois Interactive Report Card, 2014-15.

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educators have developed and implemented ICPs during the past two years and the intentionality of the district in ensuring each student has access to their ICPs. Using in-formation garnered through interviews with district-level and school administrators, counselors, and teachers in the two high schools, this report provides an overview of the ICP implementation processes, including the origin of the ICP’s, professional development and training provided to staff members, and highlights program successes as well as challenges the district has experienced. As part of the district’s continuous strategic planning pro-cess, school personnel sought ways to support students within the career academy structure at each of the district’s two high schools. Although college and career planning has been in place within the district for over 25 years through career and technical education courses and through school counseling, JTHS staff expressed a desire to create a system that would engage all students and staff members in the pro-cess. The district administration decided to incorporate the administration of the ICPs into the content area curriculum, both in the core and career technical courses, allowing for a more integrated approach and increasing accountability of teachers and students in ensuring successful plans. School counselors and teacher/advisors monitor the students’ com-pletion of the ICP components. In addition, the career acad-emy structure of the high schools also allows staff members to provide personalized instruction in smaller communities to implement the ICPs.

During their freshman year, students are assigned to the Freshman Academy, and they are involved in extensive ca-reer exploratory activities. School counselors conduct ca-reer interest inventories within the Freshman advisory set-ting throughout the year. They also meet individually with students throughout the year to discuss future goals. School

counselors use the inventories and information that the student shares to assist with selecting their career academy and determining course requests. In order for counselors to better fa-cilitate the career planning process, the school district has reduced the counselor caseload, making it easier for counselors to provide per-sonalized supports to each student.

The district developed a specialized in-house platform, called JTLearn, that houses the elec-tronic ICP form and provides each student with ready access to her/his plan to materials for the individualized portfolio. Teachers and admin-istrators within the school can access their stu-dents’ plans, so they have current information on student career interests and their academic prog-ress. The JTLearn platform makes the plan a portable and living document for students. Also

included in the JTLearn platform are students’ EPAS data, permitting students and parents to review their academic performance in reading and math. Students also can upload artifacts and completed activities that demonstrate progress within their selected Program of Study. ICPs have been in place for two years; currently, all freshman and sophomore students have ICPs and the district’s intent is to focus on junior students during the upcoming school year, as they continue to roll out ICPs implementation.

Organizationally, the core implementation of the ICP is con-ducted by the school counselors within the advisory setting and by content area teachers as part of their curriculum. In addition, working within the career academy structure, each content area teacher is guided by a curriculum leader, and they are tasked with the development of activities and as-signments related to the career plans. For instance, in En-glish courses, students research careers and write narratives based on those careers. Teachers are given time during the summer to develop course content and generate common assessments that will be administered throughout the year. Specialist teachers, including Career and Technical Educa-tion teachers, may access plans occasionally if they have lessons that coordinate with the activities content teachers have developed. District-level curriculum directors assist teachers in strengthening understanding of ICPs by pro-viding professional development opportunities during the school year and summer months. The curriculum directors have a specific content focus and a larger role in the di-rection of the ICPs, in collaboration with the school coun-selors. The school deans, when discussing discipline issues with students, also may access student ICPs to determine how they can be effective in promoting students’ career and academic success. For example, a student’s misbehavior may be a result of her/his disinterest in their assigned career academy due to changing career interests; thus,

a reassignment to another academy that is more closely aligned to their career goals may be wise. The school princi-pals and assistant principals provide supports as needed, of-ten in the form of marshalling needed resources for teachers and staff. For example, administrators can run data reports, reviewing students’ career goals and examine other student learning factors that can be helpful as they continue to refine the ICP process.

Program Challenges and Successes

Although the school district has been intentional in ensuring that each child graduates with a completed career plan and supporting documentation, JTHS staff members recognize and maintain that there is still room for improvement in the ICP process. Staff members interviewed reported that, in hindsight, integrating the ICPs into the curriculum sooner would have been an initial priority. Integrating the plans into the curriculum means that the plan is not optional stu-dent activity, but it instead is a required activity for each student, signaling not only the importance but the necessity of comprehensive and thoughtful college and career plan-ning. All students now must have a completed ICP as part of graduation requirements, ensuring that they focus on ca-reer planning throughout their high school years. Aligning the ICP with the assigned monitoring duties of the advisory teachers has also provided greater accountability and in-creased intentionality around linking the plans to student learning. In addition, the district’s job shadowing experi-ence that is required of all student during the sophomore year has been very effective in reinforcing career planning, because it provides hands-on experiences that students can connect to their ICPs.

In addition to curriculum integration, staff members con-tinue to problem-solve how to most effectively support stu-dents who wish to transition to different career academies. Currently, students are allowed to switch academies at the end of an academic year, and there is no limit to how many times a student may transfer. JTHS has roughly a 20-40% transfer rate between academies, which impacts some stu-dents’ abilities to complete their capstone projects within their ICPs. The district is in the process of defining com-pleters with regard to the capstone projects. District offi-cials acknowledge that it is important to allow students to transfer into the appropriate career academy when their career goals switch, so that their coursework and learning activities are aligned with their intended careers. In many instances, upon being immersed within a particular acade-my, students are able to determine that they do not wish to continue to pursue their initial career interests. Making this determination before high school graduation can save stu-dents additional college tuition expenses incurred by chang-ing academic majors and may prevent them from entering occupations that are not aligned with their career interests.

School leaders also continue to explore how parents and all teacher members can have continuous input into student ICPs. Currently, students are expected to share their plans with their parents as they make course selection decisions. The district holds a Parent University night, when parents can learn more about the program of study and student re-quirements, but school officials would like parents to have a deeper connection with the ICP process. The JTHS district is also thoughtful in identifying equity and access issues that may hinder students from sharing their electronic plans with parents, such as for families that do not have internet access in their homes. In addition, there is variability in how some

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staff members, such as counselors and specialist teachers, access the plans. The district recognizes that the investment of faculty members and parents has a significant influence on how students perceive and are invested in the plan.

The use of technology also presents some challenges, be-cause many technological components must be coordinat-ed. In addition to the JTLearn platform, counselors use the Career Cruising software program to administer career in-terest inventories with students during Freshman Academy to help guide them in their career identification and course selections. There is also a district-wide Programs of Study week in which advisory teachers encourage students to use Career Cruising to investigate their potential career interest areas. The district also uses the E-school home access portal for parents and students review grades and class schedules and assist in career planning. Some students and teachers also have begun to use the OverGrad program, which maps out potential college courses based on students’ interests. Students can select colleges in which they are interested and enter career goals, interests, grades, and test scores. The OverGrad program then calculates for students the probability of being accepted into that higher education in-stitution based on test scores and grade point average, and provides information on how students can move forward with the college application process. Although each of these programs is helpful in supporting student learning and ca-reer planning, it is desirable to have one software platform or the ability to share student information across platforms.

While JTHS district officials express an interest in con-tinuing to improve their ICP processes, they celebrate the successes they have experienced with ICP implementation. During the initial implementation, many students had lim-ited understanding of ICPs and how this process could sup-port them in attaining their college and career goals. Now, after two years, students have a deeper understanding of ICPs and can see the importance of using them. ICPs pro-vide a clearer picture for students, and the career academy structure allows them to explore their career interest areas and obtain content knowledge and skills in their intended careers. Upon graduation, the plans will hopefully help stu-dents articulate why they are ready for their intended goals, whether their plans involve immediate employment after high school graduation, enlistment in the military, or enroll-ment in postsecondary education.

There have been continued conversations among JTHS ed-ucators concerning student academic progress and how best to support student college and career goals. Since the dis-trict is only in the second year of implementing ICPs, there is no data available yet on how students have used the ICPs. However, the district leadership has the capacity to monitor in-house teacher and student usage of the plans and are able to facilitate meaningful conversations about the curriculum, course offerings, career academy structure, and student learning experiences. For instance, after reviewing data, the staff noticed a significantly higher proportion of males were enrolled in the STEM academy as compared to females. Through ongoing conversations and extensive planning, JTHS educators are working to ensure that they share in-formation and provide similar messages to all groups. Their goal is to encourage more female participation within the STEM academy.

The JTHS faculty and staff have had many positive ex-periences as they have worked toward implementation of highly effective Individualized Career Plan process for all students. The process is intended to provide every student with a clear focus and understanding of their career goals, as well as the academic preparation to be successful when they graduate from high school. As one JTHS educator stat-ed, “We are in a good spot, more advanced. We are learning together…It is not a linear process.”

About the Authors

Joel R. Malin is an Assistant Professor of Educational Lead-ership at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio and previous-ly was Curriculum Specialist with the Pathways Resource Center at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Asia Fuller Hamilton is a Graduate Research Assistant with the Pathways Resource Center at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Doctor of Philosophy student in the department of Education Policy, Organization and Leadership at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Donald G. Hackmann is a Professor in the Department of Education Policy, Organization and Leadership and Direc-tor of the Pathways Resource Center at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

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Brown, S. D., & Ryan Krane, N. E. (2000). Four (or five) sessions and a cloud of dust: Old assumptions and new observations about career counseling. In S. D. Brown & R. W. Lent (Eds.), Handbook of counseling psychology (3rd ed., pp. 740-766). New York, NY: Wiley

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Fox, H. L. (2014). Achieving their goals: Implementing an Individualized Learning Plan process to build student success. Champaign, IL: Office of Community College Research and Leadership, University of Illinois at Ur-bana-Champaign. Retrieved from pathways.illinois.edu

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National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability. (2015). Individualized learning plan. Retrieved from http://www.ncwd-youth.info/ilp

Phelps, L. A., Durham, J., & Wills, J. (2011). Education alignment and accountability in an era of convergence: Policy insights from states with individual learning plans and policies. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 19(31), 2-33.

Solberg, S., Phelps, A., Haakenson, K. A., Durham, J. F., & Timmons, J. (2012). The nature and use of individ-ualized learning plans as a career intervention strat-egy. Journal of Career Development, 39, 500-514. doi:10.1177/0894845311414571

Solberg, V.S., Wills, J., & Larson, M. (2013). Using indi-vidualized learning plans to produce college and career ready high school graduates. Washington, DC: Nation-al Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth. Retrieved from http://www.ncwd-youth.info/sites/de-fault/files/PolicyBrief_issue_6.pdf

Solberg, V. S., Wills, J., & Osman, D. (2012). Promoting quality individualized plans: A “how to guide” focused on the high school years. Washington, DC: National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth, In-stitute for Educational Leadership. Retrieved from http://www.ncwd-youth.info/sites/default/files/NCWDYouth-ILP-How-to Guide-Feb2013.pdf

Solberg, V.S., Wills, J., Redmond, K., & Skaff, L. (2014). Use of individualized learning plans as a promising practice for driving college and career readiness efforts: Findings and recommendations from a multi-method, multi-study effort (ISBN: 1-933493-46-1). Washington, DC: National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth, Institute for Educational Leadership.

Symonds, W. C., Schwartz, R., & Ferguson, R. F. (2011). Pathways to prosperity: Meeting the challenge of pre-paring young Americans for the 21st century. Cam-bridge, MA: Pathways to Prosperity Project, Harvard University Graduate School of Education.

References

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