Implementation Science researches methods to support educational programs implementing EBPs with fidelity.

Implementation Drivers

Implementation Drivers highlight critical leverage points to support full and effective use of evidence-based practices with fidelity. Fidelity is the adherence of what is done to the standard of the intended plan. In other words, did we do what we planned to do?

Why are Implementation Drivers Important?

Implementation Drivers are important because without strong fidelity we cannot have consistency in delivering high quality instruction and programming. We know students cannot benefit from instruction they never experienced (Fixsen et al., 2005). Implementation Drivers helps us evaluate drivers to ensure that high quality implementation of explicit instruction practices is occurring throughout the program. We use implementation drivers and the Drivers Best Practice Assessment to differentiate where we are doing things right and where we need to add more support.

Key Concepts:

Competency Drivers: Develop, improve, and sustain staff’s mindsets, knowledge, and skills to use evidence-based practices with fidelity.
Organization Drivers: Create and sustain evidence-based practice(s) with fidelity through strategies, resources, policies, processes, and organization culture.
Leadership: Support for competency and organization drivers is reflected in this role. Facilitates using strategies and provides guidance to deal with challenges such as decision making, change management, and organization operations.
Integrated & Compensatory: The drivers within each area above, support one another in this work to achieve fidelity. If one driver in a given area is weak, the other drivers in that area can compensate (e.g., if we have no control over selection criteria, we can overcome this by placing emphasis on strong training and coaching. If we have very strong selection criteria, we may not need as much emphasis on training.)
Drivers Best Practice Assessment: The Data Collaborative uses the Drivers Best Practices Assessment (DBPA) to provide partners a snapshot of their implementation quality across the Implementation Drivers. The purpose of the DBPA is to assist organizations in assessing their current support and resources for fidelity of selected programs or practices. Specifically, organizations can use it to:
- Identify strengths and opportunities for improvement in their current supports and resources;
- Select implementation best practices to strengthen staff competency and organizational practices; and
- Provide an implementation team with a structured process to develop an action plan and data to monitor progress.

Source:

Ward, C., Metz, A., Louison, L., Loper, A., & Cusumano, D. (2018). Drivers Best Practices Assessment. Chapel Hill, NC: National Implementation Research Network, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Based on: Fixsen, D.L.,Blase, K., Naoom, S., Metz, A., Louison, L., & Ward, C. (2015). Implementation Drivers: Assessing Best Practices. Chapel Hill, NC: National Implementation Research Network, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Competency Drivers

Develop, improve, and sustain staff’s mindsets, knowledge, and skills to use evidence-based practices with fidelity.

Why are Competency Drivers important?

Competency drivers are focused on making sure that all staff members involved in the program have the necessary mindsets, knowledge, and skills to successfully implement the practices. This driver focuses on identifying the right person for the position (selection) and developing their skills (training and coaching) to make them the best suited person for the position (use practices with fidelity). Competency drivers are focused on building an organization’s content and practice expertise to use explicit instruction practices with fidelity.

Training and coaching are the principle implementation methods in which behavior change is brought about for carefully selected staff in the beginning stages of implementation and throughout the life of evidence-based practices. When we look at the Competency Drivers, it is important to always remember that they are not stand-alone drivers and that each one should reinforce the other.

Organization Drivers

Create and sustain evidence-based practice(s) through strategies, resources, policies, processes, and organization culture.

Why are Organization Drivers important?

Organization drivers are focused on making sure that organizations have the necessary supports in place for teachers to use evidence-based practices with fidelity. Organization Drivers support implementation by identifying, reducing, and when possible, eliminating any of the barriers and challenges that prevent a teacher from teaching well.

Organization Drivers includes three drivers to help facilitate the use of evidence-based practices with fidelity.

Organization Leadership

Support for competency and organization drivers is reflected in this role. Facilitates using strategies and provides guidance to deal with challenges such as decision making, change management, and organization operations.

Why is Leadership important?

Leadership is the catalyst and overseer of both Competency and Organizational Drivers. The two drivers are most effective when they are working together and the role of Leadership ensures this integration. It is the focus of leaders to make sure the people working closely with either side of the Driver Diagram are able to communicate, collaborate and empathize with their unique challenges. Undergoing an internal reflection of how a project, program, or organization is being led, creates a culture that promotes continuous improvement towards success.

To help facilitate this, this reflection focuses on Leadership strategies for two types of problems:

Resources

Implementation Drivers Visual

Capacity, Process, People

Data to Insight Map

Process Assessments

[green] Implementation Drivers Playground

Source:

Ward, C., Metz, A., Louison, L., Loper, A., & Cusumano, D. (2018). Drivers Best Practices Assessment. Chapel Hill, NC: National Implementation Research Network, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Based on: Fixsen, D.L.,Blase, K., Naoom, S., Metz, A., Louison, L., & Ward, C. (2015). Implementation Drivers: Assessing Best Practices. Chapel Hill, NC: National Implementation Research Network, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.