Monitoring Quality of the COS Process
All involved with the COS Process should examine the quality of the data collection process on a regular basis and use that information to plan improvements to their approach.
Example Activities
States might include these activities when formally monitoring local programs or districts. State staff, local staff, and practitioners should each perform additional activities to monitor the COS process and ensure high quality outcomes data that is useful for program improvement.
- Review evidence documented on COS forms to determine if it is consistent with the COS Definitions: 7-Point Rating Scale Criteria.
- Examine practitioner practices and COS documentation fidelity to state guidance and professional development.
- Conduct implementation surveys to learn about the COS Process in practice and COS team members' experiences, attitudes, and beliefs.
- Observe COS teams implementing the COS process to provide feedback.
- Analyze and review data for predictable patterns, interpret root causes of unexpected patterns, and develop improvement plans.
- Monitor the COS process and outcomes data from local programs or districts as part of local determinations.
- Assess the system's strength and weaknesses of the outcomes measurement system.
- Examine alignment between information on COS forms and IFSP or IEP content such as individualized outcomes and goals.
Resources and Tools for Monitoring Quality of the COS Process
- Data Quality resources are available for:
- pattern checking to ensure data quality
- documenting the COS rating
- reviewing completed COS forms
- COS record review
- implementation surveys, including state-developed examples and those from the ENHANCE research project
- COS Process Online Module, Session 7
- Effective Documentation for Outcome Ratings provides a reference for teams documenting the COS rating or those reviewing COS forms.
- COS-Team Collaboration (COS-TC) is a checklist to record observations about COS teams implementing the COS process to provide feedback. It can also be used as a self-assessment, a professional development tool with descriptions of quality indicators, and to provide opportunities for online practice.
- Child Outcomes Frameworks provide state and local measurement systems you can use to perform a self-assessment about strengths and weaknesses in the system.
- Local Contributing Factors Tool provides information about factors to consider when explaining patterns found when analyzing COS data for quality and when discussing formal monitoring results with programs.