Development of Continuous Improvement Program Assessment Tool (CIPAT) in the Department of Education-SOX Region, Philippines

The study developed and validated an assessment tool for the Continuous Improvement (CI) Program of the Department of Education (DepEd) in SOX Region, Philippines. CI is a practice focusing on the continuing improvement of an identified school process or service delivery related to access, quality, or governance, with the goal of enhancing learning outcomes. Participants included 6 CI Masters and 30 program implementers from the select School-based Management accredited Level 3 schools. Self-survey questionnaires and an evidence-based assessment tool were utilized in data collection. The research was undertaken through mixed-methods that largely merged both quantitative and qualitative data. Results showed that the developed assessment tool had high validity indicative of its fitness and accuracy. The CI teams perceived their programs as very well implemented in dimensions like strategic management, operational management, change adoption, stakeholder analysis, and CI sustainability. Utilizing the evidence-based tool, however, the researchers' evaluation indicated that schools have notable program implementation. This finding was evident from the well-presented, organized, and functional documents in all dimensions. The statistical test proved that the researchers' assessment is relatively higher than the CI team's perceptions. The direct knowledge and observation of the researchers on the actual evidence are more independent, accurate, and objective than mere observations of the implementers themselves. The best practices of SBM schools were distinctly articulated and identified in promoting these continuous improvement efforts.