Written by Due to an increased number of incident reports being submitted over a 6 month period at Cape Cod Child Development, Lesley Guertin and her team of problem-solvers set out to identify the root causes of the issue and improve the process.
Goal Statement: To decrease the number of incident reports from 30 to 15 a month by the end of the school year.
Lean Six Sigma Tools Used: Project Charter, VOC Translation Matrix, SIPOC, Data Collection Plan, Histogram, Fishbone Diagram, 5 Whys, Pareto Chart, Run Chart, Monitoring & Response Plan, Project Benefits & Lessons Learned, Solution Selection Matrix
To collect data, the team measured the number of incidents using a Histogram and developed a data collection plan. They learned that:
- There was a peak of incidents from from September to October.
- There were, on average, two incidents being reported on a daily basis.
They created a Fishbone Diagram and used the 5 Whys to help analyze the root causes and learned that:
- Classroom environment had a large impact on the number of incidents that were occurring.
- Teachers weren’t utilizing tactics to prevent the incidents.
- Children hurting children, children throwing toys and children hurting staff were the highest incidents that were reported from September 2016 to June 2016.
The team began to implement improvements, such as:
- Focusing on classrooms that reported the most incidents by constructing safe areas for children and larger areas for play
- Developing an internal referral form that allows more time for external support in classrooms
Project Benefits & Lessons Learned:
- The impact of physical changes in the environment can make a difference in the behaviors of children in the classroom.
- Observing and determining if children will need special needs and/or behavior services will impact the quality of services for children by providing classroom support when needed.
- The team saw an overall decrease in incidents being reported by 50%.
Watch the video or read the transcript at https://goleansixsigma.com/success-story-reducing-classroom-incidents-50-lesley-guertin/