Abstract:
In 2019, the Dallas Independent School District (Dallas ISD) decided to change its policy regarding enrollment in middle school Honors classes. The change was driven by a need to increase participation in these advanced courses by students of color, including English language learners, who were qualified but were nevertheless not enrolling. Through an interview with Dr. Shannon Trejo, Chief Academic Officer with Dallas ISD from 2018 to 2023, this short video-based case explores the root causes behind that imbalance, the process that was followed to come up with a new enrollment policy, the downstream consequences Dallas ISD faced and the ultimate results of the new policy.
The case consists of four short videos: Video 1 (5:50 min.) is meant to be viewed before the class. Videos 2-4, totaling 9 min., can be played throughout the class discussion to share what happened with students and set up various discussion pastures.
Learning Objectives:
This video case was developed for a course on the Science of Behavior Change. It can be used to explore the concept of changing defaults while applying it to an important policy domain. How do real-world organizations use this mechanism to fulfill policy goals? And, just as importantly, how can we go about understanding and learning to anticipate the complicated implementation challenges that often come with a seemingly simple policy change?
