Improvement Science work first invites educators to join a team in order to identify problems of practice and investigate the system that produces these problems. Using an array of powerful tools like empathy interviews and process maps, high-leverage drivers are identified and educators create powerful change ideas which can be tested, measured, adjusted, and scaled rapidly.

Improvement science is an emerging field of theory and practice in education. First adopted by the auto industry and then by the health sector, it represents a systems approach toward the continuous improvement of schools. The theory of improvement science centers on the assertion “that a system’s performance is a result of its design and operation, not simply a result of individuals’ efforts within the system (IES, 2020).” As such, improvement science focuses on building the knowledge of frontline workers of the systems they operate within so they can better assess “how their systems work, where breakdowns occur, and what actions can be taken to improve overall performance (IES, 2020).” In the case of the education sector, educators and school-based administrators use their growing knowledge to efficiently develop interventions and test them in rapid cycles of continuous improvement. This approach is designed to accelerate learning-by-doing. The approach focuses on implementation and emphasizes internal capacity building over adoption of externally developed interventions (Lewis, 2015).