Core Performance Standards: Promising Practices for the Design, Delivery, and Evaluation of Training and Technical Assistance

• NCJ Number: 255137
• Date Published: March 2020
• Length: 41 pages
• Grant Number(s): GS-00F010CA/DJO-OJJDP-17-P-084
• Agencies: OJJDP-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Standard; Program/Project Evaluation; Instructional Material (Programmed)

Annotation

This 2018 update of the U.S. Justice Department's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's (OJJDP's) Core Performance Standards for Training, Technical Assistance, and Evaluation Protocols intends to upgrade minimum expectations of performance to be met by OJJDP's training and technical assistance (TTA) providers.

Abstract

This upgrade takes the efforts and information from previous versions of the performance standards and streamlines promising practices in TTA delivery, based on the latest research and promising practices in the TTA field. The updated standards also include examples of evidence-informed practices that TTA providers may find useful in the design, delivery, and evaluation of TTA policies and practices. For the purposes of the performance standards, "training" is defined as "a process in which participants receive information and develop skills, knowledge, and attitudes that can be applied to better performance in the workplace." "Technical assistance" is defined as "a process of developing creative, cost-effective ways to provide targeted support to an organization or system to address a developmental need, resolve a problem, develop a strategic plan for long-term change, or create an innovative approach for addressing an emerging complex issue." These are the four core performance standards: 1) Follow an implementation framework that is informed by evidence of its effectiveness; 2) Use a phased TTA process that promotes the use of evidence-informed practices; 3) Design TTA activities that respond to the unique needs of adult learners; and 4) Evaluate the effectiveness of TTA activities to support continuous improvement. The rationale for and implementation of each of these standards are discussed.