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Plan for Success

  • Updated

Click here for a helpful learning video on the Plan for Success from AFS’s Microlearning Library for volunteers.  

A Plan for Success is a written document developed through collaboration between volunteers, participants, staff, and sometimes host families. It is developed as a response to mild or moderate concerns regarding a participant’s adjustment on program or program experience. Click here for more information on Tools for a Continuum of Issues. The purpose of a plan for success is to help the participant- and sometimes the host family and volunteers as well- focus on future-oriented goals and tasks utilizing the applicable AFS Learning Objectives in order to obtain a successful program experience. The plan for success should reflect a consensus that is reached between the volunteers, host family, and student regarding proposed solutions to any challenges that have been identified, and it is signed by the participant, support volunteer, and the host family, as confirmation of collective commitment to the goals and solutions identified. 

Background: 

The Council on Standards for International Educational Travel (CSIET) requires that high school exchange programs, such as AFS, provide local support assistance to participants to help resolve problems they encounter during the exchange. CSIET Standard 7 D states: The organization shall provide adequate support services at the local level to assist with program related needs and problems, for example, counseling services, travel, medical care, language problems, changes in host family, emergencies.

AFS provides volunteer support to help participants and host families navigate any questions or concerns or challenges that may arise during the course of the program. In AFS’s experience, with comprehensive support from volunteers and staff, participants and host families can normally transform those questions and concerns into important learning opportunities that can often further enrich the exchange experience. Support tools such as the plan for success are designed to promote learning and collaborative approaches to challenges for this reason.  

It is not the perspective of AFS that situations that call for the use of support tools such as the plan for success arise because anyone has failed, or that it is abnormal for people to benefit from a support tool. Tools such as the plan for success are all designed to respond to challenges that can be very normal and a natural outcome of bringing people together across cultural differences. Moreover, the AFS intercultural learning experience is a learn-by-doing, trial-and-error process, and it is to be expected that errors will be made and adolescent students will require assistance during their exchange. The plan for success is not designed to be punitive. 

The plan for success is designed to address concerns and challenges before they may become more complex, escalated, or laden with high emotions. In this way, the plan for success and related support tools can succeed in preserving placements and preventing student placement changes that may be rooted in otherwise resolvable differences and challenges. They can also be seen as tools that can enrich the program experience and moments of intercultural learning.

Participants generally enter the program with the perspective that behaviors and attitudes that have worked for them since birth in their home country will still be appropriate within a new cultural environment. Often this is not the case. Students may not fully realize right away the degree or nature of adaptation that is necessary. As a result, significant adaptation, and assistance with adaptation, may be needed. Placing goals and actions on paper, where they can remain visible and clear to the participant and host family over time, can result in the student and host family having a clear and usable visual guide.

Support should be positive and directed to helping the participant understand the issues and resolve the problem(s). A written Plan for Success can be an important “next step” when verbal discussions, verbal commitments and possibly liaison facilitated family meetings to attempt resolution have been unsuccessful.

It is very helpful for the participant and host parents, as well as the support volunteer, to be able to internally process the issues over time. This gives time for reflection and often results in better decisions. As a result, we recommend that tools such as the plan for success come out of multiple conversations involving volunteers, the student, the host parents, and staff at any one time, rather than just one. A combination of one-on-one conversations and group conversations can be crucial.

The Process for Developing a Plan for Success

  1. 1. Identify the issues and challenges: The initial requirement is to identify the significant issues, consulting with those directly involved to get their perspectives. This includes the host parents, liaison, and any others who have significant interaction with the participant pertaining to the issues (for example the host school if there are academic concerns present). When collecting the felt concerns of those involved, it’s important to listen for: 

  1. a. Concrete examples, and described observable behaviors.  Gathering this type of specific information can be crucial at helping participants and other parties understand one another better. For example, if a host parent feels concerned that a student is acting disrespectfully but does not describe or give examples of what the student is actually doing which id disrespectful, the student or volunteer may not fully understand how the student should try to adapt. Try to gather specific examples and descriptive statements from all involved.  

  1. b. How each party involved sees the situation resolved. Gather insight on what people expect out of the situation, and what they would view as “success”. This can not only help shift people’s perspectives toward resolution, but it can also help you gauge whether anyone has unrealistic expectations (for example if a student expects to not have to do any homework during their program).  

  1. c. Differing perspectives. It is natural and expected for people involved in a situation to have differing perspectives. It is important to listen openly for all of them, assume everyone involved is telling their truth, and make note of inconsistencies that may require clarification or acknowledgement.  

Click here for more information on Responding to Concerns and Challenges. 

  1. 2. Draft the Plan for Success:  

  1. a. Click here to view a helpful Template. Each Plan for Success will be different because it is based on the specific context and specific people involved. Motivation to resolve the issues is much stronger when those impacted are included as active participants in steering the solution.  

  1. b. The Plan for Success should focus on only the significant issues of placement or compliance with AFS polices. To keep that focus during implementation, try to include all goals and actions on one page.  

  1. c. Use the SMART system: (Specific, Measurable, Acceptable, Realistic, and Time-framed) to finalize the Plan for Success: 

  1. i. The actions to be taken should be specific not general in nature. 

  1. ii. The actions should be measurable so progress or completion can be verified. 

  1. iii. The actions should be acceptable to all parties involved. 

  1. iv. The actions should be realistic rather than idealistic. 

  1. v. There should be a time frame for accomplishment. 

  1. vi. Click here for an example of a Plan for Success that incorporates the SMART system. 

  1. d. Review with volunteers and/or staff. Any volunteer who is working on a plan for success is welcome and encouraged to review the draft plan with Support and Learning staff or their Support Coordinator before it is signed.   

  1. e. Enforce collaboration and teamwork. While most of the time it is the student who must accomplish most of the adjustment, it is also recommended that the plan includes actions for the host family and volunteers to complete as well as the student. This may include specific tasks or action items that the host family and volunteers can do to support the student in their work, or to provide assistance within key areas.   

  2. f. Special note for volunteers supporting students hosted by State Department Sponsored Programs, such as YES, FLEX, and CBYX students:
    • Sometimes additional language may need to be added to the student's Support Agreement in order to make scholarship expectations clear as well. Please consult with your Participant Support and Learning Specialist in these cases.
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  2. 3. Signatures and coordination with staff: The plan for success, is considered “issued” fully once all listed parties have provided their signature, and when AFS Support and Learning staff confirms their concurrence with the tasks and goals identified.  

  1. a. The Plan for Success is ideally signed in the context of an in person group meeting involving stakeholders, including the host parents, the student, and volunteers. For challenges relating to a host sibling, that host sibling may be included in the meeting. Volunteers present may include the liaison, Support Coordinator, or Associate Support Coordinator. At least one volunteer must be present, and many volunteers find that having two volunteers present can often be valuable. If the plan for success is already fully drafted prior to the meeting, the meeting can serve the purpose of confirming concerns, actions, and goals, and of signing the document. If the plan is not yet drafted fully, the meeting can also serve the purpose of generating text for the document. Click here for more information on managing these conversations.  

  1. b. Confidentiality: The support volunteer needs to tell the participant that information on what was discussed during the counseling session and the documents they have developed will only go to select people connected to the student’s support. That will include the liaison, Support Coordinator or Associate Support Coordinator, support staff at the AFS-USA National Office and the staff in the AFS partner country office who will send the Plan for Success to the participant’s sending parents. The sending parents can often help motivate the participant to make behavioral changes identified in the plan.  

  1. c. Volunteers must document the support conversations provided, the meeting, and the resulting document. The report should include information gathered from the host family, participant, and other relevant stakeholders, the list of issues of concern, and all identified goals and tasks. It is recommended that copies of the written plan for success be made and provided to the student, host parents, and Support and Learning Staff. The report should also include the volunteers’ observations and assessment of the student’s and host family's response to the process and the document. Please note that, if AFS staff does not agree with the Plan for Success as written, it will have to be revised and re-signed. Unique situations should always be coordinated with staff as a result.

4. Consequences and follow up: The participant needs to understand that the exchange program requires learning appropriate behaviors to adapt to living with a host family and as a student on a J-1 visa to apply themselves to achieve passing grades at school. A follow up check in date should be established and made clear to the host family and participant (it is normally recommended to give those who have signed the plan roughly two weeks to make and show honest and consistent efforts at fulfilling the goals and tasks they have been assigned to.) Plans for Success should be considered active, live documents that remain in effect for the program. Should any text in the plan for success ever be seen as no longer relevant, volunteers are welcome to consider amending the plan, with the consultation of Support and Learning Staff. If at any time a student or host parent are seen to be in nonadherence with the plan for success, a different or escalated approach may be considered, such as a Support Agreement.  

 

Resources:

Volunteers can consider the following resources to assist in developing the Plan for Success: 

  • Reflective Essay
  • The participant’s application, specifically those sections that might have some bearing on the issues. (Letter to host parents, sending parent’s comments, teacher’s comments, and school transcript are available on Global Link.) 
  • The completed Participant and Host Family Questionnaire that records the family expectations, found in the Hosted Participant's Help & Learning Platform. 
  • Check-in Questionnaires completed by the participant at the post-arrival and midyear orientations, usually held by the team support coordinator. 
  • Country-specific host parent handbooks that describe cultural differences that may have a bearing on the issues, available here. These can help volunteers to describe concerns and actions in the plan for success in ways that may help the participant understand better, and understand their goals as part of their cultural adjustment. 

 

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