For ease of comparison, the common stragegies (that were found in schools with high drop out rates) are contrasted with the demonstrably successful PD strategies.
Over a two-day period, 'PDI teams' (comprised of parents, teachers and administrators) visited 5 of the PD schools. During these visits they compared the common practices that they had identified in their conceptual frameworks with the practices that they observed in the PD schools. The team observed classes, the general facility, materials, and other aspects of school life that were thought to impact upon school retention. At a minimum, the team also interviewed teachers, the head mistress, and several parents (in their homes).
At the end of each day the team returned to the training site to debrief each other and document their findings. After the first day of observation the PDI teams provided each other with feedback on their findings. This critique ensured that the findings focused on actual behaviors or strategies, rather than on attitudes or beliefs. It also highlighted the issues that remained undocumented so that they could be explored the following day.
After the second day of observation, all of the participants met and the teams reported their findings. Participants were struck by the simplicity of the uncommon but successful strategies that the high retention schools were using. They were excited by the fact that these strategies which they had 'discovered' were clearly accessible to them.
In some school districts in rural Argentina, almost half of the students drop out before they complete the third grade. Although economic difficulties left many teachers and schools feeling like this problem was intractable, the Positive Deviance design has allowed parents and schools to see possible solutions by identifying what is going right. Using Positive Deviance, these schools discovered that within their district there are schools (the 'positive deviants') who are able to retain over 75% of their students,without access to any special resources. By examining the specific strategies and practices employed by these PD schools, the schools have come to see that there are things that can be done today.
Step 4: Design