- Have an intentional process for using data for instructional impact. Don't just use data because it's a part of something you are required to do, but seek out intentional ways to plan for data conversations.
- Data knowledge is only effective if many people collaborate in the process. Don't keep data to the administrative team, spread the knowledge and power of data use throughout a school building.
- Using the cohort model of data analysis yields much more powerful, actionable information for teachers. This is the single best way to assess your instructional practices over a period of time.
Doing the "Data Overview" project in this course was the most valuable field experience for me. Using data to craft a story is a timely, but extremely valuable process. I was able to uncover some achievement deficiencies that might have flown under the radar otherwise. Using multiple sources of data for this project helped to solidify my conclusions and provide a basis for an effective action plan.
I plan to continue the work at this course by leading our School Improvement Team in data conversations based on this year's testing results. I have recommended several of the protocols and data activities for use in upcoming team meetings. Although I expect that many teachers will grumble about the focus on testing data, I plan to counter that by including many other forms of data in our discussion, especially student work samples.