Data and the Educator

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Standards are meaningless until you define how you will assess them (Bambrick-Santoyo, 2010). This core idea is expressed in the first chapter of Driven by Data: A Practical Guide to Improve Instruction. It also stands as the focus for how and why assessment is considered an integral component to data analysis. Throughout the subsequent chapters of the guide the relationship between assessment and analytics are expressed through a handful of factors. I viewed the following as interesting and notable components towards defining that relationship:

  • Understanding effective data analysis with consideration for the development and dissemination of data reports to help address question-level, standards-level, individual student, and whole class data.
  • Utilizing the information ascertained from the data analysis phase towards developing carefully planned and group designed action-plans for addressing effective course instruction and lesson plans. 
  • Using professional development and teacher/administrative input to address the weaknesses in student performance and build a sense of culture and reliability with regards to the potential of effective data analysis.

Driven by Data clearly has the intent to provide educators with a pathway towards implementing these concepts and other detailed items for the purpose of providing purposeful and successful educational outcomes. It is with that idea in mind that one should acknowledge that the text exists as what its name suggests, a guide. It stands to reason that schools and organizations looking to improve any weaknesses in their academic performance might find helpful information in such a book, however many factors affect the daily functions of those enterprises, where time allocation, resources, existing culture, and support, might help or hinder such an endeavor. I believe it is important that consideration for these details is a focus when applying the framework of the guidelines suggested.

In the future, I would like to experience or research educational organizations that utilize some or all the methods expressed within the Driven by Data guidebook. I feel that seeing the application of those concepts in a real-world setting or viewing evidence of its implementation will build more confidence in the support and potential of its framework as opposed to just accepting that it works because it claims to do so. As reference and to further elaborate on that idea, I viewed the following video. It provides a quick snapshot of EduCare, a network of Early Childhood Schools that demonstrates how they utilize data driven instruction, along with reflective supervision of the teachers to highlight not only improvement and areas of need for faculty, but among students as well:

Bambrick-Santoyo, P. (2010). Driven by Data: A Practical Guide to Improve Instruction. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Edutopia. (2019, May 10) Using Data to Support Teacher and Student Growth [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhMkqjbiSaA

 

 



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