The numbers in your trackers are more than just numbers
They represent the achievements of the young men and women you teach. They represent people.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Student_in_Class_(3618969705).jpg
As you use these data it is incumbent on you to think about what those numbers stand for
And as you act upon those data it is your obligation to take ethical and responsible actions
https://www.jisc.ac.uk/blog/enhancing-student-services-with-digital-engagement-11-jun-2015
In addition to treating your data with care, mid-year is a great time to step back and deepen your understanding of your data
Only to find that…
assessment questions are aligned to the standard, but not the full rigor of the standard.
Only to find that…
a few standards that have only been assessed with one item—likely not enough at-bats for a reliable measure of learning
A data-literate teacher uses this information to
improve his future assessments, and deepen his understanding of the
data in his tracker
If we are trying to discern if our data are signaling the right message, we probably also want to
look beyond our trackers and assessments
Let’s look at some standards mastery data, focusing in on individual student performance
Mel is struggling. His average standards mastery is 36%. That’s pretty low.
A closer look shows that Mel’s performance isn’t consistent across standards
A particularly interesting trend is that Mel has low mastery for several standards. This is not a trend that exists for other students on these standards, nor is it a trend for the majority of the other standards Mel has been taught.
Mel’s teacher decided to look at other assessment data to see what was going on
A review of Mel’s exit tickets from days when these four standards were taught show Mel was able to demonstrate understanding of the content. However, Mel’s teacher also discovered that he was missing several exit tickets from Mel. Mel’s teacher doesn’t track exit tickets, he simply uses them to inform the next day’s instruction, so he didn’t notice this before.
https://pixabay.com/en/ticket-coupon-cinema-theater-311560/
His teacher also looked to other sources of quantitative data to learn more
This made Mel’s teacher look at his attendance log. Mel received a perfect attendance award in the first quarter, so Mel isn’t someone that he usually thinks of as having an attendance issue. That’s when Mel’s teacher noticed that Mel has been missing more and more school lately, and that he missed much of the instruction for the four standards where he is struggling the most.
https://www.vertex42.com/Files/pdfs/2/attendance-record.pdf
Finally, Mel’s teacher looked to qualitative data to better understand
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_boy_runs_at_the_Pentagon_Memorial_Sept_120911-D-NI589-158.jpg
Mel’s teacher made it a point to observe Mel’s behavior closely over the next couple of days. He didn’t notice anything unusual except that Mel seemed to be rushing to class. Mel’s teacher noticed him running through the school courtyard each morning.
Mel’s teacher scheduled a conference with him the next day
During that conversation he learned that Mel recently took on the responsibility of walking his little sister to school each morning. Mel shared that he has a hard time getting her to school on time, and making his own first period class on time. Mel said he’s embarrassed to walk into the class late, so he has been sitting out first period if he can’t make it there by the bell.
http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=123061&picture=glasses-on-a-school-desk
While Mel does need additional opportunities to master the four
standards where he is most struggling, the real intervention
Mel needs is a strategy and accountability system for
getting to school on time each day.
This is what we call triangulating data
Your tracker and assessment data are a great start. However, data-literate teachers also look to other sources of quantitative and qualitative data to understand what those data mean, and to use those findings to inform their instructional responses.