Numbers Don’t Lie

Every business has a way to quantify how they are doing. The amount of revenue generated tells them exactly where they stand. Too often in education we do not use the right measures to truly know if we are helping students to learn and grow. There is value in being data driven.

District assessments, campus developed assessments, exit tickets, and informal assessments all paint a picture of what is happening in our schools. These are just a few examples of data that is generated. We can take this valuable information and use it our benefit.

Data does not have to be a dirty word. We should view assessment scores as a way to let us know exactly where we stand. Scores should also not be a secret to students. Teachers should help students to track their progress.

After any assessment, teachers should spend some time analyzing student results. Information can be broken down by standard or item type. Students can be given a data tracking sheet for their scores. When students know what they need to work on they can focus on improvement.

Assessment results can also help with small group instruction. The data gives teachers evidence of what students need more work on. No, this is not a way to group students into high, mid or low rankings. This is a way to group students by their areas of need.

Attendance data is another factor that affects student performance. Finding trends and other factors that sway attendance is a part of campus improvement. We could also look into how teacher attendance affects achievement.

Taking time to analyze data can have positive effects for teachers and schools as a whole. Your schools data is a starting point for developing an action plan for school improvement. There’s a lot of ways for us to look at things but numbers don’t lie.