I remember when I had my first "real" classroom in the early 1990's. My school district was looking at test scores and trying to address way to improve student performance on standardized tests. We implemented programs and activities designed to improve learning, only to abandon them in a short time. I worked on district committees to improve curriculum guides and align them with adopted textbooks. However, the next year, state curriculum "frameworks" appeared and all of that work was abandoned. Surely someone in our district knew this state publication was coming down the pike.
Over time, data analysis has improved. I moved out of state for a few years and taught in another state. When I returned to my home state, I took a few years off to stay home with our younger children. During that time, our state began adopting state standards of instruction. While interviewing for my first position in middle school, the principal asked me about teaching guided by standards. I admitted it was new territory for me, but I was willing to learn. This principal implemented data-driven decision making throughout our school. He organized classes based on student scores, citing students who needed the most support in improvement were the ones who needed the smallest class sizes. Then, we used student scores to guide instruction, and he implemented other changes to create and environment conducive to teaching and learning. As a result, the school made major improvements over the next few years; it was even selected as the "most academically outstanding middle school" in our state.
Data-driven decision making took on a different meaning when I transferred to my current school, a public virtual school. This year, my homeroom class has changed. I have returning students, and I received students from other learning environments, such as homeschooling, traditional public schools, and private schools. I have already began analyzing their standardized tests scores. If students entered from another school environment, I don't have their scores, but I have asked their parents to provide those to me during our homeroom meeting in Elluminate today. Some families sent me scores this afternoon. These scores will help me as I plan for this school year.
In the next few weeks, and throughout the course of the school year, I will use data to guide my instruction. I will export data from our online school on a weekly basis and copy it into an Excel spreadsheet. After I run macros to update student progress and attendance, I will analyze the weekly results to prioritize contacts with my families. I will take that spreadsheet data and merge it with a Word document to help me with the analysis. In addition, I will continue to analyze test scores and monitor student attendance in synchronous class sessions.
The applications for technology to improve student learning are amazing. I can honestly say that I am not pleased with the test scores I see in our school's middle school science assessments. We have work to do. However, the data is not the only thing that should drive our instruction. We also need to integrate our years of experience and teacher intuition. For example, one of my students who has autism struggled last school year with several courses. Per school policy, he should have been retained. My first instinct was to recommend retention. After discussing the situation and options with our IEP team, I gradually changed my mind. Our school Director of Exceptional Students, his mom, the resource teacher, and I decided to place him into the next grade, due to several extenuating circumstances. During my review of test scores this week, I was overjoyed to see he met our state standard in most of his assessments. I immediately picked up the phone to share this with his resource teacher as she was instrumental in supporting him last year.
While data is wonderful for helping us make decisions, we do need to remember the human factor. Christ gave us minds to think and hearts to love. When we seek Him for wisdom in difficult circustances, He will be glorified. This experience taught me to balance the data with intuition and wisdom.
Picciano, A. G. (2011). Educational leadership and planning for technology. 5th ed. New York,
N.Y.: Pearson.
It is not likely for someone to have a sensible argument against the benefits of databases when it comes to analyzing objective information about today’s students. This phenomenon can only apply however to information that is tangible and verifiable. The importance of knowing and understanding the students should not be lost. There may be student personalities and other factors that cannot be given statistical significance on a spreadsheet. These factors may have an impact on student placement and should not be overlooked. More than likely the advantages of student placement based on statistics will be predominant, however, there may be an advantage including a review of these class placements by the instructors and administration personal that are familiar with these students to finalize the placements.
ReplyDeleteDo you find that the revolution of a state’s curriculum has greater consequences than benefits or vice versa? I know that each time they change the curriculum in the two states that I have worked for, it seems to dishearten the teachers. The frequency of change is often what disheartens the teachers. While change is good, and change is necessary, do you know how the state can aid in the transition? One method that I have seen is gradual adoptions, but what about finances for new textbooks and training? How often do you think that curriculums should be drastically modified?
ReplyDeleteHow did you teach before there were standards of instruction?
Are virtual students required to take state standardized tests just like public school students?
What does “run macros” mean? It sounds like you use technology to improve education and improve the efficiency of data analysis.
Test scores are a great way to track student progress and many programs are now able to generate a list of areas of strengths and weaknesses based on a single test administration. This is all beneficial for differentiation. How do you use technology in the classroom? I am impressed how you use it with assessment and making decisions for how you will instruct your students.
I agree that there has to be a human factor. Technology can make us into machines at times. We have to remember technology helps us, but it should not drive us. The Lord expects us to “…love our neighbor as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18). This scripture reminds me, as I make decision regarding recommendations, to take into consideration more than just one test administration. We have to remember that teachers will be judged more harshly than other followers (James 3:1); therefore, teachers need to exercise compassion in addition to data analysis.
I am somewhat familiar with virtual school, my wife taught for a virtual school a few years back. She also had students from various backgrounds and educational experience(s). I think, though, that there are pros and cons to virtual school. It sounds like you really enjoy it!(?)
ReplyDelete@ mrpercussion80
ReplyDeleteThanks for weighing in on using data along with personal knowledge of students when considering placement. I agree that data plays an important role in decision-making and should be one of the pieces of the puzzle.
@ Tiffany
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, adoption of state standards has an asset for our schools. Our standards clearly state what students are expected to learn. However, the standards are only as good as the teachers implementing them. If teachers are "covering" standards, but the lessons are simply "on topic," not "on target," then instruction is not very effective. Before we had state standards, teachers were teaching whatever was covered in the textbook, oftentimes. I've found that having standards transformed my instruction. I felt the freedom to use the textbook as one of the many resources in my teacher "toolbox." It frustrated some students and parents because they were used to teachers starting at Chapter One and moving through the book. Our state has textbook adoptions on a rotating basis; however, with viewing a textbook as a resource for teaching, the textbook becomes less important. This allows teachers the freedom to pull from other resources, including interactive games, videos, and government websites such as the Environmental Protection Agency site.
One way our state has helped with transition in standards is to provide a website for state teachers to access standards, share lesson plans, and find resources.
As to your questions about the virtual environment -
Yes! Our students are public school students. They are required to meet state mandates for attendance and state testing. When testing time comes, our school has sites across the state. Students are assigned to sites closest to their home county. My site is 2 hours form my home, so I have to leave home before 6am and often return after 6pm. Most of our families do not have to drive that far. I use technology to access my classroom. My "room" is a virtual Elluminate room that I have to access via the Internet. All of my students have to use technology to come to class. While in class, we access websites, manipulate objects on the whiteboard, communicate using the chatbox and microphones, and so much more. Students have an assessment at the end of class. Sometimes, they take a BrainPop quiz online and email me the results. Other times, I post multiple choice questions on the board and students answer using polling tools. I have the capability of hiding their answers from other students. This gives students protection from adverse consequences because they and I are the only ones who know when they miss a question.
I hope this helps answer your questions...
@ Chris
ReplyDeleteI do truly enjoy virtual teaching. It is a challenge, but I find it very rewarding.
I agree that there are pros and cons to this environment, as there are with other teaching positions. I do miss face to face interaction with students and other teachers. Our school purposely has monthly staff face to face meetings and plans for student outings. In addition, teachers plan events with the local library for families in their area.
The virtual environment is not for every student or every teacher. Our staff views our school as a support for the local school. Some of our students come to us because health issues make it difficult to attend a traditional school. Others have had issues with bullying or lacked success due to distractions in the classroom, such as students with ADHD. Many families report the issues with attention deficit diminish with home-based schooling. Other students are average students, and still other students need a challenge as advanced learners.
You've probably read more than you wanted to know! I told Tiffany in a Discussion Board response that I often don't know when to stop taking about my school. Thanks for giving me an opportunity to share!
@ Tiffany
ReplyDeleteI forgot to explain macros. Honestly, I don't yet know how to write a macro. My school provides an Excel file for us to use. When pull data weekly, I add the new data. The macros run a series of steps to update my spreadsheet with the current data.
I hope this helps!
That's the most quantifiable story I've heard about data-driven decision making and how it has been successfully implemented in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteAs far as what it helped, I'm someone who is against standardized testing. I scored fairly well (1280) on the SATs despite having a 2.035 high school GPA. I'm a test taker. I tested into calculus during my college assessment despite having nothing above Algebra II in high school. I don't see how aiming our teaching at standardized tests helps ensure any real knowledge gain.
One of the positives with integrating technology is that we now have a richer context in which we can encourage a more authentic learning experience. I would love to see a shift from tests to a larger variety of assessment types that encourage learning instead of just figuring out the "right" answer and moving on.
Joe Greene
I like the idea for basic use of macros. With macros and a compiling software through Microsoft Excel, you can have it compile the data any way you choose. If you are targeting a specific group of children or a specific course, project, assignment, or whatever-as long as it's entered you can get the information that you want. I use them at work to help with weather climotology. Depending on how it is set up you can find a many great uses from it.
ReplyDeleteI think where the data may get skewed is when it's entered improperly, or if you have students too high on the grade scale or too low they may get left out unless you specifically target thought types of students/score/etc..
There are many virtual schools in Ohio and many of them are leading the pack in successful State Assessment Scores. The successful schools are data driven. Everything they do is dictated from various results from: Attendance, Behavioral Reports, Scantron, Kral, Diebels, and The Ohio Achievement Test, DI Reading, and Cogats scores.etc
ReplyDelete@Tony
ReplyDeleteThat's great! I overlooked the daily data I examine such as progress and attendance. It's become such a part of my daily routine that I dismissed it, thinking more of the state testing. We, too, use Scantron scores and Diebels. There's not much need for behavioral reports because students who used to exhibit behavior problems in the brick and mortar tend to experience diminished behavior problems in the home-based setting.
Thanks for getting me to think in a new way about those daily pieces of data!