Keeping the Focus
on Student Success
A systematic approach to creating a
platform for engaging focused data
talks
Lee Courville
Director of Elementary Academic Programs
Eric Penrod
Director of Secondary
Academic Programs
Dr. Janice Mauldin
Assistant Superintendent
of Academic Programs
Prominent educational researchers have long
decried education as a field in which
practitioners make decisions based on
intuition, gut instinct, or fads
(Slavin, 2002)
Successful districts in the current era of standards,
standardized testing, and demands for evidence of the
quality of performance, invest considerable human, financial
and technical resources in developing their capacity to assess
the performance of students, teachers, and schools, and to
utilize these assessments to inform decision making about
needs and strategies for improvement, and progress toward
goals at the classroom, school, and district levels.
--Anderson
What are focused data talks?
What are the elements of a systematic
approach for focused data talks?
How do we engage in
focused data talks?
TEACHER
LEADERS
Within every school there is a sleeping
giant of teacher leadership, which can
be a strong catalyst for making change.
(Katzenmeyer and Moller, 2001)
Building Communities of Practice
Principal
Assistant
Principal
Teacher
Leaders
Collaborative
Learning
Collaborative
Learning
Collaborative
Learning
What speaks to you?
• Choose one of the following quotes based
on your strongest reaction after reading it
• Think about why the quote evoked the
strongest reaction
• Be prepared to share out with the group
We have to transform the way we think
about data from a hammer that’s going to
hurt teachers to a flashlight that’s going to
help them.
-- Data Quality Campaign ED Aimee Guidera
1
The idea is fairly simple: If analyzed correctly,
student test data can tell educators what works
in the classroom and what needs to change. It
can tell administrators where to invest resources
and which educators are effective. And it can
help parents better understand how their
children are learning.
-- Data Quality Campaign ED Aimee Guidera
2
We have an opportunity to blow the lid
off school attainment, dramatically and
swiftly reduce the achievement gap and
enhance the “life chances” of all children,
regardless of their economic or social
circumstances.
Mike Schmoker
3
“To assess student achievement accurately,
teachers and administrators must
understand the achievement targets their
students are to master. They cannot
assess (let alone teach) achievement that
has not been defined”.
4
Richard J.Stiggins
Sharing
People without information cannot act. People with
information cannot help but act.
Ken Blanchard
1. What are
focused data talks?
Non-emotional look at
Student Data
Springboard for problem
solving
Drives decisions for the
future
Ongoing
It is not…….
an autopsy
It is…….
Diagnostic
How do you use data?
• Discuss with an elbow partner how data is used on your
campus/district
• You will have 10 minutes
• Choose a spokesperson to share out with the larger group
Sharing
System of Interlocking
Relationships
Alignment
Engagement
Parental
Involvement
Instructional
Materials
Instructional
Technology
Goals
Accountability
Curriculum
Leadership
Development
Programs
Student
Data
Instruction
C,C,C
PDAS
Budgeting
Common
Language
Professional
Development
Observations
Assessments
Collaboration
2. What are the elements of
a systematic approach for
focused data talks?
Elements
of a Systematic Approach for
Implementation
Focused Data Talks
Foundation
Analyze Data
and Next Steps
Culture
Capacity
Data
Management
Data
Foundation for Data Driven Decisions
• Specific measurable goals
– District
– School
– Classroom
– Student
• Implementation
of a system-wide
curriculum
Culture of Purposeful Use of Data
• Explicit Expectations
• Explicit Norms
• Mutual Accountability
Culture of Purposeful Use of Data
Explicit Expectations
• All data is revealed
• All teachers analyze data
• Everyone takes personal responsibility for and
acts upon data
• No excuses
Culture of Purposeful Use of Data
Explicit Norms
•
Teachers prepare data by a specified date
•
Teachers analyze their class data, meet with the
grade level to analyze data, and meet with the
department to analyze data
•
Data will be analyzed objectively without emotion
•
Decisions will be made regarding instructional
practices for future lessons
•
Data will be analyzed throughout the school year
Culture of Purposeful Use of Data
Mutual Accountability
• Every person, regardless of position, has a moral
and professional obligation to provide the best
education possible to the students we serve
• Data is shared with EVERYONE
Data Management System
User-friendly
Timely
Accessible
The Right Data
• Student Achievement
–
–
–
–
•
•
•
•
•
•
9 Weeks
Tests
Daily Work
Other assessments
Instructional Practice
Goal Implementation
Curricular
Resource Allocation
Programs
Planning Decisions
Capacity for Data Driven
Decision Making
• Invest in Professional
Development
• Provide support on how to
use data and model use of
data and data discussions
• Provide time for teacher
collaboration
• Share data and improvement
strategies across the district
Analyze Data
and Create Next
Steps
• Immediate Feedback
• Data Analysis Protocols
• Goal Monitoring Reports
– Administrators
– Teachers
– Students
• Next Steps
In God we trust. All others must bring data.
Robert Hayden, Plymouth State College
Implementation
Plan
Reassess
Teach
Student
Data
Reteach
Data Talks
T.L./Teacher
Data Talks
Data Talks
Principal/T.L. District/Principal
Review
Assess
Implementation
Plan
Student Data
Plan
• Unpack TEKS/Student
Expectations
• Year at a Glance
• Curriculum
• Alignment
• Content
• Context
• Concept
Implementation
Plan
Teach
Student
Data
Teach
•
•
•
•
•
Content
Context
Concept
Rigor
Engagement
Implementation
Plan
Teach
Student
Data
Review
Review
• Review content in different
contexts at the appropriate
conceptual level
• Include STAAR formatted
questions
• Broader scope than what
will be tested
• Reteach during review if
necessary (mini lessons)
Implementation
Plan
Teach
Student
Data
Review
Assess
Assess
• Assess with STAAR formatted
questions
• Assessment will not cover all
tested TEKS in all contexts
• Assessment results collected
and analyzed
• Data drives next
instructional steps
Implementation
Plan
Data Talks
T.L./Teacher
Data Talks
Principal/T.L.
Teach
Student
Data
Data Talks
District/Principal
Assess
Review
3. How do we engage in
focused data talks?
Data Talks
• District and Principal
• Principal and Teacher Leader
• Teacher Leader and Teacher
• During each of the data
talks, next steps are
determined as well as a
process for updates on
progress
Preparing for data talks
•
•
•
•
•
Setting
Time
Documents
Attendees
Communication
– Discussion
– Blame game
Documents
Assessment Results Report
from Data Management
System
Teacher/ Class Report
• By student
– Listed in order of answers correct
(top to bottom)
• For each student indicate:
– All Student Groups
– Raw Score
Item Response Report
• By student
– Listed in alpha order
Item Analysis Report
• By student
– Proficiency Category
Conducting Focused Data Talks
• Quiet private location (uninterrupted)
• Set the tone
• Communication
– Discussion
– Blame game
• Ask probing questions (see question bank)
• Create next steps/plan to address areas in
need of improvement
Implementation
Plan
Reteach
Data Talks
T.L./Teacher
Teach
Student
Data
Data Talks
Principal/T.L.
Review
Assess
Data Talks
District/Principal
Re-Teach
• Students are retaught
concepts to be tested
– Individual
– Small Group
– Whole Class
Implementation
Plan
Reassess
Teach
Student
Data
Reteach
Data Talks
T.L./Teacher
Data Talks
Data Talks
Principal/T.L. District/Principal
Review
Assess
Re-Assess
• Students are reassessed
using a different test
from the TBA
• Students are reassessed
only on the areas not
mastered
Sustained
Plan
Reassess
Teach
Student
Data
Reteach
Data Talks
District/Principal
Data Talks
Principal/T.L.
Review
Assess
Data Talks
T.L./Teacher
Data Tables
Lee Courville
Director of Elementary Academic Programs
hcourville@mfisd.txed.net
830-798-8330
Eric Penrod
Director of Secondary Academic Programs
epenrod@mfisd.txed.net
830-798-8330
Dr. Janice Mauldin
Assistant Superintendent of Academic Programs
jmauldin@mfisd.txed.net
830-798-8330