The Do’s and Don’ts of Data

1. The Do’s and Don’ts of Data Elementary Instructional Facilitators Caldwell County Schools

2. What We’ve Learned. . . Do: Don’t: • Get buy-in from teachers and administrators. • Include horizontal and vertical teams in data discussion. • Discuss student data in terms of what students need to be successful. • Discuss student data in terms of why the student is not responding to instruction. • Use data conversations as a “gotcha” moment. • Keep data “private.” Teachers can be defensive about what is considered private. • Discuss data in terms of what a teacher is not doing. • Discuss students as having deficits. Automatically assuming that the student has deficits halts conversations.

4. Data Walls • Formats vary dependent on the needs of the school • Show overall school data and individual student data • Dynamic, not static

5. Data Walls Do: Don’t • Show grade level trends • Sort students to determine student needs • Refer to data walls in discussions • Keep walls in areas away from students and parents • Single out teachers • Sort students to determine which “won’t make it” at the end of the year • Create a wall and never revisit it. • Use the data walls in conversation/conference with parents or anyone that is not part of the school staff.

6. Data Walls

7. DIBELS Data Walls

8. Data Notebooks • Vary depending on the needs of the school • School notebooks • Classroom notebooks • Student notebooks

9. Data Notebooks Do: Don’t • Design notebooks that are useful for tracking student progress. • Allow students to set their own goals and track their own progress. • Keep data notebooks accessible to teachers and/or students. • Make notebooks “one more thing” that has to be done. If it’s not useful, don’t do it. • Keep student data a secret from the students. • Put notebooks in areas where they are not easily accessed or they will be forgotten.

10. Data Meetings Do: Don’t: • Set an agenda and use meeting times to discuss student achievement. • Look for trends in data. • Set SMART goals for groups of students needing the same skills. • Determine if interventions/ enrichment plans are effective. • Use meeting times to gripe about students or other school issues. • Use gut feelings to determine student needs. • Leave the meeting without a plan for intervention/ enrichment. • Leave plans open.

11. Data Meetings • SMART Goals: • Specific • Measurable • Attainable • Realistic • Time-bound • Action Plans:

12. School Administration Do: Don’t: • Be knowledgeable about the types of data being collected at the school. • Set a high expectation for student achievement and instruction. • Follow through and follow up with teachers and students. • Assume that teachers will take care of data collection and know everything they need to know. • Allow expectations to drop or discussions to fade. • Forget to check on the progress of action plans and talk with teachers and students about their progress.

13. Instructional Facilitators: Do: Don’t: • Assist teachers in data collection. • Assist teachers in looking at ways to use data in instruction. • Act as a reference for teachers in setting SMART goals and creating an action plan. • Provide teachers with resources to carry out action plans. • Inform teachers and administrators of trends occurring across the district. • Coordinate testing. • Analyze data for teachers. • Write action plans or participate in the implementation of the plan. • Write lesson plans for core instruction, enrichment or intervention. • Compare schools to each other.

14. Questions