The document emphasizes the importance of understanding and using data responsibly in education, highlighting the need for teachers to analyze both quantitative and qualitative data to assess student performance effectively. It illustrates this with a case study of a student named Mel, who struggles with certain standards due to attendance issues rather than a lack of understanding. The conclusion stresses the value of triangulating data sources to identify the true needs of students and implement appropriate interventions.

1. INVESTIGATING MID-YEAR DATA – STANDARDS MASTERY

2. 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

3. 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

4. In addition to treating your data with care, mid-year is a great
time to step back and deepen your understanding of your data

5. How do you know your
data are signaling the
right message?

6. Let’s keep looking at standards mastery data.
But where did these data come from?

7. to understand your data
is to understand the
quality of your
assessment

8. A data-literate teacher may ask…
How well is my
assessment aligned to
my standards and
instruction?

9. Only to find that…
assessment questions
are aligned to the
standard, but not the
full rigor of the
standard.

10. A data-literate teacher may ask…
What is the overall
quality of my
assessment
questions?

11. 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

12. A data-literate teacher
uses this information to
improve his future
assessments, and deepen
his understanding of the
data in his tracker

13. Your assessment template provides guidance for
how you can investigate the quality of your data

14. 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

15. 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.

16. 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.

17. What could be going on
here?

18. A closer look shows that Mel is struggling with
four standards in particular

19. Sounds like Mel needs
to be re-taught these
four standards…

20. Or does it?
Or does it?

21. 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/

22. 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

23. 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.

24. 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

25. 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.

26. 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.

27. Now that you can answer the
question how do I know? It’s
time to answer our next
question:
What needs to happen to
reach our goals by the end-
of-year?