Under NCLB, educators are experiencing increased pressure to use student performance data to improve achievement. Despite attention to this data, we know little about how schools actually make meaning of the data. Drawing on analyses of interviews and observations conducted at 10 low-performing schools in a large urban district, this presentation seeks to open the ‘black box’ of data use by studying how communities of practice engage in data discussions, and the conditions necessary to faciliate strong feedback loops. Our findings illuminate the conditions that both limit and support the ability of communities of practice to contribute to a process of sustained school learning and improvement.
Learning to Learn From Data: Limitations and Illuminations – PowerPoint
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