The Secret Lives of Ed Data Managers: Some Do’s and Don’ts I Wish I Had Known Earlier
Because what it takes to be a data manager is far from obvious, I’ve gone ahead and, with the input of some of Simplicity’s friends of family Evan Young and Mari Murphy, pulled together a list of Do’s and Don'ts to help data managers avoid burnout and find fulfillment in their jobs.
I’d like to start by naming that data managers are particularly vulnerable to professional burn out. Part of this has to do with the fact that, more often than not, it’s really hard to tell whether you’re succeeding as a data manager. In other roles, there are more sign posts: students are growing, attendance rates are high, parents are engaged and so forth. But defining success as a data manager is much less straightforward.
What’s more, a data manager is usually a unit unto themselves at a school. The isolation that comes with this, coupled with feeling unanchored in their own work performance, is another big reason data managers quit early in their careers. Where I work at Simplicity Education, so many of my team and our clients have been in this position that we have actually created a network for K12 Data Professionals to meet, exchange ideas, and support each other. If you want to join, you can find it here.
Next, data managers will also find themselves being stretched too thin because their job descriptions are often simultaneously vague and incredibly broad. Add to that the fact that many data managers are in positions where they don’t have the tools to do their job well. The result is that a lot of data managers are quagmired in completing mundane and foundational tasks (think entering the same data into multiple places) instead of having the time to be the strategic data partner that would most benefit their school.
Last but not least, many data managers – especially those who are also fulfilling other roles within their school or district – have very little time to do the data management job because they’re getting asked to fill in for sick teachers or pick up extra duties. Lastly, data managers are in the tricky position of needing cooperation from teachers and staff but lacking the authority in school to be able to hold their teachers accountable. As a result, being a data manager can often feel incredibly frustrating and disempowering.
So how do we navigate this tricky landscape while being able to make an impact at our networks and schools? In the list of Do’s and Don’ts I’ve provided below, I lay out some basic tips that I wish I had known earlier and that would have made my life a lot easier as a data manager. For those of you who are not data managers, my hope is that the following lists foster a better sense of what it takes to set your beloved data managers up for success!
The Do’s
Do offer key takeaways - The reality is that most of the people who will be looking at your work do not have nearly as much time as they would like to sit down and think deeply about the data. They need you to guide their attention and give them a sense of direction. The key to this is keeping a light, simple touch: you don’t need to provide the next steps from the data, but instead distill for your school all the relevant information into easily digestible nuggets.
Do provide the data in a variety of visuals/graphics - Not everyone looks at data in the same way. Some people read graphs better, others tables. It’s important to make data accessible and compelling for all! There’s a lot of fun to be had in highlighting patterns and solving instructional mysteries through presenting data in different ways.
Do disaggregate data by various student groups - It’s great for your school to know that the average on that formative assessment was an 82%, but how did the students who are emerging multilinguals perform compared to everyone else? Other examples of useful student groupings I’ve used include students with IEPs and MTSS levels. Once you have those disaggregated views, leaders are better able to ask “why?” and make more highly strategic instructional decisions. When thinking through the student groups, I would recommend aligning them with your school’s or district’s yearly goals and longer-term strategic plan.
Do teach transferable data literacy skills - Each presentation is an opportunity to empower your colleagues with new skills. Training teammates on how to use your dashboards and tools without your assistance as early as possible not only gives them skills they’ll be able to use time and time again but, by cutting down troubleshooting requests later down the line, also frees up your time and energy.
Do foster a data-driven culture - A school or district without data managers can only be so data-driven. Whether it’s in teaching those transferable data literacy skills on PD days or getting your colleagues excited about the power of a dashboard, you have a lot of influence over how data-driven your school culture is. Use your powers for good! If you’re not sure where to start, Simplicity offers a number of webinars to help you upskill and a host of articles on data culture that you’ll find valuable.
Do set boundaries - You will get pulled in different directions. When you find yourself struggling to do what you joined your school to do – manage and analyze data – it is high time to set boundaries. Very rarely is it anyone’s intention to keep you from doing your job, but rather that everything else in a school feels, and often is, more immediate than a data analysis. If you find yourself in this position it is time to go to your manager and ask them to help determine your priorities, so that they can recognize exactly how they are using your time and understand what might be lost in the trade-off. You might still be managing phones in the main office, but you don’t need to also be up late trying to finish a graph as a result.
The Don’ts
Don’t assume your teacher or leaders can readily read your tables and graphs - A great way to meet your colleagues right where they are is to take a survey that assesses their data literacy skill level. If possible, consider collaboration with instructional leaders to schedule data literacy PDs that can help fill major gaps. In the case where you don’t have the resources to gather this kind of information or conduct this type of training, set your team up for success by always labeling tables and graphs clearly and highlighting the data points and trends where they should focus their attention.
Don’t assume that your teachers or leaders know the details about your school data - In many scenarios, you will be the only person who has an exhaustive understanding of attendance data trends or how your school performed on the most recent state test. Remember that you are living and breathing this data, while the rest of your team gets a glimpse as they are running to a million other things.
It happens to the best of us! (Credit unknown)
Don’t get discouraged when your tools aren’t used as intended - …because they will be! I can’t think of a single time my tool was used in exactly the way I had envisioned. Your colleagues will be tremendously creative with the data tools that you give them. Some will use your templates in ways you had never imagined. Take it as an opportunity to identify if there are needs that teachers are trying to solve for, improve your original tool or training – and get really good at writing precise instructions!
Don’t match the data to your opinion - Of course, this doesn’t mean you can’t have an opinion! On the contrary, you should come to your teachers and leaders with hypotheses in hand. But this hypothesis shouldn’t preclude you from looking at and sharing data that does not support your thinking. Your job is to present data in ways that can help those who do have this authority to make important decisions objectively.
Don’t only focus on the negative - It’s easy to get bogged down in what we see is going wrong. After all, it’s part of our biology: the human brain is wired to scan for threats. Counteract this very normal tendency by using the data to identify where your school has improved, or by framing your takeaways as opportunities to better understand teacher development and student learning. This will help bring a much needed realism to data discussions.
While this list definitely doesn’t cover all of the things that make data managers extraordinary, it should cover the basics. If you are a data manager and follow these guidelines, it should also hopefully make your life a smidge easier and your contributions to your school even better.
