When Data Literacy and Ed Tech Collide
3 MINUTE READ
Last month, I had the pleasure of collaborating with Teryn Thomas from EdLight and hosting a webinar “Data Overload: Using Trends to Meet Your Targets”. During the webinar, we drilled down into a set of middle school student data, combining basic ed data literacy skills with the insights into student learning that EdLight’s unique technology offers.
Digging Into the Data
Looking at High Level Trends: We started our data drill down by looking at a middle school’s average scores on their fall and winter math formative assessments. We noticed that the sixth grade seemed to be struggling because their performance was the lowest across grade levels and they didn’t experience any growth across assessments. Therefore, we focused our attention on this grade level.
Using Distribution Analysis to Understand Spread: We then applied distribution analysis (where is the data falling?) to sixth-grade data, using it to refine the types of questions we were asking ourselves about students' performance.
Turning To Instructional Area Analysis for Clarity: After identifying that student scores were polarizing in the winter math assessment, we used instructional analysis to look more closely into the specific areas where students were struggling. This allowed us to see that, while many students were excelling in Expressions and Equations, Ratios and Proportional Relationships was driving the dip in school-level performance and growth.
Diving Into Student Work: Using EdLight’s incredible technology, we could look at samples of student work on Ratios and Proportional Relationships. These samples of student thinking helped us pinpoint the precise standards for which a hypothetical instructional coach might need to intervene.
And what’s the big deal?
Data literacy and insight into actual student work matters! At Simplicity, we believe in bringing empathy and data analysis together. This webinar was a reminder of the amazing insights that can happen when an inquiry-based mindset, basic data literacy and effective tools, like EdLight’s time saving technology, align. The result is an actionable approach to data that creates positive change in student growth and performance.
Of course, none of this magic is possible without the right resources and systems. Educators need planning time to drill down into assessments and student work. Getting the right tools helps not only with looking at a range of data points but also with freeing up time to engage in the type of data analysis we explored during our webinar. Smart systems – which we help schools set up – allow this all to happen.
If you’d like to learn more about how to use data in ways that are practical and empathetic, check out one of our upcoming webinars!
About Simplicity
At Simplicity, we aim to accelerate the achievement of equitable student outcomes by supporting educators with actionable data. We offer a range of resources and services – from management consulting to a FB group for ed data professionals – geared towards educators who are looking to leverage data insights in service of student learning and development.
About EdLight
EdLight was founded to equip teachers with tools necessary for authentic learning. By providing teachers with greater insight into student work, EdLight helps educators put student work at the center of teaching and learning. Whether it’s drawing directly on work or leaving audio comments, EdLight makes teaching a whole lot easier.