b.y.o.t bring your own thoughts
the latest on all student-centered models, leadership development, strategic planning, teacher retention, and all things innovation in k-12 education. we answer questions before you think to ask them.
knowledge is power! measure what matters! if our cliches are an indicator, we all know that data collection, review, analysis, and understanding is important. we all hear of data-driven decisions, and the importance of data in education and educational systems, but we are often challenged to incorporate data review and the next steps into our everyday lives. in some cases, schools may have deeply embedded practices where data are used only superficially to check a box. data use may be inconsistent across the organization or only occurs in silos. some school districts may even have beliefs and norms – a culture – that actually diminish the potential benefits of assessment and data collection. the truth is that the work to dismantle bad habits and unhealthy systems is really, really hard. as we built the essential elements of a data culture, we considered how an organizational culture can shift from a culture in which data is in the periphery, pulled to the center for high stakes discussions and decisions, to one in which data is an integral part of every day, informing the small moves that reinforce the vision, clarify decisions, and advance progress. this is where our love of habits comes in…
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surveys should be a part of every school’s planning. as a former school district administrator responsible for surveys, i learned a lot about what to do and what not to do. above all else, creating a listening culture in your school or district can transform your next initiative and your overall results in supporting student success.
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7cs practices | 7cs teaching resources | data | district leadership | school leadership
in their 2nd year as a campus, south texas isd virtual academy saw very strong academic results - outperforming both their region and the state of texas on end-of-year testing. however, they lacked insight into their students' perception of their experiences at school. did students feel cared for, or academically challenged in their classwork? reflecting on research that shows more positive student perceptions contribute to continued academic growth, principal maribel valdez decided to conduct three versions of tripod’s 7cs survey throughout the 22-23 school year. the tripod 7cs was used as one of the key metrics in the met (measures of effective teaching) project which found that teachers who had higher scores on the survey were more likely to have students who scored higher on state assessments and generally had higher academic outcomes.
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data | district leadership | surveys | teams & culture
when working on surveys for a large school district, i heard it all. we don’t trust you with our survey data. what did you do with last year’s survey? this survey takes too long. what am i supposed to do with this survey data? often when these responses arise, it’s due to poor survey design, poor follow through, and a less-than-authentic approach – all of which can erode trust and lead to unsupported claims.
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this spring, merrimack college and edweek research center released a whitepaper publishing their findings for their teacher survey. one of the takeaways? forty-three percent of respondents said they were somewhat dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with their jobs. “the last two years have been fraught for teachers as their profession has consistently attracted public attention—much of it hostile—due to political and cultural battles over pandemic-related policies on masking and vaccines and new laws curtailing instruction related to race, racism, and gender,” the report says.
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data | decision-making | district leadership | school districts | school leadership
it’s that time of year again - we’re shopping for school supplies, teachers are returning to their classrooms, and students (as well as their parents) are eagerly awaiting the news as to who their teachers will be. as a parent of two school-aged boys, it’s also the time of year our family starts making predictions about the year ahead. “i think miles will do so much better in reading this year.” “taylor is probably going to get in trouble a lot, but maybe he’ll also test into the gifted program.” it’s an innocent practice in anticipating the successes and struggles we’ll experience in the year ahead, but without knowing it, we’re also shaping how we will perceive these experiences as the year unfolds.
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