Press Releases

For Immediate Release: 18 MAY 2009

State Education Agencies Show Initiative on Data-Driven Decision-Making, Use Service Providers

Boston, Mass. — A new Issues & Answers Report from the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) details how state education agencies (SEAs) in the Northeast and Islands Region support data-driven decision-making in districts and schools and describes the service providers hired to help do this work.

The role of data in education decision-making has received growing attention in recent years as federal and state accountability systems have required increased data collection and as the effects of analyzing data on student achievement have become better understood. Data-driven decision-making is also a priority of U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and is funded in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

“There’s so much data out there because of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), but teachers and principals don’t necessarily know how it can be used to guide learning and teaching,” said researcher Michelle LaPointe at the Regional Educational Laboratory Northeast and Islands (REL-NEI), which produced the report. “The goal is for schools and districts to transform data into actionable information that leads to improved student outcomes.”

LaPointe and coauthors Jessica Brett and María Teresa Sánchez, all at Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), and Melissa Kagle at Learning Innovations at WestEd will present findings from “How State Education Agencies in the Northeast and Islands Region Support Data-Driven Decision-Making in Districts and Schools,” at a webinar on Wednesday, May 20th, at 12:00 p.m. (More information and to register).

The report profiles SEA initiatives to support data use in districts and schools in eight states and jurisdictions: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It compares the major elements of each initiative and their similarities and differences. It focuses on state-level policies and programs because research shows that educators at the local level need external support to develop their capacity to conduct data-driven decision-making activities.

The report also provides a catalogue of nine service providers that SEAs have hired to support the work, including in-depth profiles of three.

Each SEA implemented one or more of four components to support data use:

• Centralized data system or warehouse;
• Tools for data analysis and reporting;
• Training on data systems, warehouses, and tools; and
• Professional development in using data for decision-making.

SEA officials reported that limited funding and a lack of capacity forced them to make choices about which components to provide—for example, whether to focus resources on data collection and tools or on fostering a climate that encourages data-driven analysis.

The report was requested by the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) and is intended to expand the dialogue on how SEAs can support data-driven decision-making and help practitioners better meet the needs of their students.

The information compiled in the report was collected from SEA websites, interviews with agency officials, SEA documents, interviews with service provider staff, observations of professional development activities, and additional materials provided by the service providers. The report describes the limitations of the data collection and proposes ideas for future research.

It can be downloaded at the IES website or at relnei.org.

For more information about this report , e-mail Ashley Gaddis: agaddis@edc.org.

The Regional Educational Laboratory Northeast and Islands (REL-NEI) is run by Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), the American Institutes for Research (AIR), and WestEd’s Learning Innovations program. REL-NEI is one of 10 Regional Educational Laboratories funded by the Institute of Education Sciences at the U.S. Department of Education. REL-NEI provides rigorous research that is relevant to national education priorities, responsive to local needs, and usable for policy and practice. Visit www.relnei.org.

This project has been funded at least in part with federal funds from the U.S. Department of Education under Contract Number ED-06-CO-0025. The content of this publication does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. Department of Education nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC) is a global nonprofit organization that develops, delivers, and evaluates innovative programs to address some of the world’s most urgent challenges in education, health, and economic development. Celebrating its 50th year, EDC manages more than 300 projects in 35 countries. Visit www.edc.org.