Getting Excited About Data: How to Combine People, Passion, and Proof

About the Book

This practical `how to′ manual answers the questions: What data and how much should be collected? How should it be analyzed and reported? What should be done with the findings that will improve the next round of results? How do you assure that what gets measured gets done? How do you sustain people′s passion for teaching and learning while devoting time and energy to the more pedantic tasks of generating proof?

The author outlines a process for producing concrete evidence, stresses the importance of enlisting broad stakeholder involvement, and focuses attention on strategically aligning all elements of the organization around the essential mission of maximizing student success.

Table of Contents:
List of Figures Preface What This Book Is Acknowledgments About the Author Foreword - Deborah H. McDonald 1. Using Data to Align School Improvement 2. Why Bother to Get Engaged With Data? 3. The Status of Data Use (or Nonuse) 4. Arousing the Passion 5. So What′s Significant? 6. It Matters How It Looks 7. Figuring Out What It Means 8. People, Passion, and Proof in Goal Setting 9. Digging Deeper 10. Planning Your Work and Working Your Plan 11. A Design for Data Day 12. Communicating About Data 13. Using Student Performance Data to Integrate District Curriculum Work With the School Improvement Process 14. Staying off the Bandwagons

About the Author :
Edie L. Holcomb is executive director of curriculum and instructional services for Kenosha Unified School District No. 1 in Kenosha, Wisconsin. She has experienced the challenges of improving student achievement from many perspectives: From classroom teacher to university professor From gifted education coordinator to mainstream teacher of children with multiple disabilities From school- and district-level administration to national and international consulting From small rural districts to the challenges of urban education She is highly regarded for her ability to link research and practice on issues related to instructional leadership and school and district change—including standards-based curriculum, instruction, assessment, supervision, and accountability. She has taught at all grade levels, served as a building principal and central office administrator, and assisted districts as an external facilitator for accreditation and implementation of school reform designs. As associate director of the National Center for Effective Schools, she developed a training program for site-based teams and provided technical support for implementation of school improvement efforts throughout the United States and in Canada, Guam, St. Lucia, and Hong Kong. She developed a comprehensive standards-based learning system for the staff and 47,000 students of the Seattle, Washington, city district and has supervised K–12 clusters of schools and evaluated principals. Her work received the Excellence in Staff Development Award from the Iowa Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development in 1988. In 1990, her study of the needs of beginning principals was recognized by the American Association of School Administrators with the Paul F. Salmon Award for Outstanding Education Leadership Research. She served as an elected member-at-large on the Leadership Council for ASCD International, played an active role in Washington State’s School Improvement Assistance Program, and contributed to development of the new School System Improvement Resource Guide. Holcomb is the author of four previous books and numerous articles and reviews.

Review :

 "This book will become your dog-eared, color-tabbed, yellow-highlighted bible. The suggestions are practical, relevant, and easy to use. Fast-paced and fun. I couldn’t wait to try the activities."

"Here is practical knowledge about how to focus on student learning. Provides tools educators desperately need and accompanies them with strategies and helpful hints. Engaging stories make the reading entertaining as well as informative."

"Demystifies the process of using data to guide decision making at the school level. A most useful resource for administrators and teachers because it provides step-by-step guidance."