When
school begins, there will be mountains of data asking for our attention.
Whether it is results of the state-required assessment from last spring or new
IRI scores, we’ll need to dig through these mounds and look for patterns and
trends. When I’ve supported faculties in approaching this task, several
protocols have been helpful.
A
simple favorite of mine is the Chalk
Talk Protocol. It is a protocol of many uses, and one of them is examining
data. I take different data reports and put each in the middle of a large sheet
of bulletin board paper, then hang them around the room or place them on tables.
(Choose enough different views of data so that there is at least one board per
5 teachers; they’ll move fluidly between charts during time for reflection.)
Each faculty member has a colored marker, and during the silent thinking time,
they leave a trail of comments on each chart. Anything they notice is worth
jotting down. Teachers can draw arrows linking similar comments and use their
pen to comment on or argue with the ideas that have been written. It’s a good
way to literally get everyone’s thinking out on the table, which I usually end
with a gallery walk to synthesize the thinking.
I’ve
also used National School Reform’s protocol
for examining the data. Working in small groups, teachers are given a set
of data to consider. Multiple rounds are sequentially introduced by the
facilitator, asking teachers questions that encourage them to look at the data
differently, first by responding silently in writing and then through
discussion in their small group. During round 1, teachers record and discuss what
the data tells them at first blush. What jumps out and seems significant? What
surprises them? What patterns are noted? During round 2, teachers make
inferences about the data. What is it telling us? What is it not telling us?
They look beyond obvious relationships. Round 3 is a time to look for
celebrations. What good news is there in the data? Round 4 looks at the flip
side. What problems of practice might be underlying this data? This round of
cause-and-effect thinking can be overwhelming and might require its own
separate protocol. (More about this process in next week’s blog.) During the 5th
and final round, the group describes the key conclusions and recommendations that
they will share. Taking this layer-by-layer approach stops us from jumping to
unwarranted conclusions.
There
are plenty of other protocols with merit for guiding data discussions (see http://qualitycommunityschools.weebly.com/data-protocols.html
for some other examples). If using protocols is unfamiliar to your staff, the
structured discussion formats may take some getting used to, but your
data-digging efforts will be more fruitful because of their use.
This week, you might want to
take a look at:
A free preview of the
entire book, The Author’s Apprentice,
full of ideas for writing workshop:
This
Pinterest Board with a back-to-school idea: Student Selfies!
Questions for choosing read-aloud
titles (plus some great recommendations that fill the bill; these are meant for
choosing texts to begin the school year, but good any time!):
Giving real feedback (lessons for
writing and more):
Implementing NGSS without reinventing
the wheel:
That’s it for this week. Happy Coaching!
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