Is There an Association Between Data-Informed District-Level Improvement Efforts and Data-Informed Instruction at the Classroom Level? An Empirical Examination Using National Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) 2003-2004 Data

• In Event: Using Data to Improve Schools

Abstract

Who influences teacher’s instructional decision in the classroom, and how? This study used nationally representative data to conduct an HLM analysis, testing whether there is an association between data-informed district/school-level improvement efforts and data-informed instruction at the classroom level. The significant associations between teacher’s data-informed instruction and district/school-level’s data-informed efforts (e.g., principal using state or national test to assess school progress; district using student performance reports to determine the next year’s instructional focus) were identified, indicating data-informed district/school efforts could be a tool to transcend the policy incoherence between districts/ schools and classrooms.

Authors

• Xingyuan Gao, Western Michigan University

• Jiangang Xia, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

• Jianping Shen, Western Michigan University