Data-Driven School Safety: Assessing Stakeholder Views of School Safety Data Use

• In Event: Thursday Roundtable Session 12:40 pm
  In Roundtable Session: Learning Within the School-Prison Nexus (Table 25)

Abstract

The past several decades have seen an exponential rise in the collection and use of data to inform decision making in education. Historically this work focused on achievement scores and teaching and learning but data are increasingly being leveraged to improve other aspects of schooling environments including school safety. Despite this, little research has systematically examined how such data are used to improve safety in schools. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to understand how stakeholders working within and around schools utilize safety data to inform decision making. Findings revealed that participants report using data in strategic ways to enhance safety and that prior beliefs and contexts shape how participants interpret data. Implications and future directions are discussed.

Authors

• Morgan Lei Killingsworth, University of Florida

• Katharine Taylor Harris, University of Florida

• Chris Curran, University of Florida

• Ann Marie Cotman, University of Texas Austin