Schools have been using student data for some time now, but there may be educators who use it improperly.

In states such as Delaware, Rhode Island, Hawaii, and more, districts are bringing "data coaches" into their schools, said an article on DistrictAdministration.com. These data coaches are "connecting with the teachers' own professional learning communities (PLCs) to ensure this bounty of information fulfills its pedagogical promise."

The teachers are using portions from the $4 billion Race to the Top Initiative, the article said, to "learn how to parse data to plan lessons and reach end-of-year academic benchmarks, among other short- and long-term goals."

“At some point, it’s vital that we link our instruction to the gaps we are seeing in kids,” said Daniel R. Venables, executive director of the Center for Authentic PLCs in the article. “Once we do, we can make a goal and then develop an action plan.”

Venables said most teachers "have never been trained to look at data meaningfully, or in a way that forces them to draw connections between learning gaps and the way they are delivering material. Common Core assessments, "will also will become the most significant data to evaluate, and principals and administrators are increasingly encouraging their PLC teams to become more versed in looking at and deciphering this data.”

In Delaware, the Red Clay Consolidated School District has been using data coaches supplied by the state Department of Education for four years. The data coaches, “helped teachers identify areas of success with students, as well as opportunities for growth, and implement new classroom strategies. In addition to state tests, PLCs used common formative assessments to monitor their instructional impact with students and to make adjustments.”

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Article by Kassondra Granata, EducationWorld Contributor