The use of data for governance purposes has been widely recognised as a way for national authorities to coordinate their activities across administrative levels and improve educational quality. This places the mid-central authority--in many countries the municipal level--in the midst of modern education governing. This article reports a case study…

We turn a critical lens to ethical research practices in the context of 'insider' higher education research. Tensions arise due to the risks involved in navigating academic identity and teacher-researcher authenticity. We offer two case studies where ethical tensions surfaced methodological concerns for researchers and participants. Case study one…

This study focused on the importance of developmental assessment in early childhood and the approaches used by teachers in this process. This study examined how teachers conduct assessment processes based on individual differences and child-centered approaches. This study used a mixed-method design and was conducted with 181 preschool teachers in…

The validity of evidence obtained from classroom assessments in schools is an important concept as significant decisions are made from teachers' judgments of this evidence. However, what is not clear are the classroom assessment practices that teacher teams use to ensure that the evidence of student learning produced from classroom assessments is…

Research suggests that wellbeing correlates with learning outcomes, but understanding the direction and nature of this relationship, and how to ensure positive outcomes, is still something we are seeking to understand. The Australian Education Research Organisation (AERO) investigated whether systems and schools are measuring wellbeing components…

This study aimed to investigate how data are used to inform instructional leadership practices in three Kuwaiti public schools, in addition to the factors that impact building data-use capacity. This study conducted three qualitative case studies in high-performing public schools. The findings reveal that data usage in the Kuwaiti schools…

In view of the traditional teaching mode, this study focuses on the application of big data in personalized English teaching in colleges and universities. It aims at improving the teaching effect by using big data. By combining personalized teaching and big data theory, this paper analyzes the current situation of college English teaching,…

The higher education sector is under increasing pressure to deliver more and to evidence the fruits of its contribution to society. There is a particular focus on the enhanced engagement of students in order to maximise success, and for this engagement to be achieved equitably across the student body, regardless of demographic backgrounds. This…

Evidence suggests that the quality of teachers' instructional practices can be improved when these are informed by relevant assessment data. Drawing on a sample of 1,300 primary school teachers in Ireland, this study examined the extent to which teachers use standardized test results for instructional purposes as well as the role of several…

Secondary schools in New Zealand use assessment data for school self-evaluation, but little research has explored exactly how schools are using these data. This case study of selected high schools explored the perspectives of teachers and school leaders whose schools had recently implemented a student assessment tracking and monitoring…

As a result of increasing complexity of assessing all aspects of human behaviours, a lot of data are generated on individual learner and from teachers and the system. What qualifies as big data in assessment in Nigeria? This research identifies the sources of assessment big data in Nigeria, investigates how the big data are generated and…

Although the number of countries conducting large-scale assessments has significantly increased over the past two decades, this has not necessarily led to the effective use of learning assessment data in policymaking and planning. To better understand the reasons for this, the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP)…

Large-scale learning assessments can be used to generate performance and contextual data on student learning outcomes. They can be national, regional, or international; school based or household based. The UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP-UNESCO) has conducted a qualitative study to explore both how and why learning…

Over the past three decades Australia has developed an increasingly advanced national system of student assessments, results from which have been used to identify areas of growth, stagnation or decline in student learning. For the most part, trends in different standardised assessments have been considered in isolation. By examining literacy and…

Although the number of countries conducting large-scale assessments has increased significantly over the past two decades, this has not necessarily led to the effective use of learning assessment data in policy-making and planning. To better understand the reasons for this, the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP)…