This study shows how community colleges can track almost all of their own students who transfer into both public and private colleges and across state lines using the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) database. It utilizes data from the student information systems of Broome Community College, New York; Cayuga Community College, New York; the…

Educational standards are an essential tool for many school districts in their efforts to increase student academic achievement. Elementary school administrators and teachers play a critical role in the process of gathering, analyzing, and synthesizing student data with the goal of creating a meaningful plan to accomplish this goal. This article…

This paper shows how three critical enrollment indicators drawn from a relationship database were used to guide planning and management decisions. The paper discusses the guidelines for the development of the model, attributes needed, variables to be calculated, and other issues that may improve the effectiveness and efficiency of daily enrollment…

This paper describes research conducted at the 2005 AHRD research conference. A qualitative case study is developed with the purpose of capturing new learning that occurs within the conference and how new learning is created. In support of the research, a three-pronged conceptual framework including communities of practice and learning…

In recent years, many in anthropology have been challenging the positivist paradigm that dominated the field, with its assumption of the researcher as a transparent data gatherer and the notion of data as something to be collected through fieldwork. Questions of qualitative research methodology are also surfacing in education even as the divisions…

The National Household Education Survey (NHES) is a data collection system of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) designed to address a wide range of education-related issues. It is a telephone survey of the noninstitutionalized civilian population. The 1991 NHES included two topical components: Early Childhood Education (ECE) and…

The National Household Education Survey (NHES) is a data collection system of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) designed to address a wide range of education-related issues. It is a telephone survey of the noninstitutionalized civilian population. In 1995, the NHES was designed to cover two topical components, Early Childhood…

The National Household Education Survey (NHES) is a data collection system of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), which has as its mission the collection and publication of data on the condition of education in the United States by providing information on those issues that are best addressed by contacting households rather than…

This handbook was developed to provide guidance concerning the consistent maintenance of staff information by education agencies, schools, early childhood centers, and other institutions and for researchers involved in the collection of staff data. The handbook is not a data collection instrument, nor does it reflect any federal data maintenance…

This paper documents the authors' efforts at constructing, deploying, and analyzing Snapshot Surveys in a range of educational settings. The Snapshot Survey Service is an Internet-based technology that enables educators at the local, state, and even national level to survey, quickly and at low-cost, other educators on issues that are particularly…

The principal investigators of this study were asked by a midwestern urban high school to assist in the analysis of data collected on students who had dropped out of high school. The data were to be reviewed to determine the cause of the high school's dropout rate. Variables investigated included attendance, grade point average, fourth grade…

With schools being held accountable for helping students achieve state standards, and assessments measuring how well schools and students are meeting standards, the types and uses of data become increasingly important. This brief outlines a study conducted by the Education Commission of the States to understand how exemplary districts use data.…

Data can help identify solutions to some of the biggest problems in schools. Yet few schools use data effectively. The purpose of this book is to help schools become aware of the advantages of collecting and using data (data analysis) for overall school improvement. The book begins with an overview of the current state of education and the…

The Consortium for Student Retention Data Exchange was established in 1994. Its membership increased from 163 colleges and universities in 1994 to more than 400 in 2001. Over the past 8 years, the routine of working with a large and diverse group of institutions has culminated in a valuable collection of experiences and lessons. The 8-year…

This book offers an introduction for teachers, students, and other educational practitioners to the techniques that transform informal observation into a recognized research tool. It is intended for those with little or no experience with formal observation. Four chapters focus on: (1) "Observation as a Data-Gathering Technique" (how observation…