In today's educational landscape, state and local educational agencies (SEAs and LEAs) often experience challenges connecting large-scale accountability data with actual school improvement initiatives. These challenges tend to be rooted in incoherent design and use of data systems for continuous improvement. As we aim to support SEAs in…

Self-directed learning is generally considered a key competence in higher education. To enable self-directed learning, assessment practices increasingly embrace assessment for learning rather than the assessment of learning, shifting the focus from grades and scores to provision of rich, narrative, and personalized feedback. Students are expected…

This article provides two activities, exploring genetic drift of small breeding populations, highlighting the black-footed ferret ("Mustela nigripes"). According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service, all black-footed ferrets are descended from 18 individuals, making them extremely vulnerable to genetic drift. They were thought to be…

Big data is an important part of innovation that has recently attracted a lot of interest from academics and practitioners alike. Given the importance of the education industry, there is a growing trend to investigate the role of big data in this field. Much research has been undertaken to date in order to better understand the use of big data in…

The goal of this toolkit is to give educators and school leaders the tools that they need to prevent bullying and harassment by fostering a positive school climate. This package is meant to be used as a guide for teachers and administrators in their work to develop a safe and healthy school climate and, in the process, prevent bullying and…

Principal leadership is crucial to the success of rural schools (Canales et al., 2008; Horst & Martin, 2007; Texas Education Agency [TEA], 2017). Research has shown that principals have a great impact on student learning through multiple pathways (Sebastian & Allensworth, 2012). Principals today must be instructional leaders, share a…

This study explores the effectiveness of Data-Driven Learning (DDL) approach to second-language (L2) English vocabulary learning in on-demand online distance learning at a private university in Tokyo, Japan. The participants were 49 Japanese undergraduates, intermediate L2 English learners at the B1 level in the Common European Framework of…

Among the great challenges posed to democracy today is the use of technology, data, and automated systems in ways that threaten the rights of the American public. Too often, these tools are used to limit our opportunities and prevent our access to critical resources or services. These problems are well documented. In America and around the world,…

The overwhelming majority of families rely on public education for a foothold in the American Dream, making it perhaps the most consequential expression of America's core value of opportunity for all. State policymakers are the constitutional stewards and primary funders of America's public schools. They have the awesome responsibility of guiding…

Community colleges play a critical role in helping people connect to careers in the United States. After the Great Recession, community colleges emerged as the workforce and economic development institution that could fill the gaps left by traditional higher education for shorter, non-degree career education while also meeting the needs of local…

This action research takes place at a small, New England public school system in Hopkinton, MA, and was designed to build the capacity of educators by utilizing a cycle of inquiry to improve Data-Driven Decision Making. The action steps of this study established a building-based Student Learning Team at Hopkinton Middle School which, in…

This qualitative, phenomenological case study was to determine the impact the state accountability system has on school improvement practices for schools that have been designated under the statewide system of support. Nine district and school level leaders were interviewed from one suburban school district designated as…

Internationally, assessment and the use of diagnostic data are recognized as critical capabilities for teachers. This is not a recent development, with assessment recognized for some decades as playing a significant role in informing learning and learners.This paper will examine whether teachers and members of the school leadership team utilize…

Nearly half of new teachers leave the profession within five years of employment, and most would not recommend teaching as a profession. A shortage of highly effective teachers continues in public schools across the nation; hence, meaningful professional development needs to be implemented to adequately prepare and retain teachers for the…

The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) is a policy change to the federally administered National School Lunch Program that allows schools serving low-income populations to classify all students as eligible for free meals, regardless of individual circumstances. This has implications for the use of free and reduced-price meal (FRM) data to proxy…