Sharing Data to Create Stronger Parent Partnerships

I am continuing the thread from a previous post about Humboldt Elementary School that tells the story of a school’s data journey. This is a short video that dives into how the school has decided to engage Parents by using data. By sending home detailed data reports that foc
us on a specific skill, Humboldt Elementary School opens a two-way line of communication with parents about their child's learning. This move has not only enabled parents to have a deeper understanding of their children's performance but also empowers them to do something about their learning. The video includes interviews with parents and how they interact with the school’s data reports and how it helps them understand their child’s growth and progress. It’s very inspiring to witness that simply by seeing the progress on simple charts has give both the students and parents further motivation to continue the work they have been doing at home. Quality data, visualized in an accessible, intuitive way, are not just a great tool for teachers but for all school communities, including parents and students.

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From Mission to Metrics

Last week a new LAC school presented me with an interesting question: “ How do we know we’re meeting our mission? ”. It’s the kind of question that we often ask ourselves at accreditation season, but how many schools can truly answer with confidence and evidence? The more I thought about it, the more I realised that unpacking this question is no different to any other data dive we might do. It requires us to understand what we’re measuring, to find a range of data to analyse, and then to use all that evidence to gain a deeper and more holistic understanding of our current situation and future goals. Step 1: Translating values into visible behaviours What does our mission look like in action? When we are living our mission, our values align with our actions. Let’s take “lifelong learning” as an example phrase we often see in mission statements. Schools that value lifelong learning will likely have administrators that promote and encourage staff professional development...

The End of Year Data Handover

“And then she went to the porridge of the Little Wee Bear, and tasted it, and that was neither too hot nor too cold, but just right, and she liked it so well that she ate it all up, every bit!” — Goldilocks and the Three Bears For many of us, the sun is shining and we are in the mad dash of wrapping things up before escaping for a well deserved summer. I suspect it would be an easy task if wrapping up was all we had to do, but of course it’s never that simple in a school. We don’t just pack up our class, we need to hand them over to next year’s division and teachers, and get ready to receive our next batch. The data handover is enormous, and figuring out the what and how requires a “Goldilocks” attitude - we’ve got to get it just right. Quantity: Sharing enough to inform, but not so much that it will overwhelm next year’s teachers. Ingredients: Not sharing just numbers, but also anecdotal records and holistic data that will help teachers know students better and so...

Which comes first? The process or the culture?

“Should we meet with primary and secondary leadership teams separately or together?” This question came up during a recent chat with Joe Barder, IT Director at AIS Lagos, when we were figuring out a strategy for building their data culture. A simple question, but it got me thinking a lot about the difference between organizational culture and organizational practices, and how we need to consider both when fostering change. At AIS Lagos, everyone is eager to dive in and start analysing data. However I also sensed some hesitation from Joe about jumping in without first establishing norms and shared practices. The question of whether to have data discussions at a whole school or division level is really about whether we want to start with targeted, relevant, and actionable sessions tailored for each group, or if we take the time to develop a whole-school shared understanding of what it means to be data-informed. In other words, do we focus on the culture or the practice? On on...

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