The data school administrators collect is valuable but they tend to end up storing it – literally. Accountability and assessment initiatives are forcing schools to bring data out of drawers and out into the open. Some are taking this a step further by establishing school data rooms, where teachers are able to view student information in an organized and accessible manner.

At Gilliard Elementary School in Mobile, Alabama, color-coded sticky notes are found on the walls of a space known as “the data room.” The notes show teachers where their students are on reading and math standards along with attendance and discipline records.

The aim is to help teachers to understand and address students’ needs before they get out of hand. If a student is not attaining his or their reading goals, the teacher can offer extra instruction or work with them outside of school. If a child is experiencing an issue with their behavior the teacher may recommend counseling for them or even consider removing that student from the classroom completely.

Furthermore, by placing the data in the forefront teachers can also be able to celebrate achievements with their students – a crucial element of Baker’s program. Last spring an unemployed student proudly proclaimed that he had accomplished his reading goal.

Be sure to adhere to FERPA guidelines and safeguard your students’ privacy before making the switch to a digital room. This is especially true for a classroom data display in which sensitive information like counseling sessions or disciplinary actions could be shared accidentally.

http://www.dataroomdata.com/