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New Report Demonstrates Value of Data to Improve Student Performance; Reinforces Contents of Administration’s National Education Technology Plan Consortium for School Networking Calls for ‘Data Driven Decisions’ in American Schools For more information contact: Elizabeth Engel, Vice President, Marketing Press Release: Ted Richane
Washington, D.C. (March 1, 2005) – While federal and state accountability requirements require school districts to collect and report performance data for all students, a new report by the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) shows the real value in the data is its local use for continuous improvement. From Vision to Action: How School Districts Use Data to Improve Performance reports success stories from school districts across the country. Based upon interviews with more than 30 experts, the report is written for school district leaders and K-12 educators seeking ways to implement a data-driven decision making process. The report is the latest offering from CoSN’s Data-driven Decision Making: Vision to Know and Do initiative, a vendor neutral effort which provides educators with up-to-date, unbiased information on collecting, understanding and using data effectively. “No Child Left Behind sent school districts scrambling for technology to accumulate and report data to state and federal officials. But the real value with this data can be found when districts use it to look inward and effect positive change for the teaching and learning process,” said Irene K. Spero, Vice President, CoSN and Project Director, Data-driven Decision Making. “Our goal for this new report is to provide educators with examples of how data can be used to produce improved student performance.” From Vision to Action, authored by Karen Greenwood Henke, President, Nimble Press, offer districts that have been successful using systems and processes for data analyses as models. District data systems may include test scores, attendance, demographics, teacher experience levels, bus schedules – anything relevant to performance. Districts that combine leading data management technology tools with a commitment to continuous improvement serve as valuable case studies for educators across the country. “The opportunity has never been greater to integrate technology and education, and this recent report demonstrates how important it is for K-12 districts and institutions to share best practices about how they are blazing new trails to meet and exceed legislative expectations, and more importantly, improve and expand education opportunity,” said Dr. Mark Milliron, Executive Director of the SAS Education Practice. “At SAS, we are collaborating with educators from across the country to fulfill the promise technology brings to education through a powerful combination of offerings such as our SAS® EVAAS® for K-12 technology to measure and enhance schooling effectiveness, SAS inSchool® Curriculum Pathways® to deliver rich, Web-based curriculum content to the classroom, and our full suite of intelligence solutions that enable administrative excellence and performance management.” From Vision to Action is the second in a series of reports by CoSN that advocate DDDM in schools and outlines how these processes can be implemented. The report released today discusses how schools are integrating data systems and are using assessment results to adjust and improve instruction. Both reports are part of CoSN’s ongoing Data-driven Decision Making initiative launched in February 2003 (www.3d2know.org). "IBM has been focusing on data-driven decision-making in education for the past ten years. We are proud to be involved with this project, pleased to see the validation of our efforts in the new National Educational Technology Plan, and excited to see the publication of this report that shows the practical value of DDDM to schools, teachers, students and parents." Sean Rush, GM, IBM Global Education. The US Department of Education offered validation of DDDM at the district level in the recently released National Education Technology Plan: Toward A New Golden Age in American Education. The plan references case studies from CoSN’s DDDM web site and calls upon districts and schools to institute DDDM processes. “The value of collecting and reporting performance data for school improvement cannot be underestimated,” says Lou Pugliese, Vice President of Market Development at ETS. “Educators and policymakers are now learning what we’ve known for years, that tests offer valuable insight and that when coupled with other important demographic information, they go directly to the heart of helping teachers teach and students learn. This report will help educators make positive changes in the way schools and districts collect, interpret and use data.” About the Consortium for School Networking Founded in 1992, the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN), a national non-profit organization, is the premier voice in education technology leadership. CoSN’s mission is to advance the K-12 education community’s capacity to effectively use technology to improve teaching and learning through advocacy, policy and leadership development. CoSN has played a leading role in creation of the E-rate and other key national education technology initiatives over the past decade. It is a “CIO-type” organization for education technology leaders at the school district, state and national level. Visit www.cosn.org or call 866/267-8747 for more information. CoSN launched Data-driven Decision Making: Vision to Know and Do in February 2003 as a response to the challenges teachers and administrators at the school, district and state level face in understanding how to use data appropriately as a tool to accelerate student learning. Information about the initiative is available at www.3d2know.org. CoSN’s 10th Annual K-12 School Networking Conference, Using Technology for Transformation: Beyond Wires & Boxes, will be held March 21-23, 2005 in Washington, DC, followed by CoSN’s 4th Annual International Symposium on March 24, 2005. Visit www.k12schoolnetworking.org for program and registration information. About ETS ETS is the world's largest private educational testing and measurement organization. As a nonprofit corporation, our mission is to advance quality and equity in education by providing fair and valid assessments, research and related services for all people worldwide. Our products and services measure knowledge and skills, promote learning and performance, and support education and professional development. Founded in 1947, ETS today develops, administers or scores nearly 24 million tests annually in more than 180 countries. www.ets.org About IBM IBM, the world’s largest consulting services and information technology company, has a strong history of commitment to improving education throughout the world. For more than 80 years, IBM people and solutions have been helping schools, institutions and corporations innovate for greater achievement, productivity and efficiency. Today, IBM employees are helping clients develop learning strategies, manage custom content, implement learning architectures, and apply blended learning approaches to maximize the value of their learning investments. IBM draws on IBM’s world-class portfolio of services, software and hardware solutions to help customers realize the full potential of e-learning. www.ibm.com/industries/education About SAS SAS is the market leader in providing a new generation of business intelligence software and services that create true enterprise intelligence. SAS solutions are used at more than 40,000 sites – including 96 of the top 100 companies on the FORTUNE Global 500® – to develop more profitable relationships with customers and suppliers; to enable better, more accurate and informed decisions; and to drive organizations forward. SAS is the only vendor that completely integrates leading data warehousing, analytics and traditional BI applications to create intelligence from massive amounts of data. For nearly three decades, SAS has been giving customers around the world The Power to Know®. www.sas.com Additional support for Vision to Know and Do is provided by Dell, Pearson School Systems, Plato Learning, Co-nect, Apple/PowerSchool, SchoolNet and Texas Instruments. Scholastic Adminisr@tor serves as the media partner for the initiative.
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