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Vision to Know and Do Newsletter: Spring/Summer 2004
Presented to you by CoSN

Thank you for visiting our website, 3d2know.cosn.org and requesting information about CoSN’s Data-driven Decision Making Initiative: Vision to Know and Do. This newsletter is the third in a series of periodic updates that you will be receiving. I hope that this information is of interest and welcome your comments and suggestions. Please contact Irene Spero, Vice President, CoSN, at irene@cosn.org. Thanks.

Congressional Briefing Focuses on Data as a Tool to Advance Learning and Meet the Accountability Provisions of No Child Left Behind

The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) hosted a congressional briefing focusing on the data collection requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). The April 8 briefing, “Data-driven Decision Making: A Powerful Tool to Improve Student Achievement,” was attended by more than 100 legislative leaders, staff members, and educational association executives.

The briefing included opening remarks by the two Congressional sponsors of NCLB, Senators Mike Enzi (R-WY) and Patty Murray (D-WA) and by Helen Soule, special assistant in the Office of Postsecondary Education for the U.S. Department of Education.

School district leaders from around the country discussed the ways in which they were collecting, analyzing and reporting data for both accountability and improvement purposes. The panel discussion: The Data Is Tellling Us Something: What Are We Doing About It? included lively participation by Bob Moore, Chair, CoSN Board of Directors and Executive Director of IT Services, Blue Valley USD #229, Overland Park, Kansas; John Conyers, retired Superintendent, CCSD#15, Illinois, Diny Golder-Dardis, Executive Director, JES & Co.; Karlene McCormick-Lee, Assistant Superintendent, Clark County, Nevada; Peter A. Robertson, Chief Information Officer, Cleveland Municipal School District, Ohio; Rick Rozzelle, Charlotte-Mecklenberg Schools, North Carolina; and Warren Williams, Assistant Superintendent, Grossmont Union High School District, California.

Key points raised by the session:

  • Districts need technology tools and professional development to use data effectively and to report data in a manner that is accessible to students and parents.

  • Some districts are already developing and using data-warehousing solutions that track variables on everything from student achievement to school bus service to classroom cleanliness.

  • For most districts successfully to integrate data into their decision-making process, both a culture of change and a data-management system to support that change will be required.

  • Full implementation of data-driven decision making processes will require strategic planning on behalf of school districts.

  • Building and rolling out completed systems generally requires at least two years.

At the end of the briefing, attendees were able to visit a showcase of technology solutions for data driven decision making.

Secretary’s No Child Left Behind Leadership Summit: Empowering Accountability and Assessment Using Technology

At US Secretary of Education Rod Paige’s No Child Left Behind Leadership Summit in March, CoSN’s CEO Keith Krueger and Vice President Irene Spero moderated a panel discussion, Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Winners: A Framework for Achieving Continuous Improvement.

The panel brought together three representatives from the school districts that have been recognized as Baldrige National Quality Award Winners -- Frank Auriemma, Pearl River School District; Ron Gleason, Chugach (AK) School District; and Christine Rauscher, CCSD 15 (IL). For a copy of the presentation, go to 3d2know.cosn.org/presentations.html.

Only three school districts have ever received the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation's premier award for performance excellence and quality achievement. In 2001 Pearl River School District (PRSD), New York and the Chugach School District, Alaska received this designation; Community Consolidated School District 15. Palatine, Illinois received this recognition in 2003. As part of the award process, each district is evaluated rigorously in seven areas: leadership, strategic planning, customer and market focus, information and analysis, human resource focus, process management, and results.

Though these schools differ greatly in terms of size, location and demographics, all of them utilized the Baldrige framework to transform their organizations to support learning for all students, stimulate improvement, use data effectively and promote accountability. Each of the participants demonstrated how they used data-driven decision making to make a difference for their students and in their communities. For a description of these districts, go to 3d2know.cosn.org/best_practices.html

2004 CoSN Compendium Highlights Data-driven Decision Making

The recently released 2004 CoSN Compendium looks at eight issues of vital importance to education technology leaders today. An overriding theme that runs throughout is: "What do we, as technology leaders, need to know and do in order to support our schools and districts in today's changing world?"

The Great Race: Collaborating Around Data to Improve Student Achievement, by Karen R. Greenwood highlights the importance of the collection, management and analysis of data to school administrators and district leaders. Using the Western States Benchmarking Consortium as an example, a relatively new phenomenon in the area of data-driven decision making is examined: the formation of consortia to share benchmarks and collaborate to measure progress in key areas of education.

You can purchase the monograph or order the entire Compendium at www.cosn.org/catalog.

Survey of District Leaders Underscores Importance of Data-driven Decision Making

In early June, CoSN released the report “Digital Leadership Divide: Without Visionary Leadership, Disparities in School Technology Budgets Increase.” The report details the results of survey, conducted on behalf of CoSN by Grunwald Associates, of more than 455 K-12 school district technology decision makers. Although the survey discovered growing disparities in funding for school technology, findings also reveal that, with visionary leadership and strong community support, some school districts have been able to maintain and sometimes increase their technology budgets and plans, even in the face of overall budget cuts.

Of particular interest is the information the report contains about data-driven decision making in districts. For example:

  • School leaders believe that technology provides their schools with a wide variety of benefits, with 74 percent agreeing that technology provides timely data for decision making.

  • 62% of small districts, 76% of medium sized districts and 89% of large districts currently utilize a data-driven decision making process.

You can review the report at: www.cosn.org/resources/grunwald/

Check www.3d2know.org for New Resources

We are continually updating the resources on our website, so check back frequently for materials that can help you use data effectively. Because CoSN wants to make 3d2know.cosn.org the definitive website for educators on data-driven decision making, please remember to share your resources with us. If you have a publication, presentation, or reference relating to this initiative, please let me know so that it can be posted on 3d2know.cosn.org/other.html.

CoSN Issues Call for Best Data Practices

In order to highlight districts which are using data effectively, CoSN is compiling information about best practices and developing case studies of school districts that are using data-driven decision making systems to support continuous improvement and achieve their educational goals. To submit information on your districts efforts, go to 3d2know.cosn.org/best_practices.html.

Order Copies of Vision to Know and Do: The Power of Data as a Tool in Educational Decision Making

Vision to Know and Do focuses on the practices of school districts that have successfully transformed their organizations to respond to the needs of all students and to provide community accountability. It highlights districts which use data analysis systems to improve student outcomes, identifies factors for successfully integrating data into decision making processes, and calls for more emphasis on data-driven decision making as a way to prepare students for the 21st century.

Copies of the paper retail for $19.95 for both PDF and printed versions for members, and $24.95 for both PDF and printed versions for non-members. To order, please visit www.cosn.org/catalog/.

Coming Soon

Please watch 3d2know.cosn.org for upcoming announcements about:

  • Professional development courses
  • New background paper and case studies
  • New data-driven decision making tools
  • Website revisions
  • Policy briefings in the states

About the Data-driven Decision Making Initiative

The Goals of the Data-driven Decision Making Initiative are:

  • Serve as a highly respected source of up-to-date, unbiased information for educators on collecting, understanding and using data effectively;

  • Provide an easy to use mechanism for educating school leaders about data-driven decision making and its applications in elementary and secondary education

  • Supply a nationally recognized framework for sharing knowledge among educators and transferring knowledge between the educational and vendor communities.

Data-driven Decision Making is made possible through the generous support of Educational Testing Service (www.ets.org), IBM (www.ibm.com; NYSE: IBM), SAS (www.sas.com and www.sasinschool.com), Plato Learning (www.plato.com), Dell (www.dell.org), Pearson Digital Learning (www.pearsondigital.com) PowerSchool (www.apple.com/education/powerschool), SchoolNet (www.schoolnet.com) and Texas Instruments (education.ti.com). Scholastic Administr@tor (www.scholasticadministrator.com) is the media partner for the project. Further information about the Data-driven Decision Making initiative is available at the project website 3d2know.cosn.org.

About CoSN

The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN), a national non-profit organization, is the premier voice in education technology leadership. Our mission is to advance the K-12 education community’s capacity to effectively use technology to improve learning through advocacy, policy and leadership development. Our members represent school districts, state and local education agencies, nonprofits, companies and individuals who share our vision. To learn how membership in CoSN can make a difference in your district, click on www.cosn.org/join or contact us at membership@cosn.org.

Other CoSN Initiatives

Taking Total Cost of Ownership to the Classroom (TCO) is designed to help school leaders understand the range of costs associated with purchasing and maintaining technology within a school district. As part of the TCO project, CoSN recently launched the CoSN-Gartner TCO Tool, which enables administrator to easily assess TCO for their school district. Learn more at www.classroomtco.org.

Cyber Security for the Digital District is designed to provide education technology leaders and policy-makers with strategies and tools they can use to ensure the privacy of data and the safe operation of technology within their school systems. Learn more at www.securedistrict.org.

Safeguarding the Wired Schoolhouse enables educators to understand technical and non-technical options for Internet safety in schools. The project includes a range of information, checklists and resources, plus a complete Toolkit to guide school officials when they talk to parents and other community members about online safety issues. Learn more at www.safewiredschools.org.

CoSN’s School District Chief Technology Officers (CTO) Council provides professional development for district-level technology directors (CTOs), and meets three times a year at national education conferences. Learn more at www.cosn.org/resources/cto_council/.

The CoSN Compendium is a “must-read” for K-12 technology leaders. For more information, please visit www.cosn.org/resources/compendium/.

CoSN's Internet & Education Webcasts are 60-minute interactive professional development forums conducted via the Internet, and designed specifically from a district technology perspective. To register for a webcast or to learn more about the series, visit www.cosn.org/events/webcasts/.

You are receiving this e-newsletter because you visited 3d2know.cosn.org and requested information about CoSN’s Data-driven Decision Making Initiative: Vision to Know and Do. This newsletter is the third in a series of periodic updates that you will be receiving. I hope you find this information interesting and useful, and I welcome your comments and suggestions. Please share with others with an interest in this topic. If you have any questions, please contact me at Irene Spero, Vice President, CoSN, at irene@cosn.org.

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