Policy and Practice Brief - Leveraging Data for a Culture of Improvement - Priorities for District Leaders

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Mia

Policy and Practice Brief outlines how district leaders can leverage data during and after school disruptions driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. It argues that continuous improvement requires valid, reliable data embedded in a culture of improvement and supported by tools for effective communication. Drawing on lessons from a June 2019 meeting, it highlights priorities for identifying needed information, prioritizing metrics by audience and purpose, and using state data while addressing limitations in timeliness, indicators, agencies, and contextual interpretation.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time30 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Priority 1: Identify the Information Needed to Solve Relevant Problems

Identifying and Prioritizing the Right Metrics to Inform System Goals and Users

State Data System Act and Design Process

Policy and Practice Brief Leveraging Data for a Culture of Improvement Priorities for District Leaders JUNE 2020 Author Joel Knudson American Institutes for Research In spring 2020, school closuresin response to the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically changed the conditions in which students learn and experience schooling. Now more than ever, it is important to collect and analyze data on student learning opportunities and outcomes in order to support improvement and address inequities. The lessons articulated in this brief from a June 2019 meeting of the California Collaborative on District Reform can help to inform this process. Introduction California educators and policymakers have embraced continuous improvement in education as a state philosophy and mantra. They have also taken concrete steps to enable that improvement. Among these steps was the 2019 passage of the California Cradle-to-Career Data Systems Act, which was designed to expand and improve the state’s longitudinal student data system. Valid and reliable data are essential to improvement and equity, and the plans underway for the new state data system present opportunities to understand students’outcome trajectories in deeper ways, to respond more appropriately to evidence of progress, and to forge needed connections across systems and sectors . A transformed state data system is an important step forward. Data systems alone, however, do not improve student outcomes. It is only when those systems are embedded within cultures of improvement and are enhanced with tools and practices for effective communication that we are likely to see real progress. In this respect, there is much to learn from experiences and lessons of local districts that have taken up the charge to improve access, use, and communication of data throughout their systems. This brief draws on insights and examples shared by district leaders, policymakers, researchers, civil rights advocates, and other education stakeholders during a June 2019 meeting of the California Collaborative on District Reform . Taken together, these insights suggest a set of priorities for district leaders seeking to use data in the spirit of continuous improvement, and in service of all California students. Priority 1: Identify the Information Needed to Solve Relevant Problems Any data system should fundamentally revolve around providing information needed to understand and solve problems. Too often, conversations about data begin (and end) with what data are available rather than what information is needed to address a particular question or inform progress toward a specific goal. In the context of an emerging new state data system, local practitioners are looking forward to accessing a wider array of information from which they can draw for their local problem solving. But they recognize that the new system will retain many important limitations. For example, it will only provide data as recent as the previous academic year, constraining the ability of stakeholders to react to patterns in real time. The system will be limited in the number of indicatorsit includes and the number of agencies—education and otherwise—that it represents. Many metrics that are relevant to understand student experiences at the local level will not be available on a statewide basis even after the new system is fully designed and deployed. Furthermore, the system will not provide information about the context from which the data come or an interpretation of what they mean . For data to come to life in a process of improvement, humans will need to access, make sense of, and act upon the information available. Given the opportunities and constraints presented by an expanded statewide data system, school districts can play an important role not only in interpreting but also in supplementing the information provided by the state. Many California districts have already created their own data systems and dashboards to infor

FAQs

Why does the brief emphasize collecting and analyzing data during COVID-19 disruptions?

School closures changed the conditions under which students learn and experience schooling. The brief argues that collecting and analyzing data on opportunities and outcomes is essential to support improvement and address inequities.

What does the brief say is required beyond having data systems?

Data systems alone do not improve outcomes. The brief stresses that data must be embedded in cultures of improvement and enhanced with tools and practices that support effective communication so people can access, make sense of, and act on information.

How should districts choose metrics for their local data systems?

District leaders should identify and prioritize metrics based on the purposes of collection and use, recognizing that different audiences (teachers, central office administrators, and others) need different evidence to address their distinct goals.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Mia