Chapter 5: Longitudinal Data Use: Ideas for District, Building, and Classroom Leaders

When educators effectively access and use data to drive their instructional planning, they are more responsive to student needs, more collegial in their interactions, and more reflective in their instructional practices (Hamilton et al., 2009; Mandinach & Gummer, 2013; Wayman, 2005; Wayman & Conoly, 2006; Wayman & Stringfield, 2006). Educators who frequently use student data can examine, expose, and understand patterns in student performance that allow them to better shape the instructional path for each student and meet goals across the district, thereby allowing for more responsive educational practices(Bowers, 2008; Mandinach, 2012; Wayman & Stringfield, 2006). This study examines how three types of school leaders—superintendents, principals, and teachers—perceive the purposes of longitudinal data use. The purpose of this study was to inform the development of a statewide longitudinal data system (SLDS) in a southeastern state in the United States. In this qualitative descriptive study, researchers prompted participants to respond with their wishes for a longitudinal-data tool specifically designed to meet their particular needs. This prompt was designed to not only inform the implementation of an SLDS system but to assist the researchers with understanding the practice of data use for teachers, principals, and superintendents. As Coburn (2012) noted, research about data use is a relatively new and emerging area and the study of data use has limited investigations related to the practices of school leaders. The data collected from the three participant groups allowed researchers to examine the practice of using longitudinal data sets for instructional improvement. This study sought to answer the following research question using the narrative data from school leaders’ responses: