This is the second part to a three part series. Click here to read part one.

These various metrics and frameworks for reviewing data and progress can be crucial to identifying areas that are working well, programs that might have value in expanding, and what areas or use of resources could be shifted or tweaked to increase impact. Use the insights gained through this analysis to set individual, team, School Wide, and districtwide goals for the coming year. 

Questions to Consider as You Review Data and Set Goals For The School Year

What has worked well?

‍Every community has some successes, and being able to identify and celebrate these successes is important.  Reflecting on the community attributes that contribute to successes illuminates positive dynamics which may be useful to expand or able to support other areas which need improvement.

What data points are concerning?‍

Concern can come in many forms. Poor achievement in a particular subject domain, grade level, or demographic subgroup is one form; lack of, or over participation in remedial, advanced, or career pathways is another.  But beyond absolute measures such as these taken as a snapshot of the past school year, the school team should look at trends over time.  Early detection of warning signs on performance, attendance, or engagement can lead to easy-to-implement interventions which prevent future crises that require significantly greater effort or resources.

What trends are confusing?‍

In examining any community’s data, some insights seem to be in conflict with each other. An example is that perhaps the rates for participation in career and technical courses are high but the completion rate of career pathways is low. PTIdentifying points of confusion will often reveal opportunities for better alignment of pedagogy, gaps in the development of prerequisite skills, or the need for focused staff development.‍

What data is surprising?‍

Educational leaders like to have their proverbial fingers on the pulse of their district or school. Data analytics that surprise even the strongest leaders are important to identify because they provide information beyond the current operational assumptions which leaders bring to their planning and action. The best leaders are constant learners, and data surprises provide a wonderful curriculum for leaders to engage in.
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Assess the Intersection Between Data and Past and Current Investments and Programs 

Prior CCR Planning‍

What areas have been our primary CCR foci? Does the data show growth and progress in these areas? 

Resource Expenditures

‍What is the district or school investing funding in to promote CCR? Has there been a return on investment? Are students, teachers, families, counselors, and/or administrators utilizing the current resources?

Equity‍

In looking at the data analysis for different sub-populations, are certain groups of students disproportionately utilizing CCR resources?  Are certain groups of students disproportionately left out of specific programs, opportunities, or experiences? Having debates about when differences in outcomes or other metrics cross into being of concern is an important and ongoing dynamic of a healthy learning community.‍

Additional Stakeholder Perspectives

‍It is also important to have data insights and the associated goals and action plans informed by and compared to already existing documents and external perspectives. Important communities and perspectives to consider include:
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Parents, caregivers, and their representatives

‍This can include formal organizations such as a PTA or PTO, or cohorts of parents with shared experiences such as special education or English Language Learners.

Teachers and teacher representatives

‍Faculty members and their leaders, from department chairs to grade level leaders to union shop stewards, can be invited to discuss the leadership or team’s insights, or even to undertake their own analytic effort from the same data set.

Community advocacy, business, and economic development groups‍

These stakeholders provide an important source of support, critique, and consultation.  These groups are often most helpful in providing insights about what can be done to solve an issue and often can be a partner in this work. 

District strategic plans and state accountability plans‍

Comparing and contrasting the results of summer reflections with school improvement plans, district strategic plans, and state accountability result response plans–including school or district report cards where they exist–will improve the quality of planning and reporting for the school.
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Use the Data and Insights to Set Meaningful Goals

The effort to conduct this analysis, the time spent in reflection, and the collaborative dialogue to consider the implications of the data are valuable in and of themselves–but they will not result in changes to the trajectory or conditions of the district, school, or students without making plans that result in action. Hopes without effort are dreams and effort without plans is chaos; students need these identified hopes realized through goals and planning, as their life outcomes are at stake. 

It is important for administrators and counselors to be intentional, collaborative, and transparent in the process of generating, vetting, and prioritizing goals after they have gone through the process of analyzing and understanding the data and trends. 

Through this process of setting goals, administrators and counselors should acknowledge the constraints of time, talent, money, and other resources; however, these constraints should not be definitively prohibitive as articulating the ambition to find solutions to observed challenges, remove existing barriers, or expand opportunities will impact the long-term postsecondary success of countless students.

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