The use of data in education is not like an instructional program that can be used or not used and that can be evaluated using a before and after study. It is a historical process that is sweeping over the field with no option of turning back. At every point that educators are collecting, using, and sharing information the ground is moving as soon as the walk upon it.
As with any great process of social change that involves technology, aspects of the way people live and work are changing. These changes to use data are unfortunately dominated by tests that often only measure a narrow band of what is important about learning and education. Nevertheless, they are part of a larger movement that is affecting the nature of teaching and who is responsible for it.
This blog is a place for presenting different views about this era that reflect the opportunities and challenges of using different kinds of information to manage instructional processes. Managing to Teach is about the challenges that this approach to education presents to teachers. Managing to Teach is also about teaching on a systemic scale where information provides visibility into the development of individual students and groups of students so that the educational system can provide optimal opportunities for all students.
Dr. Piety is a national expert in educational data. He is on the faculty of the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland where he teaches information and database technologies, cloud computing, and social media. He is the author of Assessing the Educational Data Movement, a book on using data to improve school success.
Leave a Reply