This approach builds the capacity of educators to use data to prioritize activities that (a) advance core goals, (b) measure progress toward meeting those goals, and (c) make informed decisions regarding the best ways to improve student achievement. Specifically, performance management strategies can aid schools in effectively using data at the school and classroom levels to improve instruction and learning, monitor progress toward goals, and evaluate the effectiveness of decisions.
Overview of Performance Management Principles and Practices
Principle 1: Establish and communicate a strong commitment to evidence-based decision making.
- Practice 1: The principal establishes a schoolwide data team with ongoing responsibility for promoting and ensuring effective data use.
- Practice 2: Develop a data-use plan that articulates activities, roles, and responsibilities.
- Practice 3: Develop common understanding of key terminology among all data users.
Principle 2: Identify and monitor indicators aligned with campus goals.
- Practice 1: Review lagging data to determine performance goals.
- Practice 2: Determine indicators for measuring progress toward goals.
- Practice 3: Establish targets for indicators based on school goals.
Principle 3: Guide and support teachers in the use of data to meet the needs of students and to support them in reaching their goals.
- Practice 1: Provide targeted professional development and ongoing data support.
- Practice 2: Designate a school-based facilitator who meets with teachers to discuss data.
- Practice 3: Dedicate structured time for staff collaboration.
- Practice 4: Organize and prepare a variety of data about students and student learning.
- Practice 5: Interpret data and develop theories about how to improve student learning.
- Practice 6: Modify instruction to test theories and increase student learning.
Principle 4: Guide and support parents and students to stay on track to postsecondary success by selecting goals and monitoring their progress toward those goals.
- Practice 1: Explain expectations and assessment criteria.
- Practice 2: Provide feedback to students that is timely, specific, well formatted, and constructive.
- Practice 3: Provide tools that help students learn from feedback.
- Practice 4: Use students’ data analyses to guide instructional changes.
Principle 5: Ensure that school-level and student data needs are incorporated into districtwide data management system planning and implementation.
- Practice 1: Involve a variety of stakeholders in defining user requirements for the system.
- Practice 2: Plan and implement a data system.