Chapter Summary
I appreciated the opportunity to learn what other states are doing in terms of education technology data collection and analysis. I am excited about states having input into national data collection policy and procedures. I look forward to the development of a product that clarifies and defines core ed tech data elements for national and state use and which provides insight into and guidance on how to collect classroom-level data that truly evaluate the impact of technology on instructional practices and student learning.
--Deb Sutton
Objective
Key Question: Why should states collect common data elements and how will identifying common data elements on education technology support student learning?
Addressing progress on the goals and purposes outlined in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) is a primary reason for states to collect data. Beyond this requirement, the SETDA Common Data Elements (CDE) Work Group believes that a common set of information about educational technology is needed to make national comparisons and to provide public policy guidance to state leaders on various educational technology needs.
Guidance from SEDTA
The CDE Work Group built upon the work of the Metiri Group and SETDA's CDE Task Force and agreed that to assess student improvement and the impact of technology required identifying key questions, indicators, and data elements in five specific areas or conditions: 1. effective practice; 2. educator proficiency; 3. robust access, anywhere and anytime; 4. digital equity; and 5. vision, systems, and leadership. Through an in-depth review and discussion of these five areas, the group developed a number of tools for states to use in tracking and implementing the common data elements of NCLB, including:
Keeping the primary purpose of improved student learning and technology's impact on these outcomes in focus, the CDE Work Group further explored the adequacy of a contact survey at the district or building level. After discussion and some additional research, the group reported the need to explore and study alternative assessment models.
SEDTA Tools to Assist States
"My experience working with the Common Data Elements (CDE) Work Group was not only informative, but also very timely. Like other states, Missouri surveys it public schools annually. We are in the process of revising and updating our 2003 Census of Technology to reflect the new state technology plan and No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) requirements. I came back from the NLI with a clearer idea about the data we should be collecting now and with a glimpse of what might be expected down the road.
Missouri
Department of Elementary & Secondary
Education
To identify a set of common data elements that will inform state progress on NCLB and will serve as a foundation for national comparisons regarding educational technologies.
In October 2002, SETDA, with a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, hired the Metiri Group to develop a set of common data elements. State leaders, particularly the CDE Task Force, discussed how educational technology data is currently collected and concluded that much of the data is redundant. The group also found a number of problems with the current data collection mechanisms - different survey questions, lack of well-defined terminology and survey instruments, and even misleading or inconsistent data analysis. The CDE Task Force and the Metiri Group worked to develop a draft framework and set of common data elements prior to the National Leadership Institute. The work presented by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in "Technology in Schools Handbook" was extremely helpful to SETDA throughout this process.
This toolkit provides education leaders with:
