Leading Schools in a Data-Rich World

Harnessing Data for School Improvement
Lorna M. Earl - University of Toronto, Canada
Steven Katz - Director, Aporia Consulting Ltd. and Faculty Member, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto
Leading Schools in a Data-Rich World
February 2006 | 152 pages | Corwin
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eBook
ISBN: 9781483304090
Available from January 0001
Paperback
ISBN: 9781412906463
Available from January 0001

Description

Turn skepticism about data into knowledge for true educational reform!

More versatile than mere number crunching and statistics, data can be an effective tool—or even a powerful catalyst—for change within a school. By replacing cynicism with conviction, learning to harness data's power, and becoming good users of data to positively impact student achievement, school leaders can develop three crucial capacities: an inquiry habit of mind, data literacy, and a culture of inquiry.

Lorna M. Earl and Steven Katz show educators how to become comfortable with data, and provide valuable tools for school improvement teams to use in their work, including:

  • Vignettes to support group discussion
  • Activities for practicing the ideas and concepts in the book
  • Task sheets
  • Short case studies with actual school data that show how the full process works in a school

To improve schools, data can and should be a vital force in the change process. Using this essential resource, school leaders, school teams, study groups, and students of education can all make sense of data to plan and reform for maximum benefit.

Contents

Foreword by Michael Fullan

Foreword by Michael Fullan

About the Authors

About the Authors

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

Introduction

  • 1. Putting Data at the Center of School Improvement
  • 2. Using Data for Informed Decision Making
  • 3. Cultivating the Qualities of Data-Driven Leadership
  • 4. Developing an Inquiry Habit of Mind
  • 5. Becoming Data Literate
  • 6. Creating a Culture of Inquiry
  • 7. Sustaining the Process: The Cycle of Inquiry

Resource: Task Sheets for Assignments

Resource: Task Sheets for Assignments

References

References

Index

Index

Additional materials

Description

Turn skepticism about data into knowledge for true educational reform!

More versatile than mere number crunching and statistics, data can be an effective tool—or even a powerful catalyst—for change within a school. By replacing cynicism with conviction, learning to harness data's power, and becoming good users of data to positively impact student achievement, school leaders can develop three crucial capacities: an inquiry habit of mind, data literacy, and a culture of inquiry.

Lorna M. Earl and Steven Katz show educators how to become comfortable with data, and provide valuable tools for school improvement teams to use in their work, including:

  • Vignettes to support group discussion
  • Activities for practicing the ideas and concepts in the book
  • Task sheets
  • Short case studies with actual school data that show how the full process works in a school

To improve schools, data can and should be a vital force in the change process. Using this essential resource, school leaders, school teams, study groups, and students of education can all make sense of data to plan and reform for maximum benefit.

Contents

Foreword by Michael Fullan

Foreword by Michael Fullan

About the Authors

About the Authors

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

Introduction

  • 1. Putting Data at the Center of School Improvement
  • 2. Using Data for Informed Decision Making
  • 3. Cultivating the Qualities of Data-Driven Leadership
  • 4. Developing an Inquiry Habit of Mind
  • 5. Becoming Data Literate
  • 6. Creating a Culture of Inquiry
  • 7. Sustaining the Process: The Cycle of Inquiry

Resource: Task Sheets for Assignments

Resource: Task Sheets for Assignments

References

References

Index

Index

Additional materials

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Leading Schools in a Data-Rich World

Harnessing Data for School Improvement

Lorna M. Earl , Steven Katz
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February 2006 | 152 pages | Corwin

Format Published Date ISBN Price
Paperback 01/02/2026 9781412906463 $37.95
Lifetime 01/02/2026 9781483304090 $35.00

Turn skepticism about data into knowledge for true educational reform!

More versatile than mere number crunching and statistics, data can be an effective tool—or even a powerful catalyst—for change within a school. By replacing cynicism with conviction, learning to harness data's power, and becoming good users of data to positively impact student achievement, school leaders can develop three crucial capacities: an inquiry habit of mind, data literacy, and a culture of inquiry.

Lorna M. Earl and Steven Katz show educators how to become comfortable with data, and provide valuable tools for school improvement teams to use in their work, including:

  • Vignettes to support group discussion
  • Activities for practicing the ideas and concepts in the book
  • Task sheets
  • Short case studies with actual school data that show how the full process works in a school

To improve schools, data can and should be a vital force in the change process. Using this essential resource, school leaders, school teams, study groups, and students of education can all make sense of data to plan and reform for maximum benefit.


Table Of Contents:

  • Foreword by Michael Fullan
  • About the Authors
  • Acknowledgments
  • Introduction
  • 1. Putting Data at the Center of School Improvement
  • 2. Using Data for Informed Decision Making
  • 3. Cultivating the Qualities of Data-Driven Leadership
  • 4. Developing an Inquiry Habit of Mind
  • 5. Becoming Data Literate
  • 6. Creating a Culture of Inquiry
  • 7. Sustaining the Process: The Cycle of Inquiry
  • Resource: Task Sheets for Assignments
  • References
  • Index

Recent Product Reviews:

"The book that every school administrator needs. A clear blueprint for establishing a school climate open to an evidence-based approach to programmatic change."
PsycCRITIQUES, August 2006
"Leading Schools in a Data-Rich World is just what the doctor ordered to make data work for the betterment of schools. It is simultaneously deep and practical. It puts data at the center, but also puts it in perspective. It gives data a purpose and a set of conceptual and strategic tools for using knowledge wisely and effectively."
From the Foreword by Michael Fullan
"I recommend this book for school leadership teams and study groups delving into the school improvement process. Earl and Katz manage to make leaders feel comfortable with using data to improve student achievement. The authors help reduce the fear of 'number crunching' with vignettes that show how meaningful data analysis through a team approach can truly help direct our efforts to improve academic outcomes."
Ronald L. Russell, Assessment Consultant, Loess Hills Area Education Agency 13, Atlantic, IA

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