The University of Texas at El Paso



The University of Texas at El Paso

Educational Leadership and Foundations

EDRS 5307 – Data Driven Decision Making

Fall 2009

|Professor: |Teresa Cortez, Ed.D. | |Email: |tcortezedd@ |

| | | | |mtcortez@utep.edu |

|Telephone: |747-6276 (office) | |Webpage: | |

| | | | | |

|Office Hours: |Mon & Thurs. 2:00pm – 4:30 pm | |Saturday: |12:00 – 2:00 or by appointmnet |

Required Textbooks:

Bernhardt, V. (2004). Data Analysis for Continuous School Improvement. Eye on Education, Inc. Larchmont, NY. ISBN: 1-930556-74-8.

American Psychological Association. (2009). Concise rules of APA style. American Psychological Association. 6th ed. Washington, D.C. ISBN: 9781433805622.

National Science Foundation: A Guide for Proposal Writing

Catalog Course Description:

Application of quantitative and qualitative data analysis techniques for the examination of national, state, and local bases/reports to guide district/school-level decision making. Emphasis upon district and campus site-based decision making, data analysis, program evaluation, and data display for various school stakeholders. Prerequisites: EDAD 5310, EDAD 5312, and EDAD 5340, any of which may be taken concurrently.

Purpose of the Course

There is a long history on the use of information and data to improve education. In the last decades, under the umbrella of educational reform or accountability, there have been a plethora of efforts to incorporate the use of data in education even more. Several of these efforts have been led by commercial interests. It is undeniable, however, that today educators increasingly need to use information to make sound decisions at every level of the education system. Some of these needs are being created by the increasing demands imposed by state accountability systems and by the No Child Left Behind Act. Educators are being asked to use results of scientific research and to understand and use data to make educational decisions. At the same time, schools are generating their own data to meet the needs of their students and demands from school boards, parents and community members. Under this context, educators need to acquire knowledge and skills, which before were exclusive of researchers or evaluators. Now more than ever, educators need knowledge and skills either to become users of data or to plan and conduct research and evaluation themselves. This course will assist future educational administrators in the examination of crucial issues dealing with the use of data to make sound decision in educational settings as well as the fundamentals of program evaluation. The specific purposes of this course are the following:

Objectives

This course will provide students with a foundation of knowledge that will enable them to:

▪ Identify and apply different decision-making models

▪ Review fundamental aspects of educational planning

▪ Analyze personal attributes and relate them to a decision-making style

▪ Review the nature of evaluation and its application in education

▪ Review approaches to program evaluation and guidelines for planning, conducting, and using evaluations

▪ Distinguish how the ethics of a situation can affect decision making and problem solving

▪ Learn how to identify a problem, as distinguished from its causes or symptoms

▪ Identify and describe basic values and assumptions embedded in decision making

▪ Identify and apply knowledge related to the policy, planning, and evaluation cycle

▪ Acquire knowledge on different accountability models

▪ Identify and apply basic postulates of educational research and evaluation methods

▪ Identify, evaluate, and apply improvement strategies in educational settings to create a continuous improvement cycle

▪ Assess school’s/district’s current ability to collect, analyze, and use data to determine need(s) to focus improvement efforts

▪ Demonstrate knowledge in accessing, analyzing, and using information on student/school performance

▪ Know how best to share and present data for shared analysis and understanding

▪ Learn how to develop and sustain a collaborative culture of data gatherers, analyzers, and users

Course Policies

Class Attendance

Attendance to every scheduled class is expected and absences are likely to reduce your grades. If you are not able to attend class you are expected to notify the professor prior to the class session. After two (2) unexcused absences, the student will be dropped from the class. Late arrivals and early departures are discouraged.

Professional Standards:

This course is also designed to assist students in developing skills and competencies consistent with the expectations for performance as effective educational leaders in the state of Texas. To that end, course content and learning activities are meant to address the standards established by the Texas Education Agency and the State Board for Educator Certification to govern the licensure of Texas school principals. The Learner Centered Principal Standards can be found at: .

Scholastic Integrity

Please refer to the UTEP’s Policy outlined in the 2008-2009 Graduate Catalog, page 44.

The University of Texas at El Paso prides itself on its standards of academic excellence. In all matters of intellectual pursuit, UTEP faculty and students must strive to achieve excellence based on the quality of work produced by the individual. In the classroom and in all other academic activities, students are expected to uphold the highest standards of academic integrity. Any form of scholastic dishonesty is an affront to the pursuit of knowledge and jeopardizes the quality of the degree awarded to all graduates of UTEP. It is imperative, therefore, that the members of this academic community understand the regulations pertaining to academic integrity and that all faculty insist on adherence to these standards.

Any student who commits an act of scholastic dishonesty is subject to discipline. Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person, taking an examination for another person, and any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or the attempt to commit such acts. Proven violations of the detailed regulations, as printed in the Handbook of Operating Procedures (HOP) and available in the Office of the Dean of Students and the homepage of the Dean of Student Affairs may result in sanctions ranging from disciplinary probation, to failing a grade on the work in question, to a failing grade in the course, to suspension or dismissal, among others.

Grading

In this course, letter grades signify generally the following about your performance:

A = Excellent or Superior; B = Good; C = Average

These letter grades will be expressed numerically as follows:

A = 90-100 B = 80-89 C = 70-79

Assignment of an incomplete grade is made only for exceptional circumstances. For more information on this policy, please consult the UTEP’s Graduate Catalog 2008-2009.

Course Activities:

❑ Students are to attend and participate in all classes. More than two absences will result in a lower grade for the semester.

❑ Read and be accountable for all class assignments. You are responsible for assigned readings, whether covered in class or not.

❑ Understand federal and state accountability models.

❑ In small groups, develop a program evaluation proposal. In this activity, you will develop a program, plan, and evaluation around the proposed program.

❑ In the group formed, conduct an integrated literature review, needs assessment, a description of the planned program, roll-out plan, and evaluation methods for the proposed program.

❑ Present a classroom presentation of proposed program, plan, and evaluation with the literature review and needs assessment.

❑ Review a campus educational plan within the educational context

❑ Write formal presentation of an evaluation plan

Course Assignments/Requirements:

Data-Driven School Needs Assessment and Improvement Plan/Program Proposal. Students will produce different documents that make up a comprehensive needs assessment and an improvement plan or program proposal based on the analysis of existing data through both individual and group assignments. The plan needs to identify the utilized continuous improvement process and include data manipulations (tables and charts as needed). Each paper must be typed using APA guidelines and will be presented as a gallery walk for the final assignment.

The following are the aspects that are to be included and will be graded as part of the School Needs Assessment & Improvement Plan/Program Proposal:

Attendance (5 pts): It is important that you attend all classes. Each class builds upon the previous class. Late arrival or early leave will count against absences. You will be dropped after the second absence or two late arrivals or early leaves.

AYP Exam (10 pts): Each student will take an exam based on the AYP report. The exam will have open-ended, true/false and multiple choice questions.

AEIS Exam (10 pts): Each student will take an exam based on the AEIS report. The exam will be reflective of the TEXES format.

Description of Campus using Demographic Data (10 pts): Each group will write a summary of a campus using descriptive data from the AEIS report. The report should be brief and typed in no more than four pages using APA format. Refer to Chapter 4 in course textbook. Additional information will be provided in class.

Review of Campus Improvement Plan (10 pts): Each group will review and critique a plan, complete a checklist, and prepare a report following the guidelines provided in class. The critique will include a CIP checklist and Appendix B of course textbook. Additional information will be provided in class.

TAKS Brace Maps and Method of Analysis (10 pts): Each group will prepare a 3-year overview of TAKS data by feeder pattern for each subject tested as well as prepare a summary of TAKS data by grade level and objective. Additional information will be provided in class.

Literature Review (10 points). Each group will conduct a review of literature to identify the most appropriate policy or educational to address the identified educational needs. The review of literature must include at least 15 references of which five need to be research based. Each group will also provide an improvement plan based on the data and literature review that will identify the most appropriate policy or educational program to address the identified educational needs for their campus. This section should be brief and typed in no more than seven to ten pages. Additional information will be provided in class.

Written Program Proposal (15): Each group will prepare a written program proposal to include the proposed plan, literature review, and evaluation with supporting documentation. The report should be typed in no more than 10 pages using APA format. Additional information will be provided in class.

Discussion Paper (5 pts): Each student will prepare a discussion paper summarizing what he/she has learned this semester. The paper will be reflective of all the reports that have been reviewed this semester. The report should be brief and typed in no more than two pages using APA format. Additional information will be provided in class.

Final Presentation (15 pts): The final presentation will culminate in a gallery walk for the Fort Hancock leadership team. Students will prepare documents to be used for a gallery walk. Students will be given the opportunity to elaborate on their knowledge of their analysis of the campus data.

Course Schedule:

|Week |Seminar |Assignment Due |

|8/27/09 |Introductions | |

| |Overview of Syllabus | |

| |Why study program, planning, and evaluation? | |

| | | |

| |Importance of data | |

| |Barriers to using data | |

|9/3/09 |Federal Accountability | |

| |No Child Left Behind |Reading: AYP ; read pages 1 – 36|

| |AYP |Bernhardt |

| | |Chapter 1 – Introduction |

| | |Chapter 2 – Getting Started with Data Analysis |

| | | |

| | |Assignment Due: |

| | |Bring to class copy of AYP report for Fort Hancock High School |

| | | |

|9/10/09 |AYP Exam |Readings: |

| | |Chapter 3 – What Data are Important? |

| |State Accountability |Chapter 4 – Demographics |

| |AEIS | |

| |Required Improvement |Assignment Due: |

| |PEG Schools |Bring to class copy of AEIS report

|9/17/09 |Site-Based Data Driven Decision-Making |Readings: |

| | |Chapter 6 – Student Learning |

| |Diagnosing Educational Needs |Reading on Campus Action Plans – to be given in class or downloaded from |

| | |website. |

| |Campus Planning Evaluation | |

| |ICAP Process | |

| |Assessing campus data and Campus Action Plans | |

|9/24/09 |AEIS Exam |Readings: |

| | |Chapter 7 – School Processes |

| |TAKS | |

| |Learning to Read TAKS Summary Sheets |Assignment due: Description of campus using demographic data (10 pts) |

| |TAKS Objective Review | |

| |Excel Templates | |

| | | |

| |TAKS Views | |

| |By grade, group, teacher, objective | |

| | | |

| |TAKS Brace Maps | |

|10/1/09 |Needs Assessment | |

| |Components of a Proposal |Reading: |

| |Review of APA Guidelines |Chapter 5 – Perceptions |

| |Review Evaluation Criteria for Presentations |Appendix A – Sample Questionnaires |

| |Literature Review | |

| |Scientific Research in Education |A Guide for Proposal Writing |

| |Scientifically-Based Research |Intro |

| | |Program Information |

| | |Review Process |

| | |Criteria for Evaluation |

| | | |

| | |Assignment due: Review of campus improvement plan (10 pts) |

| | | |

|10/8/09 |Evaluation Design: Methods for collecting |Reading: |

| |information |Chapter 8 – Intersections & Analysis |

| | | |

| | |A Guide for Proposal Writing |

| | |Before You Write |

| | |Writing the Proposal |

| | |Before Sending Your Proposal to NSF |

| | |Awards and Declinations |

| | | |

|10/15/09 |Approaches to Evaluation |Reading: |

| |Quantitative methods in program evaluation |Appendix B – Continuous Improvement for Schools |

| |Mixed Methods in program evaluation |Appendix C – Continuous Improvement for Districts |

| | | |

| | |Assignment due: TAKS Brace Maps & Method of Analysis (10 pts) (Group paper) |

| | | |

|10/22/09 |Evaluation Design: Methods for collecting |Reading: |

| |information |Chapter 9 – Communicating the Results |

| |Survey Development | |

|10/29/09 |Reporting Results: Data Analysis, Judgments, | |

| |and Recommendations | |

|11/5/09 |Ethical Issues in Collecting Data in an |Assignment due: Literature review (10 pts) (Group paper) |

| |Educational Setting | |

| |Ethics in Program Evaluation | |

|11/12/09 |Teachers | |

| |Professional Development | |

| |New Teachers | |

| |New Programs | |

| |Implementation/Maintenance | |

| | | |

|11/19/09 |Communicating findings to different audiences |Work on final projects |

| |Putting it all together – | |

| |Program/Plan/Evaluation | |

|11/26/09 |Review of semester |Assignment Due: Written Final Evaluation Plan/Program Proposal |

|12/3/09 |Formal presentations of Evaluation Plan/Program|Assignment Due: Discussion Paper |

| |Proposal | |

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