Using Diverse Data to Develop and Sustain School,Family and Community Partnerships

Abstract

This article reports findings from a case study of district leadership for school, family and community partnerships in a suburban district in the mid-Atlantic region of the USA. Analyses suggest that the case district's family and community involvement specialist has been successful in using different kinds of data to achieve a variety of goals that are linked to program growth, improvement, and sustainability. Analyses further suggest that the district specialist has successfully facilitated the collection and use of data among school-based teams for school, family and community partnerships. Her efforts highlight an important district leadership function in an increasingly data-driven educational reform environment.

Keywords

data-based accountability data-based decision making district leadership educational improvement family and community involvement reform implementation

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

American Association of School Administrators (AASA) (2002) Using Data to Improve Schools: What's Working. Arlington, VA: AASA.

Bainbridge, W. (2003) `Policy Initiatives to Improve Urban Schools: An Agenda' , Education and Urban Society 35(3): 292-99.

Epstein, J.L. , Sanders, M.G. , Salinas, K. , Simon, B. , VanVoorhis, F. , and Jansorn, N. (2002) School, Family and Community Partnerships: Your Handbook for Action, 2nd edn. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, Inc.

Fullan, M. , Bertani, A. and Quinn, J. (2004) `New Lessons for District-Wide Reform' , Educational Leadership 61(7): 42-6.

Fullan, M. , Cuttress, C. and Kilcher, A. (2005) `8 Forces for Leaders of Change' , Journal of Staff Development 26(4): 54-8.

Guskey, T. (2003) `Using Data to Improve Student Achievement' , Educational Leadership 60(5): 6-73.

Hatch, J. (2002) Doing Qualitative Research in Education Settings . Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.

Johnson, R. (2002) Using Data to Close the Achievement Gap: How to Measure Equity in Our Schools. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Knezak, G. (n.d.) `Computers in Education Worldwide: Impact on Students and Teachers' . Available at: http://www.tcet.unt.edu. Accessed 14 December 2006.

10.

Lafee, S. (2002) `Data-Driven Districts' , School Administrator 59(11): 6-7.

11.

Learning Points Associates (2004) Guide to Using Data in School Improvement Efforts . Naperville, IL: Learning Points Associates.

12.

Macpherson, R.J.S. (1996) `Accountability: Toward Reconstructing a "Politically Incorrect" Policy Issue' , Education Management Administration & Leadership 24(2): 139-50.

13.

Marsh, J. , Pane, J. and Hamilton, L. (2006) Making Sense of Data-Driven Decision Making in Education: Evidence from Recent Rand Research. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation.

14.

McNamara, G. and O'Hara, J. (2006) `Workable Compromise or Pointless Exercise? School-based Evaluation in the Irish Context' , Educational Management Administration & Leadership 34(4): 564-82.

15.

McLaughlin, M. (1992) `How District Communities do and do not Foster Teacher Pride' , Educational Leadership 50(1): 33-5.

16.

Sirotnik, K., ed. (2004) Holding Accountability Accountable: What Ought to Matter in Public Education. New York: Teachers College Press.

17.

Thorton, B. and Perreault, G. (2002) `Becoming a Data Based Leader: An Introduction' , NASSP Bulletin 86: 86-96.