Why is data management and analysis important?
We’ve already mentioned No Child Left Behind, demands for accountability, and improvement of student achievement as reasons why educators need to be paying attention to data management and analysis. A related reason is the ability to be proactive in addressing problems. Consider the following example. Every school takes attendance, but not all schools use attendance data as part of a proactive plan to improve student performance. At School A, the principal examines attendance figures at the end of the year and realizes that attendance has fallen short of where it should be to avoid state sanctions. At this point, it’s too late to turn the situation around. At School B, the principal knows that attendance is important in its own right because of state requirements, but also because attendance can affect scores on the high-stakes state assessment. She keeps a close watch on daily attendance figures, pinpoints which students are missing too many days, and talks with teachers to ensure tha
