A Message from CoSN

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CoSN launched the Data-driven Decision Making Initiative: Vision to Know and Do, in February 2003, building upon its role in providing key K–12 school district managers with the knowledge and skills necessary for effective leadership. This initiative is a:

• highly respected source of up-to-date, unbiased information for educators on collecting, understanding and using data effectively;
  
  
• practical mechanism for educating school leaders about data-driven decision making and its applications in elementary and secondary education; and,
  
  
• nationally recognized framework for sharing knowledge among educators and transferring knowledge between the educational and vendor communities.
  
  

Data collection, analysis and reporting are critical components of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). School districts must collect more data, in more detail and disaggregate them.

State-level systems and support are being developed for collecting and integrating student assessment data with demographic information.

The National Education Technology Plan, Toward A New Golden Age in American Education (www.NationalEdTechPlan.org) calls upon states, districts and schools to establish a plan to integrate data systems; use data from both administrative and instructional systems to understand relationships; ensure interoperability; and use assessment results to inform instruction.

Current environment is an opportunity to go beyond the accountability mandates and to use data to transform teaching, learning and administration, inform decisions about everything from class schedules to textbook reading levels to professional development budgets and provide a rationale for decisions that parents, teachers, taxpayers, and students can understand.

Vision to Know and Do: Data–driven Decision Making initiative offers educators an opportunity to meet the challenge and use data as an effective tool for improving the learning process. To meet the challenge, CoSN has:

• Established a website, www.3d2know.org, with high quality resources, presentation materials, case studies, and publications.
  
  
• Prepared and disseminated two papers providing an in depth examination of the issues, Vision to Know and Do: The Power of Data as a Tool in Educational Decision Making (2004) and From Vision to Action: How School Districts Use Data to Improve Performance (2005).
  
  
• Launched a self assessment tool to help estimate a district’s readiness to use data-driven decision models as a tool for accountability and school improvement.
  
  
• Held an Internet delivered Webcast (June 2003) highlighting how districts are successfully using data to realize change in student performance and identifying the key issues that a district must address to use date effectively.
  
  
• Developed a free e-newsletter, CoSN Vision to Know and Do Newsletter, distributed to all interested parties.
  
  
• Collected best practices in the use of data in school districts, including the educational winners of Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Winners.
  
  
• Convened two Congressional Seminars in Washington, DC to focus on data collection within the context of No Child Left Behind. The first one, held in July 2003, was hosted by U.S. Congressman John Boehner, Education & the Workforce Committee Chairman and Congressman George Miller, Ranking Member, Education & Workforce Committee. The second, in April 2004, featured U.S. Senators Mike Enzi and Patty Murray.
  
  
• Addressed national audiences of key education decision makers and stakeholders.
  
  
• Published The Great Race: Collaborating Around Data to Improve Student Achievement, an article in the 2nd edition of the CoSN Compendium, highlights how consortia are sharing benchmarks and collaborating to measure progress in key areas of education.
  
  

CoSN will continue to offer tools to educators and raise the visibility of data-driven decision making in the educational process. Future plans for Vision to Know and Do include additional policy seminars for state officials; professional development tools for educators and administrators on the effective use of data as a tool in decision making; and creation of easy to use materials and presentations on data as a tool in educational decision making for diverse audiences. The project is made possible through the financial support of the following corporate partners:

Founding Members

Silver Sponsors

and

Media Sponsor

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