Concurrent Session X Presentations

Thursday, February 24, 2011
4:00 - 5:00


X–A: Statewide Interim Assessment Data Use

Suzann McCommon, Great Rivers Education Service Cooperative
Ken Sumrall, Data Driven Software Corporation
Jim Robb, West Memphis School District (Arkansas)

    Thirteen Arkansas Regional Educational Service Cooperatives create, deliver, report, and analyze interim assessments to 150 school districts simultaneously. Pre, post, and three interim assessments are taken by approximately 150,000 students. The Cooperatives then work directly with the districts on professional development for analyzing and using the data. These assessments are vertically linked to the state ACTAAP assessment and serve as a key indicator for improving student performance. Learn how the assessments are created, delivered, analyzed, and used in this dynamic performance of cooperative collaboration.

X–B: The Texas Assessment Management System

Glenn Kirchner, Texas Education Agency
Paul Matzen, Pearson

    The Texas Assessment Management System, delivered through PearsonAccess, replaces many services previously provided through various websites and applications. In this session, the presenters will discuss the numerous improvements this system offers, including a single login for role-based access to various assessment management tools; managing online and paper testing administrative tasks in one interface; new testing roles, such as campus testing coordinators and online session administrators; and an improved process for uploading precode files.

X–C: Mining for Relationships

Brandan Keaveny, Rochester City School District (New York)
Manjeet Rege, Rochester Institute of Technology

    Databases of school districts, as well as state and federal education departments, have recently acquired large repositories of student performance data reflecting how students learn. Analyzing these data repositories, we can better understand learners and learning and develop computational approaches that combine data and theory to transform practice to benefit learners. The presenters will discuss efforts underway as part of a collaborative relationship between the Rochester City School District's Office of Accountability and the Rochester Institute of Technology's Computer Science Department that has focused on applying advanced data mining techniques and algorithms to discover relevant factors causing changes in student performance at the elementary and secondary levels.

X–D: Design, Cost, and Implementation of Effective Educational Data Systems

Sean Mulvenon, University of Arkansas

    The design, cost, and implementation of effective data systems is paramount in the age of educational reform. Most school systems, be it at the school, district, or state level, have some form of an educational data system. Common questions raised regarding these systems involve design, cost, and effectiveness. The purpose of this presentation is to review each of these elements and provide recommendations as school systems continue to grow and improve these dynamic educational data systems.

X–E: The Standards Landscape: How Did We Get Here?

Alex Jackl, Council of Chief State School Officers
Larry Fruth, SIF Association
Tim Cameron, Postsecondary Electronic Standards Council

    There has been a lot of confusion in the education space based on the different standards, data sets, and collections that are driving data system design across the country. This session will walk through the history of standards in the education space and make a run at clarifying the various institutionalized data collections (EDFacts, IPEDS, FSA, etc.) and how to interact with and utilize the standards. We will present for the first half of the session and then open the topic up for discussion.

X–F: Innovations in Data Access and Sharing

Cinda Christian, Cathy Malerba, and Brenda Hummel; Austin Independent School District (Texas)

    Austin Independent School District (ISD) partners with a variety of community-based agencies that conduct activities on campuses, including tutoring, mental health services, enrichment, prevention programming, etc. Many services are provided as components of grants received by the service agencies. As accountability policies established by grantors become more stringent, service providers are overwhelming the district's capacity to complete ad-hoc data requests. Austin ISD is breaking ground by creating an innovative method of self-service access to aggregate reports for unique student groups. Policy implications will be addressed as well as the challenges and solutions to working within Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) requirements for student confidentiality.

X–G: The Role of Data in the Virginia College Readiness Initiative

Deborah Jonas, Virginia Department of Education
Marshall Garland and Anne Ware, The University of Texas at Dallas
Chrys Dougherty, National Center for Educational Achievement

    The Virginia Department of Education has conducted research using data from the statewide longitudinal data system to understand indicators of college readiness in Virginia Public Schools. The research is being used to guide the state's efforts to develop policy, programs, and coursework to ensure that more students achieve the level of high school preparation needed to be successful in entry-level, credit-bearing college courses. This presentation will describe the research methods, share the results, and describe the application of the information to the Department's work in the Virginia College and Career Readiness Initiative.

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X–H: Avoiding Common CCD Reporting Errors in EDFacts

Jennifer Pierson, U.S. Department of Education

    We will discuss trends in reporting errors that we (EDFacts Partner Support Center, Census Bureau, and NCES) have seen in past state submissions and how to fix them before they become errors next year. We will also discuss and clarify common definitional misinterpretations (such as reportable programs) and answer any questions attendees will have. We encourage interested attendees to come prepared with questions.

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X–I: School District Title I Estimates: Boundary Updates and Methodology From the U.S. Census Bureau

Lyndsey Abel and Wesley Basel, U.S. Census Bureau

    As directed under the No Child Left Behind Act, the U.S. Census Bureau produces model-based estimates of poverty and population for use in allocating education funds. This presentation will summarize the multi-step production process resulting in poverty estimates at the state, county, and school district levels. The bi-annual boundary update process will be covered in some detail, as it provides the official school district geographic definitions used by the Census Bureau and NCES.

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