26th Annual Management Information Systems (MIS) Conference

SLDS Workshops

Thursday, February 14, 2013
3:00 – 5:15

Common Education Data Standards (CEDS) Workshop

Jim Campbell, SLDS State Support Team

The Common Education Data Standards (CEDS) project is not just a standard and a set of powerful tools. CEDS is a conversation starter and a path to effective P–20W data sharing and utilization. This two-hour, hands-on CEDS session located in the Cyber Café will include two differentiated "CEDS Lab" sessions, in which participants can confer with each other and with CEDS leads Jim Campbell, Nancy Copa, and Beth Young as state teams Align and Connect their data systems’ dictionaries to the CEDS. The first hour-long session is intended for state and district users who are less experienced with the CEDS toolkit (for example, states that have started mapping a data system to CEDS but are experiencing challenges with the mapping process). The second session is aimed at more experienced state and district users (for example, states that have completed—or are close to having completed—mapping and publishing one or more of their systems to CEDS and may be expanding their work with CEDS to include data governance, data sharing based on the CEDS model, and/or use of the CEDS Connect tools).

Friday, February 15, 2013
9:00 – 12:00

SLDS Workshop: Sustainability

Jeff Sellers, SLDS State Support Team

As states have received grant funding to develop and implement statewide longitudinal data systems (SLDS)—K–12 and P–20W—the issue of sustainability becomes a real concern. As many grants are coming to a close, strategies for sustaining these systems must be addressed as soon as possible. Other grants are just starting, and this is the ideal time to get sustainability “on the radar” and keep those responsible for those decisions “in the loop” as SLDS progress is made. Whether your grant is running out soon, you’re just starting, or you don’t even have a grant but are working on your SLDS, you need a plan for sustainability.

Join us for a workshop on strategies and plans for sustainability. The agenda will include an evaluation of your current situation and a discussion of options, opportunities, and strategies for sustainability. The session will close with a formulation of the components of a plan that you can take back to your site to assist you in establishing ongoing sustainability for your SLDS.

Download PowerPoint Presentation:

SLDS Workshop: Sustainability (789 KB)

SLDS Workshop: Stakeholder Engagement

Robin Taylor, SLDS State Support Team

Engaging stakeholders in the longitudinal data system process is critical to the success and purposeful use of such a system once it is implemented. Through the use of the Stakeholder Engagement Template, a state agency can plan a strategy to bring key groups to the table to provide input and feedback into the data system. However, states that have engaged stakeholders in the design, development, and implementation of their longitudinal data system report that building and executing a plan is not enough.

Join us for a workshop on strategies and techniques for maximizing stakeholder engagement across any sector—early childhood, K–12, or P–20W. The agenda will include a self-assessment to determine where you are in the process of engaging stakeholders, an introduction of strategies to increase the input and involvement you get from your stakeholders, the creation of a plan of action to move you to your desired state, and development of a personalized picture of what successful stakeholder engagement will look like in your state. The workshop will be interactive and will include several activities designed to assist states in increasing stakeholder engagement and the quality of the engagement. Bring your current stakeholder engagement plan and your ideas. You will leave with information designed specifically for your state and statewide longitudinal data system (SLDS).

Workshop: Estimating Teacher Effects

Dorothyjean Cratty, National Center for Education Statistics

States and districts use a variety of statistical models to measure teacher effects—also referred to as "teacher quality estimates" or “teacher value-added contributions to student achievement.” These estimates may be used as a component of teacher evaluations, as an assessment of teacher prep programs, or as a mechanism for targeting professional development. This workshop will cover the challenges and implications of the different statistical specifications as well as some guidance on interpreting the results for stakeholders. The technical level of the material covered will be determined by the experience level of the attendees, although a range of resources for learning more about the analytics will also be reviewed.

This workshop will also focus on the data decisions involved in measuring teacher effects using student achievement growth. Even if your state or district contracts out the measurement of teacher effects, it is useful to understand as much as possible about the different specifications in use and in development. The workshop will provide information that will aide in communicating about these decisions with educators, policymakers, and the researchers designing and revising the models.

SLDS Workshop: Data Use

Corey Chatis, SLDS State Support Team

Creating a longitudinal data system provides almost endless possibilities for stakeholders—from teachers to state policymakers to institutional researchers—to use data to inform their decisions and influence their behaviors. However, many states have learned the hard way that “build it and they will come” doesn’t hold true. Supporting use requires states to identify, prioritize, and engage their user groups and define the intended uses of the system by role. It is also important to ensure that users have the support and resources they need to understand the information provided by the statewide longitudinal data system (SLDS), as well as how to use the SLDS to inform their work. Whether you are in the planning stage of your SLDS or reaching the end of your grant, it is always the right time to develop a plan and implement strategies for ensuring the SLDS becomes an essential information resource within your state.

Join us for a workshop on strategies to support effective data use. The session will start off with a self-evaluation of your state’s current status, followed by an interactive session that explores the critical components of an effective, comprehensive data-use strategy, including how participants have implemented various components. The session will conclude with the development of statespecific visions of what successful data use would entail and action steps to move toward the desired end state.