This book provides a comprehensive introduction by an extraordinary range of experts to the recent and rapidly developing field of learning analytics. Some of the finest current thinkers about ways to interpret and benefit from the increasing amount of evidence from learners' experiences have taken time to explain their methods, describe examples,…

The Colorado Department of Education undertook the establishment of an educational quality database that would contain the information necessary for measuring the effects of various efforts at educational improvement. Five major planning concerns had to be resolved before the database itself could be established. First, it was determined that…

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the analysis of data collected by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). In simplest terms, the analysis can be characterized as establishing baseline estimates of the percentages of young Americans possessing certain skills, knowledge, understandings, and attitudes and…

The policy papers included in this package address various facets of the topic of data-based accountability for education in California. Guy Benveniste of the University of California, Berkeley, School of Education explores the underlying issue of accountability and describes the implications of different types of accountability measures. In…

This report examines the extent to which individuals with disabilities are involved in national and state data collection programs that play a pivotal role in reform efforts focusing on measurement of educational indicators. Thirty national data collection programs were identified and 9 of the 30 are reviewed. The extent to which students with…

To satisfy federal requirements, the National Center for Education Statistics and the Division of Adult Education and Literacy planned a nationally representative household sample survey to assess the literacy skills of the adult population of the United States, to be conducted by the Educational Testing Service with the assistance of Westat, Inc.…

This handbook for institutional researchers focuses on describing methods and techniques for conducting and merging external and internal analyses in order to produce an expanded vision of alternative future environments. Such vision is needed for the formulation of strategic long-range plans. Section 1 begins with a discussion of how an internal…

This essay focuses on a key change that the author has experienced in the practice of program evaluation research over the past 20 years: the accommodation of the logic of science and the psychology of politics. This change has substantially altered the role of the evaluator, the evaluator's relationship with clients, the design of an evaluation…

This notebook contains the revised standards and guidelines for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), as well as an updated and consolidated version of NCES legislation. It is intended for NCES staff and contractors as a guide in their data collection, analysis, and dissemination. These standards and guidelines define the limits of…

This manual was developed in response to issues and concerns raised in "Directions and Program Policy Proposals" (1984), and in accordance with the Saskatchewan (Canada) School Improvement Program to help meet the need for more and improved monitoring and evaluation at the local school level. It is designed to provide school…

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) collects statistics on the condition of education in the United States, analyzes and reports the meaning and significance of these statistics, and assists states and local education agencies in improving their statistical systems. This publication contains a summary of all recent data collections…

Analysis of several national surveys found that states collect a tremendous amount of data on educational outcomes, but little on the status of students with disabilities. Trends toward increasing local control concerning decisions of testing participation and accommodation strategies were found. The need for carefully planned inclusion of…

Seeking to describe the current conditions of U.S. arts education, this document contains information collected and compiled from state education agencies. In 1984, the National Executive Board of Music Educators National Conference (MENC) adopted three goals which stated that by 1990: (1) every student in grades K-12 would have access to music…

This study adds to the effective schools debate a criticism of existing criteria--based on standardized achievement test profiles--for targeting schools for intervention programs. Qualitative and quantitative methods of gathering data result in conflicting assessments of the magnet elementary school studied as needing or not needing intervention.…

The Minnesota Dialogue on Education project was a comprehensive statewide survey of public opinion on educational issues conducted by the Minnesota Department of Education from September 1983 through February 1984. The project involved dissemination of 250,000 copies of a Dialogue on Education Study Guide with a questionnaire attached, followed by…