Despite high aspirations, many students do not complete postsecondary education. Some scholars advocate for providing more college information to increase enrollment and reduce attainment gaps but this approach overlooks what school counselors and students do with information. Based on interviews and participant observations drawn from 20 urban…

The importance of information is seldom centered in modern college access, college disparities, and college-going discussions. This article situates information and how it shapes college pursuits and intensifies inequities, particularly for minoritized groups. Specifically, the author unpacks two components from the Iloh Model of College-Going…

While designs of professional learning have expanded exponentially beyond the required-attendance inservice day workshop model, infusing meaningful data into daily decisions and conversations has not gained as much traction. Leaders of professional learning are increasingly coming under pressure to demonstrate that evidence is not an anathema in…

Purpose: Different studies have analyzed the relationship between organizational learning (OL) and innovation performance (IP). However, the question of how innovation culture (IC) affects the relationship between OL and IP remains unexplored. This study aims to examine the impact of IC on the relationship between OL and various dimensions of IP,…

A multiple case study was designed to examine the components of data literacy used by formal and informal leaders to support the work of Data Teams. Nine formal leaders and ten informal leaders constituted the participants. One overarching central question and seven subquestions guided the research. The answer to the central question, How do…

The purpose of this study was to learn from educational stakeholders what characteristics they like and dislike when viewing graphs of post-school outcomes data. We conducted six, 1-hour focus groups with teachers, administrators, and parents in which we distributed four stimuli graphs--horizontal grouped bars, horizontal stacked bars, vertical…

Public reporting makes data about schools and districts--including enrollment, student performance, teacher effectiveness, and more--available to the public. These data never include information that could be used to identify individuals and are critical to meeting the information needs of parents, educators, administrators, policymakers, and…

The Data Quality Campaign (DQC) has been focused since 2005 on advocating for states to build robust state longitudinal data systems (SLDS). While states have made great progress in their data infrastructure, and should continue to emphasize this work, data systems alone will not improve outcomes. It is time for both DQC and states to focus on…

The 2001 No Child Left Behind Act required states to report graduation rates as a condition of high school accountability for receipt and use of federal Title I funds, and to set growth targets that would ensure all students graduate from high school. It also reaffirmed the long-standing national policy that graduation rates be used as the…

Purpose: Issues such as managing brand image, assessing advertising medium effectiveness and collecting market intelligence are common practice for higher education institutions (HEIs). Consequently, understanding the information needs of potential students to the HEI when they make their decisions is paramount. The aim of this survey is to…

The literature suggests that members of the working class value informal ("hot") information rather than formal ("cold") information. They are also said to lack a future orientation; have a fatalistic (and pessimistic) attitude to life; and have low aspirations. These values should influence the way students from working-class backgrounds approach…

The question of how information is used by parents in selecting schools is a central issue in school choice debates, where advocates and opponents frequently intermingle theory (often economic), ideological beliefs, and empirical evidence in constructing arguments about the potential of this reform. We employ a nomination strategy to analyze…

The importance and use of data and information to make sound programmatic decisions are receiving increased attention as state and federal funding for public health programs grows tighter and as demands for accountability continue. This dissertation provides insight into fundamental questions regarding the utilization of a Web-based reporting…

Possession of information within an organization is important because it confers status and security, gives influence in decisionmaking, and creates a sense of uncertainty among those who are excluded from it. Thus, innovation is successfully accomplished in part by the deliberate exercise of control over information, a crucial systemic resource.…

This report considers the management, use, and congressional oversight of information technology in the Federal Government as rapid advances in technology--e.g., microcomputers, computer networking, computer modeling, videoconferencing, and electronic information exchange--are generating many new applications, opportunities, and issues which are…