“Data literacy for teaching is the ability to transform information into actionable instructional knowledge by collecting, analyzing, and interpreting all types of data (assessment, school climate, behavioral, moment-to-moment, etc.) to help determine instructional steps” (Mandinach and Gummer, 2016, pg. 367). I am not perfect, so I know that there will always be room for me to improve as a teacher and a person. To evaluate the practices I discussed in my previous plans, my idea is to collect data from my colleagues, students, and their parents/guardians.   

I plan to ask my colleagues for help in critiquing my own teaching because they could have ideas that I never thought of before. I would like them to come to my class to observe me teaching, then write down suggestions for ways I can improve. I really like the idea of this method because I love asking for help, especially from people who are going through the same things as me.   

Many people think that data is only about assessments, which is not true (Mandinach and Gummer, 2016) because it is not enough information to determine instructional steps. My students’ opinions are most important to me since they are the ones experiencing my teaching. I plan to get their feedback from informal conversations and surveys. Kids can be brutally honest at times, so I will know the truth when I ask them to tell me about how they like my style of teaching. I would like to use surveys every time report cards go out. So, when I give them my grades, they can reply with feedback, and that way, they know I care about their academic success. Giving it out at the end of the quarter gives me the chance to see the recurring patterns throughout the students. For example, if there is a test that most kids have failed, then I will figure out how to better teach that unit.   

Finally, I truly care about the families’ opinions. They always know what is best for their children; they know their children better than I do. I feel like their feedback will be very critical and helpful in assessing myself and my teaching practices. Like I mentioned in my Documentation and Communication Plan, I will email all of the parents before the school year begins so that I can learn about them and the students. This will help me understand what kind of students I should be expecting, how the students learn, and what I should know about them so that they can succeed in my class. I am open to all feedback, including what is going well, what is bothering them, and how I can improve as their teacher.   

References 

Mandinach, E. B., & Gummer, E. S. (2016) What does it mean for teachers to be data literate: Laying out the skills knowledge and dispositions. Teaching and Teaching Education, 366-376 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0742051X16301391?via%3Dihub