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The last few years has seen an escalation in data consciousness. A significant motivator for this consciousness is the Commitment to Action outlined
in the Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians. The declaration explicitly states the need for schools to be able to work with rich data for effective diagnosis of student progress, for accountability and to inform programs. More... Something to keep in mind!!
Data is synonymous with information, and information gives knowledge but only when it is shaped, organised and embedded in a context that gives meaning and connectedness. (Adapted from van Barneveld (2008), Earl & Katz (2006)) 
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"Without data, I’m just another person with an opinion"
Andreas Schleicher (OECD Senior Management Team) CSO schools use a range of data sources to inform school planning. The School Review and Development agenda is strengthened by a school's use of and interpretation of data. Finding the data that 'fits'!
This website has been developed to assist schools through the data puzzle and to provide school leaders and teachers with a range of tools to build a data literate community.
Characteristics of successful schools...when it comes to data...
Successful schools: ** Collect and use a wide range of data ** Disaggregate data ** Share data widely with staff ** Diagnose strengths and weaknesses ** Identify school-wide improvement ** Develop interpretative skills ** Track individual students ** Reflect deeply linking data to professional practice (Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (Victoria, 2009). Read the full article...
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Terms relating to categories of data that you may be familiar with...
The issue is not the data label but the understanding that no single set of data can be used in isolation to provide a complete picture.
The range of educational data that can be collected includes achievement, contextual and other relevant data (van Barneveld, 2008). Achievement data can
include observational notes, the results of formal and informal assessments and NAPLAN results. Contextual data can include SES/ICSEA rankings, gender balance, LBOTE percentages. Other relevant data can include the results of surveys, targets set and milestones achieved, school plans and information contained in school and system reports.
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