[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_column_text]By Anna Murphy, Rubicon International[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517606770414{padding-top: 4% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]In schools, time is a limited resource, and analyzing student assessment results is an intensive and lengthy process. By applying techniques like data visualization and storytelling, schools are able to more quickly, and efficiently interpret student assessment data, which leads to more informed decision making from the classroom to the district – using student data to improve teaching and learning.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517180155429{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]Data scientists also recognize this dilemma, and many stress the importance of displaying data in a visual manner. In a TED Talk, David McCandless shares the importance of data visualization, not just for interpreting data but also for making its information more tangible. To David, data is “a kind of ubiquitous resource that we can shape to provide new innovations and insights…Data is the new soil… like a fertile, creative medium.”
Data is not usually associated with words like “creative”. McCandless attributes this creativity to data visualization, or “visualizing the information so that we can see the patterns and connections that matter, and then designing that information so it makes more sense, tells a story, or allows us to focus only on the information that is important.” Data visualization enables us to better understand data and derive meaning from it.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517180164883{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]Just like data visualization, data storytelling is also a movement in the data studies world. Data storytelling takes the visualizations a step further by making the information relevant to those working with it. Moreover, visualizing data is step one, but then constructing stories is step two, as stories make data meaningful and memorable. The visualization complements the narrative.
If you can engage your audience in the data by making it visually comprehensible and extend its relevancy with a narrative, you are far more likely to support others in understanding and using the data.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517603862014{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]This is certainly true in schools. Each year, students all over the world take extensive assessments designed to measure multiple facets of learning. Typically, the results are delivered to school administrators months after the test and eventually filtered down to teachers.
As we know, time is precious in schools, and the process of interpreting data is cumbersome. If educators could apply data visualization to assessment results, they tell a story to accompany it, and use the information more purposefully. Not only that, but by transforming the data from numbers into a story, teachers will be empowered in using student data to improve teaching and learning.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517604644781{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]Whether you are a teacher or an administrator, here are six steps you can use for data visualization and storytelling when analyzing student assessment results:[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517239733793{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]Do you want to analyze the results of a specific assessment? What is the assessment designed to show? Answering some of these basic questions can help you can better filter the data and select what is relevant to you.
For example, let’s imagine I am an administrator who wants to find out how my 3rd-5th grade students are performing in English Language Arts. Some specific questions I ask might include: how does student proficiency change year to year? How are the proficiency distribution levels shifting in each grade level?[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517239743957{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]Once you’ve determined the questions to answer, visualize the data. Here is an example of a chart that could answer the questions above:[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="47900" img_size="medium" onclick="img_link_large" img_link_target="_blank" qode_css_animation="" qode_hover_animation="darken"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517239755554{padding-top: 4% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]In this graph, we charted 3rd-5th grade student proficiency in English Language Arts/Literacy on the PARCC assessment. The chart allows us to clearly see the range of proficiency levels in each grade and compare grades side by side.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517239764906{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]Begin by documenting trends or patterns you see for each visualization.
This chart shows that proficiency is improving overall from year to year. Specifically, the number of students who did not meet expectations decreased from 3rd to 4th grade, while the number of students exceeding expectations also rose between 3rd and 5th grade.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517239898711{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]As you analyze the visualization, is there more data that could help you make more meaningful connections and conclusions?
For example, many schools take multiple assessments in one year, and it can be helpful to consider assessment results in conjunction with one another. Below, we have created a chart that shows the NWEA results in reading and literature for this same group of students.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image="47899" img_size="medium" onclick="img_link_large" img_link_target="_blank" qode_css_animation="" qode_hover_animation="darken"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517239775659{padding-top: 4% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]This box and whisker plot allows us to see the scores broken into quartiles and even includes the expected RIT scores of students in those grades.
The chart confirms the results from the PARCC assessment, which shows improvement over time. However, this NWEA chart shows me that there are a few outliers. I can further compare and contrast the two charts to add to my narrative and draw some additional conclusions.
Student performance on reading in the MAP (NWEA) assessment is improving year to year; and at the 5th grade level students are performing above the grade level minimum. Yet, in looking at the PARCC ELA section, I see that scores have mostly stagnated between 4th and 5th grade, and across 3rd, 4th, and 5th, about 20 percent of students are not meeting grade level expectations. This shows that while MAP is beneficial for gauging student progress throughout the year, it is not a predictor for performance on PARCC.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517239910188{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]Use the visualization to further construct your narrative with teachers. Unlike raw data alone, the visual accompanied with the narrative can make the data more understandable and empower teachers to make applicable changes.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517604709393{padding-top: 2% !important;padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]Based on the PARCC data, I might be interested in the specific 4th grade strategies that led to such high student proficiency. Perhaps I could create a PLC for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers so they could learn from each other’s strategies.
From the NWEA data, it is clear that while students are growing overall, some students still need extra interventions. A next step may be to invest in PD around differentiation, or connect with the teachers and develop support strategies for those students who are struggling.
The combined data between charts supports teachers in remembering that while curricular shifts can support NWEA results throughout the year, shifting too much to support NWEA can be at the expense of results for assessments like PARCC.
The easy-to-read format makes the information more accessible, so the charts can be used to craft narratives and bring the data to life. Through well-crafted stories and understandable visualizations, we help teachers tailor their instruction to meet their students’ specific need. Moreover, we make student assessment data a ubiquitous resource able to drive innovation and insight in the classroom.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1517603696625{padding-bottom: 4% !important;}"]We've designed our newest platform, LINKLOGIC, to support schools in visualizing and storytelling with their student assessment data. Learn more here! And, if you and your colleagues want PD around assessment and data literacy, visit our page here to explore different topics designed to support your needs.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]