Get On myTrack : A New Way to Use Data to Help Students By Elissa Seto
Data -‐ driven instruc5on is a common term in educa5on these days , as school districts across Texas try to use data effec5vely to personalize educa5on . However , the prac5ce of data -‐ driven instruc5on isn ’ t focused on turning educators into great sta5s5cians ; it ’ s about geFng clearer insights to help students learn and to achieve their goals .
In 2013 , the Arlington ISD embarked on a journey to use data more effec5vely so that all of their students are on track to graduate and that they are prepared for the college or career of their choice . The AISD ’ s technology division and its technical services and system integra5on department implemented a district data warehouse and developed the On Track to Graduate dashboards . This year , the project has culminated in the implementa5on of eScholar myTrack . myTrack is a web -‐ based applica5on that provides data dashboards and student profiles for teachers and administrators . With myTrack , teachers can see an analysis of their students ’ strengths and weaknesses .
Teachers at Beckham Elementary par2cipate in a myTrack training session , led by Kris2n Gaines , a campus support expert .
This year , the AISD and eScholar teams provided training to hundreds of teachers and administrators on eScholar myTrack to begin the rollout . The new applica5on includes data analysis from several assessments , such as the STAAR test , curriculum assessments and the Developmental Reading Assessment . However , instead of seeing just a test score , users can see which ques5ons were difficult for their students , which TEKS their students mastered , and more .
During the training sessions , the “ Wows ” and the “ Ahhhhs ” were audible as teachers and administrators explored the applica5on . The excitement wasn ’ t necessarily about the analysis itself but what the teachers were able to learn about the students .
Since the training , schools have been able to use myTrack in different ways , from parent conferences to RTI mee5ngs . “ myTrack has given us a wealth of informa5on all in one spot ,” said Elizabeth Huebner , a instruc5onal coach at South Davis Elementary . “ The most exci5ng outcome from the use of MyTrack has been crea5ng a Future Leaders AYer -‐ School Club based on a variety of qualifiers that we would not have otherwise been able to compile in such a 5mely manner !”
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