Supporting Effective Teaching in Tennessee: Executive Summary | Page 20

The second and arguably biggest challenge to the state’s data
does not have a formative assessment system that measures
system is getting superintendents, principals, teachers, and
students’ progress throughout the year. Several states have
policymakers to use TVAAS effectively. Usage of TVAAS varies
created formative assessment systems that individual districts
widely across districts. As Figure 3.7 shows, the ten districts that
can voluntarily use to monitor their students’ performance
access TVAAS data most frequently logged on to the TVAAS
throughout the year. These formative assessment systems
database an average of 676 times per 1,000 students over the
allow teachers to constantly adjust instruction to meet the
past year, while the ten districts that use the TVAAS database
needs of individual students.
most infrequently only logged on an average of 26 times per
1,000 students. These numbers are not particularly surprising
Finally, there are still several education databases maintained
given that superintendents must choose whether to give access
by the State Department of Education that are not
to TVAAS data to their principals, who
integrated into the TVAAS data system.
in turn must choose whether to give
These include databases on teacher
access to their teachers. This structure
certification and teacher employment
ultimately results in many principals and
patterns. Other states have funded the
teachers not having access to TVAAS data
integration of these databases through
m u c h re m a i n s to b e
for students in their school or classroom.
the U.S. Department of Education’s
Statewide Longitudinal Data System
d o n e to e n s u re t h at
Moreover, even when an educator has
Grant program. Although Tennessee
access to TVAAS data, there is very little
received one of these federal grants for
t h is syste m [ T VAA S ] is
training for how to use it effectively. For
$3.2 million in December 2005, the
example, the Tennessee Department of
state has yet to complete the integration
u se d e f f ective ly to
Education only has one part-time staff
of its databases. To partially address
person dedicated to training teachers
this problem, the Governor’s office has
i n for m b ot h po l icy a n d
across the entire state on how to use
contracted with University of Tennessee
TVAAS data to improve instruction.
Professor William Fox to develop a
Although existing state law allows
statewide teacher data warehouse that
c l a ssroo m i n str u ctio n .
TVAAS scores to be used in teachers’
will include teacher-level, longitudinal
evaluations, many principals do not use
data that tracks teachers from their
the data for this purpose. Furthermore,
entry into higher education through
TVAAS data is not connected to many
their employment in the school system.
other important decisions that affect teachers, including tenure
This database will help the state perform teacher supply and
and compensation. While there are several downsides to making
demand studies.
TVAAS the sole determinant of such policies, many other states
have made student performance data a piece of the solution.
Thus, while Tennessee has one of the best longitudinal data
systems in the country, much remains to be done to ensure
A third challenge is that the state does not provide data to
that this system is used effectively to inform both policy and
teachers and principals in a timely manner. Although TCAP
classroom instruction. Moreover, there are several ways the
testing takes place in April, it is often late summer before
state’s data system could be enhanced, including providing
districts and teachers see how their students performed.
educators more real-time data on student achievement and
Moreover, while the TCAP serves as a summative assessment
integrating all the state’s education databases into a single data
that measures student progress at the end of the year, the state
warehouse.

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