Puzzle Pieces

By: Dr. Ellen Martin
Assistant Superintendent 
Marshfield Public Schools
Continuous Learner * Dedicated Educator * Passionate Leader

For some people, data is a four-letter word they would rather not hear at any point in any conversation.  It means looking at numbers, test scores, and comparisons.  It means seeing and hearing all that is going wrong and being asked about a plan for improvement.  “Data-driven” has become a reference to using statistics and testable data points to make all kinds of decisions – who gets into honors or AP levels, who can take a specific math or science course, who gets extra help, who gets extra homework, who gets…  The list can go on and on.
However, I hope the majority of people realize the importance of using data as more than just numbers, spotlights of weaknesses, and prerequisites for placement. 

I hope that most people, including you, realize that “data” has to include many pieces of evidence, including evidence collected in everyday interactions, conversations, activities, or lessons.  Data is like the pieces of a puzzle that create an amazing piece of artwork for each and every student.  And some of the most important data lies not in our weaknesses, but in our strengths.

If you are in the first group of “data despisers”, how about we start to look at data simply as details about students or, as alluded to above, pieces to a puzzle?  And how about we leave the negative view of data at the door and look at data in a positive light by focusing on the strengths our students have to offer?  Rather than looking for weaknesses, research points out the impact of looking at people’s strengths.  Did you know that people who use their strengths are three times as likely to report having an excellent quality of life?  Also, check this out:
Teams who receive strengths feedback:

• Have 8.9% greater profitability.
• Look forward to going to work
• Have more positive, creative and innovative moments

And further, individuals who focus on their strengths at work:

• Have more positive than negative interactions with co-workers
• Feel happier
• Feel less stress
• Are healthier
• Have more energy
• Are more positive
• Are more satisfied with life
• Are more confident
• Demonstrate faster growth and development
• Are more creative and agile
• Are more engaged

(Sources: 34 Strong & Psychology Today

Now, if focusing on the strengths of an employee in the workplace can do all of that, imagine the impact of focusing on the strengths of each student in our schools.  In a society where school is a safe haven and the only reliable place to be for some kids, what kind of impact could that have?  What if we use the data we have to identify students’ strengths in order to completely change the path of someone’s life for the better?  

What if, instead of highlighting only the data that uses numbers and SASIDs, we use other data to:

• Highlight students who go into the workforce, a trade, or the military, as well as those who plan to attend college?
• Identify students who may be struggling, but have a growth mindset that will impact them for life?
• Identify what strengths students feel they have through self-assessments? 
• Showcase students who continuously have positive interactions with others? 
• Highlight the extraordinary work of learning multiple languages?
• Identify what successes students are having outside of our school walls in order to apply some of those skills in the classroom? 
• Showcase growth over time through portfolios? 
• Figure out the best ways to provide meaningful feedback to students instead of just a grade that really doesn’t teach them anything?
• Identify barriers for students and implement UDL strategies so all students can use their strengths to learn and grow?

Now, let’s go back to the research above one more time.  What if we applied this same approach of focusing on the strengths and providing areas for stretching and growth for the ADULTS in our schools?  Mind. Blown. Right?

What if, instead of highlighting the data that uses numbers and test scores, we use other data to:

• Identify teachers’ passions and help them find a way to use them in our schools?
• Showcase teacher learning by asking them to share something they learned in a recent professional development experience and demonstrate how they applied it in their classroom?
• Provide ongoing, embedded, sustainable professional development that targets the needs of each individual teacher?
• Figure out which teachers have built strong classroom communities and invite them to share some strategies with colleagues?
• Identify the strengths of our teachers and ask them to lead a professional development session, book study, or Twitter Chat for others?
• Provide feedback to teachers in a way that best works with their learning style?
• Identify barriers and use voice and choice in staff meetings, inservice sessions, PD workshops, and extended learning opportunities? 

Instead of being “data-driven”, can we agree to be “learner-driven” and build our classrooms and schools around the learners, and the teacher-learners, inside them?
As George Couros states, “The most important research we can do as educators will always be to know the learners we serve”.  Instead of looking at deficits, let’s work harder to know our students and staff and use a strengths-based approach to creating change.  A number, grade, or test score can give a glimpse, but there are so many more pieces to the beautiful puzzle of each individual.  Let’s make it our job to put it all together.
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