DATA USE OF FIRST YEAR INDIANA EDUCATORS: A STATEWIDE SURVEY STUDY

Abstract

This study aimed to understand Indiana teachers’ data literacy and self-efficacy during their first year of teaching. Even though there is emerging research that indicates different factors that constrain or enable data use, there is still a need for a greater understanding of new teachers’ self-efficacy regarding data-driven instructional practices (Armstrong & Anthes, 2001; Datnow, Park, & Wohlstetter, 2007; Togneri & Anderson, 2003). Thus, this study asked the following research questions: 1. What data do first-year teachers have access to in Indiana schools? 2. How do first-year teachers use data? 3. What are first-year teachers' attitudes toward data? 4. How do first-year teachers feel they receive support with data use? The design of this research was a survey study employing quantitative methods to describe first-year Indiana teachers’ perception of data literacy skills, as it relates to the actions teachers take to analyze, interpret, and use data to make decisions. All newly licensed Indiana educators with less than one and a half years’ experience in a public school were solicited to complete the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Teacher Data Use Survey (Waymen et al., 2016). This dissertation study found a majority of new Indiana teachers have access to personal and other data types, such as attendance and behavioral data. However, access to the state assessment, periodic, and local data varied across the state. Second, teachers primarily use personal data to tailor instruction to individual student needs, to identify instructional content to use in class, and to form small groups of students for targeted instruction sessions. However, the use of other data types, such as state assessment data to meet building and district level goals, was not a frequent practice. Third, teacher attitudes toward state assessment and local data are less favorable than other data types, such as personal or other data. Further, although Indiana teachers agreed that students benefit when teacher instruction is informed by data, they stated, they were not good at using data to plan lessons. Finally, teachers that participated in this study felt that their current professional development opportunities do not provide enough training and support on data use practices.