Harnessing Information from State Longitudinal Data Systems NACTEI Conference May 17, 2012 Amanda Richards

2 Power of SLDS Make more data available from multiple data sources Link different sources that might not already be linked Provide standard reports for common questions Offer the ability to customize reports and dig more deeply into the data

3 What Can an SLDS Do? Answer questions from government and other funders Provide required accountability data Offer teachers current data about students Support program improvement at local and state level Promote longitudinal research Offer insight into how citizens interact with public services and their outcomes over time

4 NSC Pilot The National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) Pilot: Tracking Postsecondary Outcomes for High Schools aimed to develop high-quality, actionable, data-driven reports and a web tool linking K–12 and postsecondary education (Advance) for use by schools, districts, and states to improve the college readiness and success of their students Participating States: Florida, Georgia, Texas

5 NSC Pilot Website for Participating States

6 Advance Web Tool The Advance web tool is an example of one way to harness information from an SLDS

7 Key Features of Advance Combines state high school and postsecondary data with NSC postsecondary data Ensures data are “actionable” by connecting postsecondary outcomes to high school experiences Presents postsecondary outcomes at the school, district, and state levels for cohorts of high school graduates and first-time 9th graders Describes the range of postsecondary outcomes: enrollment, remediation, persistence, transfer, performance, and completion

8 Key Features of Advance (cont.) Includes student demographics, performance on assessments, HS course-taking, selected 9th grade experiences, and school characteristics Provides a Reports Library with pre-defined reports and a Create Tables capacity to explore particular questions Builds support for understanding the data and provides documentation and professional development materials

9 Potential for Expanding Advance More student breakouts Incorporate flags or use course-taking/transcript data to track outcomes of high school programs such as CTE and programs of study (POS) participants Broader reports Develop reports for postsecondary audiences using existing data Assessment results Incorporate SAT, ACT, and AP test participation and results (AP/IB coursework already included) External data Incorporate additional outcomes data, such as employment or military data Regional perspective Provide a regional or cross-state view; example: to see whether the students required remediation at out-of-state institutions

10 Advance Reports and Tools

11 Answer Questions from Government/Funders "How many public high school graduates enroll in postsecondary education?"

12 Answer Questions from Government/Funders (cont.)

13 Answer Questions from Government/Funders (cont.)

14 Show Trend Data "How many high school graduates took remedial courses their first year of postsecondary?"

15 Show Trend Data (cont.)

16 Show Trend Data (cont.)

17 Tailor Reports to Specific Audiences "How does 9th grade attendance relate to postsecondary enrollment?"

18 Tailor Reports to Specific Audiences (cont.)

19 Compare Outcomes "How does our district compare to districts serving similar student populations?"

20 Compare Outcomes (cont.)

21 Creating a Report

22 Creating a Report: Postsecondary Outcome

23 Creating a Report: Cohort

24 Creating a Report: Limit Group

25 Creating a Report: Select Characteristics

26 Custom Table: Percentages

27 Custom Table: Counts

28 Closing Begin the reporting conversation Advance Prototype: Username: PilotReviewer Password: Pilot2010