Examples of successful data use strategies
Examples of successful strategies for using shared data (actionable information) to –
- Guide decision making to improve services (feedback loops that foster data use & sharing)
- Foster greater community-wide collaboration around early childhood
- Communicate value (costs versus benefits/ROI) and advocate for resources
- Determine the most strategic investments in a growth environment to maximize limited capacity & resources in meeting increased local interest and demand, without compromising quality
Examples of successful strategies
using shared data (actionable information) to…
Guide decision making to improve services (feedback loops that foster data use & sharing)
Smart Beginning Greater Roanoke has been working with Roanoke City Public Schools to link PALS-PreK data to PALS-K data to create a feedback loop for early care and education (ECE) program quality improvements and to position pre-k as an integral part of the early education continuum.
Smart Beginnings Greater Richmond positioned itself as a school readiness systems-building convener by compiling data across multiple sources and parlaying it into actionable information for use by Region 1 school divisions; using PALS-K data was efficient because school divisions did not have to expend additional effort to collect the data (it’s already there) but when organized from a systems-level viewpoint, it can guide conversations and inform decisions beyond that which it was intended for (i.e. differentiated classroom instruction).
Foster greater community-wide collaboration around early childhood
Smart Beginnings Central Virginia compiled key indicator data (on poverty, parents in labor force, food insecure, VPI, Title I, PALS, G3 Reading SOL, grade repetition) to develop strategic focus and target outcomes for its SB footprint through 2025.
Communicate value (costs versus benefits/ROI) and advocate for resources
ROI study done by Wilder Research for Vermont Business Roundtable
ROI study done by Wilder Research for Detroit, Michigan
Determine the most strategic investments in a growth environment to maximize limited capacity & resources in meeting increased local interest and demand, without compromising quality
Smart Beginning Greater Roanoke has been working with Roanoke City Public Schools (RCPS) to link PALS-PreK data to PALS-K data to create a feedback loop for early care and education (ECE) program quality improvements and to position pre-k as an integral part of the early education continuum.
In addition to Smart Beginnings Greater Roanoke (SBGR) using this information to direct quality improvement supports and resources, data analysis work has been powerful in informing and directing current and existing partner efforts to specific populations and strategies so that they become mutually reinforcing efforts. Having partners meet on a regular basis to look at the data, discuss what it means, and identify possible action steps has been beneficial and often leverages efforts already underway or redirects programming and resources to where they are needed most. There is a layering effect of resources as specific geographic areas are targeted through Virginia Quality (VQ), Head Start, Star City Reads, and CHIP. Star City Reads has also used this information to engage community volunteers in reading activities, offer their own resources as SBGR serves targeted sites, and secure financial and in-kind donations of literacy resources to complement the work.
Active sharing and use of data to inform decisions, mobilize a variety of partners, and make improvements were noted as a key community strength when the City of Roanoke was awarded its 7th All-America City Award for Grade Level Reading.
Building the capacity and agreeing to collect the same data points (and use the same tool) are precursors to effective data sharing. Adopting PALS-PreK and K as shared data measurements across partners allowed us to see how our work was connected. While all partners knew this intuitively, understanding this through the lens of data and realizing that children in quality settings (even those considered at-risk) were consistently performing better than their peers added to our credibility as valuable partners and a legitimacy to the strategies being implemented. Results of the data sharing project have been presented to the Roanoke City Public Schools board, Roanoke City Council, and Board of Directors of local partnering organizations. As part of Star City Reads, this has also been shared with other communities that are part of the national grade level reading campaign.