When I was updating my website recently, I came across a post I wrote when my daughter was a newborn, talking about the metrics that were relevant to me at the time. It listed things like how many ounces she was eating at a time, how little sleep we got each night, and how many… Continue reading Choosing the metrics that matter (toddler version)
10 things I’ve learned in 10 years of business Everyone loves a countdown post, right? As I recently celebrated 10 years of being in business, it felt fitting to count down the top 10 things I’ve learned over the years! The past 10 years have been an amazing, winding journey, and I’m so grateful to… Continue reading 10 things I’ve learned in 10 years of business
“I couldn’t have put it better myself…” We all know how powerful a startling statistic can be. Maybe you’ve seen a PowerPoint presentation where there is just a huge number on the slide or a newspaper headline that highlights the stark realities of a situation. Remember the New York Times’ cover early on in the… Continue reading “I couldn’t have put it better myself”
A sleep-deprived perspective on data tracking I’m back from maternity leave! I’ve always had great admiration for parents and caregivers, and after almost two months with a newborn, that respect has grown ten-fold! Parenting (especially without much sleep) is tough work. While I was out, I had a few discussions with data-minded colleagues and read… Continue reading A Sleep-Deprived Perspective on Data Tracking
Preparing for Another Uncertain School Year I think we had all hoped that after two school years disrupted by COVID-19, the 2021-2022 school year could be a return to “normal.” Yet with the Delta variant surging throughout the country and children under 12 still unvaccinated, it’s becoming clear that educators and families are in for… Continue reading Preparing for Another Uncertain Year
Reframing data analysis as meaning-making This summer on the Engage with Data blog, I’m exploring different ways to answer the question: “So what?” My goal is to remind us of the human element of data — we are in the field of student and family engagement, after all! But I do get it – data… Continue reading Reframing data analysis as meaning-making
Looking for the “so what?” in our data If you’ve read this blog for any period of time, you’ve probably figured out that data tracking is kind of my thing. My super Type-A personality gets a lot of satisfaction from crossing every “t” and dotting every “i” and making sure that I can quickly access… Continue reading Looking for the “So What?” In Our Data
Use your data to celebrate families Educators: you’ve made it! It’s finally the end of the school year. And what a school year it was. I’m sure that there are all kinds of celebrations happening as this confusing, exhausting, stressful, and probably scary year comes to a close. But if you’ve been tracking your student… Continue reading Use Your Data to Celebrate Families
Your data tracking cheat sheet In my last post, I talked about how logic models — although they can be a chore — can actually be a great visual roadmap of your program’s components, benchmarks, and goals. Working collaboratively to develop a logic model can be a unifying experience for teams, a way to get… Continue reading Your data tracking cheat sheet
We can’t let them fall through the cracks. I started writing a completely different blog post for this week, but when I read the news this morning, I knew I had to shift gears. CNN featured a story yesterday called “Teachers and social workers search for students who are ‘missing’ in the pandemic.” The word… Continue reading We can’t let them fall through the cracks.
