Data use to improve teaching and learning

Research indicates that in the 1990s, scholars like Chrispeels (1992); Codding and Rothman (1999); Bernhardt (2000a); Earl and Katz (2002) and Proteroe (2001); and later in South Africa, Eric Schollar (2004); began to explore how data could become an important part of improving teaching practice and learner academic achievement. The difference between leading international school practices and South African school practices around the use of data has to do with both the scale and understanding of the initiatives, and the continuity of focus on data use. Data has been used for accountability and to promote high standards of teaching and learning to measure school effectiveness. It can be used to improve educational outcomes and provide schools, districts and national departments with opportunities to share best practices based on hard evidence.

150 When asked whether the school management team engages to discuss learner performance, the principal’s reply was:

Yes, we do have. Like the one thing, this one of the performance of the learners, especially we discuss this thing where we have the problem of the Grade 6, because with the systemic evaluation, or the ANA, the learners are writing, is a Grade 1, and 3, and Grade 6. Now Grade 1 and 3, the performance is on top. The performance of this school is, the last one was above average. It was above provincial, it was above the district level, it was above national. But when it comes to the Grade 6s, literacy is there, but we had a problem with numeracy. We had a problem with numeracy, we found that the problem was in the Grade 4s, due to the fact that they had this, instead of class teaching, they had subject teaching. Part of that problem was this specific educator, because he teaches those learners mathematics in Grade 6. You

understand? So the problem, we actually discussed the problem, and we found out that it was the absenteeism of the teacher that causes the poor results especially mathematics results in Grade 6.(Principal)

Use of the ANA data enables the school management team to recognise poor performance with Grade 6’s numeracy. This was associated with irregular attendance of one maths teacher, and the fact that he taught these learners from when they were in Grade 4. The negative effect of the teacher was realised from poor learner performance in the ANA results two years later. What was surprising is that even when data for this study was done, the teacher was not at school as usual, and yet no action had been taken. The principal wanted to justify his idea of doing away with subject teaching as he was in favour of classroom

teaching. However, keeping the same teacher maths for three grades, even when learner performance is badly affected, does not seem a decisive action to be implemented by the school leadership. This does not mean data does not inform leadership, but when no decision is made to resolve problems in teaching, blame can be directed at school leadership for failing learners.

151 On the other hand, interview responses from teachers indicate that they work together and think about what could be a problem when learner performance is poor. When asked what questions come to mind to enable them to understand problems, based on assessment data, the following responses emerged.

You are supposed to come up with an intervention strategy for those underperforming learners, to get the on par with the rest of the learners who are performing well, or who are just performing above average. The intervention strategies that you would have to follow would be to first and foremost, evaluate and assess where specifically did the youngster not perform well? Thereafter you would have to come up with a remedy, or you would have to think up a way of rectifying that error, or that learning vacuum, where the vacuum occurred, you’d have to come up with a strategy to fill that vacuum effectively. (Maths HOD)

The Maths HOD’s response indicates that teachers have to try and understand the cause of the learning problem, help learners understand errors, and identify possible ways to help improve learning. In addition, one of the maths focus group responses explains that teachers do question themselves when learner performance is poor.

The question that comes up in my mind is, why do we have a ninety and a five? Why is that learner doing so badly? [These are] those learners that are every day in the class, that are getting the same attention [as others]. There are those, a few, who do not want to improve themselves. They are content, and they will merely tell you, mathematics is not my subject. I don’t understand mathematics, and then I also don’t want to understand mathematics. So you’re sitting there and you say, where’s the problem? I do some introspection. Maybe I’m [expecting learners to perform at] A grade level. (Maths FG, T1)

Another teacher from the language focus group mentioned that when they come across learning challenges, they work together and support each other to resolve problems in learning.

152 Because we’ll say, hey, O, I’ve got this problem today, or Mrs W this is what we experienced today in the class. And she will come and we’ll say, hey, help us, do you think the children will be better if we give them a crossword puzzle, than just to give them a plain written exercise like this? (Language FG, T3)

In support of this, another maths teacher indicated how learner performance makes them ask questions and seek for help where possible.

Like in Grade 5, the problem in teaching long division, so I was asking myself this question, am I teaching these children properly? I told myself that maybe there’s a problem with me. I went to Ms (Y) and ask her to come and teach my class Maths the following day, for three days or four days so that we can see some improvements, but unfortunately there is no change with learners] they are doing changing. (Maths FG, T3)

From these responses it can be concluded that teachers become concerned when learner performance is poor. They ask questions to help one another think of what the cause of the problem may be and to understand it, in order to find alternative ways to improve learning. However, there were times when teachers shared their frustrations such as when they consider that learners do not take interest in learning. There was a strong sense that teachers prefer to work together, sharing and using this collaboration to find solutions to learning challenges.