Data use and school improvement: Understanding meanings and practices underlying educational decision-making processes

Abstract

The implementation of the National System of Quality Assurance in Education (SNAC) in Chile, fosters a relationship between ministerial agencies and schools characterized by the production of external evaluations and data to guide school improvement. The present article contributes information on the challenges public schools face, in response to the first implementation phase of SNAC performed by the Quality Assurance Agency (ACE). To this end, and based on a review  of international literature, the authors propose a conceptual definition of data highlighting a reflexive approach. This definition was employed to study four municipal schools located in the Metropolitan Region. The main findings of the study illustrate the strategies and processes of data analysis/use, performed by the schools, along with identifying the factors that influence these actions. The findings further underscore the strong influence of accountability on how the school actors conceptualize the value and use of data provided by SNAC, which influences how this data is used to inform school decision-making. The article suggests guidelines for education policy that would promote a contextualized, timely, and systemic use of data in municipal schools.