Abstract:

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Programme for International Student Assessment directions and trends in average reading, science and mathematics student performance in Latvia starting from the Year 2000 till Year 2018 are either hump-shaped (more negative over more recent years) or flat. Countries all over the world are trying to improve schools to enhance the skills of their youth and to reduce the inequalities within society. The potential gains from the improving schools appear truly enormous if long-term economic growth is considered.

Latvia is undergoing a nation-wide curriculum reform in general education, with an aim to help students develop 21st century skills and raise students’ achievement. The reform’s goal is to focus on the development of transversal skills, complex learning outcomes and deeper learning.

The study aims to develop and pilot a transformative model for school improvement using data as a meaningful source of information. Specifically, it investigates national-level students assessment data, student surveys, teacher performance in the classroom, elements of school leadership practices and teacher collective efficacy as key variables to explore student achievements and develop school improvement plan. National-level students assessment data include in Grade 3 – Maths, and Latvian Language, in Grade 6 – in Maths, Latvian Language, and Sciences; and at the end of the compulsory education, all Grade 9 students exams in Maths, Latvian Language, English Language, and History.

To test the hypothesis, that model provides a way to explore student achievements and develop school improvement plan, the model was piloted in 11 different schools. The results showed that the developed model increases the likelihood of schools being able to use data in a purposeful and effective way and design an action plan for student achievement improvement.

Keywords:

Data-driven decision, school improvement, complex data analysis model.