The Change Management Unit in the Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training has launched a workshop for teachers entitled Using Data for School Improvement.
Primary school teachers have completed their sessions, while those in the secondary school will participate in the sessions from November 4 to 6 and on November 8.
The workshop is being facilitated by Dr. Jennifer Obidah, a former Director in the School of Education and Director of the Education Evaluation Centre, at The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus.
The Using Data for School Improvement is a professional development initiative, which seeks to leverage results for educational advancement taken from the Criterion Reference Test and the Barbados Secondary Schools Entrance Examination for primary school students, while the Caribbean Examination’s Council’s School Performance Data will be used for students in secondary school.
The workshop will equip 100 school leaders and other educators from 27 schools (17 primary and 10 secondary) with the tools to analyse academic achievement data to identify specific areas where students are facing challenges or not meeting performance expectations.
Participants will be encouraged to critically analyse the existing evidence to promote the implementation of interventions, support, and resources aimed at enhancing student outcomes.
Schools will be divided into ‘communities of practice’ to work collaboratively to share knowledge, experiences, and best practices to develop strategies to address achievement gaps among students. Through reflective practices, interactive activities, use of technology, virtual coaching platforms, document management software, and group calendars, participants will develop action plans for their overall school improvement.
These ‘communities of practice’ will be tasked with establishing measures to focus on boosting parental involvement (especially in smaller settings where reaching all parents is feasible), tackling teacher punctuality, addressing deficiencies in specific areas of the common entrance exams where students have demonstrated weaknesses, and enhancing communication between principals and teachers.