educational data

David Meechan unpicks the issues around the reception baseline assessment, he shares his research with us, as well as his personal experience as a parent, including requesting his son's withdrawal from the assessment and having to work with solicitors on this matter. David discusses his view on data, which should 'drive inclusion and promote access', rather than data being part of a reductionist model. David explains that the baseline assessment is in fact reproducing faults of an old system, rather than coming up with transformative or innovative ways of measuring children's progress. At the end David gives insight into his research findings around some positives teachers have taken from making the most of the reception baseline assessment, and he gives tips for teachers currently conducting the assessment. 

Episode breakdown: 

• 01:20 - How David's work started on the reception baseline
• 02:40 - Requesting his son's withdrawal from the assessment 
• 04:45 - Inconsistencies of withdrawal from the assessment
• 06:20 - Moral issues with assessment and testing
• 08:20 - Research into the baseline assessment
• 11:30 - Signing away a child's data footprint
• 12:47 - The datafication of early years
• 16:00 - Are the children's best interests at heart? 
• 17:30 - Taking teachers out of classrooms
• 18:58 - Key findings from David's baseline research
• 20:40 - Treating children as a means to an end
• 24:25 - Making the most of the reception baseline assessment
• 26:00 - A holistic approach to the baseline assessment
• 27:30 - Reliability of the baseline assessment
• 29:00 - Reducing lived experiences to abstract numbers
• 31:05 - Positives taken from the baseline assessment 
• 33:00 - Giving value to assessment
• 36:55 - Tips for teachers conducting the baseline assessment

Hear and read more on The Voice of Early Childhood website: www.thevoiceofearlychildhood.com

It is generally believed that the indigenous vernacular education in India was oral, controlled by certain sections of the population and exclusive in nature. However, the archival data of 16,000 indigenous vernacular schools gives a very different picture. In 1813, the British Parliament earmarked 100,000 rupees a year for education in India. The colonial government did not utilise the amount. The British liberals collected the data on indigenous schools to urge the colonial government to spend on improving these schools. The data is diverse and covers the Madras, Bombay and Bengal Presidencies and North Western Provinces (Uttar Pradesh). It comprises nine linguistic groups – Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Malayalam, Odia, Tamil, and Telugu. It was collected between 1819 and 1838 by British officials and civilians proficient in local vernaculars.

William Adam, a Sanskrit and Bengali scholar, collected the data for Bengal and Bihar. He sat in the classrooms and observed the method of teaching. So we have first-hand information on classroom practices of both Sanskrit and Bengali schools of Bengal. Many Sanskrit Pundits continued to correspond with Adam in Sanskrit long after the data collection was over. A.D. Campbell, who collected the data for the Bellary district, was proficient in both Kannada and Telugu languages.

This episode of BIC Talks which took place in early July 2023, by Parimala V Rao Historian & Professor, History of Education, Jawaharlal Nehru University covers access, curriculum, textbooks, school holidays, fees charged by the teachers and the colonial policy towards them. It will also address how education became exclusive by the end of the nineteenth century.

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 How do educators use data to inform their instruction for students? We’re joined by educational professionals Casey Wohletz, TJ Layne, and Annie Mais to discuss how Title 1 schools around the country are using data to help their students shine. 

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This episode was produced by Megan Dibble, Mike Cusic, and Matt Rotundo. Special thanks to Andy Uttley for the theme music and Mike Cusic for the for our album artwork.

Longtime educator, author, speaker and leadership coach Pete Hall stresses the importance of a "reflective practice" for educators. He outlines a  four-step process of self-reflection and shows how, when combined with some authentic self-care,  it can build capacity in educators at every level.
 
 Check out all his works HERE and look for his latest book,  "Always Strive to Be a Better You: How Ordinary People Can Live Extraordinary Lives" later this summer (2022).

"Outliers in Education" is a project of CEE, The Center for Educational Effectiveness. Find out more at effectiveness.org.

Produced by Jamie Howell at Howell at the Moon Productions.