In Brian Gill's Words: Don’t Let Statistics Become “Damned Lies”

An Imperfect Leader

Book Update!

Imperfect Leaders! You can now order my book, An Imperfect Leader: Leadership in (After) Action. Click on the link here, and if there is no hyperlink, go to peterstiepleman.com, you can order it there.

AND if you liked it, would you please leave a positive review? I’m hoping to earn 35 positive reviews on Amazon. Thanks!

When I was a superintendent, I was called to a meeting with an economics professor. What he wanted to discuss with me was the use of results on standardized tests to evaluate the effectiveness of a teacher. I bristled at the idea of looking only at the score on an external test to determine whether or not a teacher was effective.

When asked if I would consider looking at growth data instead – meaning how much growth a child made over a 10-month period to determine a teacher’s effectiveness, I became less hostile. I do think there is value in this. For one thing, I can remember using this type of data analysis to conclude that children in an elementary class were actually regressing over the first months of school. We used that information and intervened quickly to provide support.

I do struggle with the appropriateness of rewarding only one teacher for a child’s growth. What about rewarding the entire school? Yes, I can get behind that. Think about it. You’ve got an excellent reading teacher. They are Reading Recovery trained and equipped to save a child’s life. HOWEVER, the child only comes to school because every morning, he gets to eat breakfast with the custodian, someone who has taken an interest in the child’s life. Or maybe she gets to stay after school and participate in the swim club the PE teacher hosts every Tuesday and Thursday at the local pool. Or perhaps they get to process their traumas with the school counselor and tend to the school’s gecko in the science teacher’s classroom.

Schools are a mosaic. They are many small pieces coming together to make something beautiful. My guest today, Dr. Brian Gill, is a researcher who helps schools understand what their data is telling them. He talks about avoiding the mistake of making an inference the data doesn’t support. Brian offers four pieces advice called Don’t Let Statistics Become “Damned Lies”.

A different look at leadership this week. I was so into our conmversation, I went way over the typical time I usually take with a guest. 😳 Thanks for tuning in!

BIO: Dr. Brian Gill is a senior fellow on K-12 education policy at Mathematica and director of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Educational Laboratory for the US Department of Education.

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An Imperfect Leader: Leadership in (After) Action is supported by ILAA, LLC, a firm dedicated to supporting aspiring, new, and established leaders. For more information, please find them at www.human-centeredleaders.com.

Music for An Imperfect Leader was written and arranged by Ian Varley.

Sam Falbo created our artwork, a wood-print inspired daruma doll butterfly.

www.peterstiepleman.com

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