Seeking Clarity in the Uncertainty of Change: Leveraging Data to School Improvement

Many school leaders are under pressure to improve specific metrics, but the path forward is often unclear. In choosing a course of action, leaders are asked to make collaborative decisions informed by data. However, school-based data is often imperfect and incomplete, and staff may lack capacity to collect and analyze data. This case describes a principal engaging with a school community facing calls for improvement, yet uncertain of what plan to adopt. It illustrates the challenges of using data to create a plan for improvement, and the difficulty in charting a path to meaningful change in conditions of uncertainty.