EVENT: Navigating the �data revolution� in Australian schools

Now, more than ever, parents, school leaders and policy-makers have access to a dizzying array of data on the performance of students, schools and systems.

As data factories, schools also produce new forms of data through the increased use of online and mobile learning apps and platforms. This data revolution, driven by technological advances, has not only made it possible to generate large amounts of data, but also to make it widely accessible.

Navigating this new data-driven world, however, is easier said than done. Without sufficient understanding of what data can or cannot tell us, it is easy to use data in misleading or ineffective ways. This is often the case with data generated from large-scale student assessments such as NAPLAN, school performance data on the My School website, or data presented in the form of ‘league tables’ that rank school ATAR performance. The rapid shift towards online learning also presents complex questions about data privacy and use, and the role of corporate influences in schools. In this context, data-literacy is a crucial skill to posess.

Join us for a Q&A-style panel that brings together policymakers, researchers, school leaders, teachers and parents to reflect on the possibilities and challenges presented by the ‘data revolution’ as we enter the 2020s. Presenters will dissect issues ranging from how parents use data about schools and student achievement, through to how policy makers harness system wide data to reform our education systems. Moderated by Associate Professor Glenn Savage, our panel of experts will engage in productive dialogue regarding the uses, misuses and potentials for the rapidly expanding data climate we inhabit.