Data-based decision making : an overview

School leaders and teachers are increasingly required to use data as the basis for their decisions. But what does using data for decision-making mean? What counts as “data”? In this chapter, the authors address what is meant by the word “data” and what kinds of data are available and needed. The latter should overlap, but sometimes the available data are not needed and sometimes needed data are not available. In this chapter, we also discuss why teachers and school leaders should use data. Finally, the process of using data and the different ways data can and should be used is described.