The district has implemented a Student Information System (SIS). Office staff, teachers, and I use the system to enter everything from attendance and grades to test scores and discipline information. However, we still must wait for reports to come from the district office. How does this help us?
The best approach to handling confidential information and providing immediate access to data in a useable format is a serious concern for districts. Most SIS programs allow you to develop specific queries or report formats for regular use and also allow you to identify who has access to what type of report. Work closely with site and district staff to identify those reports that site staff should be able to generate on their own while protecting the integrity of the data housed in the SIS.
Then arrange for professional development for site staff that addresses how to use the SIS for data analysis and confidentiality issues. This approach should enable sites to get to the information they need when they need it without compromising the security of the data in the SIS.
Submitted by: Susan Brooks-Young
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