Data Driven Teachers

A data-centered approach to teaching is immediately offputting, especially in an English classroom, where I will theoretically be. However, the author of this article makes a lot of cogent arguments for the usefulness of compiling and extracting information from large sets of data. The immediate impulse for me, as potentially in charge of an English class, is to center it around extended discussion sessions, because that's what really works for me. However, it's extraordinarily difficult to draw any real receptive indicators from those sessions. If something isn't working, it's very difficult for me, as the teacher, to both effectively lead and foster discussion as well as ensure that I'm connecting and engaging with each of the students I am teaching. Just because I love to read does not even remotely mean that will transfer to my students, and so I need to set tangible goals to work towards using numbers and percentages. This is something that will be a challenge for me, I can tell, but I am looking forward to becoming more proficient.