08 Apr Institutional Research and Education Policy Debates: The Role of IR in Enhancing the Quality of Education Discourse

The Institutional Research field is a microcosm of the education field, attracting practitioners from a wide range of academic disciplines and work experiences. Personally, I have leveraged formal education in History, Political Science, and Education along with training including project management, business analysis, and strategic change management. In a previous IR office blog post, I referenced leveraging diverse intellectual backgrounds of Institutional Research practitioners in Higher Learning Commission peer review. Institutional Research professionals may be uniquely positioned to serve in another important role for the betterment of education: promoting civil, respectful, empathetic, and thoughtful data informed education discourse. I will share some thoughts from my experiences working within K-12 and higher education.

Much has been said about the toxic, unhealthy discourse within and outside of education. This has contributed to stress and hardship experienced by education administrators, teachers, staff, and students. This stress and hardship impact the delivery of education content and student engagement in learning. Educators, whether at the K-12 or higher education levels, are role models for students. Students draw cues for their actions from how educators interact with other adults and manage classrooms.

Some lessons instilled within me during my youth are notable in this context. My father often said “when elephants fight, it is the grass that loses”. When adults fight around students, students suffer the consequences. My parents’ perspective on discipline is also relevant here. My parents never administered discipline when they were mad, giving themselves an opportunity to calm down and rationally proceed. They also viewed their children’s wellbeing as their top priority and sought to get all of the facts first.

These lessons are important for educators in dealing with stressful and chaotic situations. If students see adults yelling at each other, using hurtful language, and being violent; they will think those things are acceptable and will respond similarly. Everyone needs to acknowledge that the wellbeing and success of students is the top priority of education at all levels. We also need to commit ourselves to understanding the complexities of the circumstances we face and responding in a calm manner; rather than making knee-jerk, uninformed responses at elevated volume levels.

There has been much concern about the impending changes surrounding at the U.S. Department of Education (USED), at the K-12 and higher education levels. While many unanswered questions remain, many of the foundational elements of our educational system have been in place since before the department was created in 1979. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), including statutory requirements in Title I, Title II, Title III, Title IV, and other programs, was originally signed in 1965 and was most recently reauthorized through the implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in 2015. The Higher Education Act (HEA) regulating institutional aid, federal student financial aid, and teacher preparation programs was adopted in 1965. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) ensuring privacy of student educational data began in 1974 and has been amended several times since. Amendments to any of these acts require congressional and executive approval.

Some laws governing education were implemented after the creation of the U.S. Department of Education. For example, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) was implemented in 1990 and has become a cornerstone of education in the United States. Any changes to this legislation would require congressional and executive approval.

This by no means suggests that there would be no negative impacts or is defending the way in which some of these changes may be made, it merely implies that the circumstances and implications are more complex than the rhetoric and bold headlines convey. At the K-12 levels, state education agencies may have to hire more staff to administer any programs that are delegated to states. One could argue that the conversations about a smaller role for USED in K-12 education suggest that there is more confidence among policymakers in states running K-12 education than there is in decision makers at the federal level. State education agencies, along with educators and students in schools, may be more concerned if there were conversations about eliminating state education agencies and  placing all of education policymaking power at the federal level.

Higher education may face different implications. The role of regional accrediting organizations and specialized program accreditations in helping ensure institutional quality and rigor seems likely to continue. Attention by policymakers to higher education costs may be likely to continue, in part due to increasing costs that in some cases outpace the capacity of students to find related employment allowing them to repay the loans.

What is the role of Institutional Research in these circumstances? Institutional Researchers are uniquely positioned to investigate a wide range of questions facing educational institutions. We bring diverse educational backgrounds and lenses through which to help design research questions, leverage relevant data, conduct analyses, draw useful conclusions, and help communicate the results to varied stakeholder audiences.

Foundational values of the Institutional Research profession strengthen the capacity of Institutional Research to model these behaviors. The Association for Institutional Research (AIR) Code of Ethics  (2014) refers to institutional researchers being “guardian of truth” and the “conscience” or an institution. The code establishes standards of conduct that include implementation of ethical and accepted research practices. Notable among the provisions for this topic are “Integrity of Reports” and “Integrity of the Profession”. “Integrity of Reports” under “Relationships to the Community” references helping protect against the misuse of reports through “by careful presentation and documentation in original reports, and by diligent follow-up contact with institutional users of those reports” and make reasonable efforts to correct any known misrepresentations by others (p. 3). Under “Relationships to the Craft”, “Integrity of the Profession” states in part “Institutional researchers “should protect, enhance, and improve the integrity of the profession through appropriate study and research, active discussion, and responsible criticism of the profession” (p. 4).

The AIR Statement of Ethical Principles (2019) emphasizes the importance of integrity in our work. This includes acknowledging the impact of our work, maintaining responsible data stewardship, and ensuring appropriate confidentiality and privacy.  This also entails providing appropriate context, adequate transparency, and addressing any conflicts of interest.

The AIR Statement of Aspirational Practices for Institutional Research , developed with Randy Swing and Leah Ewing Ross in 2016, further articulates how practitioners can leverage data for positive impacts, declaring “The goal is for smart people to make smart decisions to improve student success” (p. 3). Rather than relying upon top-down approaches, “Broadly engaging all stakeholders in data-informed decisions (tactical, operational, and strategic) is essential for institutional excellence” (p. 4). The document establishes how students, faculty, and staff all can be empowered to make data-informed decisions based upon institutional research activities.

The Association for Institutional research established the Duties and Functions of Institutional Research (2017) highlighting essential institutional research aspects for any institution. Outlined functions center upon the following (p. 1):

• Identify information needs
• Collect, analyze, interpret, and report data and information
• Plan and evaluate
• Serve as stewards of data and information
• Educate information producers, users, and consumers

The education function particularly references “the training and coaching related to the use of data, analysis, and information to inform decision making” (p. 1). In addition to functions related specifically to the research process, education includes “a collaborative role in convening discussions related to information needs and connecting internal and external producers and users of data with one another for the purposes of informing decision making” (p. 1).

While all education professionals experience stress and challenges in a constantly changing educational landscape, Institutional Researchers are uniquely positioned with diverse educational backgrounds, research process experience, and foundational expectations within the field. Through working with integrity to provide the most complete information possible along with appropriate data insights, we can help ensure that stakeholders have the best possible tools in their decision making toolbox. By remaining calm and being trusted as advocates for the story the data is telling, we can be respected thought leaders in policy discussions at all levels. When we leverage all of these capacities, we can hopefully encourage all educational leaders to make the best possible decisions based upon the data story rather than the emotions of the moment. We should model the expectation that our discussions do not occur when we are angry. We must make sure that student success is always the top priority, rather than students being the “grass that loses” when adults are fighting.

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Dr. Gregory Carlson is an Institutional Researcher – Special Projects with the North Dakota University System. Working closely with the Department of Public Instruction and Information Technology Department, primary responsibilities include project management, data framing, and ensuring compliance with requirements for statewide K-12 public school Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) accountability reporting through the Insights interactive public dashboards. He assists in addressing accountability data questions from education stakeholders and facilitating use of educational data to facilitate continuous improvement of student learning within North Dakota’s public K-12 schools.