Data sgp is working to assemble an unprecedented amount of information for the scientific questions at hand. Nevertheless, the size of this dataset is relatively modest in comparison to other examples that are used to describe ‘big data’. It is certainly bigger than a typical school district’s test data set, but not as large as the information that is captured by Facebook interactions or that would be stored on a single computer server (see What are the requirements for a large SGP database?).
We use a custom relational database to store the results of the SGP analyses. The database is a powerful tool for analyzing and reporting on the performance of students, schools, and districts. For example, the database can be used to identify schools that are making significant progress toward closing the achievement gap. It can also be used to assess the impact of interventions and to track student progress over time. The database is an important part of the infrastructure that supports our research and is central to our efforts to improve the accuracy and usability of SGP analyses.
A student growth percentile (SGP) is a measure of a student’s performance in terms of their academic peers. For example, if Simon’s current SGP is 68th percentile for 6th grade, this indicates that he is performing below his peers in the sixth grade in the subject matter. The SGP is based on the comparison of Simon’s current performance with his prior test scores. Up to five prior test scores are used to establish his comparison group.
This comparison is then compared to an average of all students with similar test score histories. The SGP is an important tool for evaluating students’ academic progress, even when they do not currently meet standard. The SGP is particularly useful for identifying high-achieving students who are making incredible strides in their learning, as well as highlighting the work of students who enter school below grade level standards but demonstrate great student growth.
The exemplar SGP data set sgpData is anonymized and contains 5 years of annual, vertically scaled assessment data in WIDE format. This data set models the format of the assessment data that is used with the lower level SGP functions, studentGrowthPercentiles and studentGrowthProjections. For operational SGP analyses, we recommend the use of the higher level functions prepareSGP and updateSGP which ‘wrap’ the above 6 steps into a single function call, simplifying the source code associated with an SGP analysis.
For educators, understanding and interpreting student growth data is critical for improving student outcomes. Student growth measures provide insights into effective practices and shifts needed to ensure all students are college-and-career ready. These quantitative measures can be complemented with qualitative data that help explain the root causes of student achievement gaps and provide insight around how to close them. Read our guides to learn more about SGP and how to use these tools in your classroom. You can also check out our free webinars and podcasts for more information on implementing SGP in your classroom.