USEFUL, EASY, AND CONSEQUENTIAL

To improve and inspire high-quality mathematics teaching and learning, teachers and instructional leaders need access to data that are meaningfully connected to practice. Although most schools and districts are inundated with data (e.g., annual state test scores, data from any number of interim assessment systems), these data are not always helpful in terms of making timely adjustments to instruction, teacher professional learning, and other crucial factors affecting student mathematics outcomes. In this paper, we discuss the potential of practical measurement to fill this gap and address tensions facing math leaders. Unlike most data-driven accountability measures, practical measures are easy for teachers and leaders to collect and interpret data, enabling teachers to adjust instruction in a timely manner. We provide a repository of practical measures leaders can add to their instructional tool belts, discuss how middle-grade mathematics instructional leaders have used the
repository to promote continuous improvement, and outline considerations for leaders and coaches in using practical measures to support their ongoing work with math educators.