Teach students to examine their own data and set learning goals.

Teachers should provide explicit instruction to elementary and secondary students on regularly using achievement data to monitor their own performance and establish learning goals. While helping students make data-based decisions, teachers should emphasize the students’ responsibility for improving their own learning. Students are best prepared to learn from their achievement data when they understand the learning objectives; are provided thoughtful, constructive feedback on their progress; and are given sufficient time and tools to analyze the data and diagnose their own mistakes. Teachers can use students’ data analysis to identify factors that may motivate student performance and adjust their instruction to better meet students’ needs.