Dashboard Metrics
Algebra I - 9th
Background
District Dashboard Metrics
Because of the importance of Algebra I as the foundation for advanced mathematics attainment, many school districts, including Oakland and several districts in Texas, have incorporated metrics on Algebra completion into their internal performance management dashboards. In focus group discussions conducted with over 2,600 educators throughout Texas, the Algebra I metric was considered useful by only 89% of respondents. This represents a significantly lower usefulness rating than those for other Academic Progress metrics, indicating the potential need for additional training on the importance of Algebra I as a predictor of long-term student success.
Primary Metric
- Algebra I - 9th: percent of students currently enrolled in 9th grade who are currently taking or have taken Algebra I and the percent of students currently enrolled in the 9th grade who are currently passing or have passed Algebra I, with comparison to campus goals.
User Interface
Dashboard Example
Figure 1 shows the Algebra I metric as seen on the district dashboard.
Figure 1 TSDS Algebra I - 9th Metric
Status Definition
The metric identifies the percentage of students who are
- taking Algebra I or have previously taken Algebra I by 9th grade
- passing or have passed Algebra I by 9th grade
The Status indicator is determined by campus-specific thresholds (campus goals) which are set at the district level. The TSDS default campus goals are
- taking or taken Algebra I = 75%
- passing or passed Algebra I = 75%
The recommended default thresholds for “passing” a course are:
- Letter grade is C or above
- Numeric grade is equal to or greater than 70
The recommended default threshold for "passed" a course is:
- Recieved a full credit
Table 2 lists the Status indicators and trend comparisons as seen on the district dashboard.
Metric Status Indicators | |||
Metric Name | Sub-metric Name | Metric Status Indicator | District Goal (Delta) |
Algebra I - 9th | Taking or have Taken by 9th grade | Red (Percentage) = if percentage of students is less than district goal Green (Percentage) = if percentage of students is greater than or equal to district goal | District goal and the calculated percentage of students taking or have taken Algebra I by 9th grade |
Passing or have Passed by 9th grade | Red (Percentage) = if percentage of students is less than district goal Green (Percentage) = if percentage of students is greater than or equal to district goal | District goal and the calculated percentage of students passing Algebra I by 9th grade | |
a) The Value column displays the number of students taking/taken Algebra I and passing/passed Algebra I by 9th grade out of the total number of students in the 9th grade.
Trends
Currently the dashboards do not support trends for this district metric. The UI supports trends, but the ETL packages have not been developed.
Trend Definition
Trend Indicators: Objective is to indicate Algebra I- 9th | |||
| Up green | If the value for the current time frame is more than 5 percentage points higher than the prior time frame, then display a gray arrow trending upward. | |
| Unchanged | If the value for the current time frame is less than or equal to 5 percentage points higher or less than or equal to 5 percentage points lower than the prior time frame, then display two gray arrows pointing outward indicating no direction. | |
| Down red | If the value for the current time frame is more than 5 percentage points lower than the prior time frame, then display a gray arrow trending downward. | |
The trend does not show for the first occurrence of a time frame since data is not available.
Delta
The Delta column is the absolute value of the difference between the district percentage (Status column) and the district goal (District Goal column).
Delta Indicators: Objective is to indicate Algebra I - 9th | |||
Metric Name | Sub-Metric Name | District Goal | Delta |
Algebra I - 9th | Taking or have Taken by 9th grade | Set district goal | Red (Delta Percentage) = if the percentage of students is less than the district goal Black (Delta Percentage) = if the percentage of students is greater than or equal to the district goal |
Passing or have Passed by 9th grade | Set district goal | Red (Delta Percentage) = if the percentage of students is less than the district goal Black (Delta Percentage) = if the percentage of students is greater than or equal to the district goal | |
Periodicity
The data is most actionable when loaded at the end of each grading period after grades are posted. Grading periods vary by state and district. In Texas, grading periods are typically six or nine weeks.
Table 5 Recommended Load Characteristics for
Algebra I - 9th Metric
Recommended Load Characteristics | |
Calendar | Throughout school year |
Frequency of data load | Once each grading period |
Latency | 6-9 weeks |
Interchange schema | Interchange-StudentGrade.xsd |
Tooltips
The standard tool tips for the metric definition, column headers, and help functions display for this metric.
- Green metric status: OK
- Red metric status: LOW
- 'More' indicates drill down views for this metric
is ‘No change from the prior period'
is ‘Getting worse from the prior period’
is 'Getting better from the prior period'
Business Rules
The Algebra I metric displays two sub-metrics, each with specific business rules as described here.
Percentage taking or have taken Algebra I
The first sub-metric indicates the percentage of students that are currently taking or have taken Algebra I by 8th grade for middle school or 9th grade for high school. The data to compute this metric is taken from either the student transcript or from their list of current courses. Algebra I can be defined by either a state course code (e.g., in Texas, 03100500-ALG I) or a locally-defined course code.
If the Algebra I course code does not appear on a student’s transcript and the student is currently taking the next course in the mathematics sequence (e.g., Geomtry or higher), TSDS assumes the student has passed Algebra I. Missing course codes may be due to the following cases:
- Ninth grade students may not have middle school course information on their transcripts.
- Students who are transferring in during the school year may not have transcripts transferred and/or recorded in the campus system.
Percentage passing or have passed Algebra I
The second sub-metric indicates the percentage of students who previously passed or are passing Algebra I. For business rules, if the student
- is currently taking Algebra I, the current grading period grade is used to determine passing status.
- has taken and failed Algebra I and is not currently taking Algebra I, the failed grade status from the student transcript is used.
- does not have Algebra I in their course transcript and is currently taking a higher-level mathematics class, TSDS assumes that the student has already passed Algebra I.
The length of the grading period is configurable and is defined by the district – typically either 6 or 9 weeks.
Data Assumptions
- Historical student course information is available through the student transcript.
- Current student grade information is available through the latest reported grading period.
- Course grades are numeric or letter-based.
- District sets the value that drives the campus goals.
Computed Values
Table 6 defines how values are calculated for this metric. The result of the calculation displays in the Status column on the student dashboard.
Metric Values | ||
Algebra I | Percent of Students Taking or Taken Algebra I by 9th grade | Number of students that (are current taking Algebra I and are passing Algebra I) OR |
Percentage Passing or Passed Algebra I by 9th grade | For a student who has previously taken Algebra I, the determination of whether the student has passed Algebra I is computed as follows:
For a student who is taking Algebra I, the determination of whether the student is passing Algebra I is computed as follows:
| |
Calculation Notes
Percentage taking or have taken Algebra I
The cohort is the set of current students across all grades in the campus with transcript data available and for whom grades have been loaded for the last reported grading period, except for:
- Transfer (late enrollment) students with the following information missing from their transcript: student is or has taken Algebra I or if the transfer student is or has taken the next course in the mathematics sequence following Algebra I.
Percentage passing or have passed Algebra I
The cohort is the set of current students who:
- are currently taking Algebra I, or
- previously taken Algebra I, or
- are currently taking a more advanced mathematics course than Algebra I, or
- have taken a more advanced mathematics course than Algebra I
For a student with an incomplete transcript who is taking or has taken a more advanced mathematics course than Algebra I, TSDS assumes the student has passed Algebra I.
Data Anomalies
Date of Refresh
Best practice is for the date of last data refresh to appear next the metric in the following format:
- (Through Third Grading Period)
Missing Credits
Students may have a final grade of passing on thier transcript but not have a credit entered. TSDS assumes that the credit was not earned and therefore the student did not pass the course.
Implementation Considerations
Local Algebra I Courses
If the district offers locally-defined courses that are considered equivalent to Algebra I, developers must include these additional course codes.
Numeric or Letter Grading System
The metric supports both numeric and letter grading systems.
Drill Downs
Drill Down Views
The dashboards include the option to drill down and see more detail that is associated with a metric. Table 7 lists the drill down views that are recommended for this metric.
Campus List | List of campuses and whether or not they are meeting their goals for this metric for the specified period. |